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Busch Gardens Tampa Bay (BGT Discussion Thread)

p. 375: Phoenix Rising family inverted coaster announced for 2024!

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^Jungala opened April 2008. I remember the area was closed off on my first visit in December 2007. I was bummed that I didn't get to ride Python. I wasn't as up on the theme park/coaster news back then so I didn't even know it was gone until I planned that trip.

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^ Mine too, and that was (omg) thirty years ago, on a combo FL/New Orleans trip!

 

Back then, it was (leftover) Happy 15th Birthday WDW! Good memories of the parks when

it was still "discover and enjoy" kind of stuff. No "social media" Involved, back then.

Edited by Nrthwnd
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Hey folks. I'm in Orlando for the week and planning to hit BGT and Sea World tomorrow and Wednesday. What should I expect queue wise? Last time I was here (2012) waits were minimal at BGT, however I've never been to Sea World. Just wondering if I should budget for Quick Queue or not.

 

Thanks

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^^You won't need quick queue most likely. Both parks should both be manageable those days. However if there are school groups there, you can determine at that point if you need them. I wouldn't buy them in advance. I've never needed one in the 10 years I've been going....on a weekday.

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Turn It Up! premiers this Friday as part of Summer Nights

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Busch Gardens Tampa Bay on Facebook

 

 

Speaking of Summer Nights:

Summer Nights 2017 @ Busch Gardens Tampa Bay

Party louder and play later at Busch Gardens® Tampa Bay during the reimagined Summer Nights event, featuring park-wide party zones, summer cuisine, thrill rides in the dark and an all-new summer ice show at the Moroccan Palace, Turn It Up!

The event kicks off June 16 through August 6 and is open until 9 p.m. on Sundays through Thursdays, and until 11 p.m. on Fridays and Saturdays.

 

NEW! Party Zones

Summer Nights will feature three party zones at Cheetah Hunt Plaza, Pantopia and Stanleyville. You can dance into the night at each themed location and indulge in spectacular summer fare inspired by the party zone itself.

 

  • ¡Fiesta Festa!
    Cheetah Hunt Plaza transforms into the ¡Fiesta Festa! party zone, complete with an immersive and authentic Latin experience including lively entertainment and a flavor-packed menu, including slow roasted mojo pork, jerk chicken empanadas, and chicharróns. This area will also feature several drink options including sangria, margaritas and international and domestic beer selections.
     
    Luau
    Pantopia becomes the Luau party zone with tropical drinks, entertainment inspired by the islands, and a Hawaiian-inspired menu, including huli huli chicken, Hawaiian barbecue ribs, and pineapple cheesecake parfait as well as tropical cocktails, craft brews and much more!
     
    Vibin’ Village
    The Vibin’ Village party zone takes over Stanleyville and will transport you to Africa with an immersive experience of tribal entertainment and an authentic cuisine featuring craft beers, artesian wines and cocktails, chicken mafi with peanut sauce, tamarind shrimp watermelon cooler and a smoked chicken pocket with harissa.

 

 

NEW! Summer Nights Sampler Lanyards

The best way to savor sensational Summer Nights cuisine is with Busch Gardens convenient 8-item Summer Nights sampler lanyard. You can enjoy park-wide summer samples from themed party zones and select food locations throughout the park, including Twisted Tails, Garden Gate Café, Serengeti Overlook Pub and more. The Summer Nights lanyards are $34.99 per person with Pass Member discounts available.

 

 

NEW! Turn It Up! Ice Show

The Moroccan Palace is now home to the hottest show on ice, Turn It Up! This all-new, original ice show vibrantly celebrates summer with contemporary performances, aerial moments and eclectic pop music.

 

 

Thrill Rides in the Dark

It’s not summer at Busch Gardens without thrill rides in the dark. Florida’s top thrill rides will be open for Summer Nights, including favorites like Falcon’s Fury, Cheetah Hunt, SheiKra and Busch Gardens’ newest spin coaster, Cobra’s

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^Seems like kind of a toned-down night-time version of the Food & Wine Festival (without the concerts). Hey if it brings more people in. I know the festival seems to be a hit so why not? I understand yes it's more adult-centered. They should have something more for the under 21 crowd since this likely does nothing for you or anyone else I know around your age.

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I went to busch on Memorial Day and I have to say 3 things

 

1. Cheetah Hunt and Scoropion both gave kickass rides .

2. Crowds ere extremely light (because of the clusterbomb in Orlando)

3. My god that new ice show is bad . At least Iceploration has some sort of art direction. Here, they just got their hands on some pop songs.

