These Busch Gardens Williamsburg Tips and Tricks will make your trip much more carefree
Planning a trip to Busch Gardens Williamsburg? These tips for Busch Gardens will help you get the most of your vacation and give you the tools you need to enjoy the park to the fullest!
Busch Gardens Williamsburg is a beautiful park in Virginia that is themed around European countries. It is regularly voted “Most Beautiful Park” and if you have ever visited, you will see why. The park is thoughtfully landscaped with beautiful flowers and plants throughout.
If you want to compare between Busch Gardens and King’s Dominion, then you should heck out this article!
Tips for Busch Gardens 1: Come early in the summer
When you start planning your trip to Busch Gardens Williamsburg, consider coming early in the summer. We try to go before the local schools get out for the summer. We rarely have to wait in lines and if we do, it is about 15 minutes and the park is not very crowded.
It is so nice at Busch Gardens Williamsburg when you don’t have to worry about lines
One negative here is the park is not fully staffed at this point so some of the food and drink stalls won’t be open yet but it is worth it to us.
Bonus Tip:
Make sure to make reservations early for your trip to Busch Gardens. A website like booking.com or expedia can be very helpful when you start planning your trip. This link has several properties ready for anyone to check out!
Tips for Busch Gardens 2: Arrive Early
This is a tip for most amusement parks, but it pays to get there early. We usually get to the parking booths at least 30-60 minutes before they open. Usually, there is already a long line waiting to get in!
The parking lots open before the park so you can be at the gate when they open it up to guests.
Tips for Busch Gardens 3: Buy Tickets ahead of time
As with most places, it pays to buy tickets early. If you buy tickets at the gate, it will cost much more than if you buy them ahead of time. Groupon will sometimes get tickets for sale later in the season and it will save you money.
The Busch Gardens Parking Fee is high but…
You will not save money getting parking ahead of time unless you buy a week parking pass. This pass is good for seven consecutive days and costs less than two days of parking. If you are going to Busch Gardens and Water Country the same week, then this is a great deal! (More ways to save money at Busch Gardens here!)
Tips for Busch Gardens 4: Consider a Busch Gardens membership
We have been getting a Busch Gardens membership for one member of the family and it has paid off. Parking is free (depending on the tier), we get discounts on food, free photo key and several other perks.
We did the math and this was a great deal since we enjoy spending a week in the area going to Busch Gardens and Water Country multiple times.
Tips for Busch Gardens 5: Fun cards are great!
We usually get Busch Gardens Fun Cards for myself and the kids. The Fun Card is a little more than a one day ticket and it will get you in the park all season. We get the two park Fun card so that we can use it for Water Country and Busch Gardens.
Look into a Preschool Pass
If your kids are aged 3-5, then they can get a Busch Gardens Preschool Pass that acts like a Fun Card and this saves you about $100! (More Busch Gardens tips for kids here!)
Tips for Busch Gardens 6: Bring a bathing suits for the kids
Busch Gardens has a section of the park called Sesame Street Forest of Fun and this is where our kids love to hang out. Not only are there rides, but there are meet and greets, shows and a huge splash pad.
Plan ahead by bringing bathing suits and towels. They do have bathing suits and towels for sale, but they are expensive.
Tips for Busch Gardens 7: Get a pretzel
One of our favorite snack places is Busch Gardens is the German Pretzels and Beer located in Germany because this place has the best pretzels in the entire park.
There are some great snacks at Busch Gardens, but this is amazing
These thick, doughy, hand rolled pretzels are a perfect snack or you can have a pretzel dog or sandwich for a meal. Seriously, don’t miss this place.
Tips for Busch Gardens 8: Ride the roller coasters
Busch Gardens may be known for it’s beautiful park and theming, but they really know how to do roller coasters. If you are an enthusiast, you MUST ride these rides or you will regret it.
Busch Gardens Williamsburg has eight world class roller coasters and something for everyone. They will be opening Pantheon soon after a two year covid delay and I know the fans are excited about that one!
Tips for Busch Gardens 9: Use Kid Swap
It can be hard to check out the roller coasters at Busch Gardens if you have small kids but this is where the Busch Gardens Kid Swap can help you.
One parent can wait with the child who is not riding while the family rides. After they exit, the remaining parent can board the next available seat.
Tips for Busch Gardens 10: Never pay for water
Busch Gardens sells water, just like everyone else, but they also offer it for free. Throughout the park, there are tap water stations set up and you can use your own bottle or a paper cup that will be placed right next to it.
