Can you please tell me more about Busch Gardens Williamsburg?

[Fantasmic23]

My husband is terrified of what the crowds will be like at WDW April 17 - 22 (And traffic to and from), so he told me to look into another "Disney-like place".

I would imagine crowds/traffic that week (Spring break/week before Easter) would be insane at Busch Gardens, too.

I was on the Busch Gardens website and I guess it's "Disney-like" ... On a slightly smaller scale. We're not coaster/thrill ride people and there seems to be a lot of those kind of rides. A few rides (Escape from Pompeii, Curse of Dar Kastle) look very interesting, though. Busch Gardens also has their own version of Soarin' (Europe in the Air).

Thoughts on Busch Gardens Williamsburg? Good or bad? Thanks!

 

[quentina]

I have gone in the heat of the summer and never had bad crowds. I will say, there version of Soarin in nothing like the Disney one. We all (including 5 kids) got sick from it. I do not get sick on rides...YUCK is all I got to say!

 

[Fantasmic23]

I will say, there version of Soarin in nothing like the Disney one. We all (including 5 kids) got sick from it. I do not get sick on rides...YUCK is all I got to say!

Sorry everyone got sick! I told my husband about Busch Garden's version of Soarin' and he made one of those "Oh, please" faces.

 

[Promomx2]

Make sure you wear comfortable shoes because unlike wdw, busch gardens has many hills. And you walk ALOT.

 

[Fantasmic23]

Make sure you wear comfortable shoes because unlike wdw, busch gardens has many hills. And you walk ALOT.

Hills? Hoo boy. I can already feel the shin splints. Thanks for the tip!

 

[Wall-E1]

We went in early July one year. We're also not huge coaster people. We don't do the looping ones. We were able to do everything we wanted in a day. We didn't get sick on their motion simulator movie ride like some others, but I felt slightly queasy - kind of like when I get off Star Tours. The heat wasn't too bad, compared to Florida heat and humidity.

 

[Fantasmic23]

We went in early July one year. We're also not huge coaster people. We don't do the looping ones. We were able to do everything we wanted in a day. We didn't get sick on their motion simulator movie ride like some others, but I felt slightly queasy - kind of like when I get off Star Tours. The heat wasn't too bad, compared to Florida heat and humidity.

Thank you, especially about being able to do everything you wanted in a day!

 

[Mickeyluver37]

We went there for 3 days last year the T, F, S leading up to Easter, and it was not crowded at all. The weather was great, and most rides were walk ons. It's a totally different story in the summer, and even early September was more crowded than Spring Break.

We like it as an amusement park, but it really isn't Disney-like. And Europe in the Air is a HUGE disappointment if you're comparing it to Soarin- and I was expecting the same, too.

 

[marcyinPA]

We went in June (mid-June) last year for a few days. We were able to do the entire park in one day. We got there before it opened, and waited for rope drop. We left around 5 pm. We did not find it to be crowded AT ALL.

We also do not do a lot of coasters. I rode two...my kids didn't ride any. The Escape to Pompeii was very short. We didn't get wet at all...it looked like we would get soaked, but we must have been sitting in just the right seats. The one attraction that we all really enjoyed was the Irish dancing show. It was fantastic. We were chosen to sit right up front by the stage...great seats there!!

It's a nice clean park, but it's not Disney. But, you can really take your time and smell the roses there and not miss anything.

I don't know if you plan on going anywhere else in Wbg, but you can buy a bounce pass that includes BG, Water Country, and C. Wbg. It includes parking, and is valid for seven days. It was a GREAT deal, even though we were only there for three days.

And speaking of Water Country...great water park! It was our favorite "park" of the trip. We wished we had done it twice. The kids loved it. The rides were fun, the park was clean, and when we were there, the lines were short. It was a very enjoyable day!!

 

[Fantasmic23]

We went in June (mid-June) last year for a few days. We were able to do the entire park in one day. We got there before it opened, and waited for rope drop. We left around 5 pm. We did not find it to be crowded AT ALL.

We also do not do a lot of coasters. I rode two...my kids didn't ride any. The Escape to Pompeii was very short. We didn't get wet at all...it looked like we would get soaked, but we must have been sitting in just the right seats. The one attraction that we all really enjoyed was the Irish dancing show. It was fantastic. We were chosen to sit right up front by the stage...great seats there!!

It's a nice clean park, but it's not Disney. But, you can really take your time and smell the roses there and not miss anything.

I don't know if you plan on going anywhere else in Wbg, but you can buy a bounce pass that includes BG, Water Country, and C. Wbg. It includes parking, and is valid for seven days. It was a GREAT deal, even though we were only there for three days.

And speaking of Water Country...great water park! It was our favorite "park" of the trip. We wished we had done it twice. The kids loved it. The rides were fun, the park was clean, and when we were there, the lines were short. It was a very enjoyable day!!

Thank you so, so much for this detailed post! My daughter is an Irish step-dancer and I know she'd love to see the Irish dancing show! I am going to share this with my husband. Thanks, again!

