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Park Queue TimesPQT

Adventureland
vs
Busch Gardens Williamsburg

On a typical day Busch Gardens Williamsburg queues less: about 25 minutes a ride against 29 at Adventureland, a difference of roughly 4 minutes on every queue you join.

See both right now

01 · On a typical day

What you would normally queue.

Averages across recent weeks, so one broken ride or one wet Tuesday cannot decide it. This is the comparison to plan a trip on; the live figures below are the one to act on today.

Adventureland and Busch Gardens Williamsburg compared on their typical recorded queue times
TypicallyAdventurelandUnited StatesBusch Gardens WilliamsburgUnited States
Average wait per ride 29 min25 min (best of the two)
Rides with recorded waits 612 (best of the two)
Longest typical queue Phoenix36 minDarKoaster®48 min
Shortest typical queue Storm Chaser18 minDer Autobahn9 min
Average ride uptime Share of opening hours a ride is runningNot recorded83%

Averaged across every ride at each park with recorded waits. A ride that never opened is left out, so a park is not flattered by counting a shut ride as a queue of zero.

02 · Right now

Both parks, this minute.

Live queue times at both parks. These fill in as soon as the page loads, and keep updating while you are here.

Adventureland and Busch Gardens Williamsburg compared on live queue times
Right nowAdventurelandUnited StatesBusch Gardens WilliamsburgUnited States
Average wait right now --
Rides open --
Opening hours today --
Longest queue --
Shortest queue --

These keep refreshing while this page is open. A closed park posts no waits, so its rows read as dashes rather than zeroes.

Verdict, on a typical day On a typical day Busch Gardens Williamsburg queues less: about 25 minutes a ride against 29 at Adventureland, a difference of roughly 4 minutes on every queue you join.

03 · Choosing

Which one is your day out.

Every line here is earned by one of the figures above - nothing is a generic sentence with a park name dropped into it.

Pick Adventureland if…

  • You will accept a longer queue - 29 minutes a ride here against 25 at Busch Gardens Williamsburg - for what Adventureland has that Busch Gardens Williamsburg does not
  • Phoenix is on your list - it is Adventureland's longest typical queue at about 36 minutes, so it is the one to do first
  • You want Adventureland's own character - the rides, theming and atmosphere described below

Pick Busch Gardens Williamsburg if…

  • You want shorter queues: Busch Gardens Williamsburg averages 25 minutes a ride against 29 at Adventureland
  • You want more to do: 12 rides here have recorded wait data against 6 at Adventureland
  • DarKoaster® is on your list - it is Busch Gardens Williamsburg's longest typical queue at about 48 minutes, so it is the one to do first
  • You want Busch Gardens Williamsburg's own character - the rides, theming and atmosphere described below

04 · The parks

What each one is.

Adventureland

Adventureland in Altoona, just outside Des Moines, has been open since 1974 and is Iowa's largest amusement park. Monster is the steel coaster with the beyond-vertical drop, Outlaw and Tornado are the wooden coasters, and Phoenix, Storm Chaser and Draken Falls add more variety, with a large section of family rides. In the autumn it runs Halloween haunts on select dates.

Summer weekends and the weeks around the Fourth of July are the busiest. Weekdays early and late in the season are usually much quieter. Check the live queue times before you go and use the crowd calendar to find a good day.

Adventureland live queue times

Busch Gardens Williamsburg

Busch Gardens Williamsburg is consistently rated one of the most beautiful theme parks in the world, winning "Most Beautiful Park" industry awards year after year. Set across European-themed villages in Virginia, it runs a top-tier coaster line-up: Alpengeist, Apollo's Chariot, Griffon (a dive coaster), Verbolten, InvadR, and the newer Pantheon - one of the world's fastest multi-launch coasters.

Virginia school holidays, the Howl-O-Scream Halloween event and the famous Christmas Town event drive Busch Gardens Williamsburg's biggest crowds. Weekdays in May, September and early October are dramatically quieter. Check live wait times for Pantheon and Alpengeist first thing on arrival, and use our crowd calendar to pick a lower-crowd date - the park's wooded setting keeps temperatures pleasant.

Busch Gardens Williamsburg live queue times

05 · Questions

Adventureland or Busch Gardens Williamsburg?

Which is better, Adventureland or Busch Gardens Williamsburg?

If you are judging on queues, Busch Gardens Williamsburg: it averages about 25 minutes a ride on a typical day against 29 at Adventureland, roughly 4 minutes back on every queue you join. Adventureland has 6 rides with recorded waits against 12 at Busch Gardens Williamsburg.

Which has shorter queues, Adventureland or Busch Gardens Williamsburg?

Busch Gardens Williamsburg, by about 4 minutes a ride. On a typical day Busch Gardens Williamsburg averages 25 minutes against 29 at Adventureland. Queues still move hour by hour, and a midweek day outside school holidays beats the gap at either park. See Adventureland best time to visit and Busch Gardens Williamsburg best time to visit to pick a quiet day.

Can I visit Adventureland and Busch Gardens Williamsburg in the same trip?

Yes - both parks are in United States, so a two-park trip is realistic over a long weekend. Split the days so you start at whichever opens earliest and drive to the other in the evening.

How many rides does each park have?

See the tables above for ride counts - or jump to Adventureland and Busch Gardens Williamsburg for the full ride lists.

Is Adventureland bigger than Busch Gardens Williamsburg?

By rides we track waits for, Busch Gardens Williamsburg is the bigger day out: 12 rides against 6. Acreage matters less than how many you can actually get on, which comes down to queues and opening hours - and on those Busch Gardens Williamsburg is the quicker park.

Then pick
the quiet day.

Both parks have a crowd calendar with six weeks of forecast and the best day left to go.

Busch Gardens Williamsburg calendar