Trip Report!!! Busch Gardens and SeaWorld

[NashvilleTrio]

Hey guys! Here's the start of our BG & SW trip report. Our pictures are uploading as I'm writing this, so unfortunately I won't have any to post tonight, but we took tons of pics so stay tuned. We were at the parks from March 13-March 16.

My husband, Greg, and I share this account, but I'll be the one writing most of the report. I'm sure I'll have to get his help with filling in the details! Our son, Josh, was with us as well and we all had a great time. The weather was fabulous - in the low 80's each day and sunny. And the crowds were very low. I don't think we waited more than 20 minutes for anything.

We drove down on Thursday the 12th, leaving Nashville around 3:30pm central time. We had planned to drive to the Ocala area and sleep in the van at a rest area and that's what we did. We got to the rest area around 1:30am eastern time and actually got about 4-5 hours of sleep. We felt pretty safe doing this especially since there was supposed to be a night security guard on duty. We actually didn't see him or his vehicle until we were leaving the next morning, but maybe he was parked where we couldn't see him. Who knows???

We left the rest area around 7:00am and stopped on the way to BG at a McD's for breakfast. And what? - no gravy & biscuits? I don't usually order this at McD's, but it sounded really good at the time. But, alas, this one didn't serve it. So, I settled for a sausage biscuit and a cinnamon melt. So, while we were eating I looked down and noticed this huge spider, like the size of grandaddy long legs, but it was NOT a grandaddy longlegs. I don't know what kind it was - it was just BIG! I'm normally not freaked out by bugs, but this one was too creepy and it was heading straight for Greg's feet. I just looked down and pointed and said, "Spider, spider, spider!" and Greg jumped up and stomped on it. This really freaked our son out because he does not like any sort of bugs and he would not put his legs down out of his seat for the rest of our breakfast. I know Florida has bigger and different kind of bugs than we see in TN and they can keep them! :laughing:

So, after filling up our tummies, we stopped and filled up the gas tank, and we were on our way again. We arrived at BG around 8:45am and since we had splurged on Platinum Passes our parking fee was already paid for and we were directed to the elite preferred parking section. It's very close to the entrance - probably less than 100 yards. We were so excited and ready to ride some coasters! We gathered our park necessities in my new hip pack and we were off to the ticket kiosks!
Got our hip pack from this website just before the trip and it worked out great...
http://www.tuffbaggs.com/mm5/merchant.mvc?Screen=CTGY&Store_Code=THQCBMITU&Category_Code=WNHNFC7

And I didn't have any problems at all taking it on the rides.

Ok readers...that's all for now...
Stay tuned for more report and plenty of pics!!!

[Tillikumtrainer]

nice report so far. yes Bugs eww IF YOU SEE A PALMETTO BUG RUN!!! they look like round waterbugs .. so watch yourstep..

[jopaly]

Great report so far, we're hoping to go to BG in late May/early June, so can't wait to here more and see some of your piccies.

[czycropper]

Can't wait to hear more!!

I'm taking my DDs to BG when we go visit my Dad. So I'm looking for all and any strategies :)

[NashvilleTrio]

Ok, I'm back with another installment. Here are a couple of pictures...
Silly picture of Greg & Josh from our driveway before heading out. You can't see it very well but their hats say "Big Dude" and "Little Dude".
http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47b9dd39b3127ccec6f19c3702aa00000050O08BauWbVq0ZA9 vPhI/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/

I also wanted to add that Atlanta traffic was crazy even on a Thursday evening around 8:30! And we’re pretty used to heavy traffic since we live in Nashville. We literally were only about a foot away from getting the front end of our van clipped by some crazy moron who whipped across 4 lanes of traffic to exit. Next time I think we’ll take the 285 bypass. But it was neat to see all the downtown buildings at night with all the lights and stuff.

Here's our first look at Montu as we're pulling into the parking lot.
http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47b9dd39b3127ccec6f0305aa3ed00000050O08BauWbVq0ZA9 vPhI/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/
http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47b9dd39b3127ccec6f05a53a3d100000050O08BauWbVq0ZA9 vPhI/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/
Onto Day 1 at BG…we took our vouchers that Greg had printed out to the self service kiosks and wa-la, our platinum passes were in hand! Off to the gates where we only had to wait about 5 minutes before they opened them and were inside the park quickly. The finger scanners here seemed to work somewhat better than those at US/IOA, but they still hold up the line. My advice is to just be patient and hold your finger still.

Only the Egypt section was open at this point, so we headed over to MONTU – this is an awesome ride. It’s SO smooth and has great twists and turns. I think we rode it about 3 times before we decided to head on to another area. Josh was mad that we didn’t use our re-ride privilege that came with our passes, but since it was a walk-on, we didn’t want to look like jerks, and the extra exercise didn’t hurt. This was the case for several of the rides. Josh couldn’t understand why we wouldn’t just whip out our passes to do the re-ride, but most of the time there was very little or no wait.

Next we headed to Rhino Rally – we knew the line for this can move very slow sometimes so we wanted to beat the crowds. On the way we took a few pics...
http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47b9dd39b3127ccec6f1fe0a02a600000050O08BauWbVq0ZA9 vPhI/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47b9dd39b3127ccec6f058cb227800000050O08BauWbVq0ZA9 vPhI/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47b9dd39b3127ccec6f0baa5a35700000050O08BauWbVq0ZA9 vPhI/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47b9dd39b3127ccec6f0e838a3e300000050O08BauWbVq0ZA9 vPhI/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47b9dd39b3127ccec6f06329e32f00000050O08BauWbVq0ZA9 vPhI/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47b9dd39b3127ccec6f1a83e838900000050O08BauWbVq0ZA9 vPhI/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/

We got on Rhino Rally almost immediately and our driver was very funny. Josh was cracking up at some of her jokes…she said that the flamingos were Pink Chickens on Stilts and the Impalas were Burnt Marshamallows on Sticks. That’s a fun ride – I don’t want to ruin it for anyone, but if you haven’t ridden this before, there’s a surprise part in the middle of the ride. PM me if you want to know about it…
We got great views of the animals too – I really like the fact that at BG you have 3 different rides where you can see the animals…Rhino Rally, the Skyride, and the Train. We got a great view of a giraffe later in our trip while riding the train. He was about 10 feet from us – I’ll post that pic later…
Here are some animal pics...
http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47b9dd39b3127ccec6f018c9225a00000050O08BauWbVq0ZA9 vPhI/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47b9dd39b3127ccec6f0501ca39b00000050O08BauWbVq0ZA9 vPhI/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47b9dd39b3127ccec6f11a67838900000050O08BauWbVq0ZA9 vPhI/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47b9dd39b3127ccec6f1773fc37f00000050O08BauWbVq0ZA9 vPhI/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/

Day 1 continued in next post...

