They’re working at mach speed to get the newest thrill ride ready for a scheduled late spring opening at Busch Gardens Williamsburg theme park.Mäch Tower is destined to be Busch Gardens’ newest and tallest ride. Upon completion, the ride will stand taller than any other attraction in the park. It will take taking riders approximately 240 feet above the Oktoberfest Village, then drop them at breathtaking speed.

Currently closed for the season, Busch Gardens officially opens on March 26. Voted the most beautiful theme park in the world for each of the last 20 years, Busch Gardens will again be in full bloom with hundreds of thousands of flowers. But guests will also enjoy an entirely new Oktoberfest village, complete with a delicious new baked pretzel shop and a beer garden.

For complete details on Busch Gardens Williamsburg, including open dates and operating hours, visit www.buschgardens.com/bgw/

For more on discount Williamsburg, VA vacation packages and resort accommodations such as Westgate Colonial Williamsburg Resort, go to http://www.westgatereservations.com/.

Christmas Town: A Busch Gardens Celebration returns to the Williamsburg, VA theme park this week. The special Christmas theme offers up holiday shows, unique dining and gifts, a 50-foot tall Christmas tree, millions of twinkling lights, a dazzling fireworks show and a variety of Christmas happenings throughout the park’s European zones.

In Scotland, you’ll find the Highland Stables where you can travel back to simpler times and explore the Scottish countryside under a star-filled winter sky and come face-to-face with Scottish blackface sheep, border collies and Clydesdale horses.

In the Germany area, you can visit Mistletoe Marketplace to find holiday cheer and merriment amidst the busy local artisans and craft makers in a traditional outdoor German market. There’s no better place to find unique hand-made gifts. You’ll also find a great live show in Germany… O’Tannenbaum. This spectacular light show features a 50-foot Christmas tree lighting up the night and dancing to a holiday musical score. Meanwhile, in Germany’s Das Festhaus, there’s a live musical tribute to Christmas traditions called Deck the Halls.

Wander over to France and you’ll find an enhanced ice-themed world featuring sparkling lights, snow and even an up-close encounter with live penguins along the Polar Pathway.

You’ll find the jolly one himself - Santa - in the country of Ireland. Santa’s Fireside Feast is held in the grand dining room of Castle O’Sullivan as Santa and Mrs. Clause host a special meal. Guests gather around the castle as Santa offers up a classic Christmas story which is followed by a buffet prepared by expert elves and Mrs. Clause.

Meanwhile, at the North Pole, you’ll find Santa’s Workshop. Get a sneak peek of Santa through the snow covered windows of the workshop or peer through a paned window into Santa’s study situated between reindeer stables. Children will be greeted by elves and led inside for a chance to sit on Santa’s lap and pose for a special photo.

In Ireland, the holidays are celebrated with a live show, Rejoice, an emotional Christmas performance told through moving imagery, choral harmonies and a full, live orchestra delivering classic Christmas tunes in an age-old form of Gregorian music with a modern and contemporary flair.

Children will love, A Sesame Street Christmas, performing in the England section of the park. Head to the Globe Theatre and see Abby Cadabby as she learns about giving and sharing with friends and family during the holidays. The show is filled with high-energy song and dance and even Santa makes an appearance.

Busch Gardens will be open Fridays, Saturdays, and Sundays throughout December. The last day of Christmas Town will be Friday, December 31, 2010. Christmas Town will also be open Monday, December 20 through Friday, December 31, 2010. Christmas Town will be closed on Christmas Day.

The park will be open for Christmas Town from 3 pm through 10 pm on most days. However, on Sundays through December 12, 2010 and on Christmas Eve, the park will close at 9 pm instead of 10 pm.

For information about Williamsburg discount vacation packages, please visit http://www.historicwilliamsburgusa.com/ or http://www.westgatereservations.com/.

Busch Gardens & Water Country USA Announce ExpansionBigger is better when it comes to Williamsburg’s two major theme parks - Busch Gardens and Water Country USA.

The parks recently announced plans for a two-year, multi-million dollar expansion that represents the largest investment in the parks’ 35-year history. The expansion project is slated to include new rides as well as an enhanced Oktoberfest village.

A new thrill ride, Mach Tower, is scheduled to open at Busch Gardens Williamsburg in spring 2011. The exciting 246-foot drop tower will be the highest ride at Busch Gardens and offer a combination of adrenaline-pulsing thrills and spectacular bird’s eye views.

Another highlight of the expansion is the creation of a rejuvenated Oktoberfest village featuring a new beer garden set amid canopies of colored maypoles and festive banners.

Longer term plans at Busch Gardens include a new world-class coaster experience. The sleek multi-launch coaster design will feature many “firsts” when it debuts in spring of 2012.

Meanwhile, at Water Country USA, expansion plans include an adrenaline pumping new drop slide called Vanish Point. The water slide is scheduled to open spring, 2011.

For information on both theme parks as well as Historic Williamsburg, please visit http://www.historicwilliamsburgusa.com/ or http://www.westgatereservations.com/.

It takes a lot to make people scream. Just consider some of the many props that Busch Gardens Williamsburg utilizes for its annual Halloween celebration - Howl-O-Scream.

The theme park is decked out with 5,000 pumpkins, 1,000 hay bales and corn stalks, 700 crows, 2,010 rats and more than 4,000 Halloween-style light bulbs. It’s all part of turning the park into a fright-filled adventure in fun.

“The Scare is Everywhere” at Busch Gardens’ Howl-O-Scream. From frighteningly fun Haunted Houses and Halloween shows to more kid-friendly Spooktacular adventures, there’s something for everyone.

