[Livsey88]

We know this is not Disney:!: but youngest daughter wants to try and fit in BG. She is the thrill seeker:devil . Are the rides there worth missing a day in Disney for, if so how many?:D

[llama]

I love everything Disney, but sometimes it is nice to take a break. Busch Gardens is a great place. I think it has about 3 roller coasters - one is wooden. I don't ride them but my daughters like them. They look appropriately gut-wrenching. It has a flume ride and one called Tanganika Tidalwave, which is excellent, but you do get soaked. The park is beautifully landscaped and there are lots of animals. One thing I love is that they have an sky tram over their nature park and you can view all the animals in the savannah from the sky. Kind of like an airborne Kilimanjaro Safaris. My husband likes birds and the bird show there is the best one we've ever been to. Personally, I like to take a break from DW every now and then, and we've never regretted going to Busch Gardens. They also have a King Tut exhibit that is fascinating - if you're into that sort of thing. Haven't been there in a few years, but we might go this year in Jan. when we're at WDW for 2 wks.

[goofygal1975]

We were just at Busch Gardens Tampa this weekend. We live really close by. I'd say if you have an extra day, and you dd wants to see BG, then go for it. It isn't Disney...but it is a beautiful park, with TONS of things to do. How old is your dd? They have a great play area that my ds (8yrs old) still loves to play in!!

[gcbdad]

I have to agree with the replies you have received. I live in a Tampa suberb and have been to Busch Gardens more times than I can remember. It is a great park. Lots of animals and the rides are great. There are several areas with kids rides and the water rides will get you wet. I would say that besides the service (WDW is tops in this area) the only thing missing is the character interaction.

[DisneyAnne]

We love Busch Gardens... when we were at the Outback Bowl they treated our team to the park each year and we loved it. I am a thrill seeker and the coasters at BG are wonderful.... Montu rules... and Gwanzi is pretty great in itself. Anyone who has never been might want to take an hour's drive as it is very worth it. Tampa is beautiful... Although we are hoping for a Citrus Bowl bid to Orlando, I'd take another Outback Bowl bid in a heartbeat!

[Park Hopper]

I agree with everyone else -- Busch Gardens is a nice park with lots to do and is certainly worth fitting into your plans. If you're looking for thrill rides, though, you might want to consider Universal Orlando's Islands of Adventure. And going to IOA would save you a lot of travel time.

[dizneeluvr]

I will have to agree with everyone else's comments about how beautiful the park is.

We went 2 years ago in October and were quite impressed with the look of the park.

You know, they say there are Disney people & there are not Disney people. We're definately Disney people and everytime we go to another theme park we're always comparing the look, cleanliness, themed areas of the park to Disney. Well, BG stacks up there.

We too are thrill seekers and really enjoyed the roller coasters there. The one wooden roller coaster is actually two coasters in one.

If IOA is not an option, I would put BG on my to do list if you have the time.

[Livsey88]

My dd is 11 years old

[trilliumB]

My DH & I also couldn't help comparing BG to Disney; we both thought it came up short --we found it pretty rough around the edges. Parts of it looked great, but the theming was sporadic, paint was peeling, and the staff was not always friendly. There was just nowhere near the attention to detail that you find at Disney. Well, heck, that's a huge part of what makes Disney so special! We thought BG was a step above the Six Flags parks, but a big step below Disney. I would say Islands of Adventure & Universal Studios fall between BG and WDW (with IoA being the better of the 2), IMHO.

I have to agree, though, BG has some really great coasters! Also, we found a couple of aviaries where we could go in and hang out with absolutely beautiful (and some friendly) tropical birds. A treat!

In the end, though, we won't go back. We'll go to IoA for our crazy coaster fix while at WDW, when necessary!

--CAT

[LRTJS]

It has been years since we took our family to BG. We do have some precious video of our now grown kids with these beautiful birds on their arms. The kids also rode an elephant which they still talk about! As everyone said not DW but worth the trip after you have seen all at DW!

[goofygal1975]

Originally posted by LRTJS
It has been years since we took our family to BG. We do have some precious video of our now grown kids with these beautiful birds on their arms. The kids also rode an elephant which they still talk about! As everyone said not DW but worth the trip after you have seen all at DW!

Oh, I remember riding the elephants!! It's so funny, because while i was there w/my ds last week, i was telling him about that! They don't do that anymore! But i remember thinking I was so cool at the age of 6 or7 to be able to ride a elephant! LOL

They have a nice enclosed area now where you can feed the birds. My *brave* ds just decided he'd like to do that on this trip!! He loved it!