[NashvilleTrio]

Next ride was Congo River Rapids. Here is a picture of me and Josh.
http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47b9dd39b3127ccec6f0b53ae35700000050O08BauWbVq0ZA9 vPhI/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/

Greg got some good water shots with our waterproof camera.
http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47b9dd39b3127ccec6f1ad21423c00000050O08BauWbVq0ZA9 vPhI/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/
http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47b9dd39b3127ccec6f07fc7e3cf00000050O08BauWbVq0ZA9 vPhI/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/
That water was COLD!!!

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47b9dd39b3127ccec6f15dd142b400000050O08BauWbVq0ZA9 vPhI/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/
And, yes, Josh and I got the full blast of the waterfall!!
http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47b9dd39b3127ccec6f130ac835700000050O08BauWbVq0ZA9 vPhI/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/

Well, since we were pretty soaked we decided to go ahead and ride the Tanganyika Tidal Wave. It was a fun ride.

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47b9dd39b3127ccec6f17a2f83f100000050O08BauWbVq0ZA9 vPhI/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47b9dd39b3127ccec6f1e7e642de00000050O08BauWbVq0ZA9 vPhI/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/

We wanted to ride the Stanley Falls Flume ride next but it was closed for the day. They were running the flume logs but not letting anyone ride. So, we decided to hop on the skyride for a leisurely ride back to the other side of the park.

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47b9dd39b3127ccec6f1a614029400000050O08BauWbVq0ZA9 vPhI/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47b9dd39b3127ccec6f15cd6831b00000050O08BauWbVq0ZA9 vPhI/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47b9dd39b3127ccec6f03f26623e00000050O08BauWbVq0ZA9 vPhI/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47b9dd39b3127ccec6f0cfa062c000000050O08BauWbVq0ZA9 vPhI/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47b9dd39b3127ccec6f0fae0220200000050O08BauWbVq0ZA9 vPhI/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47b9dd39b3127ccec6f02c0b228200000050O08BauWbVq0ZA9 vPhI/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/

We had lunch at the Crown Colony House Restaurant which is on the second level of the building and is a sit down table service restaurant. We sat out on the balcony and had a great view of some of the animals. I think the cost for our lunch was about $50 which actually wasn't bad considering we paid about $35 for our other counter service meals. And the food here was great. Sorry no pics...


We stopped next at this partail underwater viewing area which was pretty neat. Here are some pics...
http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47b9dd39b3127ccec6f1626783b500000050O08BauWbVq0ZA9 vPhI/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47b9dd39b3127ccec6f1b6af831700000050O08BauWbVq0ZA9 vPhI/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47b9dd39b3127ccec6f1eca9020c00000050O08BauWbVq0ZA9 vPhI/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47b9dd39b3127ccec6f14be5c3bb00000050O08BauWbVq0ZA9 vPhI/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/

HIPPO! At first we weren't sure if this was a real one, but it was. It was so still though. The only way we knew it was real was because we could see air bubbles coming out of it's nostrils!
http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47b9dd39b3127ccec6f0002d22b200000050O08BauWbVq0ZA9 vPhI/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/

Next we stopped to see the lions and it happened to be Simon's 3rd birthday. Notice the Happy Birthday streamers and gift wrap. Josh got to sign a big birthday card as well.
http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47b9dd39b3127ccec6f18344424e00000050O08BauWbVq0ZA9 vPhI/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47b9dd39b3127ccec6f1c66b83eb00000050O08BauWbVq0ZA9 vPhI/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47b9dd39b3127ccec6f189f342fc00000050O08BauWbVq0ZA9 vPhI/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/


We were getting pretty tired at this point especially since we only had a few hours of sleep in our van the night before, so we decided to head back to the hotel. A few more pictures on the way out...
http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47b9dd39b3127ccec6f0d2b2224400000050O08BauWbVq0ZA9 vPhI/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47b9dd39b3127ccec6f1a57b426200000050O08BauWbVq0ZA9 vPhI/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/

We were staying at the Holiday Inn Express just a few blocks down from the park on East Busch Blvd. Our stay there was pretty good. They offer a free hot breakfast but they really need to figure out how to efficiently serve the throngs of people that were taking advantage of it. It really was a chaotic mess each morning that we went down. Even the second morning when we went down at around 7am it was crazy and they were out of almost everything except cereal and cold pastries. Anyway, I guess I shouldn't complain about "free" food, but it was definitely not an enjoyable relaxing breakfast.

Ok, that's all for tonight...Stay tuned for day 2 at BG, Day 3 at Seaworld, and the final day back at BG...

Until then...Good night all!

-Melissa

[donaldsgal]

I'm enjoying your TR. We're headed to SW in May during our Disney trip (writing a PTR and a TR about it - see link for PTR in my siggie). It'll be nice to hear the details of someone's SW trip!

[WALTSAGOD]

Thanks so much, this is the first BG report that I've seen; waiting for more.

[RabFlmom]

Thanks so much, this is the first BG report that I've seen; waiting for more.


