Theme park operator Cedar Fair has announced the completion of its US$1.24bn (£670m, 970m euro) acquisition of Paramount Parks and will assume the complete operation and management of the parks immediately.

The five parks – Wonderland in Toronto, Canada and King’s Island in Ohio; King’s Dominion in Virginia; Carowinds in North Carolina and Great America in California, all in the US – were bought from CBS Corporation for cash.

Dick Kinzel, Cedar Fair’s chair, president and CEO, said: “The five Paramount properties are well-run, top-tier parks in good locations with the potential to do even better.

“Our combined operations now include 12 amusement parks, five outdoor waterparks, one indoor waterpark and six hotels, which will entertain approximately 25 million guests annually.” Details: www.cedarfair.com

Photograph: Great America, in Santa Clara, California, was part of the US$1.24bn deal