Knott’s Berry Farm has been on a winning streak over the past few years with back-to-back-to-back annual attendance increases without the marquee drawing power of new themed rides and attractions like Disneyland and Universal Studios Hollywood.
Knott’s Berry Farm was the biggest winner in the latest attendance report released last week by the Themed Entertainment Association.
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“Knott’s Berry Farm and its associates set out each day to create fun and memorable experiences for our guests,” according to Knott’s officials. “To not only maintain our regular visitation but to grow it is a testament to our mission and the commitment of the team.”
Knott’s attendance was up 6.5% in 2024 — more than any other park in the Top 20 North American TEA Index.
The Buena Park theme park saw record attendance in 2024 with an all-time high of 4.5 million visitors, according to the TEA Index.
“We look forward to continuing to welcome returning and new guests alike as we close out Scary Farm and move into Merry Farm and the new year ahead,” according to Knott’s officials.
Knott’s has been on a roll with a steady string of attendance increases in 2022 (up 6%) and 2023 (up 8.4%), according to the TEA Index.
It was hard not to improve on the all-time low of 800,000 visitors in 2020 during the COVID-19 pandemic closure of California theme parks.
Knott’s attendance rebounded to 3.7 million in 2021 — a nearly four-fold increase over the dismal 2020 numbers.
Knott’s held steady around 3.6 million visitors per year from 2006 to 2014 before crossing the 4 million attendance threshold in 2017.
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Knott’s rebounded from the COVID-19 attendance depths with 4.2 million visitors in 2023 — matching the park’s pre-pandemic tally from 2019.
The winning streak was powered by a series of modest updates rather than marquee new rides and lands that have driven growth at Southern California rivals Disneyland and Universal Studios Hollywood.
Camp Snoopy was updated at Knott’s in 2024 with a new family coaster and super-sized kids swing.
The Fiesta Village area of Knott’s got a makeover in 2023 with updated theming, rides, food and entertainment.
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The closest thing Knott’s has had to a new ride over the past few years has been Knott’s Bear-y Tales.
The interactive dark ride that was set to debut in summer 2020 was pushed back to 2021 by the pandemic closures.
(Photo by Jeff Gritchen, Orange County Register/SCNG)
Knott’s Bear-y Tales replaced the Voyage to the Iron Reef 4-D interactive dark ride that debuted at the park in 2015.
The new Knott’s Bear-y Tales pays tribute to another dark ride by the same name that operated in the same location from 1975 to 1986.
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The Soak City water park across Beach Boulevard from the theme park will get an extensive makeover in 2026.
The biggest new attraction on the horizon for Knott’s remains the transformation of the park’s 1978 Schwarzkopf flywheel-launch shuttle loop coaster into Montezooma: Forbidden Fortress. The classic coaster has been closed since 2022 with the oft-delayed reopening date currently set for 2025 — and likely to be revised once again.
Disneyland’s 2024 attendance was nearly flat (up 0.5%) while Universal Studios Hollywood saw a big decline (down 9.9%) during the same period, according to the TEA Index.
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Disneyland updated Snow White’s Enchanted Wish in 2021 and opened Mickey & Minnie’s Runaway Railway in 2023 and Tiana’s Bayou Adventure in 2024.
Universal Studios Hollywood opened the Secret Life of Pets dark ride in 2021 and the Super Nintendo World themed land in 2023.