Six Flags Fiesta Texas

Six Flags Fiesta Texas is a theme park located in northwest San Antonio, Texas inside a former rock quarry near the intersection of Loop 1604 and Interstate 10.

Related Topics:
Theme park - San Antonio, Texas - Quarry

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When the owner group in San Antonio, Texas began to think in terms of developing a major theme park, they faced significant competition in the area. There were parks in Dallas, Houston, and the more recent Sea World Park in San Antonio itself. Based on the competition, the opportunity in San Antonio and the direction of the theme park industry in the U.S., the concept for Fiesta Texas was defined as: a destination market, musical show park. The development team of USAA, a major insurance company in the U.S. which owned the property, and Gaylord Entertainment, a theme park operator with a musical show park in Nashville, Tennessee, combined to undertake this development Their thinking was that San Antonio was a destination market for tourists in the region. 1{{ref|}}

Related Topics:
Dallas - Houston - Sea World Park - USAA - Insurance company - Gaylord Entertainment - Nashville, Tennessee

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In order to compete with major parks in Dallas and Houston, the park in San Antonio had to offer something unique, something in addition to the rides available in those markets, and something complementary to the existing park in San Antonio. Therefore the show emphasis, focusing on Southwest musical traditions, was identified. Actual construction of the park took approximately 23 months, running from early 1990 to park opening in March 1992. 1{{ref|}}

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Gaylord Entertainment was only the manager and a minority owner of the Fiesta Texas theme park; USAA, a giant financial services company, was the majority owner. Fiesta Texas proved to be a consistent money loser, and after losing $16 million on the park in 1995, Gaylord sold its 14-percent stake back to USAA. USAA?s La Cantera Development subsidiary, which developed Fiesta Texas as part of a 1,200-acre mixed-use development, did not announce a hotel project near the theme park until April 1996. 2{{ref|}}

Related Topics:
Gaylord Entertainment - La Cantera

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The master plan for La Cantera, which is the overall development area in which Six Flags Fiesta Texas is located, anticipates substantial additional development. The overall site is approximately 1,600 acres. The theme park is located in the middle of the site. It totals about 150 acres including parking and room for expansion. The western area of the site is the resort zone, dominated by championship golf course, resort hotel and other types of resort accommodations. 1{{ref|}} On the southern part of the site, a number of commercial projects are planned including The Shops at La Cantera, a major retail center and an entertainment complex. Although not a part of USAA's development, to the east and across Interestate 10 from Fiesta Texas, is a Thomas Enterprises 700+ acre mixed-use development development named . The Rim will further blend urban plazas, courtyards and parks with entertainment, retail, office, a five-star hotel and residential components in the La Cantera area. 3{{ref|}}

Related Topics:
La Cantera - Six Flags Fiesta Texas - The Shops at La Cantera - Thomas Enterprises

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In 1996, Time Warner took over ownership and operations of Fiesta Texas. Premier Parks, now known as Six Flags, purchased Fiesta Texas from Time Warner in 1998. 4{{ref|}} Recent enchancements to Fiesta Texas include an expanded waterpark and boardwalk. Most nights the park closes with an animated laser and fireworks show. Fiesta Texas has also consistently won the coveted Golden Ticket theme park award for "Best Show", including 2005. 5{{ref|}}

Related Topics:
Time Warner - Premier Parks - Six Flags - Golden Ticket

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1 {{note|}} http://www.hotel-online.com/Trends/ERA/ERAStudyFiesta.html

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2 {{note|}} http://www.nashvillecitypaper.com/index.cfm?section=10&screen=news&news_id=1427

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3 {{note|}} http://www.thomasent.com/northrim.html

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4 {{note|}} http://www.coasterphotos.com/SFFT/sfft_history.htm

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5 {{note|}} http://www.amusementtoday.com/image/GoldenTicket2005.pdf

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