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Busch Gardens

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Busch Gardens
LocationWilliamsburg, Virginia, U.S. (Busch Gardens Williamsburg), Tampa, Florida, U.S.
(Busch Gardens Tampa)
OpenedMarch 31, 1959; 65 years ago (1959-03-31) (as Busch Gardens Tampa)
May 16, 1975; 49 years ago (1975-05-16) (as Busch Gardens Williamsburg)
OwnerSeaWorld Parks & Entertainment
ThemeAnimal park
Operating seasonMarch – December (Busch Gardens Williamsburg)
Year-round (Busch Gardens Tampa)
Websitebuschgardens.com

Busch Gardens is the name of two amusement parks in the United States, owned and operated by SeaWorld Parks & Entertainment. The original park is in Tampa, Florida, and the second park is in Williamsburg, Virginia. There were also previously Busch Gardens parks in Van Nuys, Los Angeles, California (1964–1979)[1] and Houston, Texas (1971–1973).[2] The "Busch Gardens" name was earlier used to refer to the gardens developed by Adolphus Busch near his home in Pasadena, California, which were open to the public from 1906 to 1937.[3][4][5]

The Busch Gardens amusement parks were initially developed as marketing vehicles for Anheuser-Busch and featured hospitality houses with samples of Anheuser-Busch products. They also included stables that housed many of the company's Clydesdale horses, which have been associated with Anheuser-Busch since 1933. Eventually, rides and attractions were added to the parks and over time were developed into full theme parks while still promoting Anheuser-Busch. Busch Entertainment Corporation, now called SeaWorld Parks & Entertainment, was created as a subsidiary of Anheuser-Busch Companies to run the various parks in 1959.

In 2009, AB InBev, formed from the purchase of Anheuser-Busch by InBev, sold the amusement parks to the Blackstone Group. Blackstone has kept some of the popular traditions including a stable with Clydesdales; however, the Clydesdales are not affiliated with the beer company.[6]

Former parks

Busch Gardens in California

Long before the current Busch Gardens amusement parks, the name referred to the personal gardens of Adolphus Busch, co-founder of Anheuser-Busch. After becoming wealthy in the beer business, Busch purchased a winter home in Pasadena, California. He landscaped the 36 acres (15 ha) around his home with thousands of plants, as well as statues, waterfalls and walking paths.[3] He opened these "Busch Gardens" to the public in 1906. The gardens became a major tourist attraction, even after Busch's death in 1913 and prompted the Pacific Electric Railway to establish a stop for the gardens' visitors.[3][4] The nearby Hollywood film industry used the gardens in many films, including Frankenstein (1931), Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde (1931), The Adventures of Robin Hood (archery scene, 1938),[7] and Gone With the Wind (Twelve Oaks barbecue, 1939).[3][4] Busch's widow offered the gardens to the city of Pasadena on multiple occasions for use as a public park, but the city never accepted the offer.[3][4] Busch Gardens closed in 1937 and the land was later subdivided.[3] The area is now a residential neighborhood, though some of the landscape features of the Busch Gardens era remain.[5]

In 1954, a new brewery was opened in Van Nuys. The company opened one of the modern Busch Gardens parks at this site in 1966 that included boat rides, a monorail designed into a brewery tour, and free beer. The 17-acre (6.9 ha) amusement park was renamed Busch Bird Sanctuary in 1977 and closed two years later.[1]

Busch Gardens Houston

Houston's Busch Gardens opened in May 1971 and was closed within a few years. It was located adjacent to the Anheuser-Busch brewery, which opened in 1966. The 40-acre (16 ha) park had an Asian theme except for an ice cave with a temperature controlled environment for several varieties of penguins, polar bears and sea lions.[2] It also had its own 2 ft (610 mm) narrow gauge railway.[8]

Barcelona

Anheuser-Busch and Grand Tibidabo, S.A., owners of Tibidabo Amusement Park, in Barcelona, along with other Spanish investors, made plans to build a Tibi Gardens outside of Barcelona, Spain, in the late 1980s.[9] During construction, several of the Spanish investors backed out, and investors from The Tussauds Group stepped in. The park was renamed Port Aventura and when it opened in 1995 in Salou, Spain, Anheuser Busch had a 20% investment in the park while The Tussauds Group had 40%.[10] In 1998 the majority of Tussauds Group's shares in the park were sold to Universal.[11]

Unbuilt parks

Busch Gardens Dubai

In 2008, Busch Entertainment Corporation announced plans to open a new park in Dubai, United Arab Emirates in 2012.[12] It was going to be placed on a man-made island shaped like Shamu in Dubai with SeaWorld, Discovery Cove and Aquatica also being built on that island. The Dubai park would have added on a third park to the Busch Gardens brand. The plans have been shelved because of financial issues.[13] On February 4, 2009, Busch Entertainment announced that the Dubai plans had been canceled due to the global recession.

