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Busch Gardens Tampa Bay (BGT Discussion Thread)

P. 377: Wild Oasis realm in Jungala announced for 2025!

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First post but a long time lurker.....

 

I was at the official announcement yesterday and had a chance to talk to Dan Brown, VP & General Manager of Busch Gardens, and he said that Jungala would be targeted for kids in the "tween" years, those children too young for Land of the Dragons but not quite ready for Sheikra or Kumba. After talking to him, I did not get the feeling that Land of the Dragons would be removed in the near future. Although I wouldn't mind if it was removed, as that area is always extremely congested and a bit outdated.

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  • 1 month later...

This looks like a cool addition to the park, and it adds another place for younger guests to play and what not. It looks like it's gonna be very well themed, like the rest of the park. The construction is going real well (BGT is my home park). Can't wait for it to open.

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  • 6 months later...

I was at BGA yesterday and they were selling Quick Queue passes, BGA's version of Fastpass and Universal Express. It costs $24.95 and $19.95 for passholders. It gives you express access to Sheikra, Kumba, Montu, Gwazi Lion, Gwazi Tiger, Rhino Rally, and Congo River Rapids.

 

In most rides, you have a special Quick Queue entrance (much like Fastpass). At Montu, it looks like they blocked off row 2 for Quick Queue. The ride ops will still fill empty seats in row 2 from the regular line. Rhino Rally, Congo River Rapids, and Sheikra had a special line for Quick Queue. I didn't see any rows blocked off on Kumba and I'm not sure how they load Quick Queue for it. I didn't ride Gwazi to check out the Quick Queue access. I haven't seen Quick Queue make the regular wait longer, as not too many people were using it. Besides, Kumba, Montu, and Rhino Rally had less than 5 minute waits when I rode. Sheikra had a 20 minute wait. You might have used Quick Queue for that, but the wait wasn't too bad.

 

From what I've heard, it is currently in test mode. With the busy season coming up, it might be a worthy investment to buy the Quick Queue passes. Still, $25 to me is lunch and souvenirs. I think $25 is better invested in food and drinks. However, since the busy period is around the corner, I can see the park getting a lot of sales with Quick Queue.

 

Quick Queue is available for purchase at any Admissions window or the Desert Grill information booth.

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I work there, and the only times I have seen horrendous lines is during Hallowscream. Usually if you plan your day right, you can get on everything. Of course, Rhino Rally's line is always bad no matter how small the crowd.

 

Just my two cents!

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I saw this when I was there Friday, I forgot to take pics though.

 

I love Busch is finally doing the Fastpass bandwagon and this should come in handy during weekends and the holidays.

 

Kumba's quick queue line has a merge point with an attendant standing by. I assume they would block off a part of the queue and let QQ customers go through, much like Six Flags and Flash Pass.

 

Montu's quick queue is through the exit by the old photo booth. Row 2 is blocked off exclusively for QQ customers.

 

As with Barry, I didn't ride Gwazi either, so I'm not sure how the system works there.

 

Again, I appreciate Busch FINALLY has a fastpass system and if I visit during the Christmas holidays (when the park is really crowded), I'd definitely plop down the extra 20 bucks.

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^^Actually, I rode Rhino Rally about 15 minutes before closing and the line was about 5 minutes. The last 3 times I've been on it, though, the water portion was broken. I've been on the water part several times in the past, but I feel like I'm cursed to never experience the water part again.

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Hmm........

This sounds interesting. The idea itself is good, but the lines at BGA (at least when I'm there) aren't very bad, about 15-30 minutes for the coasters. I'll have to see how it goes next time I'm there... because I don't find it necessary. Nice addition, but I probably won't use it alot. And like Barry said, I would use that on food and other things, not the QQ.

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I haven't been to BGA since SheiKra opened, but I don't remember the lines ever really being too bad there. I've been a number of times since I grew up in Florida, the park was always popular but really efficient at getting people through the rides. I wish they would merge Montu in the station, because the best place to ride is in the very front or in the very back, but I guess you don't get the option to choose your row.

 

I'm back in Florida for the summer, so hopefully I'll find an excuse to get back to the park.

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This is great news, I've been hoping that they would do this for some time. I'll have to try it out next time I go.

 

Unfortunatly, I don't know how successful this would be for Busch Gardens, since, as everyone has pointed out, they never really have long lines thanks to their coaster's great capacities. A full queue on Kumba or Montu is only 20-30 minutes, and Sheikra is about 45 though usually less. It might be popular on some of the water rides though, like the Congo River Rapids that can have a 70 min wait during the summer.

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^Personally, I don't mind waiting 30 minutes for a roller coaster, but I know people who don't want to wait.

 

The Quick Queue would have been helpful on the water rides. The Congo River Rapids queue was spilling onto the bridge under Kumba's cobra roll. It looked like a good 45-60 minute wait.

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I don't know how I feel about this. If you don't go when all the tourists are here, you can pretty much walk on or enjoy a very minimal wait on just about everything at BGT.

 

 

I know August Busch III and his son "number IV" who's now in charge were not fans of this a few years back, or they were not in favor of the "Fast Pass" Disney uses. Maybe they like the idea of padding the bottom line more!

 

If they added the Brewmaster's Club to it, then it might be worth it for the free beer, but unless that happens, BRING BACK BEER SCHOOL AND no thanks for me!

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I probably won't buy it when I go this year, although I'm glad that they have that option now. The lines may not be terribly long normally but on those days when they do get too get too long the QQ would be great.

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To all of you complaining/not understanding this saying how 'the park is empty when I go' etc. It's not FOR you!!!

 

This system is for tourists who can't go all the time, or can't go when it's dead, or for people who don't feel that a 20 minute line is a 'walk on'. I have been on all these coasters so much that I won't even wait 10 minutes for most of them, I would however spend $20 extra not to wait!

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Why wait 30 mins if you can wait 5? More rides, less time just standing around in the heat... this makes me happy

 

While I think it is a really good move for Busch to finally get system like this, I think it is a drawback that you might not get to pick your row on some rides. That bugs me about how some of the rides at Six Flags are set up, but then again I'm obviously a coaster enthusiast and am more picky about where I sit than your average park guest.

 

Then again, I've visited BGA multiple times, so I'm not a first time visitor who really wants to get in every single attraction on a crowded day. This could be a big advantage for visitors like that.

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