Busch Gardens Williamsburg (BGW BGE) Discussion Thread

[Nrthwnd]

I look at those photos .... and .... woof.

[coastercoaster5]

It's such a shame that this world-class roller coaster has zero theming and a station that looks like it was made in a day. I know money is really tight so we probably won't see too much more done with it  But I think it would be cool if they added some real theming to it down the line and they could even do a re-launch of the ride. It's a stretch but you never know...

[JJLehto]

Yeah I was pretty hyped for this, it had an extra year to build, but after seeing this my hype just hit 11.https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7KbGyEMuwOY&t=118s

Really hope its open by mid-late May. 
I can bail to KD if it isn't, but I really hope that's not the case. I was torn if I should commit to BGW regardless as I've not been in ages but won't lie...if I'm there and Pantheon is sitting there not open I'll be too sad ha

 

[Canobie Coaster]

2 hours ago, coastercoaster5 said:

It's such a shame that this world-class roller coaster has zero theming and a station that looks like it was made in a day. I know money is really tight so we probably won't see too much more done with it  But I think it would be cool if they added some real theming to it down the line and they could even do a re-launch of the ride. It's a stretch but you never know...

I think it'll look a lot better when the leaves grow on the trees and hide the layout more.

[cfc]

I'm looking forward to that outward banked curve and the bit where it heads toward the Rhine River.

[coasternut79]

21 minutes ago, cfc said:

I'm looking forward to that outward banked curve and the bit where it heads toward the Rhine River.

Agreed it appears to be hauling at the bottom of the drop.  I love the extended stall too.  I was excited before but after seeing it testing it looks amazing!

What is everyone's best guess as to when it will open?  In a normal year I would say it is close enough to say within a month but who knows what they are thinking now.  I would think they are looking at Memorial Day'ish to be ready for summer.  I hope I'm right because our family trip is the first weekend in June.

[grsupercity]

I love Intamin 

[thrillseeker4552]

1 hour ago, grsupercity said:

I love Intamin 

This perfectly sums up my thoughts.

Between this and Velocicoaster (not to mention Hagrid's too), I am stoked that Intamin has a new presence in the U.S. I really hope they can form a new relationship with Cedar Fair because that is the only other chain I can see spending the money needed for a large scale Intamin like this.

Also, I hate saying things like "[this] will be the best in the world!" but, uh, yeah. That 95-degree drop off the top hat towards the river with no trims is going to be one of the best drops in the world.

[JJLehto]

No clue or guess when it may be open. I HOPE it's by May 23 as that's the weekend I'll be in VA. 
I'm such a nerd I actually changed my travel plans, I was gunna do FL at the end and head back, but now I'm doing FL first so that way I can give BGW as much time as possible for Pantheon to open XD  With testing going on I don't think that's unrealistic, near 2 months from now, but we shall see.

I'm pretty excited about the airtime hill while you will be accelerating. I was let down by CHS (I didn't know Mack launches were slow) but looks like you're hauling over that thing. It seems quick too through the stall, whole thing looks to be moving fast. Deff has potential to be a top tier ride. 

[qpb2004]

BGW is mobbed today with most lines overflowing out of the queues...

I’ll be back later so hopefully the crowds die down. It’s most likely a combination of the spring break rush and a lack of staffing.

[VaCoasters]

1 minute ago, qpb2004 said:

BGW is mobbed today with most lines overflowing out of the queues...

I’ll be back later so hopefully the crowds die down. It’s most likely a combination of the spring break rush and a lack of staffing.

Really? It's like 40 degrees outside.  I definitely don't envy anyone there today.

[anonymouscactus]

Took us about 5 hours waiting in food lines strictly to use our tasting cards we purchased. The rides, wasn't even going to try. Would have bought QQ but Griffon didn't open until 2 or 3 ish, and then by 5 it looked like it closed down again. Other lines looked crazy. We just stuffed or face with food and alcohol. We'll be back again soon I'm sure to do the rides once pantheon reopens, plus we have rides at two Six Flags parks the next 2 days, so we had an enjoyable day out of the house.

[qpb2004]

Just finished up my second stint at the park, was an enjoyable time. Lines decreased to around 15-20 mins for the coasters and a walk on at the end for Apollo that allowed for a mini marathon. I can’t feel my face from the cold now though, lol.

[mulfdog]

13 hours ago, anonymouscactus said:

Took us about 5 hours waiting in food lines strictly to use our tasting cards we purchased. The rides, wasn't even going to try. Would have bought QQ but Griffon didn't open until 2 or 3 ish, and then by 5 it looked like it closed down again. Other lines looked crazy. We just stuffed or face with food and alcohol. We'll be back again soon I'm sure to do the rides once pantheon reopens, plus we have rides at two Six Flags parks the next 2 days, so we had an enjoyable day out of the house.

