ORLANDO, Fla.  — SeaWorld Entertainment continues to rebound from the COVID-19 pandemic, although the company still has not returned to pre-pandemic staffing and international visitation.


What You Need To Know

  • SeaWorld Entertainment reports $270 million in first-quarter revenue

  • That was up by $99 million from the first quarter of 2021

  • Its theme parks' attendance was about 3.4 million, the highest since 2013

  • Executives still seek improvement in staffing and international visitor numbers

The Orlando-based company released its first-quarter earnings report for 2022 on Thursday.

SeaWorld's total revenue was $270 million, an increase of $99 million from the same quarter in 2021.

The company said its theme parks and water parks had about 3.4 million visitors in the quarter. That's the highest first-quarter attendance for the company since 2013, according to the report.

"We are pleased to report another quarter of record financial results," SeaWorld Chief Executive Officer Marc Swanson said in a statement.

SeaWorld also reported that it has helped rescue more than 300 animals in the first quarter of this year, bringing its total number of rescues over the company's history to more than 400,000 animals — including bottlenose dolphins, sea turtles and manatees.

Despite increased revenue and attendance, SeaWorld said it still has areas for further recovery.

"In particular, international and group-related visitation is improving, but not yet back to pre-COVID levels, and we have opportunities to improve staffing levels to capture even more in-park spending demand," Swanson said.

However, the company is happy with the success of several new attractions that have opened at its parks.

Earlier this year, SeaWorld opened its Ice Breaker coaster in Orlando, Iron Gwazi at Busch Gardens Tampa Bay, Tidal Surge at SeaWorld San Antonio and the Emperor coaster at SeaWorld San Diego.

This month the company plans to open two attractions at its Adventure Island water park in Tampa.