It is a good review and I love the pictures, too. Keep'm coming. BG is my favorite park in Florida and this is convincing me we need to make the drive across the state soon. Time to use our passes. <g>

[wen8jr]

Tuning in...great so far! popcorn::

We drive down I-75 as well...we live in South Central KY. Atlanta is never easy to drive thru, I don't care what time of the day it is. Last trip down, we went through about 8:00PM on a Thursday night and it was awful. We had tried to plan around heavy traffic, but it didn't help. There were also several accidents and road work that held us up on I-75 that trip. Took us 15 hours total to get there instead of the normal 12. We came back up the east coast as we made a stop in St. Augustine and travel back was much easier!

I'll have to check out that bypass you mentioned. Since we've had so much trouble on I-75 we actually thought about going down the east coast through NC instead (which adds an extra hour). We are leaving on a Friday this time...which will prob be even worse. :scared:

BTW - we LOVE Nashville. Made our first visit there last fall and stayed at The Gaylord Opryland Hotel and done all the tourist attractions. Awesome city. TN is a great state...we visit the Smoky Mtns. and to Cades Cove every year for hiking.

Can't wait to hear more about your trip!

[NashvilleTrio]

nice report so far. yes Bugs eww IF YOU SEE A PALMETTO BUG RUN!!! they look like round waterbugs .. so watch yourstep..
Yes, we will watch our step next time we're in Florida. BTW, I love your Tillikum picture. I've always had a great fascination with killer whales.


Great report so far, we're hoping to go to BG in late May/early June, so can't wait to here more and see some of your piccies.
Thank You! I hope you get to go. You'll really enjoy it.

Can't wait to hear more!!

I'm taking my DDs to BG when we go visit my Dad. So I'm looking for all and any strategies :)
Feel free to ask us any questions!

I'm enjoying your TR. We're headed to SW in May during our Disney trip (writing a PTR and a TR about it - see link for PTR in my siggie). It'll be nice to hear the details of someone's SW trip!
I'll be sure to check out your SW PTR. Stay tuned for my SW report. It'll be up in the next few days...

Thanks so much, this is the first BG report that I've seen; waiting for more.
It is a good review and I love the pictures, too. Keep'm coming. BG is my favorite park in Florida and this is convincing me we need to make the drive across the state soon. Time to use our passes. <g>
Thanks to you both for your kind replies. I guess we don't see many BG reports on this thread because it's titled SW & Discovery Cove, but I didn't know where else to put it. And since we did a day at SW I figured I would just lump it all together here.

Tuning in...great so far! popcorn::

We drive down I-75 as well...we live in South Central KY. Atlanta is never easy to drive thru, I don't care what time of the day it is. Last trip down, we went through about 8:00PM on a Thursday night and it was awful. We had tried to plan around heavy traffic, but it didn't help. There were also several accidents and road work that held us up on I-75 that trip. Took us 15 hours total to get there instead of the normal 12. We came back up the east coast as we made a stop in St. Augustine and travel back was much easier!

I'll have to check out that bypass you mentioned. Since we've had so much trouble on I-75 we actually thought about going down the east coast through NC instead (which adds an extra hour). We are leaving on a Friday this time...which will prob be even worse. :scared:

BTW - we LOVE Nashville. Made our first visit there last fall and stayed at The Gaylord Opryland Hotel and done all the tourist attractions. Awesome city. TN is a great state...we visit the Smoky Mtns. and to Cades Cove every year for hiking.

Can't wait to hear more about your trip!
Glad to hear you guys enjoyed your Nashville visit. I love living here. My husband was born here and I moved here to go to college and ending up staying!

Where in KY are you from? I'm from Campbellsville - it's a small town in central KY.

Thanks again to everyone for reading - stay tuned for more!!!

[NashvilleTrio]

Greg here...

Thanks, Melissa is doing a great job so far. We love living in Nashville, but I would LOVE to move to Tampa or Orlando. I think we'll eventually make the move, but it is probably not going to happen soon. Although the job situation isn't a factor since I could work from home. So, what a minute, what's stopping us?

Oh yeah, our parents would kill us.

[turning40withMickey]

THanks for sending me to your trip report
( I asked about BG on the SW thread, we many need a BG thread!)

Great pics!
We are hoping to do BG this summer
along with Disney...

You probably didn't visit the waterpark in March, 'eh?

[turning40withMickey]

I love that you napped at the rest stop on the way!
I have to get DH on board with things like that!

[NashvilleTrio]

Hey everyone - just wanted to quickly let you know that I haven't forgotten about finishing our report. I'm planning to get another installment up sometime later today! Sorry for the delay...

-Melissa

[NashvilleTrio]

Day 2 at BG

On our second day we slept in a little and made it to the park around 10:00. The crowds were still very light this day and it was a Saturday. Greg took some random pictures as we made our way to GWAZI...
http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47b9dd39b3127ccec6f0058d628800000050O08BauWbVq0ZA9 vPhI/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/
http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47b9dd39b3127ccec6f1816b426000000050O08BauWbVq0ZA9 vPhI/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/
http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47b9dd39b3127ccec6f0861ba3f700000050O08BauWbVq0ZA9 vPhI/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/
http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47b9dd39b3127ccec6f0895ce32f00000050O08BauWbVq0ZA9 vPhI/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/
GWAZI was pretty fun - we rode the Lion side first and then the Tiger side. Both times were pretty much walk-ons. After those 2 rides I was done with the wooden coaster. I had started to get a headache and it was only the first ride of the day!!!
http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47b9dd39b3127ccec6f14538c36100000060O08BauWbVq0ZA9 vPhI/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/
http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47b9dd39b3127ccec6f12df942a400000050O08BauWbVq0ZA9 vPhI/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/
After GWAZI we headed toward SHEIKRA. Here are a few random pics we took on the way...
http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47b9dd39b3127ccec6f0ae17a3ef00000050O08BauWbVq0ZA9 vPhI/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/
http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47b9dd39b3127ccec6f15b2a424c00000060O08BauWbVq0ZA9 vPhI/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/
This guy was playing the piano on the patio of the Garden Gate Cafe...
http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47b9dd39b3127ccec6f01f2e622600000060O08BauWbVq0ZA9 vPhI/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/
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BG is really a beautiful park. We enjoyed looking around at all the sights as we walked.

