Theme Park Guides | Busch Gardens Williamsburg

Guide to Busch Gardens Williamsburg

“Busch Gardens: The Old Country” opened on May 16, 1975, after the success of Busch Gardens Tampa. The park was renamed Busch Gardens Williamsburg in 1993 and was briefly known as “Busch Gardens Europe” from 2006-2008.

Water Country USA is an adjacent water park owned by SeaWorld. Add-on access to the water park is usually available for a nominal fee in addition to admission to the theme park.

Busch Gardens Williamsburg is known for being one of the most beautiful theme parks in the world. The park has 11 mostly European hamlets, which resemble the World Showcase section of Disney’s EPCOT theme park in Orlando.

Travel Tips

You’ll likely want to fly to Richmond International Airport (RIC) and rent a car if you're not local. However, Newport News/Williamsburg Airport (PHF) is the closest airport.
As of 2024, there is no official hotel or resort. The closest partner hotel is the DoubleTree by Hilton Hotel Williamsburg; however, there is no walking path to the theme park (or water park).
The Holiday Inn Express Williamsburg Busch Gardens Area is one of the newest hotels. Some partner hotels may offer a shuttle to the parks, but using a rideshare app or driving yourself is likely faster.
The Kingsmill Resort is also very close to Busch Gardens Williamsburg. It was initially planned as part of the area’s development and is one of the closest hotel options.

Must-Do Attractions

With a Quick Queue pass, you can ride all operating rides in one day. However, there are some attractions that you absolutely must experience:

The Aeronaut Skyride has excellent views and is a fun way to get around the park if the wait isn’t too long.
Alpengeist is a B&M inverted coaster with fantastic ski lodge theming.
Apollo’s Chariot is a B&M Hyper Coaster, perhaps most famous because Fabio got goosed riding it (or did he?).
The Busch Gardens Railway is a must-see since it loops around the park. During the Christmas Town event, the train features holiday music and many lights.
Celtic Fyre is an award-winning show featuring Irish step dancing.
The Highland Stables are the home of the Clydesdale Horses. If you didn’t see the horses, did you even go to Busch Gardens?
DarKoaster in an indoor family coaster inside the former show building of the “The Curse of DarKastle” dark ride.
The Loch Ness Monster is the world's first and only remaining coaster with interlocking loops. It was updated in 2024 with a partial re-track and new theming elements.
Pantheon is billed as the world’s fastest multi-launch coaster. It opened on March 25, 2022.
Verbolten is a multi-launch coaster with an indoor show building. There’s also a surprise, but we won’t ruin it for you 😁.