Has anyone been to Busch Gardens/Colonial W'burg VA?

[rottiemom]

We have to cancel our Sept WDW trip due to finances (ugh). But I would like to plan some sort of getaway before my little guy starts school and it looks like a trip to W'burg would be affordable. I haven't told him about our WDW trip being "postponed" until next year (maybe) but I think that he'll be just as delighted with any trip as long as there's a pool at the hotel & a water park involved . (I'm the one that's upset about the WDW trip but I know that it's the "right" thing to do).

I was thinking Colonial W'burg the 1st day, Busch Gardens the 2nd then WC for last.

Can anyone tell me about the parks (Busch Gardens & Water Country USA), what to expect & of course any advice and tips about saving money while there?

Thanks to the DIS I've started my research but there's no place like the DIS for planning help .

They've got some decent packages now where hotel + park passes for 4 days/3 nights can be had for around 500$ and there are prepaid meal deals available for the parks themselves.

My son (5) may be too young to get a lot out of Colonial Williamsburg but he loved Mystic Seaport so I think that he'd enjoy this as well.

I sincerely appreciate any help, suggestions & BTDT tales!

Thanks in advance.

 

[pilesoflaundry]

How tall is he? What kinds of rides does he like? My girls were very disappointed in busch gardens (both of them actually) there wasn't much for them to do . The kids rides are the same in both of them and the park is more for thrill rides and big coasters which they couldn't do. They are ride junkies and love going to the park to do the rides, not so much shows so it was not fun for them at all.

There is a cute fountain and climbing area in w'burg but my kids got sick after playing in the fountain so I don't know how clean it is. (we are sure it was the water because the only people in our party of 7 that got that sick were the kids that were in the water, they got eye and sinus infections)

We went when they were 4 and 6 to w'burg and when they were 5 and 6 to tampa. (they are 18 months apart, so part of the year they are only 1 year apart)

 

[May05 preemie mom]

We took our dd4 to BG and WC in June and she had a blast. BG has the new section geared just for that age group, Forest of Fun. There are 4 real rides and she loved all of them, plus they do a Sesame Street themed show and there is a water play area. Then we rode a few other rides which are scattered thru the park for her age. WC was great but really spread out, I guess all waterparks are like that. She had a great time. I'd recommend doing both. I'm not a fan of Colonial Williamsburg for her age group but maybe your son would like it. We also drove down to VA Beach one day and went to Norfolk. It's not Disney but since we went early in the month, crowds were non-existent. We also played putt putt and had no waits at any of the restaurants (Red Lobster, Cracker Barrell, Olive Garden, Pizzeria Uno, IHOP and Waffle House.)

 

[cvjw]

My boys loved BG and WC this June. They are 9 and 13. BG has great rides for older kids. WC was a ball - they could have spent days there. We stayed at Great Wolf Lodge, which I would recommend also. We bought the multi-day tickets thru www.history.org. We got a 7 day ticket to BG, WC and historic Williamsburg, plus parking, for around $100 per person.

 

[nmmom95]

We went to BG & CW two years ago. My DS's were 9 & 4. We had a great time at both! We didn't go to WC, we actually went to King's Dominion for a day. It was a great trip!

 

[snoopybabe]

I live in Williamsburg & they are having great specials right now. They have a bounce back ticket for 7 consecutive days for BG WC & CW that costs only $98 for adults & your son would be free because he's 5. Pick up the Williamsburg Magazine when you come because they have lots of coupons for discounts in area restaurants.

I think your son would really enjoy Forrest of Fun. As the PP stated they have 4 rides including a Super Grover roller coaster. They also have a 4-D Sesame Street movie in the Globe Theatre. There are also lots of rides for kids throughout the park. If you have any questions please just PM me & I'd be happy to help you.

Have fun planning

 

[dvcnewgirl]

I live in Williamsburg & they are having great specials right now. They have a bounce back ticket for 7 consecutive days for BG WC & CW that costs only $98 for adults & your son would be free because he's 5. Pick up the Williamsburg Magazine when you come because they have lots of coupons for discounts in area restaurants.

