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Busch Gardens Williamsburg
vs
Kings Dominion

On a typical day Kings Dominion queues less: about 13 minutes a ride against 21 at Busch Gardens Williamsburg, a difference of roughly 8 minutes on every queue you join.

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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 Williamsburg and Kings Dominion compared on their typical recorded queue times
TypicallyBusch Gardens WilliamsburgUnited StatesKings DominionUnited States
Average wait per ride 21 min13 min (best of the two)
Rides with recorded waits 1025 (best of the two)
Longest typical queue Alpengeist60 minTumbili25 min
Shortest typical queue The Battering Ram7 minCarousel4 min
Average ride uptime Share of opening hours a ride is running91% (best of the two)90%

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 Kings Dominion compared on live queue times
Right nowBusch Gardens WilliamsburgUnited StatesKings DominionUnited 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 Kings Dominion queues less: about 13 minutes a ride against 21 at Busch Gardens Williamsburg, a difference of roughly 8 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 13 at Kings Dominion - for what Busch Gardens Williamsburg has that Kings Dominion does not
  • 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 Kings Dominion if…

  • You want shorter queues: Kings Dominion averages 13 minutes a ride against 21 at Busch Gardens Williamsburg
  • You want more to do: 25 rides here have recorded wait data against 10 at Busch Gardens Williamsburg
  • Tumbili is on your list - it is Kings Dominion's longest typical queue at about 25 minutes, so it is the one to do first
  • You want Kings Dominion'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

Kings Dominion

Kings Dominion sits in Doswell, Virginia, about 25 minutes north of Richmond. The park has one of the strongest regional coaster line-ups on the US East Coast: Intimidator 305 (a 305-foot giga coaster), Twisted Timbers (a Rocky Mountain Construction hybrid), Apple Zapple, Dominator (a 215-foot floorless coaster), and Racer 75. A Soak City water park is included with admission during summer.

Virginia summer school breaks, weekend visits from the DC / Richmond area, and the Halloween Haunt drive Kings Dominion's busiest periods. Weekdays in May, September and October are dramatically calmer. Check live queue times for Intimidator 305 and Twisted Timbers first thing on arrival, and use our crowd calendar to pick a midweek date for shorter waits.

Kings Dominion live queue times

05 · Questions

Busch Gardens Williamsburg or Kings Dominion?

Which is better, Busch Gardens Williamsburg or Kings Dominion?

If you are judging on queues, Kings Dominion: it averages about 13 minutes a ride on a typical day against 21 at Busch Gardens Williamsburg, roughly 8 minutes back on every queue you join. Busch Gardens Williamsburg has 10 rides with recorded waits against 25 at Kings Dominion.

Which has shorter queues, Busch Gardens Williamsburg or Kings Dominion?

Kings Dominion, by about 8 minutes a ride. On a typical day Kings Dominion averages 13 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 Kings Dominion best time to visit to pick a quiet day.

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

Is Busch Gardens Williamsburg bigger than Kings Dominion?

By rides we track waits for, Kings Dominion is the bigger day out: 25 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 Kings Dominion 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 calendarKings Dominion calendarCompare other parks
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