theDIBB - Disney Feast West & East Day 30 : Busch Gardens is Blooming Great !

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Disney Feast West & East Day 30 : Busch Gardens is Blooming Great !

There are mixed feelings about today - Andy has never been keen on making this trip – he went to Busch about 20 years ago and all he can recall is that “ it smelt really bad and was really run down”.

So he thinks it will be a long trip for a pretty rubbish day.

Connor however is very keen as school friends who have been have told him there are some great coasters – so he is hoping it will be something like our SixFlags experience.

We are armed with a fantastic guide to Busch , which was created by a lady called Pam Falcioni who can be found on the easywdw forum and she has published this as an e-guide. What can I say, it made touring the park a doddle.

Despite the fact that we are tired from the busy days at Universal we are all up sprightly at 7 and out at 8 , having first checked the weather and that we are good to make the journey there and back by car rather than boat or other hurricane resistant craft.

No-one is hungry , until I bring out the last of the Wolfgang Puck cookies that we had and suddenly everyone is starving and they are consumed in a flash – they are delicious.

We have a good journey , passing by several minor accidents on the opposite side of the road, and glad we are heading in the other direction.

We all comment on the amount of people who seem to be bringing boats towards Orlando , so we assume they must have been to Tampa to rescue them before Isaac arrives.

The sat nav gets us pretty close to the park, close enough to see the entrance signs but then totally loses it and we do several circuits around the park but not actually managing to find the entrance ( there is a clue with the big arrow ).

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So its fair to say that some words have been exchanged :nonono: by the time we park up just after 9. Which isn’t helped when Andy then accidentally shuts the car door on Connor as he is getting out :omg:(ouch).

Connor had his happy head on ...

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Hmmm, not a bunch of happy campers approaching the turnstiles. Its 9.20 and as there are quite a lot of people at the gate, we assume it must be busy and rather foolishly I buy the express passes ( quick queue) straight away for the boys – in hindsight, I should have waited until a bit later as we are to find that the park is so big, the crowds do disperse.

Anyway, we have sent the boys on to Cheetah Hunt and will meet them there and relieved of $112, we take a slow walk to meet them , first impressions are very favourable . By the time we get to Cheetah Hunt it says it’s a 35 minute wait but the boys are soon off ( it was only 10 minutes when they got on)

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No sign of the actual Cheetahs, but the boys really liked the ride

Connor and Andy still have a bit of a grump on with each other as we walk up to Montu- which is a walk on and already I am thinking the express passes are a waste of money.

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Its 1010 now and we decide to split up – the boys are going to follow the “thrill seekers plan” which really means, “ ride yourself silly and throw up your breakfast” while Andy and I will follow the “balanced plan” which means lots of animal attractions and a few mild rides.

The boys will manage fit in Gwazi, Sheikra, Kumba and Scorpion ( so pretty much all the big ones) before lunch

We arrange to meet them at 1200 at the Garden Gate Café and set off to do our own thing.

First off is the King Tut tomb – its ok

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drat, I have to leave it there for this morning - its taken an age to upload the pics from photobucket so I will have to finish the day when I get in this evening !

We hop on the train and do a full circuit of the park – which is very relaxing and very enjoyable.

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The only problem is that we don’t get off until 1200 and are now late to meet the boys so we have to hot foot it over to meet them – that’s when you realise how big the park is. The pics above were taken while pegging it to the other side of the park !

They have been waiting since 1145 ( making the point that they hadn’t wanted to be late, ouch) .

We have lunch – its $12.99 each for all you can eat pizza and pasta – which suits the boys fine ( I think Andy and I might have preferred the smokehouse place but it was more expensive). We are entertained by an acapella group who are really good and even better when enjoyed with some apple pie pizza !
There are 4 or 5 types of pizza and pasta plus salads and breads on offer ( no pics :( )

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We all feel very full – its 1.15 now so we agree to meet up again at 2.30 , the boys aren’t sure they will do many more rides but are off to do the Rhino Rally. Andy and I have a look around Walkabout Way ( those wallabies are a bit gnarly looking and the Emu looks really scary ).

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They looked so chilled !

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We walk back round to meet the boys

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We meet the boys at Gwazi at 2.30 – they have done all they want and are happy to leave – they have had a great time too.

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They have only used the express pass on Rhino Rally so on the way out we find a family on their way in ( and the queue time for Cheetah Hunt is now over an hour) and we give them our passes :thumbs-up – their teenage sons are thrilled to bits and whilst we didn’t make use of them , at least someone else will. But I will definitely wait before buying them again !

We leave just before 3pm and as we arrive back at the villa, the heavens open ( right on schedule) but it passes quickly and there is soon sunshine and time to have a mess about in the pool. We had planned to eat a Chilli’s, a whopping 1.6 miles away, but no one can be bothered so we finally make use of the Garden Grocer food that was delivered blinking ages ago at OKW and we have a feast of sausages, eggs, bacon, chips , chicken tenders and hot dogs – bizarre but very nice !

Some desserts that have come with us are also consumed – although they are really past their best now and not quite as delish as they had been in the restaurants.

An unexpectedly great day – Busch would definitely be at the top of our list for next time ! We took hundreds of photos - the park was stunning and the chance to see the animals up close was amazing.

Satnav sabotage was definitely encountered this morning but soon forgotten in a fabulous day

You have some amazing photos, looks like a fab day:)

great photos, Busch is somewhere we've yet to try