Listen to ‘Chief Travel Leader’ Andrew Wexler

Andrew Wexler, CEO
Herschend Family Entertainment Corporation
www.HFECorp.com

More than 75 years ago the Herschend Family Entertainment took form during a trip to an Ozark Mountain cave, and today the company is the largest family-held themed attractions company out there engaging more than 20 million guests annually.  You certainly know the names of many of their properties including Dollywood, Silver Dollar City,  Adventureland, the Harlem Globetrotters, Pink Jeep Adventure Tours, Callaway Resort & Gardens, the Vancouver Aquarium and more.

Being family-held gives Herschend some advantages to other corporate players in the field like Disney, Universal, Six Flags, etc.   The company has a simple philosophy of creating an inviting environment for people 2 to 92, as they focus on delivering time-tested nostalgic entertainment you won’t find elsewhere.

Andrew Wexler joined the company as CFO back in 2007, and was elevated to CEO more than a decade ago in 2015.  His leadership has helped the company prosper through acquisitions such as Silverwood Theme Park earlier this year, Palace Entertainment and their many parks a year ago — including Kennywood in Pennsylvania as well as America’s oldest continuous theme park, Lake Compounce, outside of Hartford in Bristol, CT.

During the live national broadcast of America’s #1 Travel Radio Show on May 9th 2026, we connected with Andrew for the latest “Chief Travel Leader” conversation and discussed his ambitions for the company, outlook for Summer 2026, the impact his recent acquisitions are making, how being CEO has changed him as a leader and what “Herschend Heartspitality” means to him as well as future ambitions.

Now that RMWorldTravel with Robert & Mary Carey and Rudy Maxa has been transmitted over satellite and aired across the USA via our 620 weekly AM & FM radio stations that broadcast the program nationwide, you can access the interview that’s been archived here by simply clicking the play arrow beneath this text …