Mardi Gras 2023
- Thread starter Unagi
- Start date
Apollo, Alpengeist and Verbolten? I'll make a trip down for that.
I was thinking even with Pantheon closed adding Alpie into the mix is still enticing.
Train is operating this year. It was closed during winter last year. I think the Skyway operated last year instead
Per the park’s website: Mardi Gras will run January 27th - February 26th; open only on Fridays (3pm - 8pm), Saturdays & Sundays (12pm - 6pm), plus Monday February 20th (12pm - 6pm).
Just saw the first Carnival Imaginique and it is better than than ever.
Fantastic night tonight. Seemed like lots of families there. Not a huge crowd, but consistently long lines at specialty food booths. Everything we tried was great. Blackened chicken and Mardi Gras corn were very good.
So much more enjoyable than the over crowded shit show Christmastown has become. The Italy bridge being closed sucks though, kills the flow. Carnival Imaginique was still better than pretty much any other BGW show on production value. Really impressive and very reminiscent of BGT. Still odd not seeing Mach Tower.
And the coffee shop attached to Grogans was actually open!! Haven't been in there in years.
So much more enjoyable than the over crowded shit show Christmastown has become. The Italy bridge being closed sucks though, kills the flow. Carnival Imaginique was still better than pretty much any other BGW show on production value. Really impressive and very reminiscent of BGT. Still odd not seeing Mach Tower.
And the coffee shop attached to Grogans was actually open!! Haven't been in there in years.
We had the gumbo and oyster po boy at the stand in Ireland, and beignets from the one in France -- all quite good, though the beignets had been fried a touch too long. Food booth lines were ridiculously slow; the park really should address that. The Jazz show in the Festhaus was very, very good -- both vocalists and musicians were strong. Definitely have to catch Carnivale Imaginique next time!
I loved the nods to the Mardi Gras theme throughout the park, primarily the purple, green, and gold lighting everywhere.
I loved the nods to the Mardi Gras theme throughout the park, primarily the purple, green, and gold lighting everywhere.
VB06Hokie
Mostly wit & sarcasm, but contributes occasionally
Verbolten is currently down, so only 2 coasters are operating at the moment (Grover doesn’t count)
Katapult and the sky ride were also closed when I walked by even though they’re listed…
Katapult and the sky ride were also closed when I walked by even though they’re listed…
The husband and I visited Mardi Gras today. Initial impression is that this is a pretty solid event for the park. It was fun and had some good experiences.
The good: Shows are very good. The jazz band in Das Festhaus is very enjoyable. Carnaval Imaginique is amazing. The Mardi Gras parade through France was very fun to experience. Food was amazing!!! The oyster po’ boy, shrimp etoufee, and chicken and sausage gumbo in O’Taters / Grogans Grill were all delicious. The beignets from France and cinnamon rolls from Das Festhaus were awesome too! One of the best parts was having Annie’s open next to Grogans pub. It’s been years since I remember this being open. A nice hot coffee and hot chocolate were a welcome surprise today!!!
The bad: Staffing 100%. Apollos and Alpengiest were both one train ops. Disappointing for Alpengiest that has been closed since November. Most food booths only had one cashier so they were slowwwww. When we went to Grogans Grill, they had 5 people making food but only one person taking orders. It took forever to get through the line. The park wasn’t packed today but felt crowded at times due to the limited options. Outside the food booths, only Squire’s Grill, pretzel world, and one line in Das Festhaus were open for food. When we went to the Jazz show in Das Festhaus, the food line was pretty long. Grogans Pub also had a very long line every time we went by. The self service kiosks at the front of the park are getting very crowded now too since all the ticket windows are closed….. I hope there is a long term plan for this now that all the member rewards have to be redeemed at these kiosks.
We had a good time today. The waits we had kinda sucked but the atmosphere was very fun. I know it must be hard for the park to offer year round ops now and to be able to staff accordingly, but it would be nice if they would staff the events properly. Having two cashiers at the food booths should be a priority. If they are going to limit food options throughout the park, at least staff the booths. F&WF had very similar issues last year.
Also, rotate your coasters if you are going to do year round ops. Having one train ops is really slow if you get good weather and a crowd during these off season events.
The good: Shows are very good. The jazz band in Das Festhaus is very enjoyable. Carnaval Imaginique is amazing. The Mardi Gras parade through France was very fun to experience. Food was amazing!!! The oyster po’ boy, shrimp etoufee, and chicken and sausage gumbo in O’Taters / Grogans Grill were all delicious. The beignets from France and cinnamon rolls from Das Festhaus were awesome too! One of the best parts was having Annie’s open next to Grogans pub. It’s been years since I remember this being open. A nice hot coffee and hot chocolate were a welcome surprise today!!!
The bad: Staffing 100%. Apollos and Alpengiest were both one train ops. Disappointing for Alpengiest that has been closed since November. Most food booths only had one cashier so they were slowwwww. When we went to Grogans Grill, they had 5 people making food but only one person taking orders. It took forever to get through the line. The park wasn’t packed today but felt crowded at times due to the limited options. Outside the food booths, only Squire’s Grill, pretzel world, and one line in Das Festhaus were open for food. When we went to the Jazz show in Das Festhaus, the food line was pretty long. Grogans Pub also had a very long line every time we went by. The self service kiosks at the front of the park are getting very crowded now too since all the ticket windows are closed….. I hope there is a long term plan for this now that all the member rewards have to be redeemed at these kiosks.
We had a good time today. The waits we had kinda sucked but the atmosphere was very fun. I know it must be hard for the park to offer year round ops now and to be able to staff accordingly, but it would be nice if they would staff the events properly. Having two cashiers at the food booths should be a priority. If they are going to limit food options throughout the park, at least staff the booths. F&WF had very similar issues last year.
