Year-Round Operations Come to BGW

[Zachary]

HERE WE GO!

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It’s hard to overstate how major this news is. BGW going year-round would be at least as impactful as the debut of Christmas Town.

 

[belsaas]

Holy crap. I can't even imagine what this would look like in Jan/Feb.

Wow.

 

[matthewcsoup]

this would be a huge boost economically, lets see if the va weather will hold up for it.

 

[Le Moose]

YES!!!!!!!!

 

[Gavin]

I wonder what kind of response the rest of the industry is going to have to this. Depending on how successful this turns out, we could very well see other seasonal parks attempting year round operation as well.

 

[BGWnut]

Been away for a bit, but I will say that BGW hasn't hired seasonal employees for a few years. Pretty much every one is part time and can work year round

 

[Memles]

On the one hand, the pandemic is the perfect time to test the waters for whatever this ends up looking like: people are avoiding indoor spaces but still want to get out of the house, and salvaging a bit of lost operating revenue (and potentially convince people to sign up for memberships, even if they only visit once during these months) is the number one priority right now.

On the other hand, though, with the Christmas event elements no longer a factor and shows still off-the-table, it's hard to see how a cold weather day would draw enough attendance to justify operating. In a "normal season," I think some combination of shows, special food items, and flat rides could probably justify a visit, especially around Valentine's. But without that, I wonder if they might set a threshold at which they'd simply cancel operations on a given day temperature wise, and simply refund/reschedule reservations accordingly. Would create challenges for those traveling from a distance, but the consequences of trying to run the park during frigid temperatures seem harsher now than they'll be when the shows are back up and running.

 

[b.mac]

I wonder what kind of response the rest of the industry is going to have to this. Depending on how successful this turns out, we could very well see other seasonal parks attempting year round operation as well.

There's been a few parks posturing for a while to start year round operations. Hershey, Carowinds, Great Adventure, and Dollywood to name a few. I would've thought Hershey would be the first park to pull the trigger considering their investment in Chocolatetown once this pandemic is over but my guess is Busch figured the risk is worth it.

 

[BGWnut]

While the job listings aren't the confirmation that @Zachary wants them to be. That doesn't mean that there isn't news to be shared.

BGW really will be open in January and February this year. Think something with a focus on animals and another event tied into the other big holiday on February 16th instead of Valentine's day.

 

[Gavin]

...another event tied into the other big holiday on February 16th instead of Valentine's day.

Just what Williamsburg needs, another place celebrating International Pancake Day. I think the million or so pancake houses already have that covered.

 

[ijerngvidsnvk]

 

[Nicole]

Being outside in a Virginia theme park for hours in January and February sounds miserable.

 

[Mushroom]

Wow. Never thought I'd see the day that this happens. But I'm so happy that BGW has been seeing so much success that they're ready to step into the "big leagues" of year-round parks.

 

[warfelg]

Being outside in a Virginia theme park for hours in January and February sounds miserable.

Southerners. ? haha.
But yea ?? hole they invest in propane heaters galore.

 

[VikingvadR]

If this is really going to happen I expect rides like Finnegans flyer, Verbolten (weather depending) InvadR, Busch Gardens Railway, and possibly the sky ride to be in operation.

It doesn’t seem like much but that’s what I believe the park will end up doing. It would also be great to see some off season work on coasters/rides.

 

[Mushroom]

If this is really going to happen I expect rides like Finnegans flyer, Verbolten (weather depending) InvadR, Busch Gardens Railway, and possibly the sky ride to be in operation.

It doesn’t seem like much but that’s what I believe the park will end up doing. It would also be great to see some off season work on coasters/rides.

I'm guessing we'll continue to see the park opening in sections like for the events they've done this year? That way they can do maintenance on the rides in one half of the park while the other half operates, then they can switch.

Whatever they do, their maintenance staff is going to deserve a serious raise!

 

[wombat96]

This is incredibly ironic that after living in Virginia for my whole life, the week I happen to leave the state for a few months is when the park decides to move to year round operations. As a kid, I always dreamt of being able to go to the park during the cold, dark months of January and February and now this dream is finally coming to reality. Moving from a seasonal schedule to a fully fledged year round operation is a very bold move, especially for a regional park, and I’m almost certain this is going to be a game changer for the industry as a whole.

I’m also really happy to see it happen this year in particular as tourism is down is significantly across the world, and Williamsburg needs all the help they can get after this rough summer. If this goes successfully, it could almost certainly guarantee a hotel, or more resort-esque features will be coming to the park over the next decade. Very eager to see what the future holds for the park with these operational changes and ecstatic to know that the park is on the path to becoming even bigger than a regional park.

 

[Mushroom]

Another reason this is a big deal: if I'm not mistaken, BGW will become the northernmost year-round (major, outdoor) theme park in North America. That's huge.

 

[BGWnut]

This is incredibly ironic that after living in Virginia for my whole life, the week I happen to leave the state for a few months is when the park decides to move to year round operations. As a kid, I always dreamt of being able to go to the park during the cold, dark months of January and February and now this dream is finally coming to reality. Moving from a seasonal schedule to a fully fledged year round operation is a very bold move, especially for a regional park, and I’m almost certain this is going to be a game changer for the industry as a whole.

I’m also really happy to see it happen this year in particular as tourism is down is significantly across the world, and Williamsburg needs all the help they can get after this rough summer. If this goes successfully, it could almost certainly guarantee a hotel, or more resort-esque features will be coming to the park over the next decade. Very eager to see what the future holds for the park with these operational changes and ecstatic to know that the park is on the path to becoming even bigger than a regional park.

Don't worry about missing out. From what I'm hearing we should expect this to be a permanent unless these limited capacity events completely tank

 

[b.mac]

Another reason this is a big deal: if I'm not mistaken, BGW will become the northernmost year-round (major, outdoor) theme park in North America. That's huge.

First park to try it outside of California, Texas, and Florida. It's a huge deal.

Being outside in a Virginia theme park for hours in January and February sounds miserable.

Would be nice if they had a certain indoor ride to heat things up.