This peacock was not afraid of people at all. He/She would occassionally start squealing/screaming/crying - sort of strange and loud! It definitely attracted a crowd.
http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47b9dd39b3127ccec6f1fcec837100000050O08BauWbVq0ZA9 vPhI/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/

This could be a picture from Dollywood!
http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47b9dd39b3127ccec6f124e5022400000050O08BauWbVq0ZA9 vPhI/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/
(If you haven't been to Dollywood, it's the park that Dolly Parton opened in Pigeon Forge, TN and it has a big Butterfly theme throughout the park.)

Day 2 Continued in next post...

[NashvilleTrio]

The Lory Landing area was one of my favorite stops of the day. We bought 1 cup of nectar for about $4 and took turns holding it. Josh got a little freaked out when he tried it and spilled some of the nectar. He's not sure he wants to try this again. Anyway, as soon as we stepped in the door holding our nectar 3 or 4 birds swooped down and landed on my arm and hand and started drinking. Very cool stuff! As long as you don't have a fear of birds, I highly recommend trying this.
http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47b9dd39b3127ccec6f0dd55623c00000050O08BauWbVq0ZA9 vPhI/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/

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Next was SHEIKRA! I forgot that we actually rode this on day 1 as well but we didn't take any pictures that day. This was an awesome coaster. We all had so much fun riding it. The lift hill is pretty steep, probably about 60 degrees, so you can't help but to just lie back and wait for the top. When you get to the edge of the drop you just hang there for a few seconds before you go down the first hill which is a little more than 90 degrees. You actually feel yourself lift out of you seat for a couple of seconds. There is one more hill where you slow down almost to a stop before going over it and one big loop. It's a short ride but a great one. We took advantage of our re-ride privilege on this each time we rode it. We were able to just stay in our seats and show a worker our passes. We probably made some of those waiting in line a little mad, but sorry Charlie! Get yourselves a Platinum Pass and you can re-ride too!
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After a couple of rides on SHEIKRA we headed over to the Jungala area. And we were greeted by the stilt walkers...
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Jungala area was great! Josh was able to run around the play areas while we waited by the Orang Cafe and enjoyed a vanilla soft serve with strawberries waffle cone. Yummy!
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Here's Josh on the play area...
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Josh & I later rode the Wild Surge together. It was very fun. It's like a mini Tower of Terror and it's outside instead of in a building.
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We also rode the Jungle Flyers which is basically a zip line ride where you sit and fly forward and then backward to the station. Josh was a little apprehensive about this at first because he wasn't sure the wire would hold him up. He decided to ride as long as I did as well, and then after the first time he went back several more time by himself.
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IT'S A LEMUR!!!!
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That's the first half of day two.
I'm going to have to take a break to go make dinner. The rest of Day 2 will be my next installment!!
Thanks for reading!!!

[turning40withMickey]

Great report!
I love the pictures and your descriptions of the rides!
We can't wait to visit!

[czycropper]

Sounds great! I wonder if I can upgrade to Premium Passes :) since I have to DDs that are coaster fanatics!

I got the Discovery Cove deal with tickets to BG - so I'm not sure whether I'll be able to upgrade!

[Metro West]

Great pictures and report! Thanks for sharing! :thumbsup2

[RabFlmom]

Like I said before." I love the pics and report!" I so want to go to BG soon especially after seeing the pics with so little people. Been a long time since I have seen it that empty!

[Janet Hill]

Sounds great! I wonder if I can upgrade to Premium Passes :) since I have to DDs that are coaster fanatics!

I got the Discovery Cove deal with tickets to BG - so I'm not sure whether I'll be able to upgrade!

An upgrade to a Platinum Pass would be rather pricey, so you would have to plan on using it for more than a roller coaster fast pass. These passes are valid for two years at all of the 9 Busch parks and if purchased in Fl is ~ 430/each and if purchased in Williamsburg they are ~300/each. I'm not sure of the cost at the other parks. They do have a monthly payment plan.

We purchased ours about 7 years ago and as long as we don't let them expire, we continue to renew at the rate we initially purchased at (~200/each). Great value, but don't know how long it will last if the parks get sold.

[mercydisney]

Thank you so much for taking the time out and writing a trip report. I am really enjoying it. We are thinking of getting a 2 yr passport for Busch Gardens, Aquatica, and Seaworld.. All the info we can get on the park is making is making it easier on us to decide.

[Worfiedoodles]

Thanks for the fabulous report! We are planning our first visit to BG with ds11, and I think he is going to love all the coasters, he is a little daredevil!

Maria

[WALTSAGOD]

Pics keep getting better and better.

[jopaly]

Great report, you've inspired us! We bought Flexticket Plus' so that we will be able to go to BG at least once during our trip. Can't wait to read more.

[NashvilleTrio]

Hello all! I'm back with the 2nd half of Day 2 at BG.

Next we had lunch at Bengal Bistro which is right by the Jungala area. I think these are about the only food pictures we took. I had the italian sandwich with potato salad which I thought was excellent. The sandwich was fresh and had a great taste. Greg had the meatball sandwich and other than being a little messy, he said it was really good. And Josh had the kid's hot dog meal with carrots (or fries), a box of raisins, and a drink. We also got a cup of grapes and a piece of cherry cheesecake. Everything was delicious. I think our total for this meal was about $38.

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We got a great table in the back of the covered area and the train tracks were right there behind us.

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After lunch we headed over to KUMBA - this is an ok ride for me. Not as smooth as MONTU or SHEIKRA though. It was fun...Josh & Greg enjoyed it more than I did. Josh even did another ride by himself using the re-ride privilege. He's becoming such the coaster enthusiaist! We're so proud! :woohoo:

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Next we wanted to see the Pirates 4-D show but had missed the previous showing by about 10 minutes. We passed the time until the next showing by riding SANDSTORM
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and the carousel. The Pirates movie was pretty good. Not as good, IMO, as Shrek 4-D at US though. Leslie Nielsen stars in this movie so it was pretty funny. And since it was 4-D we got the water sprays and the air blasts and the seat movements as well.

