Revenue - Disaggregation of Revenue (Details) $ in Thousands	3 Months Ended								12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2020 USD ($) item	Sep. 30, 2020 USD ($)	Jun. 30, 2020 USD ($)	Mar. 31, 2020 USD ($)	Dec. 31, 2019 USD ($)	Sep. 30, 2019 USD ($)	Jun. 30, 2019 USD ($)	Mar. 31, 2019 USD ($)	Dec. 31, 2020 USD ($) item	Dec. 31, 2019 USD ($)	Dec. 31, 2018 USD ($)	Jan. 01, 2020 USD ($)	Jan. 01, 2019 USD ($)
Revenue
Revenues	$ 108,602	$ 126,327	$ 19,143	$ 102,503	$ 261,000	$ 621,180	$ 477,210	$ 128,193	$ 356,575	$ 1,487,583	$ 1,463,707
Number of distinct obligations within international agreements | item	3								3
Long-term contracts
Revenue
Revenues									$ 51,820	198,507	212,584
Contract with customer, liability					$ 85,100					85,100		$ 85,100	$ 100,800
Contract with customer, liability, revenue recognized									51,200	161,000
Short-term contracts and other
Revenue
Revenues									304,755	1,289,076	1,251,123
Park admissions
Revenue
Revenues									202,646	815,782	810,064
Park admissions | Long-term contracts
Revenue
Revenues									28,627	106,233	115,612
Park admissions | Short-term contracts and other
Revenue
Revenues									174,019	709,549	694,452
Park food, merchandise and other
Revenue
Revenues									126,306	574,440	553,527
Park food, merchandise and other | Long-term contracts
Revenue
Revenues									2,431	20,381	25,383
Park food, merchandise and other | Short-term contracts and other
Revenue
Revenues									123,875	554,059	528,144
Sponsorship international agreements and accommodations
Revenue
Revenues									27,623	97,361	100,116
Sponsorship international agreements and accommodations | Long-term contracts
Revenue
Revenues									20,762	71,893	71,589
Sponsorship international agreements and accommodations | Short-term contracts and other
Revenue
Revenues									$ 6,861	$ 25,468	$ 28,527