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Park Queue TimesPQT

Busch Gardens Tampa
vs
Dollywood

Busch Gardens Tampa and Dollywood queue about the same on a typical day - 10 minutes against 11 minutes across 11 and 31 tracked rides. Pick on travel time or on which rides you actually want.

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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.

Busch Gardens Tampa and Dollywood compared on their typical recorded queue times
TypicallyBusch Gardens TampaUnited StatesDollywoodUnited States
Average wait per ride 10 min (best of the two)11 min
Rides with recorded waits 1131 (best of the two)
Longest typical queue Cobra's Curse16 minNightFlight Expedition55 min
Shortest typical queue Air Grover5 minVillage Carousel5 min
Average ride uptime Share of opening hours a ride is running74%92% (best of the two)

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.

Busch Gardens Tampa and Dollywood compared on live queue times
Right nowBusch Gardens TampaUnited StatesDollywoodUnited 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 Busch Gardens Tampa and Dollywood queue about the same on a typical day - 10 minutes against 11 minutes across 11 and 31 tracked rides. Pick on travel time or on which rides you actually want.

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 Busch Gardens Tampa if…

  • Queue length will not decide it: both parks average around 10 minutes a ride
  • Cobra's Curse is on your list - it is Busch Gardens Tampa's longest typical queue at about 16 minutes, so it is the one to do first
  • You want Busch Gardens Tampa's own character - the rides, theming and atmosphere described below

Pick Dollywood if…

  • Queue length will not decide it: both parks average around 11 minutes a ride
  • You want more to do: 31 rides here have recorded wait data against 11 at Busch Gardens Tampa
  • You would rather not find rides shut: Dollywood's rides run 92% of opening hours against 74% at Busch Gardens Tampa
  • NightFlight Expedition is on your list - it is Dollywood's longest typical queue at about 55 minutes, so it is the one to do first
  • You want Dollywood's own character - the rides, theming and atmosphere described below

04 · The parks

What each one is.

Busch Gardens Tampa

Busch Gardens Tampa Bay combines a full theme park with a 300-acre zoo, making it one of the largest combined attractions in the US. The coaster line-up is exceptional: Iron Gwazi (one of the world's top-rated roller coasters), SheiKra (a 200-foot dive coaster), Kumba, Montu (an inverted coaster), Cobra's Curse spinning coaster, and the classic Python. African animal exhibits include rhinos, giraffes and tigers.

Florida summer heat drives queue times into early mornings, while Howl-O-Scream, Christmas Town and US school holidays are the busiest periods. Weekdays in September, October and January stay dramatically calmer. Check live wait times for Iron Gwazi and SheiKra the moment you arrive, and use our crowd calendar to pick a midweek date for marathon coaster days.

Busch Gardens Tampa live queue times

Dollywood

Dollywood is Dolly Parton's theme park in Pigeon Forge, Tennessee, tucked into the Smoky Mountain foothills. It's a large park with a strong coaster line-up: Lightning Rod (a wooden-launched coaster, since converted to a steel track), Wild Eagle (the first wing coaster in the USA), Thunderhead (a GCI wooden coaster), and Mystery Mine. Southern-style food, craftsmen and live country music are integral to the park's character.

Dollywood's season runs March to early January, with peak crowds during the Smoky Mountain Christmas event and US summer school holidays. Weekdays in spring and autumn stay far calmer. Check live queue times for Lightning Rod and Wild Eagle on arrival, and use our crowd calendar to pick a quieter date - the mountain weather also affects ride availability day to day.

Dollywood live queue times

05 · Questions

Busch Gardens Tampa or Dollywood?

Which is better, Busch Gardens Tampa or Dollywood?

On queues there is nothing in it: both average about 10 minutes a ride on a typical day. Busch Gardens Tampa has 11 rides with recorded waits against 31 at Dollywood. Dollywood also runs its rides more reliably - 92% of opening hours against 74%. So pick on travel time, or on which park has the rides you actually want.

Which has shorter queues, Busch Gardens Tampa or Dollywood?

They are level. Busch Gardens Tampa averages 10 minutes a ride on a typical day and Dollywood averages 11 - close enough that the day you pick matters more than the park. See Busch Gardens Tampa best time to visit and Dollywood best time to visit to pick a quiet day.

Can I visit Busch Gardens Tampa and Dollywood 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 Busch Gardens Tampa and Dollywood for the full ride lists.

Is Busch Gardens Tampa bigger than Dollywood?

By rides we track waits for, Dollywood is the bigger day out: 31 rides against 11. Acreage matters less than how many you can actually get on, which comes down to queues and opening hours.

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 Tampa calendarDollywood calendarCompare other parks