Also, rotate your coasters if you are going to do year round ops. Having one train ops is really slow if you get good weather and a crowd during these off season events.
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I guess different people have different experiences. All four of us rated our visit yesterday a "F". Over 50% of the attractions, restaurants and shops were closed. I can't say how many TMs were behind the scenes but from what we saw there were probably less than 50 total employees even working. I think the only rollercoaster running was Alpengiest. Apollo's Chariot was cycling through empty trains. I know why the kiosk lines are so long. There is almost no place else to get something to eat or drink. Won't be going back. The food choices for Mardi Gras are greatly reduced from last year. Plenty of drinks though. And portions are miniscule.
I was there for the final few hours yesterday and all advertised rides were running while I was there. I got in two rides on all three coasters and the food service appeared to be running normallym
When you say 50% of the attractions are you talking about what was listed to be running during the event or all the attractions in the park? We went yesterday and were there the entire event. All of the attractions that are open for the event we went on and there was little to no wait almost the entire day. We had great rides on Alpengeist, Apollo and Verbolten. Food stands were hit or miss and I do agree in general that they don't staff them appropriately any time of the year but our longest wait yesterday was 7 minutes for a drink. Sorry you had such a bad time. After working at both parks for 13 years I have a hard time not noticing all the wrong but yesterday was actually one of the best days we've had there in a very long time.
Was at opening day for Mardi Gras on Friday, and I honestly think this year’s edition is better than the previous two. Between the great food (the gumbo was delicious and well-seasoned), drinks (get the rum runner!), and overall atmosphere of this year’s event, I’d say they’ve really hit their stride with it.
Plus, we got to ride Verbolten five times in a row, so that was awesome.
While we normally have only done Mardi Gras once each of the last two years, we’re hoping to take another trip to the park for this year’s celebration. It was great!
Plus, we got to ride Verbolten five times in a row, so that was awesome.
While we normally have only done Mardi Gras once each of the last two years, we’re hoping to take another trip to the park for this year’s celebration. It was great!
This has been my typical experience there over the past few years regardless of season. They may have had most rides running when I was there but the rest of the park operations reeks of budget cutting and lack of hiring.
I cancelled my membership after the Christmastown fiasco. Plus the 5% gouge iced the cake They charge higher prices for a mediocre experience.
SEAS can give master classes on how to take the previously best operated parks and run them in the ground.
I can’t understand why mediocre overcrowded understaffed Christmastown is so highly attended. Tradition?
So I decided to head up to BGW today to see how this years Mardi Gras compared to last years, while I set my expetations low I didnt set them low enough. We arrived to the park around 4pm with a 6pm close, grabbed our member sample tickets for the food booths and Darcoaster drink and headed in. We met the end of our first food booth line at the castle draw bridge headed into Ireland and then the line for Grogans at about the entrance for the old magic shop.....all I could say is wow. We headed on and of course Bradys drinks was closed. Next up we headed into France and New France, Les Frites...closed, drink stand....closed, Trappers.....closed. The booth by griffon had a huge crowd with back and fourth queue and the only food item on the menu is beignets so we passed. Next was the booth in front of Trappers where the line wasnt too bad but the options didnt jump out to us so we passed and headed on to the next booth in Germany which had.......well just funnel cake or cheesecake. The line for that also ended back by the shop that sells beer steins. So we treked on got our grape coolaide Darcoaster drink which tasted good for free. We also walked through the Darcoaster preview.....would have been nice if we could have been shown the load station which would have been easy for them to do....but I get it, hard hat area and contractors bla bla bla. Anyhow we headed to the next booth which was the bar right by Darcoaster which had a dip and a snack mix......as well as a long line that ended over by the arcade by the Festhaus. We then headed back to the booth by trappers which still had a fairly short line but still took 15 minutes. Its always adds to the experience when there is a order mixup with the guest infront of me and the team member says "they dont pay me enough to care". Had the chicken, it was about 6 strips and some tomatoes on top, good flavor, horrible presentation. The corn was really good and presented well. We ended up having to buy a bottled drink there since its impossible to get a drink cup refill...when did bottled sodas go up to $5.99? Then you get $1.20 off for your member discount then they add .30 cent surcharge .56 cent tax for a total of $5.65 for one bottle soda. Anyhow we then headed back to Ireland to use our last sample for the day, since it was 5:30 Grogans was closed already. The line for the booth in Ireland was shorter now but still took 25 minutes. While waiting for Gumbo the guy working says today was the busiest day so far for Mardi Gras and he "should have listened to his wife and stayed home"......encourging words for guests. Anyhow by the time we got our food the park was now closed so we headed out. By the way the parking lots were packed and no parking trams running today. We didnt make it to the Italy side, with the bridge out and having to double back we just ran out of time.
Overall it was about what I expected and compared to last year I think this year is slightly worse. Is it me or is there less booths and the booths that are there have less options this year? Lines were huge, im glad I didnt buy a sample card because there was no way I could have used it. I had planned on going back tomorrow to film a youtube video of the event but I feel like it would be so negatime its not worth doing.
Overall it was about what I expected and compared to last year I think this year is slightly worse. Is it me or is there less booths and the booths that are there have less options this year? Lines were huge, im glad I didnt buy a sample card because there was no way I could have used it. I had planned on going back tomorrow to film a youtube video of the event but I feel like it would be so negatime its not worth doing.
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^I agree. It was way busier than I expected, but then again I forgot about President's day. I was only able to get beignets and coke at one booth. All lines way too long all day. I forgot my cup and bought a $6.43 (before discount) fountain drink in the shitshow that was the Festhaus. It was a nice stroll from the Gremany lot to the gates. Some people had to walk from Italy.