KD / busch gardens trip

[MJL12785]

I am hoping someone can help me this. I am thinking about a 2 day trip where I could spend a day at KD and a day a BG. This would be on a Friday and Saturday. What kind of crowds can I expect? What park would be best to visit on what day. Thanks

[SharkTums]

Both parks now offer a 'skip the line' type pass so I would google for any special events, see which park is open later that you want to stay at longer, and decide for driving which works better!

[MJL12785]

Any suggestions on which park would be better to stay longer at? Both parks have good selection of coasters. Haven't been to either park before.

[Paladin7485]

I practically live at both of these parks and alternate between the two. If you travel there between now and June then Friday will be the day with less people as school age kids wont be there. Saturdays it just depends. Ive been there some Saturdays and the ride wait times are extremely low and others they are long. As far as which park to visit it depends on what you plan to do. Kings Dominion has a lot more roller coasters than Busch Gardens but if you like the scenery, live shows, variety of foods, etc then Busch Gardens is the place to be. Theres alot of walking at Busch Gardens but you have the skylift and train if you dont want to walk. Although Busch Gardens only has 5 big coasters they have been rated on many tv shows as some of the best in the country. When I feel the need to ride I prefer Kings Dominion with the variety. Busch Gardens Apollos Chariot and Griffon you can ride over and over again and never get tired. Busch Gardens ride wait times are usually lower with the exception of Verbolten. But that ride is now two years old and its usually not as packed. Verbolten is excellent as most of it is in the dark and the first coaster ive rode where the track falls under you and relaunches the ride. With Kings Dominion 40th Anniversary Id expect alot more people to visit. Therefore Kings Dominion is my favorite place for rides and fun and when I want to hang out for shows, food, or even explore historic Williamsburg then I go there. Id do Kings Dominion on Friday and Busch Gardens on Saturday. Plus if you like water rides Kings Dominion has a water park along with regular water rides and Busch Gardens has some water rides and Water Country two miles away. Do Kings Dominion one day and get the two park jump pass for Busch Gardens/Water Country for two days. Virginia has some of the countrys best roller coasters. Kings Dominion Intimidator 305 along with Volcano and Dominator are some of the best coasters to ride there.

[MJL12785]

Paladin - Thx for the info. After checking out the hours. I think BG on Friday and KD on Saturday. I know you suggested the opposite but our main purpose is the coasters. With that said KD is open 4 hrs longer on sat than on Friday. Even if the lines are longer i think we will get more rides in. Also BG is open longer on Friday than KD is. So for the maximum time in the parks I think this is the way to go.

 

One more question. I cannot seem to find discount tickets for BG anywhere. Website has them at $72 each. That is steep. That would be about $230.00 for tickets and parking. Any ideas on where to get the best ticket prices. Due to expenses probably only be able to spend 1 day at each park before driving home so multiple day tickets will not help me.

 

Thx for the help and great advice.

[Paladin7485]

When I replied I didnt think about the opening times prior to Memorial Day so yes your best bet is KD on Saturday. Busch Gardens its currently $72 for both regular and Water Country and its good for unlimited all season which is good but you have to pay for parking. As far as coupons Kings Dominion has I believe a $39 everyone gets in for one price not sure when its valid but good for one day up until June. Im used to season passes and never have to worry about anything including parking. For Busch Gardens most local restaurants have coupons from around now through mid summer starting around Richmond and east. Its early in the season so they arent going to offer you the $10-25 off deals yet. Ive seen a few for $3 off a ticket. Do you have any friends that are platinum members with BG? They can buy your tickets for about 15-20% off for you. BG also has a buy one adult get kids ticket half price which can help if they are 3-9 years old. Try http://www.virginia-beach-family-fun.com/busch-garden-coupon.html. They usually have some deals too.

[netdvn]

Keep in mind May is peak band trip season time for both parks since I'm pretty sure both parks host band/cheer competitions. If the weather is beautiful, expect both parks to be slammed with kids. Not only that but, KD is holding a special 40th anniversary event in May on top of the current event in the works. That might bring in some very heavy crowds.

 

The weather acts really funky in May. It could be beautiful one day and the next, temps could be in the 30s-40s. Make sure you keep up with the weather.

 

If you're going on a Saturday I'd vouch for a line cutting pass. I'd probably use Saturday as a culture day to check out the town and visit on Sunday instead so the crowds aren't AS bad.