10 Best Tips For Busch Gardens Williamsburg That You Can't Miss
In this guide, we will cover our best Busch Gardens Williamsburg tips to ensure that you arrive to the park extremely prepared, and know all of the 'hacks' to maximize your time and money.
1. Know the Best Time to Visit
The best days to visit Busch Gardens in Williamsburg are on weekdays, specifically Tuesday-Thursday.
The best time frame to visit are in the quieter months including January, June & September.
Most guests plan their entire vacation and trip around the weekend.
By going during the weekday, there's a high chance that you'll deal with minimal crowds, less waits, and you'll be able to experience much more in a shorter period of time.
2. Check the Crowd Calendar
You wouldn't go to the beach without checking the weather, make sure to check the crowd levels before going to theme parks!
A crowd calendar is an extremely helpful tool that exists for major theme parks.
The way it works is they use historical data to predict the expected crowd levels for that time of the year. It's even narrowed down by the month, week, and day.
This calendar is color coded, which makes it very easy for the untrained eye to quickly understand, and use.
Essentially orange means extremely packed, and green means it's empty.
3. Don't Pay Full Price
When you purchase with us, you can Save $30+ per ticket, and you'll also be able to skip the line by going straight to the gate.
You can learn more about our process and how we're able to do this through our Authorized Theme Park Ticket Reseller page.
4. Know About the Quick Queue Pass
Quick queue is essentially Busch Garden's fast pass system.
It gives you access to a separate and faster line, in order to skip the regular line and spend more of your time riding your favorite rides rather than waiting.
As long as you have your appropriate wristband, or eticket on your phone, you can walk through the Quick Queue line, show the park attendant that you have access, and then just walk straight through the line all the way down to the ride.
Quick Queue is an additional cost and absolutely worth it.
5. Rent a Locker
There are 3 types of lockers available throughout the park.
All-Day Lockers
Located in England behind M. Sweets Confectionary and can be used for the entire day, and cost $9.
Ride Lockers
Located at major attractions throughout the park and are operated on a timed basis.
Transferable Ride Locker Pass
This type of locker can be used in multiple lockers throughout your visit.
6. Know the Parking Options
There are 4 types of parking options in Busch Gardens Williamsburg, and when you pull up to the park you'll be thankful that you are well informed about each one.
You're able to pre-pay for parking directly from the Busch Gardens Williamsburg site.
General Parking
General Parking is going to be your most basic and cheapest option ($25) when parking at Busch Gardens.
It's also the most common parking choice amongst visitors.
Preferred Parking
Preferred Parking will provide you access to park closer to the entrance of the park, at a higher cost than general parking.
You may think that it's not a big deal, however you should take into consideration how you will feel after a long day at the park.
Preferred Parking prices change daily and can range from $30-$45.
VIP Parking
With VIP parking, you'll have a reserved parking space for one day, extremely close to the entrance of the park.
You'll also use a different entrance to enter, speeding up the parking process. In fact, you'll enter through the Main Toll Plaza entrance and you will be directed to the England parking lot where you will be guided to a special screening area.
Preferred Parking prices change daily and can range from $45-$50.
Multi-Day Parking
If you're planning to visit the park for more than 1 day, you may want to consider a multi-day parking pass. They offer a cheaper rate than if you decided to pay for parking individually every day that you visited.
7. Download the App
The Busch Gardens app can come in extremely handy during your visit.
You're able to see the park hours, ride wait times, park map, turn your phone into a ticket, and even purchase quick queue!
8. Consider an Annual Pass
An annual pass can be absolutely worth it if you're planning on visiting the park at least twice in a calendar year.
In 2 visits, an annual pass will pay for itself, and that's not even including the value of other perks such as discounted tickets to Howl O Scream, free parking ($25 per visit) & free guest tickets.
There are 4 types of annual pass that you can choose from.
Bronze Pass Member
- There are Blockout Dates
- No Free Parking
- No Food & Beverage Savings
Silver Pass Member
- No Blockout Dates
- Free Parking
- 2 Free Guest Tickets
Gold Pass Member
- No Blockout Dates
- Free Preferred Parking
- Priority Park Entrance
- 30% Off Exclusive Merchandise
Platinum Pass Member
- Unlimited Admission to Busch Gardens, SeaWorld, Sesame Place & Water Parks
- No Blockout Dates
- Free Preferred Parking
- Free Admission on Opening Weekend of Howl O Scream
- 40% Off Exclusive Merchandise
9. Take a Picture of Where You Parked
After a long and fun day at the park, the last thing that you'll want to do is spend hours looking for your car.
This tip is one that most skip over, until it happens to them! Then, they read this section three times just to make sure it never happens to them again.
Take a picture of where you parked (and the surrounding areas such as row names), or if you have an iPhone just drop a pin.
Either of these options will allow your day to go smoothly from beginning to end.
10. Know What You're Allowed to Bring Into the Park
Per the Busch Gardens FAQ, you are only able to bring a water bottle or a refillable water bottle to the park.
No outside food, beverages, or coolers are allowed to be brought into Busch Garden Williamsburg, except you may bring a bottle of water or a refillable water bottle. Exceptions may be made for Guests with special dietary needs, including food allergies and baby food/formula. Guest should contact Park Security or Guest Relations when they arrive at the Park for approval to bring in special dietary foods.
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