 

[Fantasmic23]

We went there for 3 days last year the T, F, S leading up to Easter, and it was not crowded at all. The weather was great, and most rides were walk ons. It's a totally different story in the summer, and even early September was more crowded than Spring Break.

We like it as an amusement park, but it really isn't Disney-like. And Europe in the Air is a HUGE disappointment if you're comparing it to Soarin- and I was expecting the same, too.

Thank you! I told my husband that I might not be able to find something Disney-like, but we can always try another amusement/theme park.

 

[scjo68]

We live an hour from Williamsburg, so have season passes to Busch Gardens. We like it very much.

It's not Disney, but it is very lovely, themed, and well-organized. It is a big step above Kings dominion, our other local park, to which we also have season passes.

April at BGW is not nearly as crowded as WDW. Much lower key. Also, as PP's said, there is Colonial Williamsbug and Jamestown. Also Great Wolf Lodge is nice, and there are several outlets in Williamsburg.

We really enjoy Eorope in the Air. No, it's not Soarin, it is much rougher, but we have never gotten sick at all.

I don't know how old your kids are, but if they are young, there is a sesame street themed area that my ds loved as a preschooler.

We liked the shows. If you have ever been to Sea World, the Pet Shenanigans show is much like Pets ahoy there.

 

[2BigKIdz]

I love BG Williamsburg but I love the coasters. It is a very nice and clean park but definitely would not compare it to Disney or plan a weeks vacation around it. I have not been since they opened the new "soarin'" ride so have no opinion of it but the Curse of Darkastle was a huge disappointment. Curse of Pompeii is fun but very short and you may get soaked. If you plan right you can avoid the hills also. As others have stated there are other things to do within driving distance of BG, including VA Beach. There is a nice marine science museum there.

If you are planning for April the weather here that time of year is very unpredictable, it can be very warm or very cold and/or rainy.

 

[bas71873]

just FYI on the dates you are going, that week is NOT the local kids spring break. they all will be back in school by then (they have break about 2 weeks earlier). I know this because all of my friends live in the immediate surrounding area (Hampton, NN, W'burg, York County). Now I live in the Richmond area, about an hour north and that's our Spring Break, but I don't think it will have an impact on W'burg at all. I think that week will be GREAT. We plan to hit BG for a day or two if the weather is nice.

Don't forget about colonial williamburg, jamestown, yorktown and heck, even D.C. i know there are combo passes you can buy for the historic triangle area. i had friends do that when they were up here for FL last year for their spring break.

have fun!

OH, not sure if Water Country is open yet in April. I'd check that calendar before you makes plans for that!

 

[kirstenb1]

We have season passes there too, and love it. Some years spring break has been really busy, other years, not. I didn't know that Hampton/NN/Va Beach will already have had their break. That will make a huge difference in crowds.

Anyway, even if you don't like coasters, there are tamer rides and lots of shows. I always look at the landscaping to get ideas. They have gorgeous plantings.

Water Country doesn't open until about the 2nd or 3rd week of May. But the outlets are great!! Plus Col Wburg and Jamestown, there's lots to do.

 

[dislal]

Does anyone know if Williamsburg or BG has some kind of a food plan like Disney?

Is this area busy the 1st or 2nd week of June?

If you are a little overweight can you wear a t shirt or some kind of covering over your bathing suit in water country?

Sorry to hijack this thread

 

[marcyinPA]

Does anyone know if Williamsburg or BG has some kind of a food plan like Disney?

Is this area busy the 1st or 2nd week of June?

If you are a little overweight can you wear a t shirt or some kind of covering over your bathing suit in water country?

Sorry to hijack this thread

BG and WC do, but it's not exactly the same. You can pre-purchase meal coupons. They are leveled by what they include: bronze, silver, gold is the way they sell them I think. They also sell kids meal coupons.

We bought a couple of them, and honestly, it wasn't worth it. I think the money savings was minimal (like cents...). I wouldn't do it again. We also didn't think the food was that great. And unlike Disney, there were not a lot of places to buy food and snacks.

Also, they sell separate ones for BG and WC, but we found out that they could be used in either park. We had a kids meal coupon leftover from BG, and we were allowed to use it in WC.

As for your bathing suit question, I do believe you could wear a t-shirt. My youngest son always wears a swim shirt (the surfer kind) because he's a fair skinned red-head, and that was fine.

 

[kirstenb1]

Dislal, I always wear a t-shirt to Water Country. You see a lot of those rash guard shirts too.

 

[scjo68]

Does anyone know if Williamsburg or BG has some kind of a food plan like Disney?

Is this area busy the 1st or 2nd week of June?

If you are a little overweight can you wear a t shirt or some kind of covering over your bathing suit in water country?

Sorry to hijack this thread

It should not be busy the first two weeks in June, because most schools here do not get out till mid-June. I haven't checked the calendar yet, but usually it opens daily starting Memorial weekend.