Busch Gardens Williamsburg
vs
Dollywood

On a typical day Dollywood queues less: about 15 minutes a ride against 21 at Busch Gardens Williamsburg, a difference of roughly 6 minutes on every queue you join.

See both right now Compare other parks

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 Williamsburg and Dollywood compared on their typical recorded queue times
Typically	Busch Gardens WilliamsburgUnited States	DollywoodUnited States
Average wait per ride	21 min	15 min (best of the two)
Rides with recorded waits	10	31 (best of the two)
Longest typical queue	Alpengeist60 min	NightFlight Expedition68 min
Shortest typical queue	The Battering Ram7 min	Lucky Ducky5 min
Average ride uptime Share of opening hours a ride is running	91% (best of the two)	81%

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 Williamsburg and Dollywood compared on live queue times
Right now	Busch Gardens WilliamsburgUnited States	DollywoodUnited 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 Dollywood queues less: about 15 minutes a ride against 21 at Busch Gardens Williamsburg, a difference of roughly 6 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 Busch Gardens Williamsburg if…

You will accept a longer queue - 21 minutes a ride here against 15 at Dollywood - for what Busch Gardens Williamsburg has that Dollywood does not
You would rather not find rides shut: Busch Gardens Williamsburg's rides run 91% of opening hours against 81% at Dollywood
Alpengeist is on your list - it is Busch Gardens Williamsburg's longest typical queue at about 60 minutes, so it is the one to do first
You want Busch Gardens Williamsburg's own character - the rides, theming and atmosphere described below

Pick Dollywood if…

You want shorter queues: Dollywood averages 15 minutes a ride against 21 at Busch Gardens Williamsburg
You want more to do: 31 rides here have recorded wait data against 10 at Busch Gardens Williamsburg
NightFlight Expedition is on your list - it is Dollywood's longest typical queue at about 68 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 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

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 Williamsburg or Dollywood?

Which is better, Busch Gardens Williamsburg or Dollywood?

If you are judging on queues, Dollywood: it averages about 15 minutes a ride on a typical day against 21 at Busch Gardens Williamsburg, roughly 6 minutes back on every queue you join. Busch Gardens Williamsburg has 10 rides with recorded waits against 31 at Dollywood. Busch Gardens Williamsburg also runs its rides more reliably - 91% of opening hours against 81%.

Which has shorter queues, Busch Gardens Williamsburg or Dollywood?

Dollywood, by about 6 minutes a ride. On a typical day Dollywood averages 15 minutes against 21 at Busch Gardens Williamsburg. Queues still move hour by hour, and a midweek day outside school holidays beats the gap at either park. See Busch Gardens Williamsburg best time to visit and Dollywood best time to visit to pick a quiet day.

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

Is Busch Gardens Williamsburg bigger than Dollywood?

By rides we track waits for, Dollywood is the bigger day out: 31 rides against 10. Acreage matters less than how many you can actually get on, which comes down to queues and opening hours - and on those Dollywood 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 Dollywood calendar Compare other parks