Busch Gardens Williamsburg Summer of Wonder 2024

[Zachary]

Could it be? Could Summer Nights finally be dead?! Per the description of the "Loch Ness Monster | The Legend Lives On in 2024" YouTube video:

Plus, stay tuned in the coming months as we unveil an all-new summer event!

Summer Nights has been pretty bad from the start, but especially over the last year or two it has felt like nothing more than an interruption. BGW has struggled with summer events for a very, very long time now, but hopefully this time they can find a way to actually embrace what people love about Busch Gardens Williamsburg rather than plastering generic bright colors and pop music over everything.

 

[warfelg]

Unsolicited thought but I’m not excited for them being successful with this. BGW lacks a commons/central gathering area to make an event like this work. They should do something that’s easily just a bunch of smaller territory things going on.

 

[Diamond Dave]

They could start by limiting the event to 3-4 weeks in length.

 

[Zachary]

June 14th through August 11th apparently. I really miss the days when there were breaks between special events.

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Also, here's the newly-posted description from the park's website:

Immerse yourself in electrifying entertainment from day to night during this summer event.

Sounds like pretty stock language, but I figured it was worth sharing.

 

[Celticdog]

... They should do something that’s easily just a bunch of smaller territory things going on.

You mean like....Illuminights?

 

[halfabee]

I don't know how well it performed from a financial standpoint, but Illuminights was the best overall nighttime event I've seen at BGW in the past 15 years.

 

[Icer]

It wasn't perfect, but it was an honest attempt at something unique and creative. If they did something like that now we would all applaud it solely for the effort.

 

[Thriller]

Other than the return of American Jukebox (which was great) and maybe the concerts, Summer Nights was awful. Especially since the park closed before dark most nights. There wasn’t much “night” in the event. And their summer hours are pitiful.

 

[mtorange]

Does anyone have any news regarding this summer event? Kinda odd that they haven’t announced anything and it’s only a few months away. Someone’s gotta know something… right?

 

[tursiops]

I wish they would drop summer events. The park IS the summer event. Bring back a really exciting cirque show to the France theater with lights, pyrotechnics and acrobatics. They can use the fun lighting in the trees at night still. Have fireworks on weekends. And that's a good time in my book. Toss in some special summer food and drink locations if you want for good measure.

 

[Jonesta6]

I'm guessing it's because of the constant desire for immediate profits that they have to constantly have events like this (whatever it is) to have something to sell.

 

[Alf33]

I wish they would drop summer events. The park IS the summer event. Bring back a really exciting cirque show to the France theater with lights, pyrotechnics and acrobatics. They can use the fun lighting in the trees at night still. Have fireworks on weekends. And that's a good time in my book. Toss in some special summer food and drink locations if you want for good measure.

I recommended this to the park as part of the response to a survey they sent me. I recommended that they do it for just one month to let the park be the park.

 

[Mushroom]

I'm guessing it's because of the constant desire for immediate profits that they have to constantly have events like this (whatever it is) to have something to sell.

I agree, but that doesn’t mean the event can’t be executed tastefully so it complements the core park experience instead of clashing with it.

As much as we clowned Illuminights in its later seasons, its earlier seasons had several elements that added a magical touch that amplified the park’s existing theming. And Food & Wine, especially in its early years when the focus was on the food and culinary culture of the countries represented by the park’s hamlets, provides a great blueprint for how the park can profitably host an event that builds upon everything that already makes the park great.

That said, I still 100% agree with @tursiops, and I think @Alf33 said it perfectly: please just let the park be the park for a little bit.

 

[warfelg]

please just let the park be the park for a little bit.

This always makes me think of the industry I work in with recreation, close to entertainment, and something the CF CEO said pre-COVID.

The masses are no longer entertained by doing something. They want to experience something, interact with something. As much as we all would appreciate parks just being parks, I think while the industry sits in that place which is being driven by limited engagement events, they will continue to happen.

 

[Mushroom]

This always makes me think of the industry I work in with recreation, close to entertainment, and something the CF CEO said pre-COVID.

The masses are no longer entertained by doing something. They want to experience something, interact with something. As much as we all would appreciate parks just being parks, I think while the industry sits in that place which is being driven by limited engagement events, they will continue to happen.

Your point is well taken, but my counter is that a theme park like BGW isn’t just something to “do,” it is something to experience. I don’t think you need a special event to make BGW an experience; it inherently is one.

An amusement park — where you walk around to ride roller coasters and eat funnel cake — is something you “do.” But a theme park with such an immersive environment as BGW makes it something to experience. The experience is in the feeling of being in old-world Europe, and (especially before BGW’s thematic and experiential decline) in experiencing the sights, sounds, smells, and food of those European cultures.

 

[halfabee]

As much as we clowned Illuminights in its later seasons, its earlier seasons had several elements that added a magical touch that amplified the park’s existing theming.

^^^ Absolutely, 100%.

Early-run Illuminights was a big part of what brought us back to Williamsburg and BGW, old and young alike, for a string of years when we had a ton of other options for that particular week of the summer.

It was both the nighttime beauty of the illuminated park and the sense that we had had an actual experience that lured us back each time. Terrific balance.

Years later, with Illuminights long gone, we had a strangely amazing night visit upon arriving late in Williamsburg after a long drive, hitting BGW that evening on a whim. In the span of a few hours we got in a decent late dinner, a couple of night rides, hit up the (divisive but undeniably kid- and wine-friendly) laser show in France, caught the fireworks, and then snagged the season's very last showtime of Light Balance on the way out of the park. Pretty incredible.

Verdict on the experience: "This is like Illuminights again!" (And maybe better)

Save for the magical old days when the park was open later on summer weekdays and until midnight on weekends, early Illuminights remains our gold standard for a night at BGW. Spectacle and experience combined.

 

[Thriller]

“Summet Nights” was misleading anyway since the park closed before dark most nights last summer.

 

[bgw enthusiasts]

We don't care what the summer event is this year as long as they try to bring back a show to replace more pet shenanigans!

 

[bgw enthusiasts]

American Jukebox will be returning with the new summer event

 

[bgw enthusiasts]

Thinking about this year's new summer event has us thinking about their ability to do fireworks because of the new construction area taking away from the areas pyrotechnics usually stage the fireworks. Has us thinking we might only see fireworks for 4th of July.