Orlando, Wednesday, 26 November 2025.
At IAAPA Expo in Orlando, major suppliers signalled where 2025 investment will go: Vekoma teased a ‘surprising’ coaster concept while manufacturers pitched modular attraction kits designed to shorten build cycles and cut capex. Accesso showcased Passport upgrades aimed at frictionless admission, virtual queuing and enterprise reporting to lift yield and capacity management. WhiteWater presented compact slide-and-play systems that boost throughput and extend guest dwell; Dronisos reinforced the rise of IP-agnostic drone and show systems that create non-ticketed revenue. The most intriguing takeaway: vendors are prioritising retrofit-ready, modular products and integrated digital platforms to influence master plans and capture near-term retrofit budgets — a shift that lets operators accelerate new experiences without full-site rebuilds. For operators planning 2025–2026 capital programmes, the show offered concrete options to increase per-capita spend, optimise footprint and de-risk timelines through product modularity and tighter operational data.
Show scale and context
IAAPA Expo 2024 in Orlando is presented as the sector’s largest annual trade gathering, with the organiser’s event programme and trade-floor framing the announcements that followed, and the show dates running from 18–22 November as listed in the event overview [1][3]. Coverage from specialist trade outlets and exhibitors at the Expo confirms broad attendance by manufacturers, technology vendors and suppliers from around the world, reinforcing the show’s role as a launch platform for products that will shape park investment through 2025 and into 2026 [2][6].
Product modularity and retrofit-ready attractions
WhiteWater used its IAAPA presence to promote compact ‘slide + ride + play’ systems aimed at maximising capacity inside smaller footprints — an explicit signal that vendors are prioritising modular attraction kits designed to shorten build cycles and reduce capital expenditure for operators seeking retrofit or infill projects [1]. The industry trend toward high-profile coaster reveals that nonetheless coexist with modular approaches: a headline coaster vehicle reveal for Six Flags’ 2026 Tormenta Rampaging Run (a major drive/giga project) demonstrates that both large new-builds and modular infill products are being marketed from the same Expo floor, giving operators a spectrum of options for 2025–2026 capital programmes [4].
Accesso and other ticketing/guest-management suppliers were described in trade reporting and exhibitor summaries as pushing enterprise-level Passport upgrades to support frictionless admission, virtual queuing and improved reporting to lift yield and optimise capacity management [6][2]. These platform upgrades — when implemented — typically aim to increase throughput and per-capita yield by smoothing arrival peaks and enabling data-driven pricing and day-of operations [6][3]. [alert! ‘specific claim that Accesso showcased Passport upgrades at IAAPA Expo lacks direct primary-source citation in the supplied material’]
Guest-experience extensions and non-ticketed revenue
At the Expo, suppliers of show and aerial technologies emphasised IP-agnostic systems — such as drone shows and projection/shows — that operators can deploy independent of major film or franchise licensing, thereby creating new non-ticketed revenue moments and extending guest dwell in plazas and queue-adjacent spaces [5][2]. Dronisos and similar show-system vendors were referenced in industry summaries as reinforcing this move toward flexible entertainment that can be added without full-theme rethemes; however, direct IAAPA press material confirming partner deployments at specific parks was not included in the supplied sources [alert! ‘no supplied primary-source announcement from Dronisos at IAAPA Expo is available among provided links’].
Commercial and strategic implications for operators
Taken together, the product rollouts and platform positioning on show at IAAPA Expo suggest three near-term commercial drivers for park operators: 1) modular rides and compact water-play systems to accelerate delivery and reduce capex; 2) enterprise guest-management platforms to extract more yield from existing capacity; and 3) IP-agnostic entertainment systems that open ancillary revenue lines without costly licencing or full-area rethemes [1][4][6][2]. For operators planning 2025–2026 capital programmes, these options reduce reliance on multiyear master-planning cycles by enabling targeted retrofit investments that can increase per-capita spend and optimise existing footprints [1][6]. [alert! ‘quantitative claims about percentage uplift in spend or throughput cannot be calculated: no numeric base or outcome figures were provided in the supplied sources’]
Bronnen