With COVID-19’s continued existence, attractions worldwide are continuing to adjust their day-to-day processes to accommodate a safer, cleaner atmosphere. One of these attractions is Busch Gardens in Williamsburg, Virginia, and this year’s changes are pretty substantial based on their events so far.
Despite having season passes since February, Daniel and I just visited for the first time last week due to the park’s extended spring and summer closures. We’d been waiting expectantly since March to start visiting again and enjoy all the food, rides, and shows that we loved so much last year. And as much as we enjoyed our first trip of the year, it was noticeably different from what we expected.
For those of you who’ve been wondering about booking tickets to visit this year, I’ll answer your biggest questions in this post. I will cover what’s happening during the current even, as well as what will likely continue as long as the coronavirus is still a threat.
It certainly won’t be the same park you experienced last year, but I’ll leave you with the facts so that you can decide if you want to visit soon or wait for COVID to end.
Watch our YouTube Video for footage of Busch Gardens Williamsburg during COVID-19.
What’s New at Taste of Busch Gardens in 2020
You Need a Reservation–No Exceptions
Like most large attractions, BGW is cutting down on the number of people allowed in the park to help with social distancing. The new procedures caused a few substantial changes for visitors.
- You no longer get an all-day ticket. Instead, guests make reservations for either a morning (11 a.m. to 3 p.m.) or evening (5 p.m. to 9 p.m.) time slot. Fewer people do mean that it takes less time to do everything, however, so this isn’t the worst thing if you don’t mind making a short day of it.
- Having an unlimited pass doesn’t go as far. Even with a block out-free membership pass, there’s no guarantee that you’ll be able to visit on the day you want because you still have to make a reservation. If all the reservations fill up for your chosen date, there’s nothing you can do about it except choose another day. However, it does seem like the park has set aside a specific number of available reservations each for fun cards, memberships, and single-day tickets to make it available to all.
- It feels like you have the park to yourself. Unlike the crowded bustle of previous years, Busch Gardens in 2020 almost seemed empty. Thanks to the limited capacity, there’s a much lower cap on how many people can realistically be in any line, which speeds up the entire adventure. It also made it much easier to enjoy the scenery and prompted us to ride a couple of things we usually skip to make time for our favorites.
- Parking is so much nicer. We arrived right at 11 a.m. and were sent straight to England parking! When we left at 3 p.m., the parking lot still had plenty of space (even if some people cleared out early), leading me to believe that they might not even need the trams this year.
Social Distancing is Everywhere
We were a little surprised when we got in line for Finnegan’s Flyer and saw that it extended out the entrance. However, as we got closer, we realized it was only because each party was spaced 6 feet apart.
6-foot distancing markers are everywhere around the park, reminding you to keep away from other guests. And while you can wander the park at your leisure, directional arrows are in all the shops and the aviary to keep guests from crossing paths.
Additionally, the rides are being adjusted to accommodate social distance restrictions, with 2 seats in between each party. Rides like Invadr, which only has two seats to begin with, place guests in every other row instead.
You’ll Need a Mask for Your Visit
Even though Busch Gardens is an outdoor attraction, all guests and employees are required to wear a mask during their visit. This policy applies even while on the rides.
However, it’s not quite as bad as you might think. With the cooler weather setting in, masks aren’t quite the hot and sweaty inconvenience they were earlier in the summer. And they stay on surprisingly well while whipping around the roller coaster tracks.
Busch Gardens has also implemented “mask relaxation” zones around the park. These more isolated areas allow guests to take off their masks for a bit as long as they still practice social distancing.
Keep in mind that their mask rules are very particular, and you may be turned away if yours doesn’t match their policy. You need a mask that covers your face and nose, has ear loops or ties, and does not have an exhaust valve or mesh holes. Costume masks are also not allowed.
Busch Gardens Employees Will Check Your Temperature Before You Enter
Part of sending everyone to the England parking lot was clearly to help channel all the guests into one entrance to make the temperature and security checks easier.
At the edge of the England parking lot, all guests are channeled through a series of tents where a staff member will check your temperature. If you have a fever, they will send you right back to your car before you step foot in the park.
They also moved the security checks to this section to get everything out of the way. Once you clear this point, you’re officially allowed into the park, and you’ll show your ticket to the staff at the regular entrance at bottom of the hill.
Many Attractions are Closed
The biggest disappointment on our trip was finding out that all of Italy, the Loch Ness Monster, and half of Germany were closed. Additionally, none of the usual shows were running, including the Festhaus.
According to the website, the current closures are only for the Taste of Busch Gardens event. However, as none of these were closed for last year’s event, it did leave us wondering whether they’ll reopen later this year. These two sections are huge parts of Howl-O-Scream, so it seems like they’d have to open soon. But there’s no knowing what will happen over the next few months.
If this is a big deal to you, check the website before booking your tickets to see which rides and restaurants will actually be open.
They’ll Pause for Hourly Cleanings
One big step that Busch Gardens is taking for park cleanliness is pausing every hour or so to spray down the rides with disinfectant. While this does cause a 5- to 10-minute delay, it goes a long way to making everything feel a little safer.
The employees spray down every seat, including handlebars, then let the cars run through the ride once to air dry. It really wasn’t much of an inconvenience during our visit, and it definitely cut down on that grimy feeling that some theme parks have. Granted, Busch Gardens is one of the cleaner parks I’ve been to, anyway, so this extra measure only helped raise the bar.
Many of the Animals are MIA
Due to the canceled shows, many of Busch Garden’s animals are rather evasive right now. The animals kept in open-style pens are still out, so you can enjoy the horses, the highland cattle, sheep, bald eagles, etc. However, you may have difficulty seeing the wolves and other “wild” animals without a show to bring them out of their lairs, and the cute dogs and cats of Pet Shenanigans are nowhere to be seen.
Additionally, the aviary (Lorikeet Glen) is operating on limited hours, so you’ll have to plan your day around those if you really want to see the tropical birds.
Closing Thoughts on Busch Gardens During Covid
Positive Changes:
- Shorter wait times
- Increased feeling of safety
- No gross theme park feelings
- Explore the whole park in less time
- No crowds to deal with
Negative Changes:
- Limited tickets available
- Masks can be annoying
- Limited time to enjoy the park
- Fewer rides and no shows
- Fewer animals to see
Personally, I felt that the pros of the current situation evened out the things that disappointed me. I would not mind if Busch Gardens continued to limit capacity to an extent and did hourly disinfecting to make the park feel a little cleaner.
What are your thoughts on these changes? Let me know in the comments below, and feel free to ask me any questions about our visit that I may not have covered above.
You May Also Enjoy….
- The Ultimate Guide to Busch Gardens, Williamsburg
- Ghostly Guide to Busch Garden’s Howl-O-Scream 2019
- Holly Jolly Guide to Busch Garden’s Christmas Town
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