Don’t miss the creepy and creative excitement at Busch Gardens Howl-O-Scream every Friday-Sunday from now thru Oct. 31, 2010.

For more, go to http://www.howloscream.com/Williamsburg/homepage.aspx or visit http://www.historicwilliamsburgusa.com/.

It’s getting closer to “back to school” time, but there’s still ample opportunity to get back to Busch Gardens Williamsburg, as well!From high flying roller coasters and refreshing roaring rapids to great family shows and massive Clydesdale horses, there’s something for everyone waiting at Busch Gardens. And if you really want to enjoy some cool fun before the end of summer, there’s also time to get back to Water Country USA before the mid-Atlantic’s largest water park closes for the season on Sept. 6, 2010.

These two great theme parks are only part of the fun near Williamsburg. You’ll also want to check out the world’s largest living history museum by visiting the Colonial Williamsburg colonial area. From the earliest days of America to the modern wonders of today’s theme park technology, it’s all waiting for you in Williamsburg.

Discover more to do in Williamsburg, VA today or year round by visiting http://www.historicwilliamsburgusa.com/ or http://www.westgatereservations.com/.

Music is in the air at Busch Gardens Williamsburg this summer. Every weekend, the popular theme park presents a special concert presentation called Illuminights: A Busch Gardens Encore.The 6 pm concerts take place in the park’s Festhaus Park. The concert series started with shows by The B-52s and Creedence Clearwater Revisited. And the music continues this weekend with two shows by the powerhouse female rockers, The Bangles. 

Additional concert series performers include The Fixx, August July 31 & August 1; American Idol David Cook on August 7 & 8; Grand Funk Railroad on August 14 & 15; and finally, Emily Osment on August 21 & 22.

For more on the summer entertainment at Busch Gardens Williamsburg, go to http://www.historicwilliamsburgusa.com/. Or visit http://www.westgatereservations.com/ for discount Williamsburg hotel and resort accommodations.

Get ready to splash into summer in Williamsburg, VA!

Grab your swimsuit, sunglasses and sunblock. Williamsburg’s popular Water Country USA opens for the weekend on May 22-23, 2010.  The water park then opens for daily operation on May 28.

The mid-Atlantic’s largest water park, Water Country USA offers a variety of adventures new and old this summer. One new show is Aqubatics, a jaw-dropping dive show that premieres June 12. The program includes a combination of acrobatics, tumbling, trampolines and trapeze tricks, not to mention a dramatic 75-foot high dive finale!

The park’s Wipeout Weekends feature beach parties with great food and live local music every Friday and Saturday between July 9 and August 7.

For more information on Water Country USA and other Williamsburg area theme parks and attractions including Busch Gardens, visit http://www.historicwilliamsburgusa.com/. Or go to http://www.westgatereservations/ for discount Williamsburg area hotel and resort accommodations and vacation packages.

You can read about it in history books. Or you can live it in Williamsburg, Virginia, where the concept of America was born.

In 18^th century Williamsburg, the largest and most populated of Britain’s original 13 colonies, there was a groundswell of colonial unrest for equality, freedom and independence that soon developed into a revolution that changed the world’s landscape forever.

Yet today, Williamsburg looks very much like that same colonial town. But better than history books, today’s Williamsburg remains largest real living history museum.  It’s a place where you can be absorbed by the sights, sounds and tales of those Colonial times. Colonial Williamsburg’s historic area includes 500 original and reconstructed public buildings, 40 exhibit buildings, plus myriad private homes, quaint inns and taverns and shops plus 90 acres of public parks and gardens. 

While history is a highlight, you’ll also find plenty of modern day fun, such as water parks, championship golf, shopping, dining, and attractions like Busch Gardens theme park.

For more information about Williamsburg’s history and discount Williamsburg vacation packages, go to http://www.historicwilliamsburgusa.com/.

Busch Gardens Williamsburg is ready to officially open for the 2010 season on March 26 and visitors will be able to enjoy two brand new theme park attractions.

First, fly away with Europe in the Air, an innovative high-tech simulator ride that rockets guests past some of Europe’s most famous sights, including Stonehenge, the Eiffel Tower in France, the spectacular Alps and even the Roman Coliseum.

A second new adventure is an exciting live show designed to put you in the middle of an exciting celebration of Irish dance, music, songs and storytelling.

The two new attractions provide a unique glimpse of Europe and the emerald Isle. Of course, you can also continue to enjoy the myriad of thrill rides, attractions, shows and special events featured within Busch Gardens.

So go ahead and visit www.HistoricWilliamsburgUSA.com for complete information regarding Busch Gardens theme park tickets and other Williamsburg, VA attractions. Or simply go to www.WestgateReservations.com/sweepstakes.cfm for details about discount Williamsburg hotel and resort accommodations and discount Williamsburg vacation packages.

Elmo, Cookie Monster and the rest of the Sesame Street® crew is coming to Busch Gardens Williamsburg.  The theme park recently announced plans to expand its children’s offerings with an all new Sesame Street area slated to open within the England section of the park in 2009.

The Sesame Street area will include a variety of new kid-sized attractions including a junior roller coaster, log flume, wet and dry play areas, character dining and more.  In addition, kids of all ages will enjoy a new 4-D movie titled, Sesame Street presents Lights, Camera, Imagination!  In this special movie encounter, you’ll feel real raindrops and see your favorite Sesame Street characters appear to leap off the screen!

It’s all coming to Busch Gardens in 2009!