Busch Gardens Tampa Bay

Sunday July 31, 2011

We got to Busch Gardens at 9:30 & caught the tram after parking.  It was a pretty quick process until we arrived at the gate to enter the park.  Grams bought all of our tickets ahead of time online for parking, entry to park, stroller rental, lunch, etc.  Well, the printed papers didn't have a barcode, so each had to be manually entered at the gate.  After that we didn't have any other issues.  

We went & picked up the 'double' stroller.  I'm only using the word 'double' because that's what Busch Gardens calls the stroller.  I'm not sure what I was expecting, but I guess something a little bigger & more kid friendly.  A reclining feature would have made me forget how small the stroller was.  It did have nice pockets on the back to hold drinks & pretty much anything else you would need to have easy access to often.  One thing we forgot was the hook to hold the backpack onto the stroller handle.  I thought for sure they would have a Nanny Caddy vending machine or sell the hooks where you rent the strollers, but no luck.  We survived though.  

Lunch with Elmo & Friends was at 11:30.  We found the place & went right inside.  It wasn't air-conditioned, but it had a roof & plenty of ceiling fans!  Our $22 per person lunch included chicken tenders, potato wedges, veggie medley, mac n cheese, fruit medley, pulled pork, rolls, cupcakes, beverages.

You aren't paying for the food anyway - it's the experience & the excitement on your 3 year-olds face that matters most!  When the characters arrived each table was called to spend a little one-on-one time with Elmo & Big Bird.  Cookie, Bert & Ernie were walking around greeting everyone.  We got pictures with everyone & Addison had a great time.  Alyssa wasn't too sure about those big furry creatures, so she sat back & just watched everyone else interact with them.  

All of the bathrooms were super nice & air-conditioned.  The diaper changing stations were clean & had disposable liners available.  When we go again we will take our bathing suits.  There are lots of watering holes, splash pads & spray areas to keep the kids & everyone else cool.  It's a really nice setup in the Sesame Street Safari!  Addison only rode a couple of rides.  She was content checking out all of the Sesame Street decor & watching others!  She's a little people-watcher (like her mama)!

Part of the time I carried Alyssa in the Baby Bjorn, then she rode in the 'double' stroller with Addison & Pappy held her while she napped. 

We went to the 4D show & it was perfect for taking a break & cooling off!  Alyssa slept right through the water spraying, wind blowing, children screaming with excitement during the show! 

Then the rain came...  At first it was nice & refreshing to get a break from the sun, but then 2 hours later we were in the middle of a storm - and it sucked!  We tried killing time by seeking shelter under awnings & playing games.

Blake tried to win Addy an Angry Bird stuffed animal (cause we have plenty of room to take it back home on the plane).  Alyssa picked a ducky & won a small stuffed duck.  Later a girl let Addy have a hedgehog even though Blake didn't really win the game throwing a ball & knocking 3 bottles off a table.  Then we were going to go see the 4D Pirate show, but would be waiting an hour for the next showing.  We ended up calling it a day around 5.  

Of course, as we were on the tram headed back to the parking lot the skies began to clear & the screams from the roller coasters tried to lure us back.  We were done though.  The girls needed a break & so did we!  It's hard work to play at an amusement park all day long!