bgtlover

I follow the park on all it's social media sites. OWA closes quite frequently due to weather. It seems like it's averaging about once a week over the last few months, and have on occasion seen it more than once in a week. I've noted this because I've never seen a park post so much that it's closed/closing early for inclement weather. I know they can't control the weather, but it's an observation. I would suggest anyone planning to visit to keep their eyes glued to the weather, especially if they are travelling there from great distances.

This isn't anything new for SeaWorld Parks, as of late anyway. Kraken Unleashed is still advertised all over Orlando (billboards, flyers, etc.) and the VR was removed as of January 20th (tho could return-hopefully not). I've seen them in Tampa as well when I was there 3 weeks ago. Talk about false advertising. While it does state on the website that it is currently running without the VR experience, you have to go to the ride's page to actual read that, which 9 out of 10 likely don't do or notice.

^ & ^^I forgot all about that. My memory has been refreshed...lol As far as them tearing it down now (or RMC or whatever), There is something going to be built. While trademarks aren't always used, often they are. Since three were filed, is is safe to assume at least one attraction will be built. There could be 3; a coaster and 2 flats. There could be a new coaster, and 2 renamed attractions. Something could fall through and there be nothing. Either way it goes, it's an interesting ride along the way until something more shows up than a few spray paint markings on some footers that could have been there for months for all we know. I don't think anyone was paying attention until the Trademarks were discovered. I wish I had looked better a couple weeks ago when I was there at the footers at least. The track portions looked horrible, especially the Tiger side.

Gwazi to my knowledge has never been underwater. The trains obviously went to BGW. They sent some of the good wood to SWO to use in refurbishment of some shops there. Twisted Twins had a steel support structure, so it standing there for 7 years didn't matter than much vs. an enormous wood structure that has had no maintenance in over 3-4 years in a subtropical climate with excessive heat and humidity the majority of the year. Not saying RMC couldn't work miracles, but I don't see it happening personally. Remember...there are THREE trademarks, not just Twisted Tiger. The others are "Uproar" and "Tigris". They may use one, none or throw us a big surprise and give us 3 new rides (a coaster and 2 flats-I'd love this). Of course, they could rename a couple attractions as well with them with a new coaster also. The possibilities are endless.

It will probably end up being Copperhead Timbers....lol It does match Carowinds more so than the other parks. It also seems a bit too early to worry about TM a snake themed water slide that a name like that would match as well, so most likely for the assumed coaster at Carowinds.

where did u find the 2018 map? When you go to the following link and scroll down past the area map until you see what's in the pic below and click on "Download Park Map". https://www.valleyfair.com/explore/directions

Yes, there is a lot of work left. There is still another section of troughs they have to build after they get through with the crane building the drop (from the looks of it).

^I booked my room in December for my June visit the day they started allowing reservations for the 2018 season. It's never too early to market the park or it's amenities. Opening day is in 24 days.

^I've just watched it dispatch 6 times with all the trains empty. The only people I see are in the station; likely ride operators in training. There looks to be a block between the station and lift which will help with capacity. It may have been noticed/known before, but this is the first time I watched it testing live.

^It honestly doesn't look good opening day, outside of the temperature. Sunday doesn't look too promising either. Preview night on Friday looks good though. Of course forecasts can change. It said 90% earlier today for Saturday.

Tree Top Trails and Wild Surge were reopened during spring break (which ended yesterday technically) to help with crowd capacity. Jungle Flyers hasn't reopened. I see them being closed off again today and perhaps only weekends for the rest of the Food & Wine Festival at best. They still state on the park's website that they are closed. https://buschgardens.com/tampa/park-info/ride-attraction-schedule/

^The park has always said Summer. They have finally gone vertical recently and have most of the troughs done. Even a bit of rock work is done in certain areas and the station appears to be getting it's roof. There is still a whole lot of work to be done. I'll be surprised if it's open before July 4th. There are pictures if you search for them. I would share them, but they appear to be drone pics, and not sure from where they were taken.