Free beer samples

After InBev sold the amusement parks in 2009 to Blackstone, many beer-affiliated traditions ended, including the tradition of offering free beer samples in their Hospitality Centers, and Brewmaster Clubs would come to an end in the parks.[14][15] Also announced was that workers will not get two cases of beer a month for free, which they would receive under old parent Anheuser-Busch.[16] Busch Gardens Tampa Bay has again begun offering free samples in conjunction with limited-time promotions, most recently in 2019 as part of the park's year-long 60th anniversary celebration. Each guest may sample two seven-ounce servings of beer.[17]

See also

Anheuser-Busch owned several other parks. All of these, except Grant's Farm and the former SeaWorld Ohio, were sold to the Blackstone Group in 2009:

References

  1. ^ a b Roger Vincent (June 13, 2008). "Anheuser-Busch has deep ties to Southern California". Los Angeles Times.
  2. ^ a b "Houston Past: Busch Gardens (1971-1973)". Houstorian.wordpress.com. April 7, 2008. Retrieved 2013-04-07.
  3. ^ a b c d e f "Busch's long-brewing presence". Los Angeles Times. 2008-06-13. ISSN 0458-3035. Retrieved 2019-03-27.
  4. ^ a b c d "Pasadena's Busch Gardens". Atlas Obscura. Retrieved 2019-03-27.
  5. ^ a b Hemmerlein, Sandi (2018-01-08). "Was Pasadena Once Home to the '8th Wonder of the World'?". KCET. Retrieved 2019-03-27.
  6. ^ Dan Parsons and Tyra M. Vaughn (2010-03-04). "Clydesdales are back at Busch Gardens - Daily Press". Articles.dailypress.com. Archived from the original on 2011-08-11. Retrieved 2013-04-07.
  7. ^ Higham, Charles (1984). Sisters: The Story of Olivia de Havilland and Joan Fontaine. Dell Publishing. p. 72. ISBN 0-440-17866-5.
  8. ^ "WKT Locomotive Houston". Lagoon is fun. Archived from the original on February 22, 2014. Retrieved June 4, 2016.
  9. ^ Richard Schweid (November 2, 1992). "Europe's Second Theme Park Planned in Spain". AP news Archive. Associated Press. Retrieved May 5, 2017.
  10. ^ Salvador Anton Clavé (April 16, 2007). The Global Theme Park Industry. CABI. p. 131. ISBN 978-1845932084.
  11. ^ "Pearson Completes Tussauds Group Disposal". pearson.com. October 19, 1998. Retrieved October 18, 2018..
  12. ^ Albright, Mark (February 28, 2008). "Busch plans four parks in Dubai". St. Petersburg Times. Archived from the original on December 5, 2008. Retrieved 2009-06-04.
  13. ^ Kassab, Beth (February 4, 2009). "No Busch Gardens, SeaWorld for Dubai". Orlando Sentinel. Archived from the original on February 5, 2009. Retrieved 2009-06-04.
  14. ^ Garcia, Jason (January 6, 2009). "Last call for free beer tasting at SeaWorld, Busch Gardens". Orlando Sentinel. Archived from the original on April 20, 2009. Retrieved June 3, 2009.
  15. ^ Volkmann, Kelsey (January 5, 2009). "No more free beer at Busch theme parks". St. Louis Business Journal. Retrieved June 6, 2009.
  16. ^ Eckert, Barton (January 5, 2009). "No more free beer at Busch Gardens Williamsburg". Washington Business Journal.
  17. ^ Kennedy Wynne, Sharon (January 2, 2019). "Free beer is back at Busch Gardens for its 60th anniversary". Tampa Bay Times. Retrieved May 15, 2019. The park offered the perk for 50 years when it was owned by Anheuser-Busch and ended the promotion in 2009
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