Spring has finally come, and that means the amusement park offseason is over. My first trip of the year was with my high school orchestra to Busch Gardens in Williamsburg, Virginia. Our time at the park was cut due to a stomach virus, but I'm grateful we had the time we did. The fourth Busch Gardens park (originally named "The Old Country") is themed to European countries, and even at the start of April, the park was many times lusher than my Western Pennsylvania home, with lots of flowers and budding trees.
.JPG)
The attraction I was looking forward to the most was the new Pantheon coaster, which just opened on March 25th. It's the closest I've ridden a coaster to its grand opening date, and it's hundreds of miles away! Pantheon, my first roller coaster of 2022, completely blew me away. It's been a really long time since a steel coaster left me so impressed. You go forwards, backward, 200 feet in the air... a great ride.
Busch Gardens had two of its three steam engines circling the park. It's hard to see in this image, but the Alpen Express has a snowplow on its front.
Der Hochbeinige approaches, steaming across the trestle bridge.
You would be shocked at how many of my friends said they rode the bumper cars and swings when they could've ridden a real steam train!
The Busch Gardens Skyride is another fantastic ride. Tracing a one-of-a-kind triangular path, the one-way Skyride has three stations. It has been at the park since opening day in 1975.
Just for fun, here's a picture I took of the Cedar Point Skyride with the colors lined up in sequence. Von Roll Skyrides are some of the most relaxing rides anywhere!
Multiple coasters use the park's natural terrain, but none are more legendary than the Loch Ness Monster.
Just a little rough after nearly 45 years of operation, this coaster is one of the most charming I've ever ridden.
In the foreground is the Rhine River Cruise attraction, which was not yet ready for the season.
We're setting off towards France on the Skyride now. I hope you enjoyed this look around Busch Gardens Williamsburg on a beautiful spring day!
For fun, here are a few bonus photos from our other stops on the trip.
Our first stop was at a very rainy and empty Colonial Williamsburg.
I love the anachronistic mail truck in this picture.
9 comments:
Andrew, what a great trip report! The blooms on that tree in the Skyride pics are beautiful. And the first one, with the green Skyride gondola emerging from behind the tree, is postcard-worthy. I'm glad to see that this park still has their Skyride. The last time I checked, Busch Gardens in Tampa still had theirs, too.
Believe it or not, I remember when the Lochness Monster coaster opened. They showed it on our local news, even though we were on the opposite side of the country. There was a major "coaster craze" going on in the country at that time. Here in California, Magic Mountain was opening "Colossus" that same year, Knott's Berry Farm was opening "Montezooma's Revenge," and Disneyland was re-opening their "New Matterhorn"....just one year after they had opened Space Mountain, and one year before Big Thunder Mt. Railroad. It was a very exciting time for someone who was into theme/amusement parks and roller coasters.
Choosing bumper cars and swings, instead of the real steam train? You can go on those other two rides almost anywhere, including local church carnivals!
Thanks for this trip report, Andrew!
Oh, I forgot to ask about that stomach virus. Was this just one person, or was it "spreading" throughout the group? I hope you were able to avoid it! Sorry to hear that it cut your time short, at the park.
TokyoMagic!, the virus was really bad. I don't know anyone who didn't get it in some form. I had to deal with it on the whole bus ride home, which was not a fun way to end the trip. Still, I somehow forgot all about it when I was in the park. How cool that you remember when Loch Ness Monster opened! 1978 really was a big year for roller coasters. For just a few weeks, Loch Ness Monster held the record for the world's tallest coaster before it was taken by Gemini at Cedar Point. Then Colossus came out on top a few weeks after that!
Hey Andrew, you've added more photos since I first looked at this post! I was excited when I saw that Old Dominion pic, because I was pretty sure that was a monorail beam that I was seeing. But then you delivered the bad news. :-( So they never even got the system up and running? What a bummer!
Colonial Williamsburg should make the mail carriers ride a horse, with large saddlebags to hold the mail! Your pics remind me of scenes from Disneyland's "America The Beautiful" film. My mom and dad actually went to Colonial Williamsburg on their honeymoon. Unfortunately, there appears to be only one photo in existence from their honeymoon, and it's of my mom standing next to a cannon.
I bet it was interesting touring the USS Wisconsin! The USS Iowa has been docked here in Southern California, since 2011, but I still have not gone to see it. It's on my long list of "things to do."
TokyoMagic!, I was excited when I saw the monorail beam too. It was supposed to be a maglev train. But our tour guide casually told us right away that they couldn't "get the magnetic field to go in the right direction." There goes millions of dollars out the door!
I would recommend visiting Colonial Williamsburg. I volunteer at a smaller living history museum near my house, so it was fun visiting the nation's best, even if it was a little rainy.
You go forwards, backward, 200 feet in the air... a great ride.
Haha, I’m living through you, Andrew, as I couldn’t do that now. When I was your age, nothing was too high or too fast or too wild. I’m enjoying your reports and loving all your beautiful pictures, too.
I remember seeing TV ads for this park when I was a kid. Great pictures!
Sue (sorry for such a late response!), I’m glad you’re living vicariously through me! :-)
Melissa, thanks. My mom went here when she was little because her family lived in Virginia.
Post a Comment