The app used to be great with showing wait times and other information. It even had a "find my car" option on there that came in handy (I know there are other apps for that, but it was nice to be included in one I was already using). They have simply made the app the same as the mobile site (that you can look up on your phone's browsers). It's the same with the SeaWorld app as well. My only thought is that it was a cost saving measure. I know it can be frustrating, especially when you're used to using it. I've deleted both apps now since I can look up the same info on Chrome without taking up extra space. There is also a board across from the Moroccan Theater under Cheetah Hunt's windcatcher tower (the figure 8 thing). Those were put in a few years ago. It wouldn't hurt to put a few more. Since they have QQ, I'm guessing they don't think they need it. I've been going since 2007 and honestly didn't need one even when I go on rides alone. I usually go when it's not busy either so I never thought they'd need one. I can see how it would help on busy days like it's been over Spring Break. The staff can be hit or miss with trying to push capacity. I was there last Saturday and they were doing pretty good on Montu around 9pm. They had 3 trains running and even with the station almost full I still got on within 10 minutes. However I've been there other times when they just had no hustle at all. You missed several other "deserted rides". I suppose that's a good thing? There are closed attractions all over the park that are well hidden to first timers, well some of them. Obviously you can't hide the massive structure of Gwazi. Tanganyika Tidal wave isn't as bad as it can blend in with the trees some, but you noticed it (I'm assuming that's the other one you saw), so maybe it's not as hidden as I thought for first timers. At least it's on the edge of the park. Just to name a few others: *There is/was a Simulator ride right across from the Serengeti Overlook Restaurant that you walk right by on the way to Cobra's Curse/Montu on the right side. It's used for Howl-O-Scream I believe now. *There is Rhino Rally which has/had it's entry beside the elephant habitat. It was an off road safari ride where you could see rhinos and other animals not seen on regular display. It also used to have a raft portion where it would "float" down a river. Cheetah Hunt uses that section now where the twisty part is before the last launch. *Nocturnal Mountain. This was an animal exhibit that featured snakes, bats and others that were more of a nocturnal nature. It was dimly lit and creepy inside that kind of resembled walking through a cave. It's across from the Nairobi train station. I can agree that the staff is not up to par with some others. It has gone downhill in general since InBev forced their hand and took the parks and sold them. It was much better when I first started going in '07. They aren't all bad however. Many still go out of their way to make sure guests are tended to. It's just not uniform across the board. I would still put them above Cedar Fair & Six Flags. I'm glad the few negatives you encountered didn't spoil your trip. Hopefully in the years to come things will look brighter. It's my favorite park (hence my screen name). Those attractions were reopened temporarily to help with handling spring break crowds most likely. I saw them open last weekend also, They've done this in the past. They'll likely be closed off again soon, probably tomorrow & going to weekends only until the Food & Wine Festival is over. It is confusing, especially since it's shown on the website that those attractions are closed. I'm sure someone will post something soon on if it has once again closed again. If I see it, I'll share if I'm not beaten to it.

Rethemed. It's still on the blueprints that were discovered.

There is more: More walls up in the area (the splash pad has been walled up for awhile). [EDIT] I was informed the awning was removed some time ago ( I hadn't noticed my last visit). I looked back at photos and found it was. That is a new wall however in front of Swishy Fishies ( mini teacups). https://twitter.com/thrillgeek/status/983102791097909249 I would assume since spring break is pretty much over they are getting a head start. I was thinking they would wait until Infinity Falls opened at least. People in the SW groups on Facebook are going nuts...lol

Today was the last day to ride Shamu Express. They have been announcing it at the ride all day (as can be heard in the video in the link below). It appears they have decided to get a move on with the Sesame Street transformation. The splash pad in the area has been blocked off for a couple months at least already. There has also been a lot of seating removed from around the play structure (which is to be removed permanently for the project). It just kills me with people taking the date the park gave last year as 2022 as if that's the end all...lol If I recall correctly, it was stayed by 2022 which means anytime before that. https://www.facebook.com/RollerCoasterPro/posts/10155233515296965

Rearranging staff is not necessarily something they can do. People have to be trained to do those jobs and there may not have been anyone else qualified to run certain positions. In the places you saw overstaffing, it may have been a case of new hires being trained which is common in retail & foodservice even outside of theme parks.

