Busch Gardens Europe, Williamsburg, VA News and Notes



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December 20, 2011


Work on Verbolten seems to be going at a steady pace, with the show building completely enclosed at this point and track completed up to the "bridge" section at the edge of the Rhine.  The beefed up Big Bad Wolf footers on the water look ready for the installation of the ride's big drop.


The area where the track goes back into the station is being completely re-graded with what appears to be a hill being left in the middle of the final turn.  New footers are going in as well as some of the old Wolf footers being re-used. 


   
     
     
It's so cool that they did Christmas Town versions of the Verbolten teaser signs.
     







I'd guess these German Pepsi drinkers will be gone come spring with the changeover to Coke happening in the off-season.

     
     
October 18, 2011


With the announcement of Verbolten, signs have gone up along the old Big Bad Wolf site and work is really progressing on the track inside the show building.


A section of track that moves is under the black tarp on the far edge of the building, and I believe that is where the ride will exit and head back out towards the Rhine.


Over on the Rhine work is happening all over the hillside where the "bridge" will be built.
   
   
   
     
August 8, 2011

Mach Tower is still not quite ready to open, but looks like it should be opening in the next week or two.
     
     
     
Construction of the 2012 coaster is in full swing with work going on all over the old Big Bad Wolf site.
     
Back in the old Drachen Fyre area big piles of dirt from the site keep growing, and a surveyor's stake marks the site of a new train station (to service the hotel?)
     
The construction site for the show building is HUGE!  The first footers are going in and french drains are being installed all around the outer edges of the building perimeter.
     
     
The footprint of the show building is as big as the old village from Big Bad Wolf, and the bottom looks to be about 40 feet below grade so the show building will be mostly hidden behind the Autobahn.
     
It's going to be a massive new coaster taking up almost all of the Big Bad Wolf's former site.
     
The station appears to be getting totally gutted down to the steel framework. Portions of the station building have been demolished completely.  We'll have to see how much of the structure is retained.
     


Illuminights is back for another summer, but with a few changes. There are some plusses, but not having the Parisian Promenade in France is kind of disappointing.

The new decorations of pink tinsel look kind of cheap, and the show in France is yet another "Chinese Acrobats" show just like Kinetics became in the last two seasons. It's an OK show, but it's time for something new and exciting.
   
     
     
Pass Holder
Preview Day
March 19, 2011
With the expansion of the restrooms at the Highland Stables, the owl has been moved outside into a new enclosure where he seems to be happy to sit all day.
Later in the day they brought out this cute little owl.
The eagles were enjoying the spring weather. This was a FAST turtle!
The parrots were posing. The lizard was enjoying the sunshine as well. The African pygmy hedgehog was a little shy
   
     
The walkway through Aquitaine has been widened with the removal of the jewelry shop. A new more permanent drink stand has been added.  
The Garden Gate shop has been removed from Banbury Cross and the merchandise has been relocated to the Caribou Pottery where it takes up much less space.
New sign helping people find the flume. The Canadian Palladium is gone with the Catapult taking its place. The center post is in place and the queue is taking shape.
 
New sluice for panning for rocks.  
   
 The nutcracker store has been replaced with a Puma store (at least it's a German company). As expected every corner of "The World's Most Beautiful Theme Park" is full of seasonal flowers.  


Easter treats!     
 
In what I think is a first for Busch Gardens Williamsburg, they are celebrating with the Easter Bunny. Maybe we'll see this turn into a yearly celebration that extends the season earlier into March? 
     
   
   
     
     
   
   
After using the stage in a modified setup for Howl-O-Scream and Christmastown shows, the stage has now been reconfigured for the regular This Is Oktoberfest shows.  
     
     
     
The new stage configuration opens the show up for better viewing anywhere in the Fest Haus. 
     
   
   
     
New performance space in front of the Fest Haus.  Looks like a new game going in. 
The kids version of the Wirbel Wind has a new home. Mach Tower and the new pretzel bakery are taking shape. 
   

  
   
   
The new tower on the pretzel bakery is a great weenie at the top of the hill from the bridge. 
     
The tower base is in place, and the framing around it is ready.  Now it just needs a tower! 
     
   
   
It looks like there is some site prep happening on the 2012 coaster site, with concrete being ripped up along the back portion of the former Drachen Fire/Big Bad Wolf village area. 
     
  "Here's to the Heroes" is gone from the bridge (it never really made sense there anyway), replaced with new Oktoberfest decor. 
     
The amphitheater in San Marco has got a new look for the new show.  The choreographer working with the performers. 
     
The new show was not quite ready to debut so the crowd got to watch a dress rehearsal of some of the numbers. It was interesting watching the fine tuning of the blocking and choreography of each scene. 
     
   
   
     
     
The entertainment offerings at Busch are always top notch. 
     
   
   
Always great to see the beautifully maintained trains at Busch Gardens! 

 

Update from
November 27, 2009

Big Bad Wolf removal
and
Christmas Town
Opening Night
   
   
     
     


The station track and storage tracks are long gone
   
The lift is now a dead end    
     
     
The final drop is still standing by itself   Parts are being pulled into Festhaus Park
The village is gone along with most of the track in the valley
  No more BBW brake run The Clydesdales are still at the park





There seems to be some rehab work taking place on Le Scoot, with some of the large pipes being replaced
The Skryride seems to be getting an extensive rehab The cars are all sitting on pallets with the hangers being refurbed
Some of the rollers are down for rehab  
     
Loch Ness Monster seems to be getting some fresh paint with the rails being stripped and primed at the lift hill
Christmas Town was amazing and incredibly popular, with Busch Gardens opening the complete loop of the park through Italy to handle the crowds, and the flat rides in DaVinci's Garden of Invention.

Check back on Monday for a complete update with hundreds of pictures from Christmas Town 2009!

 

Update from
October 18, 2008
Do your holiday shopping at Busch Gardens!  The Passmember sale is great 
 
Candycorn cotton candy  This is what ALL parks should do when they give out basketballs!  Howl-O-Scream is bigger and better in its 10th year 
Will there still be A-B logos here next season?  Pirates 4D is in its final days 
   
The Skyride is closed for the season, with the trucks and arms removed for an off season rehab 
Work is underway on the new Sesame Street area of the park  
The forms of foundations for the new buildings and attractions are taking shape 



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