I feel like every time I go to Busch Gardens Williamsburg (BGW) my main focus is riding as many coasters as I can, filming POV’s and vlogs, and running around with other enthusiasts. Well, Thursday’s visit to the park hit a bit different. I took my niece, Dalila, to the park for her first-ever visit, and we only jumped on a couple of coasters – Apollo’s Chariot and Verbolten. Our day focused on all the other things BGW has to offer, the things I often find myself neglecting.
A Nice Change of Pace
Don’t get me wrong, I love every single coaster in BGW’s line up. Dalila, however, is still feeling out what she enjoys when it comes to them. I never force her or tease her when it comes to her not wanting to ride something. She was brave enough to try Apollo’s Chariot and Verbolten Thursday, but she didn’t enjoy them all too much. I give her props for giving them a try though.
In the past Dalila has enjoyed coasters at Dutch Wonderland, Knoebels, and Six Flags America (SFA), even ones that I didn’t expect her to ride. She’s also said no to ones I figured she would. She’s still feeling this out and she can go at her own pace. I think bringing a friend or family member her age might help though. She had our cousin Dan, Mindy, Mailyn, myself, and several others to ride with a few years ago at Knoebels and she rode every coaster in the park. Yes, even Twister and Impulse. Both of those were ones she didn’t want to ride at first, but later decided to ride while hanging out with the group.
With all that said, one thing Dalila loves is water rides. Log flumes and Shoot the Chutes rides are easily her favorites. I made sure she got to experience both Escape From Pompeii and Le Scoot during our visit. Here’s a look at some of what we did during our visit.
Escape From Pompeii
One of Dalila’s favorite rides at Knoebels is Sklooosh, their Shoot the Chutes. She rode it with Dan over and over. Knowing this, the first ride I took her to was Escape From Pompeii. She saw the splash from the boat and was instantly excited. The thing is, however, I never told her about the show building or what happens inside. I wanted that to all be a surprise and it was.
Dalila was in awe, and a bit of shock, when those first few fireballs shot up. After seeing and feeling the heat from that first fireball, she was looking all around for the one to pop. Add in the statues and pillars falling around us and I think this ride was easily her favorite of the day. It sure is my favorite Shoot the Chutes.
Le Scoot
With Dalila’s love for water rides, Le Scoot was also a no-brainer. She insisted on riding in the back of the log saying she’d get wetter back there. I told her I’d be sure to duck so the water hit her right in the face. She laughed, but I know she welcomed getting soaked. She truly might be more of a water ride fan than a coaster fan. And that’s okay. We all have our passions and if that is hers, awesome. When she gets older, maybe I’ll have her run a water rides sister site to this one?
The only bummer about Le Scoot on this visit was the props above the final drop. None of them were running. I wanted her to see the axe moving up and down and the saw blade spinning, but nope. Years ago they seemed to be off more than they were on, but in recent visits they always seem to be working. Of course, not on Thursday. Oh well!
Show: Celtic Fyre
Dalila and I made our way to Ireland’s Abbey Stone Theatre with about 10 minutes to spare before the start of the 4:30 p.m. showing of Celtic Fyre. In all honesty, I think this was the first time I’ve been inside the theater. I’ve seen plenty of shows in Festhaus, the San Marco Stage, and the Globe Theatre, but I can’t recall one in the Abbey Stone. I could be wrong though. I am getting old. Either way, now I have and it was worth checking out. If you find yourself with some downtime, or are like me, and enjoying a day where getting on every single coaster/ride isn’t important, this is a fun change of pace.
Final Ride Counts
Alpengeist (1: Patrick)
Apollo’s Chariot (1)
Busch Gardens Railway (1)
Der Wirbelwind (1)
Escape From Pompeii (1)
Le Scoot (1)
Rhine River Cruise (1)
Skyride (1)
Verbolten (1)
Exhibit: Bird Aviary (1)
Exhibit: Clydesdales (1)
Show: Celtic Fyre (1)
Show: Oktoberzest (1)
Traversing the Park in Every Way
In addition to the rides, shows, and exhibits, one of the best parts of the day was just traversing the park in different in every way possible. We explored the park from the ground on foot and the Busch Gardens Railway. By water on a Rhine River Cruise. And finally, by air as we rode the Skyride back to the front of the park before the park closed.
While I didn’t pack my GoPro or DSLR, I made sure to grab some photos from all three of these rides in addition to some of the ones I got while waiting in line. It was nice getting a different view of rides like Pantheon, Apollo’s Chariot, and Verbolten. Be sure to check them out in the gallery below.
Dalila and I had a great day doing all the things I mentioned above. I hope all of you get a chance to visit a park and take things slow for a day too. Make some memories with your friends and family. Amusement parks can be so much more than just amazing rides. Thursday was proof of that for me and a nice change of pace. I’ll have to be sure to do it again soon.
Busch Gardens Williamsburg Photo Gallery - August 18, 2022
If you would like to use any of the images in the gallery above for your commercial and/or non-commercial projects, feel free to do so. I ask that you credit We Were Inverted whenever they’re used. I also ask that you do not alter the image or remove the watermarks. If you need any images/video resized or without the watermarks, please contact me directly.
CREW MANIFEST
The following flight crew members attended this park, & earned the respective credits below:
Patrick
CAG
New Credit(s): n/a