Bonus Tip:
Busch Gardens uses paper straws and while I appreciate the attention to conservation, they are not good. I suggest bringing some of these silicone straws to the park. These even come with a squeegee!
Tips for Busch Gardens 11: Get the refillable cup
The water is free but sometimes you just want something else. Busch Gardens sells Icee throughout the park and that is what you and the family will need on those hot summer days.
If you purchase a refillable cup, you will have free refills for that day and reduced priced refills every day after that. We have two we bring every time and it just makes things so much easier.
Tips for Busch Gardens 12: Bring a wagon
Busch Gardens has some of the most beautiful landscaping but they also have lots of hills. This park is large and your kids will be tired. We use this wagon at Busch Gardens and it really helps those little feet get a rest. We also use it at other parks like HersheyPark.
Bonus tip:
Similarly, on those hot days, make sure to bring one of these cooling towels and a fan for kids in the stroller.
Tips for Busch Gardens 13: Use the app
The Busch Gardens app can be helpful if you decide to download it. The app has a map, lists of animals, shows and rides in the park. It will even show wait times, but the best part is something new.
The Busch Gardens app is getting better
They have started app ordering at restaurants. Soon, you should be able to order your food for a food stand or restaurant and be able to pick it up and have already paid on the app.
Tips for Busch Gardens 14: Catch a show or two
Busch Gardens Entertainment takes their name seriously and you can tell if you see a show. They pride themselves in getting the best talent they can find for these shows. There are live musicians, singers and dancers in several shows throughout the park. These shows are worth sitting down for and it’s a good chance to cool off on those hot summer days.
Tips for Busch Gardens 15: Take indoor breaks
Coming in the summer is hot, really hot and you will need to take breaks. As mentioned above, the shows Busch Gardens has are worth taking in just make sure to get somewhere with air conditioning. The Festhaus has daily shows and they also have lots of food.
Take advantage by cooling off while watching a show and having a snack or a meal. The last time we went in the summer, every day was 90 degrees and my poor kids had pink cheeks. They needed this break.
Tips for Busch Gardens 16: Visit the animals
Busch Gardens is home to several different animal ambassadors such as bald eagles, wolves, owls, Scottish Highland Cattle and Lorikeets. Make sure you venture through Ireland to get a look at the animals and at the top of the hill, you can even go in with the Lorikeets and feed them.
Tips for Busch Gardens 17: Get a picture with the horses
When you think of Busch Gardens, you have to think of Anheiser Busch. This always makes me think of the Clydesdale horses from all the commercials. They have Clydesdales and you can see the in their stall or even get a picture with one.
I cannot recommend that you get a picture with the Clydesdale more! It makes for a great memory and a funny moment with the family.
Tips for Busch Gardens 18: Use the train and sky ride to get around Busch Gardens WIlliamsburg
This park is pretty large and round but there are ways to get around quickly. Use the train to get to other countries or the sky ride. This way you get to rest your legs, take in the scenery and get where you want to go a little faster.
Tips for Busch Gardens 19: Do some shopping
There are so many cute shops in Busch Gardens Williamsburg. Each country has their own shopping and it always goes with the theming. They have standard fare such as t shirts and toys, but they also have some more unique items.
There used to be a man that would hand carve candles in New France. In Italy, there was a man that would paint porcelain flowers for hair accessories or home décor. Busch Gardens seems to pride themselves in bringing in unique crafters and making it a memorable experience for guests.
Tips for Busch Gardens 20: Plan on more than one day
There is so much to do at Busch Gardens Williamsburg!
As you can see, Busch Gardens has so much in the park it’s hard to fit it all in. We usually plan on being in the Williamsburg area for about a week when we plan our Busch Gardens trip. The family doesn’t feel rushed and we can just enjoy ourselves.
Our family can’t stop going to Busch Gardens Williamsburg and I hope this inspires you to visit as well! They even have a great winter event called Busch Gardens Christmas Town that we never miss (check out my review here!). If you decide to stay around for a few days, check out some of these great restaurants!
It’s always a sad moment when we leave because I feel like I never get enough and begin planning the next one!
Other Helpful Links:
Busch Gardens Williamsburg Tips for Kids
How to Save Money at Busch Gardens
Enjoy the Magic at Busch Gardens Christmas Town
Family Tested Williamsburg Restaurants