I am planning on being there this Sunday, June 22. Do you think the lines will be crazy long. I am getting sticker shock seeing the prices of the quick queue wrist bands but am thinking of buying three for my family to make the most of our day since this will be the last time that we are there for who knows how long.
Quick Questions & Answers
- Thread starter Bill
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Park hours are 9:30 a.m. to 9 p.m., so a pretty long operating day. Lines will be longest between 11 a.m. and mid afternoon until the likely thunderstorms roll in (Currently 40% chance). Sundays are certainly less crowded than Saturdays in general. The other thing you have going for you is that there is a special Pass Member event this Friday and Saturday evening, so that should shift some of the Pass Members to one of those days who would normally visit Sunday.
If you plan on arriving for opening and staying the entire day until 9 p.m., you should be able to hit the rides with longer lines (Cheetah Hunt, Gwazi, SheiKra, Congo River Rapids) early or late with out much wait, and focus on the animals, shows, etc in the middle of the day when lines will be longer for rides.
If you plan on arriving after 10:30, leaving before 7, and/or plan on riding the coasters multiple times, then the Quick Queue Unlimited is the way to go. Quick Queue Unlimited also allows you to go when you want and not worry about riding early/late or having to double back.
Quick Queue can sell out - but in my opinion, it's not likely to sell out ahead on Sunday. So you may want to wait until you get there and decide if it's needed based on crowd levels and what time you arrive.
If you plan on arriving for opening and staying the entire day until 9 p.m., you should be able to hit the rides with longer lines (Cheetah Hunt, Gwazi, SheiKra, Congo River Rapids) early or late with out much wait, and focus on the animals, shows, etc in the middle of the day when lines will be longer for rides.
If you plan on arriving after 10:30, leaving before 7, and/or plan on riding the coasters multiple times, then the Quick Queue Unlimited is the way to go. Quick Queue Unlimited also allows you to go when you want and not worry about riding early/late or having to double back.
Quick Queue can sell out - but in my opinion, it's not likely to sell out ahead on Sunday. So you may want to wait until you get there and decide if it's needed based on crowd levels and what time you arrive.
That's a complicated question to answer.
When you get to the park, check out the back of the map for the Meet the Keeper times - for the Cheetahs, Chimps, Gorillas, Elephants, Lions, Hippos, Orangutans, Tigers, and various Animal Ambassadors at Jambo Junction, the Meet the Keeper often has some interaction between the staff and animals. It might be a feeding or other stimulation, but either way, the animals tend to be more active for those couple of minutes.
Otherwise, the animals tend to be a bit more active first thing in the morning, or during a light rain.
The chances of seeing every animal - at all, let alone up and active - in one visit is very small. Take a few moments when you get to each habitat, as you might have to look for signs of movement.
When you get to the park, check out the back of the map for the Meet the Keeper times - for the Cheetahs, Chimps, Gorillas, Elephants, Lions, Hippos, Orangutans, Tigers, and various Animal Ambassadors at Jambo Junction, the Meet the Keeper often has some interaction between the staff and animals. It might be a feeding or other stimulation, but either way, the animals tend to be more active for those couple of minutes.
Otherwise, the animals tend to be a bit more active first thing in the morning, or during a light rain.
The chances of seeing every animal - at all, let alone up and active - in one visit is very small. Take a few moments when you get to each habitat, as you might have to look for signs of movement.
Hi again Bill, I hope all is well. Just curious, I know September is a notoriously slower time at the parks, but what about weekends in say, mid September and is there much or a difference between Saturday and Sunday?
Saturdays will likely be a bit more crowded with locals coming out for the day, but overall, should be generally low crowds either weekend day in mid-September.
Generally, yes. Mondays - Thursdays after Labor Day and before Howl-O-Scream kicks up will be sparse overall. But, the operating hours are usually much shorter (10 - 6 or 10 - 5) and seasonal closures and refurbishments start up again too.
And one last one…for now, Bill. I know Florida weather is tricky, but is mid October compared to mid September just night and day as far as comfort?
And how about rain? September is slower (from what I understand) but are you trading that sparseness for some pretty miserable weather?
And how about rain? September is slower (from what I understand) but are you trading that sparseness for some pretty miserable weather?
Mid-October should be overall cooler than mid-September, and the rain chances should be less (barring any tropical systems, of course). But it will still likely be fairly hot, and still some chances of thunderstorms.
Monday - Wednesday will still be fairly slow in October. Thursdays through Saturdays pick up with Howl-O-Scream crowds.
