Busch Gardens & Discount Tickets Help?
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**Suzy Q'Disney** · 06-29-2002, 05:56 PM

Anyone know if there are Busch Gardens or Water County USA discount tickets or coupons out there?
Last time we went there was a Coke can discout for 5$ off a ticket. Any info can help us save more money for WDW in Sept. LOL

Thanks all!

Susan [img]images/icons/rolleyes.gif[/img]

AKLRULZ · 06-29-2002, 10:35 PM

Susan, when are you going? BGW is our local park - I can see if there are discount tickets at some of the local stores and mail them to you.

**Suzy Q'Disney** · 06-30-2002, 09:40 AM

Steve,

We are going July 29th. It is a suprise for the kids! Not like yours but still a suprise.

We are staying at Springhill Suites and want to go to Busch Gardens and Water Country USA, each for a day. Thanks for any info you can send our way!

Susan [img]graemlins/ears.gif[/img]

AKLRULZ · 06-30-2002, 09:43 AM

Cool! That gives a little time for us to find something! I'll check around - it is totally an errand day for us after the trip! We have no groceries to speak of in the house and if I don't get my film developed today I think I'll go bonkers!!

I'll let ya know!

**Suzy Q'Disney** · 06-30-2002, 09:02 PM

Gee Steve, I don't know how to thank you for just thinking of looking. Any help you can muster up later will be great. Heck we could even swing by for a bathroom break and pick them up. Just kidding!!!!!

Susan

Love 2 Laugh · 07-04-2002, 08:40 AM

This may be a little bit convoluted, but if you go to a Ukrops grocery store (Richmond, Fredericksburg, Williamsburg) and pick up one of their UVC cards (free of charge) then go to the ticketmaster location in the store, you can get discounted tickets. If you are coming south on I-95, the first Ukrops you get to will be on Route 3 West (towards Culpeper) in Fredericksburg, less than 10 minutes from I-95.

To get the details on the offer, go to:
http://www.ukrops.com/save/discounts.asp
and scroll down to "UVC Discounts for Busch Gardens Williamsburg and Water Country USA"

Hope this helps.

BTW, we were at Water Country on 7/2 and Busch Gardens on 7/3 and had a blast. They are great parks.

[ 07-04-2002, 08:41 AM: Message edited by: Love 2 Laugh ]

AKLRULZ · 07-06-2002, 06:11 PM

Good grief! Ukrops is THE store to shop for groceries in Richmond - HOW did I not know this?!? Is there any way I can help you? We have a Ukrops in our backyard practically - and the Mechanicsville, VA store would be more convenient for you - less traffic. Let me know! I could only find Kings Dominion discount coupons thus far.

**Suzy Q'Disney** · 07-06-2002, 09:53 PM

That would be great if you could pick up a card. Is that how it works? Take the card to BG or buy the tickets at the store?

Susan

AKLRULZ · 07-06-2002, 10:19 PM

No, I believe the tickets need to be purchased at the store. If you'd like me to assist you with this let me know - you can email me and we can discuss the details! Just let me know!

[img]images/icons/smile.gif[/img]

USMCWife · 07-07-2002, 10:15 AM

We are going to BG & WC next Wednesday (7/10). If I see any coupons I will let you know. We are a military family and are buying out tix at our base tix office. They are running a military special right now, $27 for BG one day ticket and $20 for WC. I think we are going to go with the 2 day bounce for $54.99. It is basically a park hopper right? We have never been and are also staying at the Springhill Suites. We had a zillion Marriot points and got our room for free!! We are saving for a Disney trip for the end of the year. Any tips on how to attack the parks? We also want to do Colonial Williamsburg and Jamestown while we are there. Thanks for the info guys! I will look for coupons for you!

Annissa ºoº

Love 2 Laugh · 07-08-2002, 02:51 PM

Annissa,

We were at WC USA on Tuesday and BG on Wednesday for our annual trip there. DW gets tickets through the hospital for a low, low price, too.

From what I saw, the bounce ticket is basically a park hopper, but the separate tickets sound like a better deal to me.

