Busch Gardens Africa - What not to miss?

Alrighty. I'm looking for all of the BGA fans for some tips for BGA as well as the not to miss attractions/shows. I'll only have one day there (this Sunday), so I want to make the best of it.

Thanks in advance.

Ok, make sure you hit the following at least once:

--Montu
--Kumba
--Sheikra
--Gwazi (Lion & Tiger)
--Scorpion
--all three water rides if it's warm
--Rhino Rally
--sky ride (cable cars)
--train ride
--Katonga (show)
--eat at the Crown Colony House

That pretty much covers most of the major highlights of the park. There's more to do, but if you at least hit these, you'll have seen a good bit of what's worth seeing in a day.

Personally, I found Rhino Rally to be a big disappointment after waiting in line for >1 hour.

Montu, Kumba, Sheikra are wonderful.

Katonga is a fantastic show. Don't miss it.

I enjoy the Crown Colony house and the Hospitality house area. The remind me of old Busch Gardens when I was a passholder(Brewery tour was amazing).

As coasters go, you will obviously ride them all. You will be disappointed by Sheikra, but think Montu is the greatest invert ever.

I happen to love Rhino Rally. It's not as long as Disney's Kilimanjaro Safari ride but it's still a lot of fun.

Oh yeah, I forgot to mention one of the best things in the park..... FREE BEER.

To reiterate what was already said, and add my $0.02:

Kumba is one of my favorite B&Ms, and I found Sheikra to be great, even though it was short. It also seems to be a capacity MONSTER with the ultra-wide trains. Rhino Rally can be great if you get a good driver, but I wouldn't wait in line more than 20 minutes for it. Beware of the low capacity there.

Katonga is a must-see, and if you are over 21, be sure to stop by the Hospitality House (near Gwazi) for the FREE beer samples. On my first trip in 2005, I was able to participate in a focus group (look for people signing folks up near the gate), and get "paid" (park money) for drinking experimental alcoholic beverages!

I didn't find Montu as great as Raptor on my first trip, but warmed up to it on my 2nd.

Be prepared for serious Gs on Scorpion, so don't go on it too soon after you have gotten your free beer samples. ;).

I hope this helps. I found this park to be extremely enjoyable, and you should have a blast!

Also, IF you have extra time, check out some of the Animal exhibits.

-Sam

*** Edited 5/18/2007 6:46:34 PM UTC by Avalanche Sam***

I'll second that. Kumba is, by far, one of the best steel coasters in the country. And BGA is one of my favorite theme parks... actually, one of my favorite parks, themed or not.

Agreed on Kumba. Great layout and just an all around fun coaster.

Sit toward the front on Montu. The elements are spit-fire.

Sheikra is a blast. It's not super intense but it's just a cool coaster to experience and to watch.

Hope you aren't over 6ft in height because if you are, Scorpion is a pain to fit in with the legs. I get wedged in when I ride. It's still a great coaster (hey, it's an Anton). :)

Gwazi on both sides are fun but nothing spectacular. Still a can't miss.

Rhino Rally is cool but don't bother with it if the water portion of the ride is not working.

Cheetah Chase IMO is the worst mouse coaster I have been on. It it braked to death. But get the credit in anyway. :)

Besides the rides, if you like animals, then this park now becomes even more fun to visit.

Yeah if you go to BGA and dont get a spin on Kumba you definitely missed out.

I honestly entered the park with my sights on Montu, but after I left, Kumba was surely one of the biggest surprises for me on any coaster anywhere, it just rocks.

I found gwazi to be pretty amazing too, I wish I got to ride it dueling, but still both tracks are above average rides.

Check out the animals everywhere!

Have fun

Montu is my favorite coaster in the park.

And don't miss the park's log flume, it is the best I have ever ridden!

Also, if you like hangtime, don't forget about "Pheonix". I LOVED that ride! It's basically a very intense looping starship, but, way better than most. Also in that area is this unique(looking) ride called sandstorm. If the wait is over 5 minutes, skipt it. ;)

I havn't been to the park in a long time,but i would difinetly add to my must list a ride on the skyride transport its definitly one of the best ones i've ever been on. That is if it's still there which im not sure.

The skyride is still there. Great views of the animals in the Serengeti area (open land where the animals can roam about).

Agreed. The skyride does give some excellent views of the animals, not to mention a good look at the entire park. Too bad there's not much outside the park worth looking at, and the center of the city of Tampa is too far away.

Definitely don't miss Kumba, I think it's the best ride in the park. The zero-g roll is amazing. Sheikra is really fun too, but a little short. And watch out for the splash zone.

I was also really impressed with Gwazi. I wasn't expecting much because I had heard bad things about it, but I found it smooth and enjoyable. Maybe it's because I'm used to riding the Beast and SOB.

Also, I would highly recomend the restaurant behind Sheikra. Something Smokehouse, I forget the name. Awesome chicken and beef briscut.

Sky ride is definitely a must do. Great views of the park and animals. Speaking of the animals, check out the lorikeet exhibit. You get to feed them and they will land right on your hand. There really isn't a bad animal exhibit at the park. They are all definitely better than the ones at Animal Kingdom just up I-4.

As for coasters, I haven't been there since before they build Shiekra and Cheetah Chase. I do know that Montu is a must do. Get a front row seat as the visuals on this ride are the best you can get on an invert here in the US. (My guess is Nemesis would give it some serious competition for the world title ;)) Also, check out Kumba. One of the more forceful B&Ms out there, which is a good thing :)

Also, have a lot of patience for the rides. The ride ops in the park suck. They are EXTREMELY slow. If you accept that going in you will have a much better day. If you get frustrated with them, go have a free beer at the hospitality house.

All the coasters at the park are great. My favorate coaster is kumba. Make sure and try the ribs at the resaurant under shikra's lift....thay are killer.

Everyday, they smoke the ribs over a differant kind of wood.

^ Now that Python is gone, BGA has one of the strongest coaster lineups of any park. There isn't a bad ride among them.

I think the park is an all around good park, but if I were you I'd look when I'm going cause Sheikra is closing down soon due to the fact it is going floorless.

I recommend doing all the coasters, do rhino rally if the whole ride is operating, and watch the weather for the skyride.

I'll echo the statements of must having to hit Montu, Kumba, and Scorpion. I haven't been there since 2003 so I haven't been on Sheikra, but I'm assuming that's a must ride aswell. The only one I'll disagree with is Gwazi. I hated it, both sides. Tiger was a little less rough than Lion was, but they were both unbearably rough. I was in some pain after I got off of that ride.