Busch Gardens Questions...Please Help!!! About This Page:

[rstanley]

I’m starting to plan our Busch Gardens Day (Sun Oct 11th) and I have quite a few questions…I would appreciate any comments you have to share!!

It will be me, DH, DS12 and DD7

1) I’m thinking of going on the safari tour…either the sunset safari or the cheaper one during the day…does anyone know what these are like? Is it worth the money?

Is there anything similar to this in the park (other than Rhino Rally) or can you only walk through the Serengeti area (or see it by train or the sky ride)?

2) My plan is to maybe move through the park from left to right? Does anyone have a better plan?

3) I’ve heard the Chimps are more active first thing in the morning…is it worth it to start at the Myombe reserve or should we head right to the roller coasters?

4) If you had to pick 2-3 roller coasters (Gwazi, Sheikra, Python, Kumba, Montu)…which are the best?

My son gets migraines if he does too many and I’m thinking this park has too many. He loves animals so that will be more important to him than the roller coasters.

5) My daughter is only 46” but will be able to do Cheetah Chase and Scorpion…should we do both or just Cheetah Chase?

6) Does the sky ride start at the park entrance or in the Congo area? When should we ride this?

7) How do the bird habitats (Aviary walk through and Loring Landing) compare to the Discovery Cove aviary and Flights of Wonder show at Animal Kingdom? If they are not as good I’d prefer to skip them since we are going to Discovery Cove and my husband wants to see the Flights of Wonder show.

8) Are the water rides worth it...Stanley Falls Flume, Tidal Wave and Congo River Rapids?

9) Has anyone seen the Pirates 4D show? I love the Disney shows and am wondering if this one is worth seeing?

10) What is the Living Dragons exhibit???

Thank you!!!!

[chezp]

I'll help where I can.

The safaris are very much worth the money - DSIL and her family did the daytime one and loved it and we did the Saving A Species tour, which was a wonderful experience. Feeding a giraffe was so neat!

As for anything similar, well, you can't go out on the savannah in a vehicle unless you're on a tour. As you said, you can see the animals from the train, the Sky Ride (sometimes it doesn't operate if it's windy) or from walking through, but they will be further away than taking any of the tours.

We've certainly found the chimps to be very active early in the day, although we tend to tour right to left, mainly because we go for the animals, so whether they're active later in the day, I'm not sure...

I can't help with the coaster questions at all, as we're not thrill riders : The Sky Ride runs from the Congo area to Crown Colony from memory... I would ride it early on, as lines do build, particularly on busy days. It's not exactly quick loading...

Hmmm.... I would say the aviary walk through is probably not as good as the one at Discovery Cove. We were in and out in a few minutes of the one at Busch Gardens.

DH loves the water rides, but to be honest, I'm too timid to try them - the look of them scare me but I've heard very good reports about them.

[rstanley]

Originally Posted by chezp

I'll help where I can.

The safaris are very much worth the money - DSIL and her family did the daytime one and loved it and we did the Saving A Species tour, which was a wonderful experience. Feeding a giraffe was so neat!

DH loves the water rides, but to be honest, I'm too timid to try them - the look of them scare me but I've heard very good reports about them.

Thank you SO mush for your feedback!

What is the "Saving a Species Tour"? Does it take a long time...not sure how long my DD7 would last

As for the water rides...I think we'll just have to see how hot it is...what water rides does your DH like best or does he go on all of them?

[Angileyze1]

Definately ride shiekra. We did the coasters all first, rode them 2x each then went back to the entrance, and did the whole park.

[jimmymac]

1) The tours are worth it. You actually drive aout among the animals on a flat bed truck, feed a giraffe etc.
2) I used to take the Sky Ride to Stanleyville and work forward
3) The chimps are most active in the morning when it's cooler
4) Sheikra is not fore the faint of heart. Try it anyway. Gwazi and Montu next
5) Try both of them
6) Sky Ride starts in Congo. Make a right and a right after the entrance
7) The aviary is very cool. You walk among the birds (don't step on them). You an feed them if you're so inclined
8) The water rides are worth it, but you will get wet. Wetter than Splash Mountain
9) I haven't seen the show
10) Living Dragons are Komodo lizards. Kind of boring

Hope this helps

[rstanley]

Originally Posted by Angileyze1

Definately ride shiekra. We did the coasters all first, rode them 2x each then went back to the entrance, and did the whole park.

WOW That's a lot!!

Originally Posted by jimmymac

1) The tours are worth it. You actually drive aout among the animals on a flat bed truck, feed a giraffe etc.
2) I used to take the Sky Ride to Stanleyville and work forward
3) The chimps are most active in the morning when it's cooler
4) Sheikra is not fore the faint of heart. Try it anyway. Gwazi and Montu next
5) Try both of them
6) Sky Ride starts in Congo. Make a right and a right after the entrance
7) The aviary is very cool. You walk among the birds (don't step on them). You an feed them if you're so inclined
8) The water rides are worth it, but you will get wet. Wetter than Splash Mountain
9) I haven't seen the show
10) Living Dragons are Komodo lizards. Kind of boring

Hope this helps

Thanks!!! Very helpful

I'm stilll confused about the sky ride though...you stated you ride it to Stanleyville and work forward but then you said it starts in the Congo which is next to Stanleyville ???

[chezp]

Originally Posted by rstanley

Thank you SO mush for your feedback!