Montu this past Saturday night. I rode back row far right (usually I pick far left) and it was the best night ride I've ever had on it. I'd like to thank the 2 groups of people who asked if I wanted the spare seat....lol

That's the last weekend of the Food & Wine Festival. There's also a concert (Flo Rida) going on so the park will be busy. Spring Break busy? Not likely, but will be much more crowded than a weekday. They have Quick Queue that would be good if you feel the lines are too long. I was there this past Saturday and EVERY coaster had an hour-90 minute wait at times, even Cheetah Hunt & Cobra's curse had 65-70 minutes posted at 9:30pm. Kumba's queue was full at 3pm (which I hadn't seen in years), with Montu having an almost full queue at 4. Mind you it was Easter weekend/spring break. Even if it's likely to be busy, I would still arrive at the park before purchasing Quick Queue Unlimited. It's $69.99 that day: As far as a plan of attack (if you're more about the rides of course), if you end up getting Quick Queue, then you can just go counter-clockwise around the park and ride at your leisure. If you're wanting to see the animals, most are more active in the morning, especially the Gorillas, Tigers, Lions and Kangaroos. Otherwise (without QQ), Cheetah Hunt will be the first coaster to post a huge wait time shortly after park opening. If you're there before the park opens head there first. They usually open the parking lot 30 minutes before opening and will let you into the front plaza area through the "turnstiles" some days. Go to the right as soon as the rope drops. You might get a couple rides in before the line swells. It's not uncommon for the wait time to jump to an hour within 20-30 minutes. Next I would ride Cobra's Curse. It's definitely worth at least one ride. I was actually surprised with it. After that you'll be tempted to ride Montu since it's there. If the place looks dead get on it. Otherwise I'd wait and go straight to Scorpion as it only has one train. I'd then ride Falcon's Fury as it gets a pretty long wait by lunch and perhaps Sand Serpent if you want the wild mouse since it's right there. After that you can do the rest as you get to it. Don't forget about Stanley Falls Flume. It's one of my favorite log flumes. The Skyride is great to get a view of the park from above, and a great way to rest up a bit from all that walking. The train is great too to see the animals on the Serengeti that are hard to see from the paths and others that can only be seen while riding it. When riding Kumba, back row left is generally the best seat on the ride. Montu back left usually is too for me, but I did back right last week and it was the best night ride I've ever had on it since I started going regularly in 2007. The front row in the middle of SheiKra is generally the best visually on the first drop. Cheetah Hunt: back row...gives great airtime on the 2nd launch into the the tower and 3rd launch into the airtime hill. I've only done Cobra's Curse a couple times, but the back seemed to be great, especially during the spin section. Another hint I can give regarding wait times, is that during the concert, they'll likely go down substantially since it's not spring break anymore. Most of the people in the park once that starts (7PM) will be there for the festival. The festival area (Bird Gardens/Gwazi Park) will be crowded anyway with people sampling food, wine, beer & liquor.

I was just about to post this. It looks like a great deal for passholders. $22 for 15 ticket samples sounds awesome (much better than 10 for $36 at SWO and 15 for $55 at BGT for passholders with their similar events). It will be my first time and until I saw this pricing I wasn't even considering it. Depending on the portions, I could likely eat off that my 3 days there...lol Of course that won't happen since there are a couple other places in the park I'd like to try as well. There also are some items my partner can possiby try since he's a pescetarian/vegetarian. He eats dairy and fish and there is a shrimp dish, nacho dish & desserts he might be able to try listed on there. Neither one of us are into beer, but looks to be some selections we may be able to stomach. I'll need to go through y'alls trip report again to see some of the food pics. Were there liquor samples available? We aren't beer drinkers, but liquor is a yes...lol

Fanny packs are indeed not allowed on Twisted Timbers. If what you have is hidden under your shirt and not bulging too much you MIGHT get away with it. I wouldn't hold my breath however. Here is a photo posted in a comment on FB about the loose article policy for TT (I would assume it's the same as Intimidator 305 & Flight Of Fear as they installed lockers at both & removed the bins).

March has 31 days. Try again Sunday.

It might be a few years, if at all. Carowinds Hurler isn't that bad; not that great either. Honestly it's a snoozefest from what it once was IMO. For 2019 [Project alpha]: There are already markers and drilling in the station area where Thunder Road was and the former Sand Dune Lagoon. There are pictures out there showing this, but from another forum site, so I won't share them here.

Year-round parks are generally in no hurry to get things open before summer. I mean BGT, SWO, Universal and even Disney don't seem to rush such things. I don't ever see MM changing the way Six Flags usual ride opening schedule. The only difference I have noticed this year as far as Six Flags go is them trying to get Wonder Woman ASAP so they can claim we had it first. OH and they are currently pushing for more attendance with the Drop Of Doom VR before the real new ride opens....lol

I'll be at Busch Gardens Tampa (my favorite park) on Saturday to see Boyz II Men perform. It's Easter weekend with spring break and the Food & WIne Festival, so I expect the place to be completely packed.