Universal Destinations & Experiences attendance rose 5.4% in 2025, powered by four million visits to the new Epic Universe during its partial opening year. Disney Experiences remained the world’s largest park operator and grew 1.1%, even as Walt Disney World’s four parks were nearly flat.
Those are estimates in the newly released 2025 TEA Global Experience Index. The worldwide top 25 theme parks drew 245.4 million visits, down 0.2% from the same parks in 2024. Underneath that quiet global result, there were sharp local differences.
Disney stayed comfortably ahead, but Universal grew faster
Disney Experiences added an estimated 1.63 million visits across its global portfolio, reaching 146.825 million. Universal added 3.16 million and reached 62.138 million. TEA says Universal’s 5.4% gain was the largest among the top 10 operators and reflected Epic Universe’s debut.
| Operator | 2025 | 2024 | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Disney Experiences | 146.825M | 145.196M | +1.1% |
| Universal Destinations & Experiences | 62.138M | 58.975M | +5.4% |
The comparison needs one important qualifier. Epic Universe opened in May 2025, so Universal’s growth includes a new gate without a 2024 counterpart. Its two established Orlando parks moved the other way: Universal Studios Florida fell 2.1% to 9.3 million, and Islands of Adventure fell 2.6% to 9.2 million. Together, those two parks lost an estimated 450,000 visits, or about 2.4%.
Add Epic Universe and Universal Orlando’s three parks reached 22.5 million visits. That is 3.55 million above the prior year’s two-park total, but it is not a like-for-like resort comparison.
Florida’s numbers show a new park redistributing the map
| Park | 2025 | 2024 | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Magic Kingdom | 17.800M | 17.836M | -0.2% |
| EPCOT | 12.109M | 12.133M | -0.2% |
| Disney’s Hollywood Studios | 10.312M | 10.333M | -0.2% |
| Universal Studios Florida | 9.300M | 9.500M | -2.1% |
| Islands of Adventure | 9.200M | 9.450M | -2.6% |
| Disney’s Animal Kingdom | 8.782M | 8.800M | -0.2% |
| Epic Universe | 4.000M | — | New |
Disney World’s four parks combined for 49.003 million visits, 99,000 fewer than in 2024. Every park landed within 0.2% of its previous estimate. Magic Kingdom still ranked first worldwide at 17.8 million.
Epic Universe ranked 13th in North America after operating for only part of the year. It missed the worldwide top 25, whose final entry drew 4.645 million visits. TEA describes the new park as a wider destination play, creating reasons for longer stays, multi-day tickets, hotel nights and more spending across Universal Orlando.
California split in two directions
Disneyland Park rose 0.4% to 17.406 million visits, keeping second place worldwide. Disney California Adventure also rose 0.4%, to 10.09 million. Together, the two Anaheim parks added about 109,000 visits.
Universal Studios Hollywood fell 8% to 8 million, a decline of 700,000 visits. TEA links part of that drop to the aftermath of the Los Angeles wildfires. The report does not assign the entire decline to one cause.
Paris posted Disney’s clearest rebound
| Park | 2025 | 2024 | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Universal Studios Japan | 16.040M | 16.000M | +0.2% |
| Tokyo Disneyland | 15.200M | 15.104M | +0.6% |
| Shanghai Disneyland | 14.994M | 14.700M | +2.0% |
| Tokyo DisneySea | 12.600M | 12.441M | +1.3% |
| Disneyland Paris | 10.800M | 10.214M | +5.7% |
| Universal Studios Beijing | 9.804M | 9.775M | +0.3% |
| Hong Kong Disneyland | 7.700M | 7.936M | -3.0% |
| Walt Disney Studios Park | 5.919M | 5.598M | +5.7% |
Disneyland Paris and Walt Disney Studios Park each gained 5.7%, adding a combined 907,000 visits. TEA describes 2025 as a rebound from a 2024 season affected by the Paris Olympics. The second gate used its 2025 name in the report; it has since become Disney Adventure World.
Shanghai Disneyland posted Disney’s next-largest percentage gain in the worldwide table, up 2%. Tokyo DisneySea rose 1.3%, Tokyo Disneyland gained 0.6%, and Universal Studios Japan edged up 0.2%. Hong Kong Disneyland was the outlier among Disney’s Asian parks, down 3%.
What the estimates can and cannot tell us
TEA’s figures are attendance estimates, not official turnstile counts from Disney or Universal. They count visits rather than unique people, so one guest entering parks on several days can appear several times.
TEA says its researchers use operator-supplied statistics, historical figures, financial reports, tourism organizations, industry associations, mobile-location analytics and professional estimates when needed. Theme park and water park figures use calendar years; other reporting periods may vary.
The tables are best read as a directional comparison. They show where attendance appears to have moved and how the industry ranks major parks. They cannot, by themselves, prove why a park gained or lost visits. Where TEA offered an explanation, such as the Paris rebound, the Los Angeles wildfire aftermath or Epic Universe’s contribution to Universal’s portfolio, we have identified it as TEA’s assessment.
Source: Themed Entertainment Association, 2025 Global Experience Index.