What is the "Saving a Species Tour"? Does it take a long time...not sure how long my DD7 would last

As for the water rides...I think we'll just have to see how hot it is...what water rides does your DH like best or does he go on all of them?

Sadly, that tour seems to be no more, which is a great shame, as it took you out to meet the rhinos, but you also got to feed a giraffe and get close up with the animals on the savanna. I think the closest now is the Serengeti Safari.

As for water rides, he likes them all. His favourite is the Tidal Wave.

[rstanley]

Originally Posted by chezp

Sadly, that tour seems to be no more, which is a great shame, as it took you out to meet the rhinos, but you also got to feed a giraffe and get close up with the animals on the savanna. I think the closest now is the Serengeti Safari.

As for water rides, he likes them all. His favourite is the Tidal Wave.

Thanks...I appreciate your help. Unfortunately my DD won't be tall enough for Tidal Wave but maybe we can do Congo River Rapids

I'm definitely going to sign up for the tour. Unfortunately you can't book this far out so I'll have to remember to do that as soon as the window opens.

Can you pick the time you want? Are the sarari's limited or will I not have a problem signing up?

Thanks again!

[chezp]

Originally Posted by rstanley

Can you pick the time you want? Are the sarari's limited or will I not have a problem signing up?

The one we signed up for, we didn't have a problem getting on it. I seem to recall for our one, there was only one tour a day - but I don't know about the safaris.

[Meggera]

Well this has been a helpful thread. We are going to BG for the first time in September. Does anyone know what the crowds are like? We'll be going on a Wednesday. I'm hoping it is not crowded since school will be in session.

[Sue M.]

Originally Posted by rstanley

I’m starting to plan our Busch Gardens Day (Sun Oct 11th) and I have quite a few questions…I would appreciate any comments you have to share!!

It will be me, DH, DS12 and DD7

1) I’m thinking of going on the safari tour…either the sunset safari or the cheaper one during the day…does anyone know what these are like? Is it worth the money?

Is there anything similar to this in the park (other than Rhino Rally) or can you only walk through the Serengeti area (or see it by train or the sky ride)?

2) My plan is to maybe move through the park from left to right? Does anyone have a better plan?

3) I’ve heard the Chimps are more active first thing in the morning…is it worth it to start at the Myombe reserve or should we head right to the roller coasters?

4) If you had to pick 2-3 roller coasters (Gwazi, Sheikra, Python, Kumba, Montu)…which are the best?

My son gets migraines if he does too many and I’m thinking this park has too many. He loves animals so that will be more important to him than the roller coasters.

5) My daughter is only 46” but will be able to do Cheetah Chase and Scorpion…should we do both or just Cheetah Chase?

6) Does the sky ride start at the park entrance or in the Congo area? When should we ride this?

7) How do the bird habitats (Aviary walk through and Loring Landing) compare to the Discovery Cove aviary and Flights of Wonder show at Animal Kingdom? If they are not as good I’d prefer to skip them since we are going to Discovery Cove and my husband wants to see the Flights of Wonder show.

8) Are the water rides worth it...Stanley Falls Flume, Tidal Wave and Congo River Rapids?

9) Has anyone seen the Pirates 4D show? I love the Disney shows and am wondering if this one is worth seeing?

10) What is the Living Dragons exhibit???

Thank you!!!!

We didn't go on the safari, but went on Rhino Ralley, the train and sky ride.

The coasters are great, Shiekra is the best! Ride it first.

The bird aviary is very cool and the show is like Flights of Wonder, worth going thru but save it for later when ride lines get long.

The water rides are awsome, I'd ride the coasters and water rides first thing in the morning cause lines will get very long, So as with any park plan to do the major attractions first, then go on to exhibits and shows.

The 4D movie when we were there was an RL Steine show!!!

There was a great Broadway like production in the theatre when we were there, well worth seeing.

Busch Gardens has done away like Universal with their free version of fast pass, and now offer a paid version. We did 2 days at Busch Gardens, when they still had Fast Pass for free, but what we didn't get to the first day, we did our second day. If you only have 1 day, I'd decide what are your must-do's and do those first, then do whatever else you can pack in.

It's a great park, enjoy!

[rstanley]

How does Busch Gardens compare to Disney? I know they are different but I'm wondering if we should spend 2 days in Busch Gardens and skip one of the Disney parks?

Any opinions?

[Meggera]

I wouldn't skip out on Disney. I've been to Busch Gardens in Williamsburg several times and loved it, but one day at a time was enough for me. We are only spending one day at BG in Tampa. That's just my opinion. Nothing compares to the magic, the theming, the pure genius of Disney.

[Meggera]

By they way, I bought the All-Day Dining Deal at Busch Gardens for our upcoming trip. Have you seen it on their website? You get an armband and can grab an entree, side or dessert, and a drink each time you go through the line at a participating restaurant. I thought that was a really good deal, even if we just grab a drink when we go through the line. I think it will be well worth the money. Just thought I'd pass that on in case you were interested.

[rstanley]

Originally Posted by Meggera

By they way, I bought the All-Day Dining Deal at Busch Gardens for our upcoming trip. Have you seen it on their website? You get an armband and can grab an entree, side or dessert, and a drink each time you go through the line at a participating restaurant. I thought that was a really good deal, even if we just grab a drink when we go through the line. I think it will be well worth the money. Just thought I'd pass that on in case you were interested.

I agree I think the meal plan looks like a great deal!