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3. My god that new ice show is bad [emoji38]. At least Iceploration has some sort of art direction. Here, they just got their hands on some pop songs.

I just watched 2 short clips online (I'm guessing the full shows are getting flagged by YouTube for the music)... and, wow. It looks BAD. Never thought I'd want the return of iceploration and the dancing iceburgs (or rocks or whatever the hell those dancing things were)... exxpploooorrreeeeee...

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Hopefully "Turn It Up' is just for the summer with Summer Nights. I really wish they could bring in another Broadway-style show like Katonga. I watched Iceploration once the year it opened and that was it. I just really don't care for Ice Shows. Even at SeaWorld Orlando during Christmas I don't even care to see their Ice skating show and have only seen it from a distance while waiting for the fireworks on NYE.

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  • 2 weeks later...

Permit Points to Expansion at Busch Gardens Tampa

A permit recently filed by Busch Gardens Tampa Bay with the City of Tampa points to a new project at the park. The permit is for a Tree Consultation, and notes the purpose is for “future expansion” at the theme park.

 

In Tampa, trees that reach a certain diameter are protected from removal without first going through a permitted process. In general, “grand trees” are those with a trunk diameter of 34 inches or larger (along with other factors), and “protected trees” are those with a diameter greater than five inches. For a grand tree to be removed, it must be considered hazardous, pose a risk of damage to a structure within the next year, or prevent reasonable use of the land, the use of which can not be reasonably reconfigured to allow the tree to remain.

 

Several pictures taken by the contractor show the trees in question on the northern edge of the Serengeti Plain in the area of the train tunnel (note the Skyride support in the background of the first image below), and in behind the scenes areas nearby that are mostly used as animal holding pens. The report indicates a total of nine grand trees of which seven were visited and two more were viewed from a distance, and “lots of protected trees” in the area. One of the grand trees was noted as having some minor damage from kangaroos that were located in the pen with the tree.

 

As to what the expansion might be remains speculation. In response to questions about the permit and the plans for the area, a Busch Gardens spokesperson said “at this time we have nothing to share…”

 

The area of the tree consultation could be the location of the long rumored resort hotel expansion at Busch Gardens Tampa. The location in question would be easily accessible via a road that already exists off Bougainvillea Avenue on the north side of the park, which is currently used for employee access to central areas of the park. A paved parking lot, currently used by employees, is right next to the location where the tree consultation took place. This lot could easily be converted to hotel guest parking (and reconfigured or expanded as necessary for that purpose).

 

A November 2015 presentation to investors noted possible resort expansion plots at various SeaWorld parks properties. While the location of the recent tree consultation is actually within the area shaded as developed, and the possible resort plot in yellow is to the north, it’s certainly possible that plans have changed since the presentation was made over a year and a half ago.

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Interesting, we may be looking at their next big coaster addition.

 

If they were to put a coaster there, if would have to be of either one of two things.

 

1. Be stretched out, like cheetah hunt

2. Be part of a park expansion

 

 

We could see the latter happen because the park has already went public stating that they want to use that land for expansion.

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I still can't shake the feeling that the next coaster "addition" at BGT will be an RMC conversion of Gwazi, perhaps keeping the dueling element. I don't believe we'll see this until 2019, however...

 

As such, I think whatever this new area is being cleared for is either Resort related, or Expansion related, for a little further down the line.

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Or....it could be that one or more of the trees needed to be removed due to bad health. Just seems an odd place to add a coaster with all the other areas with SBNO attractions where one could go. I suppose this area could be for a turnaround for a giga or hyper. When I first saw there was a permit a couple weeks ago, I initially thought it was for the Tanganyika Tidal Wave area which has some very large trees. With it in this spot it may just be needing to remove some trees that may be dead or dying to protect the train tracks/tunnel/animals.

I also feel that this area would be better suited for a resort if they were to indeed add one. However I would think it better to do something with all the closed attractions before starting such an investment.

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A friend of mine who works for the park said he thinks it's for the resort, and that they just modified the location a bit from the previous plans.

 

Could be a coaster though, who knows. My "intel" is dippin' dots worthy.

 

A while back Mark Rose himself said he was considering RMC Gwazi, but he also said he really likes the idea of a hyper coaster. They plan these things way in advance so it could happen, but RMC Gwazi is looking less and less like a probability the more they cannibalize it.

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