Went to Busch Garden's today and it really made us appreciate DISNEY!

armyfamilyof5

armyfamilyof5

Well-Known Member
Original Poster
It was the kids field trip today and we went to Busch Gardens, the twins were like, wow this place can't compare to Disney. Now I am jonesing for some Disney and it will be the weekend before we can go and probably for just a few hours as well... Disney just has SO MUCH more to offer. If I were on a vacation I wouldn't make the trip to Tampa for BG as AK has all the animals, a combo of the parks has all the rides and the food cannot compare. Has anyone else gone to BG and found it so lacking or are we in the minority?
 
Avenger117

Avenger117

Well-Known Member
nope, I find those hard to compare. I like both of them, I think some of the animal exhibits at BG are better than the ones at AK. There is also the rides, Disney has some great attractions but they lack the thrill of BG. I love rides like the Montu and Sheikra.
 
Walt Disney1955

Walt Disney1955

Well-Known Member
You can't really compare them to be honest. Disney has a touch that no other park can match. Busch Gardens Tampa is a wonderful park, and worth it to see if you are vacationing in the area, but it is still a theme park that you KNOW is a theme park. Nothing wrong with that, but it doesn't compare to the theming, nostalgia and atmosphere of Disney.

It is still a great park though. It is almost as if someone woke up one day and said "What would a theme park be like if I combined thrill rides and animals." Definitely a fun day's worth at that park. The train ride is nice, the Jeep safari ride is pretty neat, the skybuckets are cool. Plus lots of thrilling coasters as well.

I like Busch Gardens Tampa, and I am told that Busch Gardens Williamsburg (Virginia) blows that one out of the water as well with its beauty and theming. A park I would like to visit someday soon. But if you compare everything to the barometer and the standard (Disney) it'll lose everytime which isn't fair to the park.
 
Darth Tater

Darth Tater

Well-Known Member
armyfamilyof5 said:
Disney just has SO MUCH more to offer.
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Naturally Disney will have much more to offer, as it is an entire vacation resort, whereas BG is just a single theme park alone.

Now if you're just comparing BG to DAK, then I'll have to give BG the upper hand (for now). This may change when/if Avatarland opens and DAK finally gets a wider variety of offerings. But as the parks stand today, BG Tampa has much more to see & do than DAK.
 
Nero the dog

Nero the dog

Well-Known Member
If BG was in Orlando it would be one of the most popular parks in the world. For thrill seekers it has a far superior selection of rides than ANYTHING on offer in the existing Orlando parks. As an animal park it is only just behind AK, although some individual exhibits are better than AK.
Whenever I have visited BG I have found it impossible to do everything in one day, even though there are never any queues for the rides, I don't spend as much time looking at the animal exhibits as I would like to.

There is no nostalgia in BG, it is pure adrenalin.
 
dave&di

dave&di

Well-Known Member
Busch Gardens does not compare to WDW. Fact!

We always go to BG while in Florida and enjoy it, when we went in 2008 it was in a bad way, it looked neglected and the atmosphere was not good, I think this was around the time it was being sold off. When we returned in 2010 it had improved greatly. We went last year and still enjoyed it, I really enjoyed the 'iceploration' show, I don't do coasters so this show was great entertainment for me!
 
Aurora1

Aurora1

Well-Known Member
Growing up we would go to BG (VA) during off years where we weren't going to WDW. The one in VA is beautiful. We always loved the "world showcase" theme that comes off, with great thrill rides in each area. But, the thing that always got us the most were some of the great shows they offered- I remember the Irish Step Dancing show being amazing!
 
zurgandfriend

zurgandfriend

Well-Known Member
We did a similar thing a few years ago in California. One day we went to Knott's Berry Farm, the next 3 days we spent at Disney Land/California Adventure. The phrase "Night and Day" applies.
 
Hot Lava

Hot Lava

Well-Known Member
I don't think they are particularly comparable. As @draybook noted, there is a difference btwn themepark and amusement park. Yeah, the BG parks have some theming, but I would still only classify as amusement parks. As amusement parks go, BGT is pretty good. Go to a lot of the Six Flags and then you will appreciate BG. The SF in Suburban DC MD is particularly bad.

I like Busch Gardens Tampa, and I am told that Busch Gardens Williamsburg (Virginia) blows that one out of the water as well with its beauty and theming. A park I would like to visit someday soon. But if you compare everything to the barometer and the standard (Disney) it'll lose everytime which isn't fair to the park.
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I have not been to BGW is quite a few years, but it is really beautiful, and much more so than Tampa. But it doesn't have all the animals that Tampa does. Very hilly, though!
 
danpam1024

danpam1024

Well-Known Member
There is no comparison- apples to oranges. We love both. BG/SW parks have much more education/conservation efforts- my DS enjoys the resident camps every summer. BG is always clean, the staff is friendly, and there is a lot to do!
 
The Empress Lilly

The Empress Lilly

Well-Known Member
What can I say? I love coasters and I love zoos.

For my next trip I actually plan on skipping UNI and instead get a good deal for four days or so at SEA, Discocove and Busch.

It's such a pity Busch is over in Tampa. It is a bit of a hassle to get there.
 
Kirk88

Kirk88

Active Member
We've been to BG-Tampa few times and have found it to be a VERY family friendly park. I have to agree with the masses though, you can't compare Busch Gardens (or any other theme park) to Disney. Everyone can say what they want about the great Disney decline and so on but, Disney set (and continues to set) the theme park standard. You have to take each park you visit for what it is (or isn't). To quote the advertisements..."There's only 1 Disney".
 
danpam1024

danpam1024

Well-Known Member
The Empress Lilly said:
What can I say? I love coasters and I love zoos.

For my next trip I actually plan on skipping UNI and instead get a good deal for four days or so at SEA, Discocove and Busch.

It's such a pity Busch is over in Tampa. It is a bit of a hassle to get there.
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Ah it's a straight shot down I4- 45 minutes :) Be sure not to miss bottle feeding the young kangaroos!
 
J

jenn47

Member
The Empress Lilly said:
What can I say? I love coasters and I love zoos.

For my next trip I actually plan on skipping UNI and instead get a good deal for four days or so at SEA, Discocove and Busch.

It's such a pity Busch is over in Tampa. It is a bit of a hassle to get there.
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Not everything can be in Orlando!! Getting from Orlando to Tampa is not a hassle at all, I make the drive about once a week!! :)
 
Disneyhead'71

Disneyhead'71

Well-Known Member
If you go to Busch Gardens expecting a Disney Park, you will be disappointed. It's a great park with a lot of fun to offer. But it is not a Disney Park.

Busch Gardens Tampa IS a theme park. And contrary to popular belief among Disney Fans, being able to see coaster track does not make a park an "Amusement Park" comparable to Six Flags in terms of quality.
 

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