Why Six Flags is selling 7 parks and what it could mean for Cedar Point

CLEVELAND, Ohio – North America’s largest regional amusement park company will get a bit smaller next month with the sale of seven Six Flags properties, including a couple tied to the company’s early history.
Six Flags says the move will allow the company to concentrate on the parks “with the greatest potential for innovation, expansion and elevated guest experiences,” according to a statement.
In other words, it’s shedding its least profitable parks to spend more on the properties that are most likely to grow in visitors and profits.
On the chopping block: Three properties from the former Cedar Fair, which merged with Six Flags in 2024, including Worlds of Fun in Kansas City, Michigan’s Adventure in Muskegon, and Valleyfair near Minneapolis. Valleyfair was one of two original Cedar Fair parks, joining Cedar Point in 1983 to create the Sandusky-based amusement park company.
Also included in the deal is Six Flags St. Louis, which opened in 1971 and was one of the original parks in the Six Flags chain.
The sale comes as Six Flags faces increasing pressure to reduce its debt.
At the end of 2025, the company reported total debt of about $5.18 billion. That figure will drop by more than $300 million in the coming weeks with the sale of seven properties to EPR Properties, a real estate investment trust that owns hundreds of entertainment venues, including theaters, waterparks, indoor skydiving centers and ski resorts.
Related: Travis Kelce, who grew up riding Cedar Point coasters, becomes Six Flags ambassador
Industry consultant Dennis Speigel said the $331 million sale price for seven Six Flags parks appeared low.
“What surprised me the most was the price,” said Speigel, founder of International Theme Park Services in Cincinnati. “That’s about what a roller coaster costs these days.”
He added, “There aren’t a lot of buyers in the market right now.”
Speigel said the sale does more than reduce debt. It allows Six Flags to focus future spending on parks that have the greatest potential to increase revenue.
“It’s taking these parks off the plate of Six Flags in terms of management and worry,” said Speigel. “It’s going to give them more time to focus on their other parks.”
Robert Niles, editor of industry publication Theme Park Insider, said the sale was a smart move for Six Flags.
“Selling parks allows Six Flags to help pay off debt and raise much-needed cash for adding new rides at its remaining parks,” he said. “The company needs to start investing more in new attractions if it is to have any hope of holding on to customers as rivals Disney, Universal, Legoland and Herschend expand across the country.”
Herschend Family Entertainment, based in Atlanta, owns Dollywood in Tennessee and Silver Dollar City in Missouri. The company last year purchased Palace Entertainment, adding parks including Kennywood and Idlewild near Pittsburgh to its portfolio.
During Six Flags’ year-end earnings call in February, executives said they expect to spend between $400 million and $425 million on capital improvements in 2026, compared with about $475 million in 2025.
Cedar Point, for example, is not getting a new ride in 2026 for the first time in years (although, to be fair, the Sandusky park has introduced a new roller coaster each of the last three years.)
Major capital investments at other Six Flags parks this year include new coasters at Six Flags Over Texas, Six Flags New England and Six Flags Mexico, plus a new dark ride at Kings Island.
Speigel said he wouldn’t be surprised if Six Flags eventually sells more parks, although he doubts it will happen this year.
As most parks prepare to open this spring, “their focus right now is on operations, on pricing, on marketing,” said Speigel.
In addition, he said, new Six Flags CEO John Reilly, who started late last year, needs to see all the parks in operation before making a decision on which ones to keep and which to close or sell.
Six Flags spokesman Gary Rhodes declined to comment on whether additional park sales were in the works.
The company last year closed Six Flags America in suburban Maryland and plans to close California’s Great America near San Jose in 2027.
Speigel described the seven parks that are part of the deal with EPR as “mid-tier, mediocre-performing parks.”
In addition to properties in St. Louis, Kansas City, Michigan and Minneapolis, the sale includes Six Flags Great Escape near Lake George, New York; Six Flags La Ronde in Montreal; and Schlitterbahn Waterpark Galveston in Texas.
The sale is expected to close by the end of March or early April. All seven parks will retain the Six Flags names through 2026 and maintain previously announced operating schedules this year.
Existing season passes will be honored through the 2026 season — including multi-park pass add-ons purchased at other Six Flags locations, including Cedar Point.
Once the sale is complete, Six Flags will have 34 amusement parks and separate-admission water parks, plus eight resort properties.
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Cedar Point defies Six Flags slump with near-record attendance