We decided that we wanted to ride MONTU again so we headed that direction and stopped in King Tut's tomb first.

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Oh no, King Tut's spirit has taken over Josh's body!!! RUN!!!!!!!!!!! :scared1::laughing:
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The King Tut's tomb attraction was empty when we went through it. And it was welcome break from the sun. It was interesting to look at all the memorabilia.

Continued in next post...

[NashvilleTrio]

After a couple of MONTU rides we headed over to the Myombe Reserve to see the gorillas and chimps...

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I think we caught this gorilla relieving herself...oops!
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Next was the alligator pit and the Curious Caverns...

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The Curious Caverns just had a bunch of creepy crawly things like snakes, spiders and such.

After the Caverns we decided to ride the train. We had to wait about 15 minutes for the next one to arrive but found a good seat and got some great pictures. This is the ride where we saw the giraffe about 10 feet from us. Here is that picture...

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And here are the other pics we got from the train...

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A not so flattering shot of a zebra...
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Josh looks confused - like "why are we riding this train instead of SHEIKRA?"

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"Well, ok then, we'll head back to SHEIKRA"...after riding this a couple of more times (using our re-ride privilege of course) we let Josh get wet from the spray that the SHEIKRA trains make as they pass through the water area. He LOVED doing this - I think this was probably his favorite part of the day.

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At some point on this day we saw the KATONGA show, but I don't remember when it was. Anyway, it was a FABULOUS show! I had read that it was Broadway quality and I would have to agree. Very, very good - I definitely think this show should be on everyone's MUST DO list. Don't miss it!

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We finally headed back to the hotel to let Josh put some dry clothes on and then we walked from our hotel to Red Lobster for dinner. The Red Lobster is only a couple of blocks from the Holiday Inn Express so it was a very quick walk.

Well, that's Day 2. Next will be Day 3 at Seaworld - please stay tuned!!!!

[smallworldnh]

I am very much enjoying your report, thank you so much for sharing. The very best trip reports, to me, are the ones with pictures!!! It makes it more fun to be able to see what you're describing!! It makes me want to go even more!:goodvibes

[pixeegrl]

Loving your TR...we are pass members for Busch Gardens Williamsburg and have finally splurged for the 2 year platinum since they have such a good monthly payment system. They do not offer the re-ride privaleges here unfortunately, how many times are you allowed to re-ride? I can't wait to go back and we will definantly be taking in BG Tampa...the rides seem very similar but the park is different so it will be a new experience. Your TR makes it all the more exciting! Keep 'em coming!

[NashvilleTrio]

Loving your TR...we are pass members for Busch Gardens Williamsburg and have finally splurged for the 2 year platinum since they have such a good monthly payment system. They do not offer the re-ride privaleges here unfortunately, how many times are you allowed to re-ride? I can't wait to go back and we will definantly be taking in BG Tampa...the rides seem very similar but the park is different so it will be a new experience. Your TR makes it all the more exciting! Keep 'em coming!

Nashville is about a 10 hour drive from both Busch parks, so we'll have to get to Williamsburg sometime soon.

You wait in line with everyone else, ride the coaster, then stay in your seat while everyone else is exiting. The ride ops check your pass and then you are allowed to stay on the ride once. If you want to ride again after that, you have to wait in line again, but then you're free to do the re-ride.

What's really nice about the Platinum pass is that the re-ride option applies to front and back rows as well.

[NashvilleTrio]

Day 3 – March 15 – Seaworld

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Since our passes includes all the BEC parks, we decided to make the hour drive and go to Seaworld. So, no extra cost was involved with this decision except a little extra fuel! We grabbed some breakfast at the hotel and left around 7:15am. The drive was fine – uneventful – and the weather was great. We arrived at the parking lot around 8:30am and once again made our way to preferred parking! Such a nice perk. We entered the park and got our pic taken by one of the workers who put us in front of the Seaworld lighthouse which would normally be a great picture, but the sun was right in our eyes and all of us struggled to open them for the pic. I don’t even think we took the time to look at the picture at the end of the day. After a quick bathroom break we headed to KRAKEN and we heard an announcement over the loudspeakers that JOURNEY TO ATLANTIS was closed for technical difficulties.
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That was ok with us because we wanted to ride KRAKEN first anyway, and it was still a bit chilly for a water ride. So, we rode KRAKEN a few times and it was great as always. We had not been to SW since about 2001 so it was fun to be back and riding one of the best coasters in the Orlando area!

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After riding that we walked through the little cave area at the exit and found some cool theming. There are about 7 or 8 of the Kraken’s “eggs” in there. They’re actually just large, clear ball shaped aquariums with eels in them! There is a sign that says “To avoid angering Kraken, Please do not disturb eggs".

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I don’t remember this area from our previous visit – I guess we didn’t take this part of the exit before because you can also walk around to the other side of the cave area and exit there.

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By the way, MANTA looks like it’s going to be awesome! The track is finished, but not the station area. We heard that they were testing it the night before we were there. We would’ve loved to have seen it running – oh well, we’ll be back in June to ride it!!!
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We checked out the showtimes and made a plan for the day. I knew I wanted to see the Clyde & Seamore and Believe shows, and then anything else was just icing on the cake for me. We decided to hit the first Clyde & Seamore show and headed that direction. We sat kind of high up just so we’d be out of the sun, but we had a great view. Let me tell you, I had read that the mime who comes out before the show is funny, and that is not an understatement. He was HILARIOUS! He just kept targeting people who were walking in and making funny faces or gestures about them. We were all laughing so much – it was great. Try to get to this show about 15 minutes early to see him.
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And the actual show was great as well. There were a couple of flubs during the show like the sea lions had a couple of times where they didn’t do the behavior or trick that they were supposed to right on cue, but eventually they got it. We definitely would see this show again.
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We stepped out of this show just a couple of minutes before it ended so we could be the crowd to Penguin Encounter.
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After this we headed to Shamu Stadium for the Believe show, but we got there a little too late to get the seats we wanted. Josh wanted to sit in the soak zone and I wanted to be up close as well. So, we decided to go beat the lunch crowds and go ahead and eat lunch. We headed over to the Spice Mill Restaurant back over by the Sky Tower and got some burgers. They were really good burgers – and big too. The fries were good and covered in seasoning salt. We also got some fresh strawberries and a cheesecake also. Yummy! Sorry, no pics…

Continued in next post...