Monday - Wednesday will still be fairly slow in October. Thursdays through Saturdays pick up with Howl-O-Scream crowds.
Hi Bill,
I'm from Spain and I plan on visiting Busch Gardens Tampa on the 4th week of September. We are planning to go on Friday the 26th, do you thing it will be very crowded because of Howl-O-Scream? Will it be worth it buying the Quick Queue? Or do you think it would be better changing the visit to another day that week? It's our first visit and we would like to experience as much of the park as possible.
Thanks in advance,
Pablo
I'm from Spain and I plan on visiting Busch Gardens Tampa on the 4th week of September. We are planning to go on Friday the 26th, do you thing it will be very crowded because of Howl-O-Scream? Will it be worth it buying the Quick Queue? Or do you think it would be better changing the visit to another day that week? It's our first visit and we would like to experience as much of the park as possible.
Thanks in advance,
Pablo
That's the first night of Howl-O-Scream, so it shouldn't be overly crowded. Fridays and Saturdays, regardless of the time of year, will generally be more crowded than the other days in the surrounding week. I wouldn't purchase Quick Queue until you get there and see if the wait times warrant it.
One caveat - since we don't know when Falcon's Fury will finally open, if it happens to open near that time, that could affect crowd levels, so keep an ear out for that.
One caveat - since we don't know when Falcon's Fury will finally open, if it happens to open near that time, that could affect crowd levels, so keep an ear out for that.
Hey Bill,
Thinking of a trip (last minute) this Wednesday. What kind of wait times
do you predict? Anything more than 30-45 minutes?
Thinking of a trip (last minute) this Wednesday. What kind of wait times
do you predict? Anything more than 30-45 minutes?
Cheetah Hunt in the late morning will probably hit that range, but not likely to see any wait times longer than that. Gwazi might be up in that range since the ops tend to be slow.
We were there this past Wednesday afternoon from about 1 to 4, and SheiKra and Falcon's Fury were both near walk-on, and Cheetah Hunt was running about 10 to 15 minutes.
We were there this past Wednesday afternoon from about 1 to 4, and SheiKra and Falcon's Fury were both near walk-on, and Cheetah Hunt was running about 10 to 15 minutes.
Hey Bill, hope all is well. Any thoughts on crowd levels for the second weekend of Feb? A strange confluence of holidays/celebrations is happening. You have Valentines, Presidents Day and Mardi Gras that Tuesday. According to Touring Plans.com, Disney looks jammed packed. Do you think BGT will be affected as well, and more specifically, on that Monday and Tuesday?
Saturday through Monday that weekend will likely see moderate to heavy crowds with the holiday (Presidents Day) weekend.
Tuesday should be more reasonable crowds (light to moderate) as the locals will be back at school/work, but you still will have a slight boost in tourists on an early Spring Break.
Tuesday should be more reasonable crowds (light to moderate) as the locals will be back at school/work, but you still will have a slight boost in tourists on an early Spring Break.
Has anyone ever utilized the shuttle that BGT offers from Orlando?
I was hoping to hear some first hand experience, since their website is understandably vague about the particulars. We'll be there again in November, and if I can get out to BGT for Iron Gwazi without having to rent a car for the day, that would be ideal. The pickup/drop off times are nebulous, and the customer service people on the hotline they provide aren't able to give much insight on the details until the day of.
I was hoping to hear some first hand experience, since their website is understandably vague about the particulars. We'll be there again in November, and if I can get out to BGT for Iron Gwazi without having to rent a car for the day, that would be ideal. The pickup/drop off times are nebulous, and the customer service people on the hotline they provide aren't able to give much insight on the details until the day of.
I stayed at Doubletree Universal this February for the Iron Gwazi soft launch cause I wanted to ride VelociCoaster before Pantheon soft launch. Shuttle is free through Mears. Picked me up right outside the hotel I wanna say 8:30, but could've been 8. The bus is nice, they play a movie on the way there and back. It's got 5 stops in Orlando I believe.
You get to the park around 10-10:30. They pick you back up at 7 pm. Was enough for me to ride everything at BGT and ride Gwazi 4 times (it broke down a lot that day). Hope this helps!
I did the Seaworld shuttle to BGT in 2016 I believe. I don't remember the process of reserving a seat if there was one, but I do remember it to be very easy. The driver highlighted to be sure to not miss the return ride home as you are assigned to a specific bus for the return to Orlando. If you miss it, they wouldn't put you on another bus because it would most likely be full as well. I do remember getting back to the bus early and my bus was already mostly filled and the driver left earlier than he said when he dropped us off. But, overall, was nice and convenient.