I think your son would really enjoy Forrest of Fun. As the PP stated they have 4 rides including a Super Grover roller coaster. They also have a 4-D Sesame Street movie in the Globe Theatre. There are also lots of rides for kids throughout the park. If you have any questions please just PM me & I'd be happy to help you.

Have fun planning

I do not understand why the 5 yo would be free? You have to have a pass at the age of 3. We live in Williamsburg as well, my daughter loved BG and WC at the age of 5. There is plenty of things for a 5yo to do. If he likes waterparks then WC will be a great way to spend the day. I would get to BG right at opening. Usually you get ride all of the rides at the Forest of Fun with no wait. Later in the afternoon the waits get pretty long. Have fun!

 

[rottiemom]

Thanks, guys, I really appreciate the input .

My son is 47" tall & pretty much enjoys all kinds of rides...except for coasters. Flume type rides would probably be OK since there's water involved (his favorite is Splash Mountain...I don't like any rides that leave the ground ).

Snoopybabe- Thank you for the info! Do you think that I'd be able to pick up Williamsburg magazine at the hotel? My husband is all about eating local...especially BBQ...so any suggestions for good BBQ places would be much appreciated.

It looks like the 7 day flex ticket would be the way to go for us since we'll be there for 4 days, it covers all 3 sites & we can hop. If they cover parking as well that would be fabulous! I couldn't seem to find that info on the ticket site.

I figure that if my son isn't thrilled with Colonial Williamsburg we can always hop to another place but you never know with him. And I definitely want to check it out.

More later when I research a bit more.

And thanks!

 

[MrsPete]

I've been to Busch Gardens Williamsburg, and in all honesty, I like it better than any of the single parks within Disney. Of course, it's only one park, not a week-long vacation spot, but that one park is pretty great!

Having said that, it is more roller coasters than little kid rides, so you might want to consider your son's attitude towards coasters before you decide. They do have a great kids' area with a fantastic tree house. Dinosaurs were part of it, and it was really cute. But it is a small portion of the overall park.

I wouldn't say to him, "We can't afford Disney". Instead, I'd say, "We've decided to try this great new park!" It'll sound more positive to him.

 

[NeverlandClub23]

Are you planning on going Labor Day weekend? WC is closed after Labor Day just in case your plans are to go later in September. WC will be pretty crowded Saturday and Sunday of Labor Day but is usually not crowded on Monday. BG is only open Fri-Sun in September after Labor Day (I think they close at 6 p.m. on Friday and 7 p.m. on Saturday and Sunday) with Fridays of course being the least crowded day to go (although weekends aren't terribly bad either). Colonial Williamsburg being fun for a kid really depends on the kid (of course they always have ice cream shops close by in case they get too bored ). I think he'd have a great trip. I've been in Yorktown/Williamsburg my whole life (except for 2 years when I lived in Cincinnati but I was all grown up then) and I loved living here as a kid ( I also worked at Land of the Dragons when I was a teenager at BG). There's also lots of festivals going on in September and the boardwalk in Virginia Beach is always fun, lots of family friendly concerts, magicians, jugglers, acrobatics, etc. for free.

I don't really have any money saving tips as BG doesn't really offer any deals on food or snacks. They do offer cheaper refills on drinks if you buy the souvenir cup and if you get a regular locker at WC ($10.00 for the day) you get a $3 coupon when you return the key that you can use in any gift shop or food place (my bf and I shared nachos last week ).

 

[lurkernj]

We were just there last week. My boys are 11 and 14, so we were mostly thrill riders, however, there was plenty to do for everyone and lots of different animal viewing options/shows. We also did Watercountry and that was great as well, I could've stayed on the hubba hubba highway(sortof a lazy river that pulls you along quicker) all day long. I must confess that none of us were too happy with the colonial stuff, and we probably didn't spend nearly enough time doing that (too hot and boring according to DS11).

As far as Busch gardens meals, they have different countries that have cafeteria style dining. There is a deal on their website for $20 per adult per day, which includes two meal tickets (entree, drink, dessert), and two additional drink tickets. There are no names on these tickets, so you could buy one "meal deal" and purchase two meals at the same time for different people. We found this to be an awesome deal as we ate at Trappers smokehouse one day and the rib combo entree alone was $14.99, add to that the drink, dessert and another drink later and it was probably about $25 worth of food each for $10. We also ate in Italy another day with the same deal. The food in both places was delicious (desserts were so so).