[NashvilleTrio]

After lunch we watched the Pets Ahoy show - this is really cute, especially if you’re a dog or cat lover. We got great seats on the center aisle and really enjoyed this show.

Next we got on the Sky Tower which for us was free with our platinum passes. I think it’s normally $3 a person. We had about a 15 minute wait for this – I guess we just missed getting on the previous ride. This is a great way to get a fantastic view of the park. And we could even see parts of WDW – we saw Spaceship Earth, Space Mountain, and the Swan & Dolphin resort. Very cool. And we could see the killer whales at Shamu stadium swimming around in their tanks.
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Aquatica Water Park...
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We finally made it back to the Believe show and got there about an hour early. However, they didn’t let anyone in the stadium until about 35 minutes before the show time. While we waited, we had a Shamu pretzel.
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We got a great seat just a little left of center and about 6 rows from the front. Here’s a pic of Greg & Josh as we were waiting. (Notice the “gold digger” behind them.) :rolleyes:
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This show was fantastic. But I’ve always had a fascination with and interest in orcas, so I may be a little biased. To be honest, this show turned me into a blubbering idiot. From the introductory video to the end, I was so teary eyed. Greg was laughing at me and I was laughing at myself. But if you haven’t seen this show, I definitely would recommend it. I loved it!
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More in next post...

[NashvilleTrio]

Day 3 Continued...
After the Believe show it was back to JTA since we hadn’t had a chance to ride it yet. This was as fun as we remembered and it was the first ride for Josh since he was only 18 months old the last time we were here. We did use our re-ride privilege for this which was awesome! We just stayed in our seats and actually got sent through without any other people getting in our boat!! Yay!!! We didn’t get hardly wet at all on any of the times we rode this. We always got the last two rows and just barely got a few splashes. And the last 15 seconds of the ride is the best!!! Once again, I don’t want to spoil it for anyone who hasn’t ridden it yet. You can PM if you want to know more…
We took a picture of our ride picture but there was a lot of glare...
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Greg turned around and took this picture at the end of the ride just before the exit...
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We love the aquarium next to the exit gift shop here. Especially the see through floor – that’s so cool!
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Josh was itching to spend some of his money, so he decided on the trampoline jump. He got $1 off the price with our pass so it was $7 for 2 minutes. He didn’t think 2 minutes was long enough, but by the time that 2 minutes was over he was exhausted!! He likes doing the flips on this, but still hasn’t mastered the forward flip.
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Shark Attack was neat – we got to see several sharks swimming overhead as we “rode” through the underwater tunnel on the people mover.
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Here are some cool underwater shots from Stingray Reef. Greg was really proud of himself when we remembered the new camera was waterproof and stuck the camera into the tank for some cool pics.
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On our way out, we stopped and saw the manatees, the underwater dolphin viewing, and the turtles.
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We had a great day at Seaworld and we're looking forward to our return trip in June! Thanks again for reading and stay tuned for our final installment!

[donaldsgal]

Loving the TR. I especially liked the SW part since we're visiting SW on May 7. Glad it was such a fun trip for you!

[snoopybabe]

Great TR. Awesome pictures & it sounds like you all have some fantastic memories. :thumbsup2 We love having platinum passes.

Now I have to figure out how to get down there this summer. Have a great trip in June. I hope you'll post a trip report from then too. :goodvibes

[Jonny_Duck]

Thanks for the TR....I am now planning a trip to Busch because of it. Considering getting a year pass or just the year pass. Any idea if they allow you to upgrade to a platinum if you have an only Busch year round pass?

[Sailing Queen]

What great pictures !! Was asking on UK thread re Busch Gardens as never been. We are so going now !! And can't wait to go back to Seaworld after seeing your pics. Do you need to go to Busch for 2 days or is 1 ok ? So much to pack in on our 2 weeks, but want rest days as well :)

[vossjemi]

Very enjoyable trip report! We'll be in Tampa first of June. While I'd love to go to Busch Gardens, I'm not so sure the kids will actually enjoy it. I have to practically "make" them ride rides at theme parks. I don't know why they are so squeamish, but they just won't do anything they perceive as scary. And, we've had so so luck on "trying" rides...some they like, some they come off crying mad I "made" them try it once. They are 7 and 9, you'd think they'd be a little more thrill seekers like Mom & Dad. But, not so. We do plan to go to Seaworld, and I understand there is a combo pass that we could use to go to both parks that isn't much more than a 1 day pass, so I'm tempted to do both, but I just hate to waste 2 days begging them to try stuff when I could be relaxing on the beach. LOL

[NashvilleTrio]

What great pictures !! Was asking on UK thread re Busch Gardens as never been. We are so going now !! And can't wait to go back to Seaworld after seeing your pics. Do you need to go to Busch for 2 days or is 1 ok ? So much to pack in on our 2 weeks, but want rest days as well :)

You can probably squeeze Busch Gardens into a single day, but you'll really want to be there at park opening if you're doing only one day.

[NashvilleTrio]

Very enjoyable trip report! We'll be in Tampa first of June. While I'd love to go to Busch Gardens, I'm not so sure the kids will actually enjoy it. I have to practically "make" them ride rides at theme parks. I don't know why they are so squeamish, but they just won't do anything they perceive as scary. And, we've had so so luck on "trying" rides...some they like, some they come off crying mad I "made" them try it once. They are 7 and 9, you'd think they'd be a little more thrill seekers like Mom & Dad. But, not so. We do plan to go to Seaworld, and I understand there is a combo pass that we could use to go to both parks that isn't much more than a 1 day pass, so I'm tempted to do both, but I just hate to waste 2 days begging them to try stuff when I could be relaxing on the beach. LOL

I think you're kids could have a good time doing: Land of the Dragons (kid's play area), Lory Landing (bird feeding), Stanleyville Falls (log flume), Jungala (kid's play area), Sky/Train Ride around park, Rhino Rally (Land Rover through Serengeti), Edge of Africa (Lions, Hippos, Fish, etc) and Myombe Reserve (Apes and Chimpanzees).

