Wonderla Holidays, a chain of amusement parks, will make a capital expenditure of ₹70 crore in FY24 as it continues to build two additional parks, enhance services and products at the parks that already exist, and increase the capacity of its resort, which has 85 rooms at present, according to a top company executive.

Currently, it operates three theme parks in Kochi, Bengaluru, and Hyderabad and one resort in Bengaluru. The two new parks are expected to be in operation in the next three years. “We have resumed the construction in Chennai, while the construction in Bhubaneswar Park’s development is ongoing and should be live by 2025,” said Arun K. Chittilappilly, Managing Director, Wonderla Holidays.

In addition, it will add 40 more rooms to its resort in Bengaluru. Moreover, the company eventually plans to open more resorts in the existing geographies — Hyderabad and Kochi — due to availability of excess land.

The company recently reported a significant growth in net profit at ₹35.05 crore in the fourth quarter of FY23 compared to ₹8.51 crore in the same quarter last year. Its net revenue for the quarter was up 70 per cent y-o-y at ₹98.60 crore.

On the factors that led to a strong performance, Chittilappilly told businessline that the ongoing year has been extraordinary due to the heightened demand post-Covid, along with the increasing popularity of one-day and short trips.

“Internally, we prioritised digital marketing and effectively controlled our expenses. Additionally, the consistent introduction of new attractions and experiences like concerts and food festivals contributed to a surge in footfall.” In FY23, it had cumulatively seen a footfall of around 33 lakh people.

Growth projection

Although the company said that it won’t have 60 per cent growth in the upcoming year, it still anticipates it to be a successful year and aims for a modest increase of 5-10 per cent in visitors. Additionally, “we have raised the ticket rates by 10-12 per cent, and we plan to do so again along with the addition of more attractions, which should result in a significant increase in business this year,” the MD added.

Currently, it has a headcount of 1,000 people and plans to add 50–100 people across all its operations this year. The amusement park chain operates a ticket business that consists of amusement parks and resorts and a non-ticket business that consists of food and beverage and retail businesses.

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