Water Country also has this deal, I think it's $18 for the two meals and two drinks. Their dining isn't as elaborate, but it was still a good deal since just sandwich costs around $8-9, so it's like everything else is free.

Another tip, for the additional drink tickets in Busch gardens, I had heard mixed reports about getting a frozen lemonade with these, so I asked their CMs and they said they weren't supposed to, but they would do it. So just ask, we got them both days we were there.

Happy planning!

 

[here757]

I wouldn't say to him, "We can't afford Disney". Instead, I'd say, "We've decided to try this great new park!" It'll sound more positive to him.

wonderful idea!!

 

[snoopybabe]

Thanks, guys, I really appreciate the input .

Snoopybabe- Thank you for the info! Do you think that I'd be able to pick up Williamsburg magazine at the hotel? My husband is all about eating local...especially BBQ...so any suggestions for good BBQ places would be much appreciated.

It looks like the 7 day flex ticket would be the way to go for us since we'll be there for 4 days, it covers all 3 sites & we can hop. If they cover parking as well that would be fabulous! I couldn't seem to find that info on the ticket site.


And thanks!

There is a local place called Pierce's BBQ that has good BBQ. The chain Red Hot & Blue is on Richmond Road.

The Williamsburg Magazine should be in every hotel. If not several Chinese Restaurants have them as soon as you walk in the door. (We use the coupons as locals)

Here is a link to the BG tickets.
http://www.buschgardens.com/BGW2/Purchase/Visitors.aspx

It explains about the Williamsburg Bounce Ticket (WBT) as you roll over it, but I couldn't copy & paste it.

Here's a summary:
Good for unlimited admission to BG WC & CW for up to 7 consecutive calendar days.
Voucher must be exchanged for WBT at either BG or WC ticket window not CW
Adult ticket ages 18 & above Child ticket ages 6-17 Ages 5 and under free with adult admission.
Ticket valid through 11/1/09 but WC closes on Labor Day
Free general parking at BG & WC. (you just show them your voucher at the booth.) CW does not charge for parking.

Hope this info helps let me know if you'd like any more info.

 

[derocas]

We are planning on going to Busch Gardens/Wild Water Country in 2 weeks. We purchased the multi-day 2 park ticket $69.99 each (my kids aren't in Colonial Williamsburg). We are going to prepurchase parking it's $10 on internet $12 at the park.
We found a decent deal on the hotel. Country Inn Suites includes breakfast. King bed suite with 2 tvs, fridge, microwave, etc. was around $100/night. The breakfast is great because it saves us around $25.
I would really suggest that you check out tripadvisor.com there is really good info on the forums.
From what I hear, the parks are very clean and geared towards the family-crowd. We are very excited. My kids love rollercoasters so I guess we're going to the right place.

 

[Irin997]

We are planning on going to Busch Gardens/Wild Water Country in 2 weeks. We purchased the multi-day 2 park ticket $69.99 each (my kids aren't in Colonial Williamsburg). We are going to prepurchase parking it's $10 on internet $12 at the park.
We found a decent deal on the hotel. Country Inn Suites includes breakfast. King bed suite with 2 tvs, fridge, microwave, etc. was around $100/night. The breakfast is great because it saves us around $25.
I would really suggest that you check out tripadvisor.com there is really good info on the forums.
From what I hear, the parks are very clean and geared towards the family-crowd. We are very excited. My kids love rollercoasters so I guess we're going to the right place.

We just got back from 4 days at BG & WC and we had an absolute blast. We did the discovery ticket which gave us 7 consecutive days at both BG & WC and hopping is allowed. Did not include parking but we pre-purchased and you only have to pay for parking for 1 day - just keep the parking ticket/receipt they give you to return to either park. We also purchased the meal deal plans which worked out well, but we found that we didn't need/eat the dessert that often.

Also, I think we stayed at the same Country Inn and Suites and it worked out perfectly. It is a straight shot to BG, only 5 minutes away...same for WC so location wise it was fantastic. Rooms are nothing special, breakfast is pretty decent, all in all, I would stay again.