There are additional kid friendly rides in Timbuktu and Congo, but that give you an idea for the 7-9 year olds.

However, I do understand wanting to have a rest day, but I always save that for my desk job when I return to work. :lmao:

[vossjemi]

Thanks for your response nashville. Yeah, I rest at work too! LOL We do have a couple things planned in Tampa...like taking the ferry from Honeymoon Island to Caladesi Island 1 day & going down to St. John's Pass near Madeira Beach and doing a Pirate ship excursion on another. And with Seaworld that is 3 busy days with a beach day thrown in between since our condo is right on the beach. I'm still considering BG...I may pull up this website and show the kids all your pictures to see if its something they want to try. THanks!

[MelanieC]

Great report. Thanks for sharing. Great pictures!

[NashvilleTrio]

Sorry for the delay, but I'm back with the final installment of this trip report. By the way, I hope everyone had a Blessed Easter yesterday!

Our final day was back at Busch Gardens on March 16. We had an 11 hour drive back to Nashville and had planned to leave Tampa around noon, but we were having so much fun, we ended up not leaving until about 2:30! :scared1: But it all worked out fine. It was a LONG drive home, but Greg did most of the driving while Josh & I got to sleep.

Most of what we did on our final day was just repeats of the earlier days, so I'm just going to post some pics and let them mostly speak for themselves.

Here are a few pics from the hotel pool showing Greg again having some fun with our waterproof camera.
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Ok, back to BG pictures...
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Well, that's it! I hope everyone enjoyed our report. Please feel free to ask questions! Happy Spring to all!
-melissa

[LiamsDISMom]

Loved your report. We are platinum members as well, (we live near williamsburg) and are planning on going for the first time in Sept.(well at least in almost ten years) to SW and BG. I did not know about the re-ride prviledge. I do not think we have that here in BG Wil., although I do intend to check next time to be sure. So you used that at BG as well as SW? Also noticed the free sky tower was included with pass. Are there any other perks or discounts we should know about before we go?

[NashvilleTrio]

Loved your report.

So you used that at BG as well as SW? Also noticed the free sky tower was included with pass. Are there any other perks or discounts we should know about before we go?

Thanks! :lovestruc

Yep, we used the re-ride at both parks and it was really nice. Almost as good as Universal's on-site Express, but not quite. :thumbsup2

If you go to the BGT or SW website there are additional web only coupons you can print out, but nothing mind blowing.

[Janet Hill]

I did not know about the re-ride prviledge. I do not think we have that here in BG Wil., although I do intend to check next time to be sure.

My son has asked on two different occasions at BG Wil and was told no. He was only 10 at the time, so I don't know if they were blowing him off or not and since I was no where near Griffon, I couldn't confirm. I would be interested to know if you can use this perk in Let us know if you are able to use this perk in Williamsburg. Don't forget to bring your BG Williamsburg refillable bottles: these are good at all the parks.

[LiamsDISMom]

That is very cool. I can't wait to try that out when we go. Thanks for the tip on the bottles too. I probably would not have thought of that. Also when I find out about the re-ride in Wil. I will definitely post it. Thanks for your help.

[momtoBrandon&Jacob]

Thanks for the report. I am contemplating doing SW when we go in October. We will be staying in Disney so will probably have to take a taxi. Can you tell me if SW is worth it for just one day? Not worried about price - just leaving disney property and shlepping to SW and such. Plus we will be on the DDP and will have to pay OOP for all the meals that day. Also, do you think it's important to get there first thing in the a.m. or is it possible to get there at around 10:00am and still see everything.

Sorry for all the questions, but I've never been. It'll be me, hubby, 2 boys ages 7 and 8. Thanks!

[MarkFL]

Melissa, I'm pretty sure I saw you at Busch Gardens! I don't remember what days I was there last month but I swear I ran into you somewhere. Maybe I should wear a lime green Mickey head everywhere I go!

[NashvilleTrio]

Thanks for the report. I am contemplating doing SW when we go in October. We will be staying in Disney so will probably have to take a taxi. Can you tell me if SW is worth it for just one day? Not worried about price - just leaving disney property and shlepping to SW and such. Plus we will be on the DDP and will have to pay OOP for all the meals that day. Also, do you think it's important to get there first thing in the a.m. or is it possible to get there at around 10:00am and still see everything.

Sorry for all the questions, but I've never been. It'll be me, hubby, 2 boys ages 7 and 8. Thanks!

I personally think SW is worth doing because I am a big fan of marine life. And their rides are great as well. If you or your family members have any sort of interest in marine life, then I would say it's definitely worth it. If not, then maybe not so much. I would say that the rides are just sort of "icing on the cake" - they're great rides, but there are only a few of them.

If you go, however, I would suggest getting there by opening if possible just to avoid the crowds. Since you've probably been to Disney before, you should know all about beating the crowds! ;) We got there around opening and left around 6pm and did not get to see and do everything. But we did most of what we had planned to do or see. But there are still some things on our list for our June trip.

Hope this info helps - have fun!

[NashvilleTrio]

Melissa, I'm pretty sure I saw you at Busch Gardens! I don't remember what days I was there last month but I swear I ran into you somewhere. Maybe I should wear a lime green Mickey head everywhere I go!

No way! That's cool! I'm hard to miss 'cause I'm six feet tall. Greg always points out other "amazon women" to me when we're out in public because it's rare that we see women who are that tall. :lmao:

[snoopybabe]

Loved your report. We are platinum members as well, (we live near williamsburg) and are planning on going for the first time in Sept.(well at least in almost ten years) to SW and BG. I did not know about the re-ride prviledge. I do not think we have that here in BG Wil., although I do intend to check next time to be sure. So you used that at BG as well as SW? Also noticed the free sky tower was included with pass. Are there any other perks or discounts we should know about before we go?

