Busch Gardens Williamsburg
FACTSHEET
Location:
Williamsburg
Size:
386,890 m2
Cost (USD):
30000000
Country:
USA
Type:
Theme Park
Brand:
SeaWorld
Year Built:
1975
Capacity:
37,848
Adult price (USD):
75
Child price (USD):
65
Capacity / Attendance:*
14 EU/’000 pp
Attendance / Size:*
7 pp/sqm
Size / Capacity:*
10 sqm/EU
LOCATION
TAGS
Williamsburg
Theme Park
USA
SeaWorld
ATTENDANCE OVER TIME
TICKET PRICES OVER TIME
ABOUT
From the early 1970s, the Busch Gardens theme park was developed by Anheuser-Busch (A-B) as a portion of the company's development investment in the Williamsburg area, which grew to include a brewery, the Kingsmill Resort, and residential and office properties. The park opened 50 years ago in 1975 as Busch Gardens: The Old Country.
The St. Louis-based brewer invested in the area following negotiations held between Gussie Busch and Winthrop Rockefeller, who was the governor of Arkansas and the chairman of Colonial Williamsburg in the 1960s and 1970s. (Water Country USA, a local water park, was acquired by A-B in the 1990s, and added to the company's theme park activities, which also include a number of SeaWorld properties in other states.)
In 2008, Anheuser-Busch was acquired by Belgium-based InBev. The new owners announced plans to sell off the portions of A-B activities that were not part of the core beverage business. The Blackstone Group was selected in late 2009 to acquire and operate the 10 former A-B theme park properties, including two in the Williamsburg area. In July 2010, the adjacent Kingsmill Resort was scheduled to be acquired by Xanterra Parks and Resorts, owned by Denver-based Phillip Anschutz.
By mid-March 2020, the COVID-19 pandemic delayed the opening of the park for the 2020 season. The park remained closed until August 6, 2020, when they reopened with Coasters and Craft Brews. The event featured limited capacity, required advanced reservations, as well as temperature screening of guests upon arrival, and at select villages within the park. The park also hosted Taste of Busch Gardens Williamsburg, Halloween Harvest (in place of Howl-O-Scream), Christmas Celebration (in place of Christmas Town), Winter Weekends, and Mardi Gras events throughout the year.
Beginning in January 2021, the park began its year-round operation. The previous operating season of Busch Gardens Williamsburg was late March through early January. The Winter Weekends and Mardi Gras limited-capacity events marked the first time that the park had ever been open during the winter months.
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