Also my 8 year old is about 51" tall and we found plenty that we could all do together. There is a TON of stuff for kids to do at WC. Most rides allow younger kids as long as they wear a life vest, which is provided. And a PP poster mentioned the Hubba Hubba Highway - easily my fave ride in WC.

Personally, for the big kids, in BG you HAVE to ride Griffon. Scariest but most fun coaster I've ever ridden. 90 degree drop!

I was very impressed with crowds, even at BG on a Saturday. Advice: get to BG very early. The gates actually open at 9:00 for England and I would recommend it just to beat the crowds for parking. Longest I waited was probably 45 minutes - 1 hour for the Alpengeist coaster front seats at 4:00 on a Monday. Otherwise, lines were great. Plan to ride more rides in the morning, shows in the afternoon.

Have fun!! I highly recommend the trip...we LOVED it.

 

[Janet Hill]

There is a local place called Pierce's BBQ that has good BBQ. The chain Red Hot & Blue is on Richmond Road.

Just ate at Pierce's a couple of weeks ago after reading rave reviews and was very dissappointed. The sauce was just too sweet. I just wasn't a fan of this place, and it sent my husband's glucose levels sky high.

If you're traveling down 95 there's a great BBQ place in Woodbridge, VA - Dixie Bones BBQ. Reasonably priced (slightly cheaper than Pierce's and much cheaper than Red Hot & Blue) and good southern cooking (except for the corn bread & rolls).

 

[MichelleinMaine]

I know alot of people rave about CW, but I've been twice and just don't get the hype, esp for kids. (I've got a degree in colonial American history, I really wanted to like it! Hence trying the second time.) It's very over priced for what it is. I found many of the interpretters not that receptive (this is after asking "leading" sort of questions about their craft.) One woman thoroughly insulted my mother to a group of other guests. I do not at all like their Revolutionary City afternoon program. It's a great concept and each part is very well done. However, they start at one place, act out a part. Then they move to another place up the street, act out another part. Then to another part of the street, another part. You get there early to get a good spot, but then you're moving (finding a new "good spot", dealing with other people pushing/grumbling, getting settled... ) again in 10 minutes. Add in kids who are ugly they can't see, are in the sun, don't have a place to sit, etc. We finally left before the end. It was just not well thought out.

We also found zilch for actual children's activities. I'd seen people talk of games, crafts, etc- nothing either time we were there (late April.) Maybe better other times, something you may want to check.

I wasn't nuts that every other building was trying to sell you something either.

On the other side- we very much enjoyed the Yorktown Victory Center and Jamestown Settlement. (We went the first time with 4 kids ages 4-8 and the next time with 2 kids ages 8 and 13.) LOTS of hands on stuff, the interpretters were very friendly, engage the kids in trying army uniforms, trying a compass on the ships, scraping a deer hide or carving out a wooden canoe... Tons for kids to do (and they don't even realize it's a history lesson The admission cost much more reasonable. Everything in the parks is an exhibit (either interactive or regular museum type.) The gift shop's at the end, not through the whole thing.

Just my two cents!

 

[MichelleinMaine]

duplicate post

 

[leslie826]

We live about 2 hours from williamsburg and have season passes to BG/WC. Your son will have a blast. There are tons of rides for kids. My 4 year old's favorites this year are the scrambler and the jr. bumper cars. And as a family we can spend hours in the hubba hubba highway at WC. We do like Pierce's bbq. Our other favorite places to eat are Peking (chinese buffet with mongolian bbq) and Food for Thought. As far as colonial williamsburg, we have never paid for the tour. You can go and park in merchant's square - where all the shops are - and wander around for free. We usually use priceline name your own price for hotels. The city is small enough that it doesn't matter where we get placed...you're never more than 10 min from the parks. I've gotten 2 1/2 star hotels for $35.

 

[disneychard]

My family and I were there two weeks ago, we usually go to wdw every year but this year we decide to go to Williamsburg for a budget trip. I enjoy it, it was very peaceful and calm. When you go to wdw, you are always on the go there is something to do no matter what time it is. At Williamsburg and the parks they close alot early then you would expect in the summer. We found in the evening hrs. there wasn't to much to do. But, enjoy the slow pace for a change. We stayed at the Williamsburg Hotel and Suites, if you have any questions.