While we were in Virginia for a family wedding, Reggie, the kids and I visited Busch Gardens in Williamsburg, VA. I was able to snag 2 free media tickets and we paid for the other 2 tickets. I grew up regularly visiting Busch Gardens, so I definitely wanted Reggie and the kids to experience the amusement park. At first, I was shocked at how pricey the tickets had become ($62 for kids 3-9 and $72 for ages 10+), but it had been over 20 years since I last visited the park. After doing a search on Google, I did find a AAA discount code. I’m glad that we went though…the memories were priceless.
When we woke up on the day that we were planning to visit Busch Gardens, the sky was overcast. Since this was the only day that we could visit the park, I said a little prayer that the rain would hold off until 3pm. Fast forward: We left the park at 3:30pm and the rain started pouring down at 3:40. Perfect timing! Anyway, we definitely made the most of our time there…
The night before we went, we had each chosen a couple of things that we definitely wanted to do by looking at both the Busch Gardens website and Theme Park Insider websites. Our favorite Busch Gardens Williamsburg rides included the following:
1. Escape from Pompeii – This was my favorite ride that we all went on. The fire was actually kind of hot and it was only one slightly scary part (when it felt like you might fall out of your seat) during the drop.
2. Teacup Ride – I went on this ride with my sons. It’s pretty mild. It just turns around quickly/”unexpectedly fast” (as the boys put it) for a while leaving you a little dizzy by the end of the ride.
3. Roman Rapids – This was Reggie and the boys’ favorite ride. “It was awesome!” In this water ride, you get bumped around a bit. You also get wet because park visitors pay to spray you. You get soaked if you happen to be in the portion of the tube that falls under the waterfall. We went on the ride twice because the first time Sean barely got wet at all and kept saying so! It was fine though…he was drenched the second time. 🙂
4. Curse of DarKastle – Sean really wanted to go on this 3-D ride, so we all went. Some of the 3-D graphics (like knives and snakes coming at you) was a little scar, but it was a pretty tame ride overall though.
5. Tradewind – Michael and I went on this spinning ride together. It was fun and fast. You just have to make sure that the bigger person is on the outer edge of the seat, because whoever is in the inner section smashes the other person!
6. Autobahn – These were pretty standard bumper cars. I was just happy that I didn’t keep getting stuck. I also may (or many not have) bumped all of the guys in my family. 🙂
We also visited the bird and wolf section. The animal portion was the only section that wasn’t impressive to us. (I think that we might have visited too many zoos together!) What was impressive though, was the HUGE turkey leg that we snacked on. We had seen a guest sitting down eating one and we asked her where she had purchased it. As she was giving us the directions, she mentioned that it was the “best food in the park”. It was! When I mentioned how good the turkey leg was to my extended family, they already knew all about those tasty turkey legs. Sean and I – who aren’t especially turkey fans – were even gobbling it up!
A few more helpful notes…
1. If you or your kids really can’t stand long lines, you can buy a Quick Queue pass. (It’s similar to the “Fast Pass” at Disney.)
2. Another splurge to consider is for the close-up parking.
3. If you are bringing younger kids with you, be sure to visit the Sesame Street Forest of Fun. (Grover, Elmo, Oscar and Bert & Ernie have fun little rides and attractions in that area.)
In any event, I’m so glad that my family was able to have such a fun outing at one of my favorite childhood spots. Shared experiences are the best!
Busch Gardens Williamsburg Virginia Theme Park
1 Busch Gardens Boulevard
Williamsburg, VA 23185
(800) 343-7946