We had a similar experience.  My wife and I did wait in line for Invadr (40 minute wait) since we missed it the day before.  It took us 6 hours to work through our 30 punches.  Fortunately, everything was really good!

[cfc]

I'm going there today, mainly for Food and Wine. I imagine it'll be nuts (Colonial Williamsburg was fairly busy this week, too). A little warmer here today, but still chilly.

[anonymouscactus]

Every time I go to Williamsburg, I make an effort to eat at Food for Thought.  It’s the #1 rated restaurant on Yelp for a reason.  The prices are very reasonable for the quality of the food and the service is fantastic.

Thanks for this recommendation! Our party of 4 all had a wonderful meal. No complaints whatsoever except I got one of the specials and it contained a crab cake as part of it, however that was the one thing of everything we all had that could have been better. From the bread, to the mussels, to the ribs, to everything else we had, all great stuff! And the service was phenomenal as well.

[VegasBaby]

On 4/5/2021 at 4:51 PM, anonymouscactus said:

 

 

Thanks for this recommendation! Our party of 4 all had a wonderful meal. No complaints whatsoever except I got one of the specials and it contained a crab cake as part of it, however that was the one thing of everything we all had that could have been better. From the bread, to the mussels, to the ribs, to everything else we had, all great stuff! And the service was phenomenal as well.

 

Glad that you enjoyed it and that the food/service was as good as I remembered.  I’m hoping to to get out to BGW once Pantheon opens and I’ll definitely be eating there!

[Alex Sutcliff]

I'm visiting BGW on 28th August for the first time and travelling from the UK. 

Compared to the other places we are visiting the ticket prices seem way over the top at around $89. Is there a cheaper place to buy tickets? And is the extra fast pass thing going to be essential to make it round in one day?

[tndank]

5 hours ago, Alex Sutcliff said:

I'm visiting BGW on 28th August for the first time and travelling from the UK. 

Compared to the other places we are visiting the ticket prices seem way over the top at around $89. Is there a cheaper place to buy tickets? And is the extra fast pass thing going to be essential to make it round in one day?

Tickets are generally $80+ for the big Orlando parks.  They do run sales periodically.  Buying an annual pass sometimes makes things cheaper for group with the included free tickets.  No reason to buy tickets any time soon.  And you can buy QQ at the park if needed.  No need to worry about that now.

 

[SharkTums]

8 hours ago, Alex Sutcliff said:

I'm visiting BGW on 28th August for the first time and travelling from the UK. 

Compared to the other places we are visiting the ticket prices seem way over the top at around $89. Is there a cheaper place to buy tickets? And is the extra fast pass thing going to be essential to make it round in one day?

Wow! Very optimistic! 

That is a very standard ticket price for any of the Sea World Busch Parks. If you'll be visiting multiple days or other parks in the chain it will be a better deal to get a fun card or annual pass.  Sometimes BGW has been on Groupon or other discount sites but I doubt it this summer. 

[Alex Sutcliff]

Ok if that's the going rate then so be it. I was comparing the cost against the other parks we are going to like SFGA and Hershey but maybe BGW has a lot more to offer or in a different league that justifies the extra ticket price.

[mkdownload]

It looks great in the clips, with some really nice speed, especially for early tests.

I'm sooooo hype for this ride, even more so than Jersey Devil which is an hour from me. I'm sure that will be great, but this just looks like a top 5'er for me. It ticks all my boxes, and that its at BGW is the cherry on top.

 

101goodmorningquotes.com

[JJLehto]

Yeah I'm praying to the coaster gods its opened when I'm in VA it looks like such a sick ride. Agreed, deff more hyped for it than Jersey Devil despite also being in my home park. 

[VegasBaby]

41 minutes ago, JJLehto said:

Yeah I'm praying to the coaster gods its opened when I'm in VA it looks like such a sick ride. Agreed, deff more hyped for it than Jersey Devil despite also being in my home park. 

I honestly think Pantheon could be the best new ride of 2022.  We had a trip to BGW planned for last summer that got canceled, so I’m hoping to make it out there this year once it opens.  BGW is one of my favorite parks and it’s been too long since my last visit.

[AmyUD06]

On 3/26/2021 at 9:26 PM, Mike240SX said:

Maybe I've missed some sort of official announcement, but is it safe to assume that the full park won't be open (meaning everything currently marked "Temporarily Closed" will be running) until May after the Food & Wine festival?

I hate to quote my own post, but just wondering if anyone had any intel on my question.  Was possibly planning a trip on May 1 and would prefer that Aplengeist, Loch Ness. Mach Tower, and the log flume not be closed.

Quote

I'm visiting BGW on 28th August for the first time and travelling from the UK. 

Compared to the other places we are visiting the ticket prices seem way over the top at around $89. Is there a cheaper place to buy tickets? And is the extra fast pass thing going to be essential to make it round in one day?

If you have access to TicketsatWork.com, they currently have any-day tickets for $60.