Busch Gardens Williamsburg Review 2016

So let's talk about some new parks I have done between 2014-18:

Busch Gardens Williamsburg:

Day 1: 7/19/16
1. Escape From Pompeii (Intamin Shoot-the-Chutes)
2. Apollo's Chariot (B&M Hypercoaster)
3. Tempesto (Premier Rides Skyrocket)
4. Roman Rapids (Intamin River Rafting ride)
5. Mach Tower (Mosers Drop Tower)
6. Verbolten (Zierer Family Launched Coaster)
7. Alpengeist (B&M Inverted Coaster)
8. Curse of Darkastle (Oceaneering 3D Thrill Ride)
9. Griffon (B&M Dive Machine)
10. Le Catapult (Scrambler)
11. Le Scoot (Arrow Log Flume)
12. Skyride
13. Lochness Monster (Arrow Looper)
14. London Rocks
15. Battering Ram (Swinging ship ride)
16. Verbolten (2x) (Zierer Family Launched Coaster)
17. Mach Tower (Mosers Drop Tower)
18. Grover's Alpine Coaster (Zierer Junior Coaster)

Day 2: 7/20/16
-Water Country USA
1. Surfer's Bay (Wave pool)
2. Jammin' Jukebox (Funky Chicken, Twist, Hully Molly) (Water slide tower)
3. Vanish Point "Slide" (right) (Body slide)
4. Colossal Curl (ProSlide Tornado)
-Busch Gardens Williamsburg
1. Apollo's Chariot (B&M Hypercoaster)
2. Davinci's Cradle (Magic Carpet ride)
3. Mix It Up
4. Alpengeist (B&M Inverted Coaster)
5. Griffon (B&M Dive Machine)
6. Europe in the Air (Simulation ride)
7. Train
8. Verbolten (Zierer Family Launched Coaster)

I heard many claim that Busch Gardens Williamsburg is one of the best theme parks in the world. I can definitely see why: just a very well-rounded park, with awe-inspiring views.

I honestly had a hard time deciding which of the coasters was my favorite. I loved Apollo's Chariot AND Verbolten. Griffon and Alpengeist were amazing as well.

I first did Escape From Pompeii; it's a much better upgrade to the now defunct Tidal Wave at BGT. The moment I did that ride, I knew things were looking good for this park. Apollo's Chariot, however, blew me away! It's another B&M Hypercoaster added to the list of excellence. What got me about the ride was the land it was used in; the views you could see as a result.

Next came Tempesto. This was my first Premier Skyrocket. It was a solid coaster; the idea reminded me a lot of Wicked Twister and it delivered just like that (and yes, I know there's a difference between the two. One is a Premier Skyrocket, the other is an Intamin Impulse). I next did Roman Rapids, which was actually a very solid rapids ride. Probably the best new one I've done in a while. It was better than Dollywood's, and was LIGHT YEARS better than the ones in Heide-Park or Six Flags Great Adventure (which were just mediocre). We then crossed over the Rhine to ride Mach Tower. I enjoyed this ride, as it offered great views. And the drop was nice as well.

Now, Verbolten. I don't know how to describe this. This is a Zierer launched coaster with an indoor section that tells 3 different storylines! I only experienced two of them: the lightning storm and the Big Bad Wolf, which as you may guess is a homage to the original Big Bad Wolf coaster. It's just a very well done experience. The different stories are very creative and I loved the outdoor section as well. Verbolten is definitely one of my favorite rides in the park (and probably one of the best themed coasters I've ridden).

Alpengeist was a spectacular B&M Inverted coaster. I liked Montu more, I guess because I've ridden it more. But Alpengeist was just awesome! I next rode Curse of DarKastle. Thank goodness I rode it back then, since it closed for good last year (RIP). I will say that I expected it to be a lot like Spider-Man, but what I got was... okay, not terrible or anything... but I was a little let down. It was enjoyable, but the ride didn't have the fast pace of Spider-Man, and the villain was incredibly cheesy. I was mostly laughing at how silly this guy was. There was one scene in the dinner table where he was toying with the guests and... he mostly told puns. "Soon you'll be getting your just desserts... but I'm getting aHEAD of myself." Hahahaha GET IT? Because he was throwing around food, and in the tray, his head popped out... The 3D dark ride aspect was still nice though and it's overall a cool ride; just a little too many puns for my liking. So. Many... *ahhhhh*

Now Griffon. The second B&M Dive Machine in the United States. Similar to Alpengeist, I liked SheiKra more because I relate more to it. SheiKra's been one of my favorite coasters for years now. But Griffon was just awesome as well! Definitely one of the best in the park! Le Catapult was a fun flat ride. When I got to that area, I saw the construction for InvadR, the GCI wooden coaster that opened just last summer. I really want to ride this coaster. Le Scoot traveled through the construction. Le Scoot was a solid log flume.

We then took the Skyride from France to England. Much like Busch Gardens Tampa, we had some great views of the coasters. But here, you also got spectacular landscape views! And then we rode Loch Ness Monster. Another solid coaster! The interlocking loops looked great from the outside and rode well on the ride! Then we watched the London Rocks show. We listened to a lot of great British rock music (like Queen and the Beatles)! We then rode the swinging ship Battering Ram. Unlike Phoenix at BGT, it does not swing upside-down. Afterwards came Die Wirblewind, a waveswinger. We rode Verbolten two more times as well as Mach Tower once more. Then we did Grover's Alpine Coaster, a Zierer family coaster like Air Grover at BGT.

The next day we visited the water park, Water Country USA. We only spent a couple of hours there because I also wanted to see my friend perform at a show later in the main park. We swam in Surfer's Bay first, and then tried the Jammin' Jukebox slide complex. I did all 3 slides (Funky Chicken, Twist and Hully Molly). I then did the left Vanish Point body slide (from inside the station). I unfortunately had some braveness to build up for the "trap-door" slide (that has since changed when I did Volcano Bay's trap-door slides. I'll do these when I come back to BGW). Before we exited the park, we did Colossal Curl. Another great Tornado slide.

We then went to Busch Gardens Williamsburg and did Apollo's Chariot first. We then rode Davinci's Cradle. And then we saw a show in the San Marco (Italy) section called Mix It Up. I'll say this: it's my favorite show in any SeaWorld/Busch park; and probably near the top for theme park shows in general. I LOVE marching band-style shows. From brass instruments performing with visuals, to colorguard, to even a drumline, it was just all-around entertaining! Having marching band as a part of me, I thoroughly enjoyed it and it even brought flashes of my time in high school with end of the year shows; we had shows that combined music and visuals, and the one in my senior year had music from around the world, including Italy. This was my friend's first year doing it, and now she's entering her 3rd year. I could see she really enjoyed it; it shows how fun the show is for audience members and performers.

Next up came rerides on Alpengeist and Griffon. And then we did a simulator called Europe in the Air; it's essentially Soarin' Over Europe lol. It did give me beautiful visuals of Europe bringing back memories of my 2010 and 2014 trips. Afterwards we took the train and did Verbolten one more time before leaving.

Overall, Busch Gardens Williamsburg was just breath-taking, in thrills and visuals. This is definitely a park I have to return to soon!