At WC, we got to ride just about everything and take in the diving show (we skipped the bird show this time). We arrived just after opening and left 15 minutes before closing. From past experience the crowds go several ways at opening. Some head for the wave pool to stake out seats for the day, others head for the lockers first, some head for Aquazoid and, finally, some head straight for Big Daddy Falls and then Aquazoid. The rest of the slides also pick up riders but that's what we've observed in the past. After a day of climbing towers and being beaten up by the wave pool it may not be worth it to go to BG for a couple of hours. Between the lazy river and the wave pool we did manage to kill 90 or more minutes so if you hit WC commando-style you can get through faster

BG is also a full-day park. A lot of folks see Apollo's Chariot on the way in and head straight there, turning left on the way in at Big Ben, maybe stopping at Escape from Pompeii. It seems like the more casual visitors keep to the right at Big Ben and end up at the Loch Ness Monster. If you skip Loch Ness Monster you can usually come back to it later in the day with much shorter lines.

Typically we eat at Das Festhaus (German food, hot dogs, and pizza) for lunch, and so do tons of other folks but it is huge and swallows up crowds easily. It is air-conditioned and has a nice Oktoberfest-style show, but once the shows let out the attractions in the area tend to fill up. Besides, who wants to ride the Big Bad Wolf after a big German meal? [img]graemlins/dizzy.gif[/img]

We sometimes grab dinner at Ristorante della Piazza, which has Italian food (no pizza, surprisingly enough). It has a nice show, too, but is outside and usually it is too hot for us to eat lunch there. I've heard good things about the pub in Ireland but I've not eaten there myself.

Like Disneyworld, the food proportions are big enough for two adults to split. The kids meals are not unless your kid are really little.

Both WC and BG have drink containers for about $4.00 that you can then refill interchangeably at both parks for $1.30. If you are willing to keep up with it, it is a pretty good deal.

Jamestown typically has taken us a half-day, Colonial Williamsburg can take two or more days with the museums and Carter's Grove plantation but you can see a lot in a day.

Hope this helps and have a good time.

[ 07-08-2002, 02:55 PM: Message edited by: Love 2 Laugh ]

USMCWife · 07-08-2002, 09:52 PM

L2L,
Thank you so much for the tip!! We are used to the commando style of attack for amusement parks!! Hey! We did all 4 Disney parks in 3 days once!! [img]images/icons/smile.gif[/img] I think I like having the option of going to BG after we finish WC or vice versa.

Would you recommend getting to WC at opening or maybe waiting a bit? Is there a better day to do BG or WC or CWB? I know when I worked at SFOGA, weekdays were always less crowded with Tues and Weds being the least crowded.

Thanks so much again for the advice. Just trying to make the most of our short time.

Annissa ºoº

AKLRULZ · 07-09-2002, 02:36 AM

Anissa, I don't know how I missed your post on this thread, but I've just caught it. Weekdays are best at both WC and BGW. We get season passes here so I'm intimitely familar with these parks! If you plan on bouncing (as they call it) I'd hit WC early - it can really get crowded just like the Disney water parks. You'll find BGW has a steady crowd througout the day.

At BGW, we too, love Ristorante della Piazza to eat at and the Festhaus too! There are a few other places as well but we seem to always hit these 2!

The coasters ROCK at BGW! Apollo's Chariot is one of my very favorites anywhere - you MUST sit in the back seat and don't hold on. Trust me. You'll float for most of the trip. Alpengeist is extremely intense but fun - make sure to notice the thematic details around the Alpengeist area! I won't spoil it! Big Bad Wolf is a fun family coaster and then of course they have the classic Loch Ness Monster which I grew up with! Wild Maus is like Primeval Whirl without the whirl.

The themeing is what makes BGW so wonderful. It's very Disneyesque and you'll find lots of attention to detail. You should have no problem seeing it all!

Enjoy - ensure to check out the website at www.buschgardens.com for the latest info! Let us know how it goes!

Love 2 Laugh · 07-09-2002, 09:41 AM

I ditto what Steve said. Hit WC at opening and go on weekdays other than Friday. One other thing: Even if you skip every other show at BG, don't miss Irish Thunder. It is outstanding!

I can't tell you if one day is better than any other to go to Colonial but perhaps someone else can. Again I imagine the middle of the week is better but that is just a guess.

USMCWife · 07-09-2002, 11:18 AM

Thank you all so much for your suggestions!! We are leaving J'ville, NC on Wed around 5:00 pm so we will have all day Thurs, Fri, and Sat there in W'burg. We are checking out on Sun to head back home. So that day might be a quick touring day.

I am so excited!! It is hard to plan since I have never been there. We have our Disney trips practically all pre planned (meaning we know what to hit when and where things are) Your tips have been very helpful!

Now, any tips on what to get a man who has everything for their anniversary? LOL

Annissa ºoº