Busch Gardens 2017 Events are packing a punch. There’s plenty happening all year to entice you to take a trip over to Tampa on Florida’s beautiful Gulf Coast.

Visit this thrill ride theme park and giant open-air zoo where you can watch in awe as the speeding, almost vertical drop rides produce schoolgirl screams from the roughty toughty muscle-bound bruisers. Let the kids run riot in the Sesame Street Safari of Fun. Take a leisurely ride on the Sky Train or watch one of several live shows. 

The icing on the cake for this awesome entertainment center is the Busch Gardens 2017 events calendar. From the youngest tot to the aging but sprightly grandparents, there is something for everyone all year long.

Busch Gardens 2017 events:

Let’s kick off the New Year with Busch Gardens’ first event, The Real Music Series

January 9th – March 4th

For 8 weeks from January 9th through March 4th, Busch Gardens comes alive with some of the best musical hits to grace the charts in the last 60 years, performed by the artists themselves. From Monday through Saturday, at 11.30am and 1.30pm, guest performers relight the fires of a golden age of music.

And it’s all free with your park admission ticket.

For the 11.30am concert, tickets can be collected from the Moroccan Village Plaza near the front gate and tickets for both performances are available at the tent outside the Stanleyville Theater.

  • January 9th – January 14th, Shirley Alston Reeves (Lead singer of The Shirelles)
  • January 16th – January 20th, The Diamonds
  • January 23rd – January 28th, The Platters
  • January 30th – February 4th, Fernando Varela
  • February 6th – February 11th, Peter Noone (Lead singer of Herman’s Hermits)
  • February 13th – February 18th, A Tribute to Chicago by Beginnings
  • February 20th – February 25th, Micky Dolenz
  • February 27th – March 4th, Lee Greenwood

Any Foodies in the House? Busch Gardens Food and Wine Festival

Weekends – March 4th – April 30th 2017

Every Saturday and Sunday from March 4th through April 30th, you can sample the delights of culinary masterpieces and enjoy chart topping artists.

Food and music, what’s not to love?

Sample festive favorites such as duck tacos, lobster ravioli, bacon mac & cheese, brown sugar rubbed pork belly, banana foster panna cotta, gator bites, and cabernet-filled chocolates – as well as an expanded selection of wines, craft brews and cocktails.

Each weekend, Gwazi Field will be home to some of the big names in entertainment. This year we can look forward to Daughtry, Goo Goo Dolls and Lynyrd Skynyrd to name just a few.

All concerts are included in your entry ticket, but top acts do get crowded so consider buying reserved seating for any firm favorites. ($34.99-$69.99 last year – VIP tickets to be annonced)

Passmembers get discounts and often have deals like buy one item of food and get the second 50% off.

2017 Artist Line Up

  • Sat March 4 – Daughtry
  • Sun March 5 – Andy Grammer
  • Sat March 11 – Goo Goo Dolls
  • Sun March 12 – Kool & The Gang
  • Sat March 18 – Young the Giant
  • Sun March 19 – Jason Isbell & John Hiatt Trio
  • Sat March 25 – Craig Wayne Boyd & Adam Wakefield (The Voice)
  • Sun March 26 – El Gran Combo
  • Sat April 1 – DNCE
  • Sund April 2 – Walk Off The Earth
  • Sat April 8 – To be announced
  • Sun April 9 – Daya & Matt Nathanson
  • Sat April 15 – To be announced
  • Sun April 16 – Newsboys
  • Sat April 22 – Gilberto Santa Rosa
  • Sun April 23 – Lynyrd Skynyrd
  • Sat April 29 – To be announced
  • Sun April 30 – To be announced

Sesame Street Safari of Fun Kids’ Weekends

May 6th – 7th and May 13th -14th 2017
October 21st – 22nd and October 28th – 29th 2017

 

These exclusive weekends are created just for kids. Elmo, Cookie Monster, Abby Cadabby, Big Bird, Bert and Ernie and a whole host of surprise characters join in the weekends for character parades, music and animal encounters and magical photo ops.

The weekends are usually themed, last year Cookie Monster shared cookies with the connoisseur kids. The second weekend included a scavenger hunt for Ernie’s Rubber Duckies throughout the Safari of Fun.

We’ll update as details are announced.

Join Jack Hannah 

May 27th – 28th 2017

Join jungle expert Jack Hannah for a meet and greet and extended shows featuring fascinating animal stories and educational facts.

Busch Gardens Summer Nights

June 16th – August 6th 2017

When the sun goes down, the fun heats up during Busch Gardens Summer Nights. Extended hours, nightly performances, live DJs, music, dance, acrobatics, summer grilled food specials, craft beers and a fireworks finale.

And rides in the dark? It’s a whole new world up there!

Ready for the Scares? Don’t Miss Busch Gardens Howl-O-Scream

Select dates September 22nd – October 29th

Perhaps not as famous as HHN over at Universal Orlando, Howl-O-Scream is nevertheless a nerve jangling experience that mixes squeals of terror and laughs in equal measures.

If anything, the haunted houses are even more frightening. The line of brave thrill seekers is broken up into small groups, thus the feeling of safety in numbers is no longer a comfort.

Fright zones scattered around the park are also very realistic which adds to the discomfort. But, hey, that’s what it’s all about.

One other consideration is the fact that fewer people lining up to get the you-know-what scared out of them meant we were able to explore all the houses without too much hanging around. Unlike the cowboys swinging on the gallows!

Brave pills started to ware off by the 7th haunted house and I was thankful to sit down with a glass of beer. Which had to be held with both hands!

Christmas Town 2017

Select Dates – November 24th – December 31st

Enjoy the nostalgia of Holiday Hills and the familiar favorites of Christmas on Ice and Carol of the Bells light show as Christmas Town is blanketed in over a million twinkling lights.

Christmas Shows are in abundance and include Elmo and friends from Sesame Street with their Christmas Wishes, or you can go on a vacation with a twist at Madagascar Live! Operation: Christmas Vacation. For more traditional shows, sit back and enjoy the local choirs as they perform at Hallelujah Showcase or get a good dose of traditional Holiday cheer at Christmas Celebration where singers, dancers and even Santa himself celebrate the season.

So which of the Busch Gardens 2017 Events will you be visiting? We’ll be trying to get to them all!


If you’re looking for Orlando accommodation when visiting any of the Busch Gardens 2017 events, we have 3 Orlando Vacation Homes: