25 EUROPE'S THEME PARK PLAY GROUND

   Nearly 160 million people a year go to amusement parks in Europe and a recent survey found that nearly half of them are adults who go there without children. After a 1)surging growth in the theme park business in the United States and Asia, Europe has become the new battleground or shall we say the new playground for theme park giants.

   The industry of theme parks has something for everyone. In the United States many amusement and theme parks have seen attendance drop this year notably 1 holiday destination centers run by Disney and Universal. The slowing U.S. economy is scaring consumers who are spending less time and money on travel. Parks that attract day-trip visitors are faring better. But their revenues are vulnerable to wind and rain.

   As a result the industry leader may end up $30 million under its 2001 global revenue target of $1.1 billion. But despite the unpredictable weather and slowing economies, the theme park industry in Europe is growing. Analysts 2 are heartened by improving 2)margins at Euro Disney, which is planning its second park outside Paris in the year 2002. And next year Six Flags willboast 39 centers worldwide when it opens a new Warner Brothers Movie World in Madrid, Spain.

    Six Flags got a 3)foothold in Europe back in 1998 when it bought the Leewee Group, which had six parks in France, Belgium and Holland. In Europe there are over 200 theme parks. Many are small privately 3 owned businesses. They attract 180 million visitors annually 4 who spend over $2 billion. And surprisingly the main concentration of these parks is in the often damp and gray north.

   While Europeans on average spend $13 per park visit, Americans pay nearly three times as much. And most Europeans will oblige if they get good value for money that usually means cartoon character theme rides for the very young and 4)scary state-of-the-art experiences for nearly everyone else. Basically, people need to be entertained.

欧洲主题公园----人们游乐的新宠

   每年约有一亿六千多万人畅游欧洲的游乐场，最近的调查发现，几乎半数是成年人，他们没有带小孩同行。美国和亚洲的主题公园蓬勃发展过后，欧洲成了新的战场，或者应该说是大型主题公园的新游乐场。

   主题公园满足追求刺激的每一个人。今年，美国很多游乐场和主题公园的入场人数下降，迪斯尼和环球的度假中心尤为明显。美国经济速度放缓使消费者惊恐，于是减少旅游的时间和金钱。吸引即日来回游客的公园情况较好，但是收入很受风雨天气影响。

   结果行业巨头收入可能会为三千万美元，而他们2001年的全球收入目标是十一亿美元。可是尽管天气变幻莫测和经济速度放缓，欧洲的主题公园仍在不断增长。欧洲迪斯尼的上升盈利令分析家欢欣鼓舞，计划在2002年在巴黎外开设第二个公园。六旗夸下海口说，明年在全球建立三十九个中心，同时在西班牙的马德里新办一家华纳兄弟电影公司。

   六旗在1998年通过收购利威集团进军欧洲。利威集团在法国、比利时和何兰拥有六个主题公园。在欧洲有超过二百个主题公园，很多规模很小，由私人拥有。它们每年吸引一亿八千万游客，消费总额超过二十亿美元。令人惊奇的是，这些主题公园主要集中在通常潮湿和昏暗的北部。

   欧洲人每次畅游主题公园的平均花费是十三美元，美国人的消费接近它的三倍。大部分欧洲人重视物有所值，年轻人喜欢卡通人物主题旅程，其他几乎每一个游客都喜欢骇人听闻的奇幻历程。基本上，人人都需要玩乐。

1) surge  v. 汹涌，澎湃    

2) margin   n. 差额，赚头

3) foothold   n. 立足点    

4) scary   a. 引起惊慌的，骇人的