Summer Theme Park Jobs

Theme park annual revenues are above $10 billion — twice as high as fifteen years ago. The reason for the increase is simple: the number of park visitors has risen dramatically. When the economy is strong the number of park visitors skyrockets. Given the size of the industry, it should come as no surprise that U.S. theme and amusement parks recruit and hire more than 600,000 full-time and seasonal employees.

Theme park workers are in huge demand, and positions cannot be filled with U.S. job seekers alone. These days recruiters are spending weeks abroad in order to find temporary workers to fill all of their amusement park jobs.

Working at a theme park can be an incredibly memorable experience. In many cases, park visitors come from all over the world and your co-workers will have international roots too. If you decide to work for one of the ‘major brand’ parks, then you’ll have the added benefit of upward mobility. Obviously, Disney is a huge corporation with many summer job opportunities beyond the theme park.

Learn all about theme park jobs on JobMonkey. Our theme parks section includes information about Disney jobs, tips for getting hired and when to apply, and even tips for getting a theme park summer internship. Our editors have even interviewed several theme park human resources representatives, who share their knowledge about applying for jobs and making the most of a summer experience.

Amusement & Theme Park Jobs

Entertainers – The largest parks, such as Disneyland, recruit entertainers including singers, bands, and people to work in costume.

Food and Beverage – Theme parks make a lot of money from food sales, so these jobs are very important. Jobs include cooks, table bussers, cashiers, dishwashers, and wait staff.

Ride Operators – Is there a theme park or amusement park that doesn’t have attractions? These jobs are very repetitive but require a high degree of attentiveness and responsibility in order to prevent injuries to riders. It’s good to be sociable and patient.

Retail Sales / Gift Shop – Again, the largest theme parks — especially those with a strong brand such as Disney, Legoland, and Universal — make a lot of money selling t-shirts, movie paraphernalia, and other goods to park visitors. Shop workers operate cash registers, interact with customers, and sell the merchandise.

Game Attendants – Many parks have game areas where visitors can win prizes by throwing rings around bottles, shooting squirt guns, and so forth. To do this job you need to be patient dealing with visitors, have some sales ability and an outgoing personality, like working around young people, and be capable of learning and operating the games.

Lifeguards – Some parks have water slides or pools, so they need lifeguards to monitor swimmers. Training is necessary of course, and responsibilities include water rescue, CPR, and first aid.

Maintenance Workers – It often takes an army of maintenance workers to keep the park clean. As a maintenance worker you will may be responsibile for making repairs, cleaning restrooms, and picking up trash.

The JobMonkey theme park jobs section includes more details about these jobs and Disney job opportunities.

Foreign Workers at Amusement Parks

Many amusement and theme park human resources officials spend months overseas recruiting non-U.S. citizens. Seasonal theme park staff come to the U.S. to work on a short-term J-1 visa work & travel program or the longer-term H-2B visa. Those with a J-1 visa can work for up to 4 months — perfect for a summer job — and those with an H-2B visa can work for up to 10 months. There are several agencies that recruit summer staff for theme parks located in Europe and in other countries.

Be sure to review the JobMonkey amusement park and Teaching ESL section carefully. Find out if a summer job in this industry is the opportunity you’ve been looking for!