Surprise Trip in April

[merielisv]

Hi!

Im planning a surprise BG trip for my fiance and I for April, hes under the impression that we're going to Typhoon Lagoon and Wet N Wild.
With that being said, we're both FL residents, we live in Kissimmee, so the crowds that are usually around this time of year are no surprise! I have very bad anxiety when out in public and too many people in one place overwhelms me and i just want to drop everything and book it straight to the entrance and leave, no matter how much fun im having.  So i try to leave the theme parks for a much more "quite" time.
We went twice in 2015 April/June and it wasn't that bad but since i dont go to school, and my fiance goes to college online, anyone know if April 2nd would be a good day to go? im very drawn to the fact that day is 9:30-9:00 pm, and we do all day dinning, and with the hour drive, that seems like the best idea because we'd get the most out of our money and it would give us a chance to go through the entire park thoroughly, because it seems like all three times we've gone we just race through it!

Also, if it matters in April we went on a Thursday and in June we went on a Saturday, and April 2nd is also a Saturday.

thank you!

 

[Eric]

First of all, welcome to the forums.
. secondly, I think April 2nd would be a good day to go since schools in that area would be back in school(though it is a saturday) and Cobras Curse will not be open yet, but im not completely sure as i dont there as much as im closer to seaworld. I have to say though, if you go there and it looks like it will be a busy day, you could get a quick que.

 

[merielisv]

Thanks so much!


Yeah, i was thinking that it would be fine because of that exact reason, but seeing to how it is a saturday, i was unsure. I was also thinking Sunday, because who wants to keep their kids out on a sunday night on the day before the school week?! I live roughly 15 mins or so from Sea World, and The Loop is more crowded than Sea World at all times! so its just hard to figure this out, especially since im looking to make a confirmed decision before 3 pm tomorrow :unsure:

 

[Eric]

No problem!

I just did some quick researching, and the food and wine festival goes on that weekend. Also, the quick que prices change by how busy the park thinks it will be so that can be an indicator of how busy the park will be that day.

 

[merielisv]

oh my gosh!

seriously thats the most helpful thing ive heard in days!

im looking at the website now for a guess with the whole quick queue thing!

any chance youve gone to the food and wine? my fiance has been curious but if its anything like Disney, we'd rather pass!

 

[Eric]

Ive been to the one at Busch Gardens Williamsburg, but i couldnt really give you a review of it since i didnt eat any of the food or wine( as im not of age). If you want to know more about it, you could browse through the forums for more about food and wine festival, or ask another forum member. I assume though that both of the festivals at both of the Busch parks are very similar.

 

[Nicole]

Actually, we discovered that BGT's F&WF is very different from BGW's. In fact, most people were unaware it was going on last year, as it was contained in Gwazi Park. Maybe it will draw more guests this year?

Starting with this post, you can find several reviews, menus, pictures, etc.

I would also recommend Sunday, vice Saturday for BGT.

 

[GoHokies87]

I haven't been to the food and wine festival yet so I can't give you feedback on that, but I can give you general advice to avoid the crowds.

Most normal rules with theme park crowds apply. If you get there at opening you can easily beat the crowds to the back of the park. I generally like to go counter-clockwise, but you don't have to. Pantopia should be empty early in the morning. I like to start there. You can continue to the back of the park and ride Kumba (the ride attendants tend to be slow here, so expect crowds later in the day) and anything else that piques your fancy. Shiekra's capacity keeps lines short most times. That will leave you with the rest of the day to get over to Montu, and scout out Cheetah Hunt for a short line. You might end up having to get QQ for CH, it tends to keep long lines.

The biggest factor for crowds at this park is the weather, rather than day of the week in my experience. There are a lot of out-of-towners that don't care what day it is. Like Nicole said, Sunday should be better than Saturday, but if you pick a day with a sketchy forecast you'll fair well.

 

[merielisv]

Thank you Eric, Nicole, and Chris!

Sorry for the delayed response ive been tied up planning this trip!

Its nice that F&WF is contained to that one small area, im actually very curious, but also not at all interested because, what if there is more people that are aware of it this year, especially since there is concerts, too? I never knew it existed up until it was over last year!
I just looked at whats going on for this tear and id love to go April 10th because my fiances favorite band is playing that day (The All American Rejects), but if the crowd for them is anything like it was a few years ago during Mardi Gras at Universal, i think ill be passing, not just BG all together but F&WF.

Maybe im overthinking all this? who knows.

Thinking, if we did go, we'd go on the 4th which is a Monday, fingers crossed it wont be so crowded.

Also, has anyone ever been to Typhoon Lagoon, or Wet N Wild?

Never been to TL but have gone to Wet N Wild YEARS ago, and it wasnt really all that great, has it improved, same question with the crowds, any advice, etc?
or, should i just follow your weather tactic, Chris? I know water parks are a night and day difference from theme parks, and if i followed it by the weather, wed never go anywhere. A few hours ago we had a tornado warning and "possible touchdown" because of a crazy storm that passed by and it seems like the rest of forever in FL is looking like that according to the Weather Channel haha

Thanks in advance!

 

[Tony]

Hi there,

I had the opportunity to visit the park almost every weekend day for 6 weeks when I was there for work.

Sunday crowds were lighter, especially later.

The concerts tended not to bring in more people until later in the day. I saw an increase in crowds after 4 which I attributed partially to the concerts

The concerts did not get too crowded, mostly because the space is huge and there is a lot of room behind the seats in the lawn so you can avoid the crowds. That said it probably depends on whos playing.

Get to the park 30 min early and head directly to cheetah hunt. You and a bunch of others will rush there but you will wait maybe 5 min compared to 30-60min all day long or more. You cant take purses/bags on so go directly to the lockers to the left near the gift shop and lock up your stuff. Dont worry, you wont have to rush all day, but this is the most important time to do it exactly to minimize your wait.

If you like animals, next go to the wallabies. They are the most active friendly in the morning and will let you pet and eat out of your hand.

After those, you can go to the back of the park along the left side and hit the coaster as you go. Falcons Fury is the other ride/drop tower that still can get bigger crowds, but it you move your way to the back and get there in the morning you should not have to wait too long.

As for food and wine, I really enjoyed it. It is not too crowded except around dinner time on Sat. Your going in the middle of when they run it so it should not be bad. Lunch start ~12 and was not crowded at all. If you like interesting food and eatinh small app size plates, its great. Plus if you like beer and wine, they had a huge amount and lots of booths.

The booths go back behind the concert lawn area so you can even try some while at the concert, though it was loud.



That was a quick run down. I got to run, but will try to provide you more later.

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[Tony]

Some details on the menu including links to some pics of the food from BGT website

https://seaworldparks.com/en/buschgardens-tampa/food-and-wine/menus/?m=1



Sample-sized tastings can range from $4 to $7 for food and $7 to $8 for alcoholic beverages.

A variety of wine and beer flight options range from $11 to $15 at all food and beverage locations, including Wine Bars.

These look like a great idea - discounts!
VIP discounted packages – 10 items for $35-$40
https://seaworldparks.com/en/buschgardens-tampa/mobile-book-online/tickets/extras/food-and-wine/?m=1