I don't think BG Wil has the re-ride priviledge. I have heard from others who have gone to SW & BG Tampa that they were treated like gold there & wished they were treated so nicely here. Plan on going this August & can't wait:banana: We went to SW 2 years ago & they even gave us free preferred parking. I didn't know about the re-rides then but plan on doing it this time:dance3:

[WALTSAGOD]

thanks again for the cool pics.:woohoo:

[waverunner1]

I have throughly enjoyed your TR! :surfweb: The pics were great. The gold digger one :rotfl2:! We're trying to decide which park to pick with our Discovery Cove package. We are going to be at Clearwater Beach during the first part of the trip, then to Orlando. Having a hard time deciding. If you have any insight to which park, I would love to hear. Our DS is nine, but is on the short side. I guess BG is more ride oriented and SW is more show oriented?

[Bridora]

Hi! I just found your Trip Report and read it all just now. We are going to Sea World for the 1st time at the end of May. I can't wait! I loved looking at all your pics--they were wonderful. Now I'm ready! :cool1:

[jmskinner]

Hi, I just found your TR. I was looking for info on BG since we will be going in July. Can you believe we have lived in the Tampa area for almost a year now and haven't been. Got AP's to WDW and have spent all of our time there. Really enjoyed your TR and the pics were great. Really looking forward to going now.

[RabFlmom]

I personally think SW is worth doing because I am a big fan of marine life. And their rides are great as well. If you or your family members have any sort of interest in marine life, then I would say it's definitely worth it. If not, then maybe not so much. I would say that the rides are just sort of "icing on the cake" - they're great rides, but there are only a few of them.

If you go, however, I would suggest getting there by opening if possible just to avoid the crowds. Since you've probably been to Disney before, you should know all about beating the crowds! ;) We got there around opening and left around 6pm and did not get to see and do everything. But we did most of what we had planned to do or see. But there are still some things on our list for our June trip.

Hope this info helps - have fun!

During the summer you definitely want to stay in SW longer than 6PM because of the night shows they do. They are not the same shows that you see during the day so you want to do both. The Sealion tonite show will be funnier if you have done the daytime shows

We usually try to get there at opening-to get to feed the dolphins first thing
and stay till close during the summer. You might actually find that you want to pick up the 2nd day free pass when you leave. New coater is the best in Orlando , too.

[keishashadow]

it's a small world melissa;)i just did a search for info on BG (1st visit in 25 - cough:laughing:something years & figured things had a changed a bit!), glad i found this TR:thumbsup2great pics

we enjoy SW but decided to select BG as our 'free' tix for our 1st Discovery Cove experience in a couple of weeks.

i have kelly m's guidebook & want to plan lose touring itinerary, as when we visited BG Williamsburg on weekend in August few years ago were lucky to get a couple of rides done all day.:rolleyes1It was confusing with only certain sections of the park open early, but not posted anywhere that i could tell, even the employees didn't know.:confused3

i am thinking of booking the safari, rhino one or not; depending on availability & what time we make it to the park in the am sounds like great way to get up close, not sure about standing in a moving truck bed though.:confused:

def hoping the crowds 1st week in Oct on tuesday or wednesday are manageable.

any more hints?

[NashvilleTrio]

it's a small world melissa;)i just did a search for info on BG (1st visit in 25 - cough:laughing:something years & figured things had a changed a bit!), glad i found this TR:thumbsup2great pics

we enjoy SW but decided to select BG as our 'free' tix for our 1st Discovery Cove experience in a couple of weeks.

i have kelly m's guidebook & want to plan lose touring itinerary, as when we visited BG Williamsburg on weekend in August few years ago were lucky to get a couple of rides done all day.:rolleyes1It was confusing with only certain sections of the park open early, but not posted anywhere that i could tell, even the employees didn't know.:confused3

i am thinking of booking the safari, rhino one or not; depending on availability & what time we make it to the park in the am sounds like great way to get up close, not sure about standing in a moving truck bed though.:confused:

def hoping the crowds 1st week in Oct on tuesday or wednesday are manageable.

any more hints?

Yes, Janet, it is a small world indeed! I had forgotten about this TR. Glad you found it and glad it was somewhat helpful.

You're doing DC?? I'm jealous! I know you guys will have a blast!

We loved the Serengeti Safari and thought it was well worth the money. It was very cool to be so close to the giraffes. Our son was a little apprehensive at first but quickly warmed up to it and loved it as well. Watch out for your cameras though - one giraffe completely knocked another guy's camera out of his hands and it fell and broke. Luckily it was only a small point -n- shoot. Would've been worse if it were a big Nikon or something like that!
Standing in the back of the truck was fine. They drive really slow and everyone had room to hold on to the side of the truck bed.

Gosh, it's been a while since we were there, but it seems like only the front section of the park was open at the beginning of the day. So, it must be the same as Williamsburg. I think we just hung out at Montu for a few rides and then the rest of the park was open after that. (Montu is a great ride, by the way. Very smooth - We love it!)

As far as other hints go -
-Of course, get there before or by opening to beat the crowds.
-Study the map and have a plan of action before hand.
-If you have a meal at the Crown Colony Restaurant (and the weather is nice) ask to sit outside where you'll have a fantastic view of the animals.
-You guys can probably skip Jungala because it's geared to younger kids. Josh loved it the first time we went, but was bored with it the second time.
-We loved feeding the birds at Lory Landing. The best and most entertaining money we spent all day!
-You may want to consider Quick Queue. It's worth the money if you want to get the most rides in possible.

Hope this helps and have a great trip! I think the crowds should be ok for you especially on a weekday. We'll be there on October 16 which is a Saturday so I know it'll be crazy! Have fun!!!!!!!!!
-Melissa

[keishashadow]

ha we'll just miss you, thanx im going to plan my attack this weekend.