[Haunts] Busch Gardens Williamsburg Howl-O-Scream Unearthed Insider's Survival Guide

We're no strangers to Busch Gardens Williamsburg, we've been going regularly for a few years now and have a pretty good finger on just what to expect most times. This is even more true when it comes to Howl-O-Scream. We'll be back at the park on opening night to see everything first hand, but here's a rundown of things that you won't want to miss and a few tips that may make your day and night easier this fall!

This year's event features three all new mazes, which is a huge update and brings the total number up to seven. That's never happened before and it signals a new era for Howl-O-Scream, without a doubt. That said, there is only one meal experience to be had this year compared to the two previous years had, but that's a small set back in the grand scheme of things.

Back for 2015 are Bitten, Catacombs, Deadline, and Cut Throat Cove. Joining them are the all new Lumberhack, Cornered, and the icon maze Unearthed: Scarlett's Revenge. Also back this year are the five TERROR-tories, or scare zones, that have been featured the past few years; Wendigo Woods, Ripper Row, Vampire Point, Demon Street, and Ports of Skull.

Howl-O-Scream 2015 runs from September 25th thru October 31st on Friday, Saturday and Sunday nights. Nothing too surprising there. Definitely want to keep an eye on the hours though.

Things get a little weird with these and depending on when you could mean an extra hour in the park. However, it could also mean a very crowded atmosphere too. So, going to have to play that one by your instincts to see just what works best for you.

That said, having been in the park when it was near capacity for Howl-O-Scream, it can be very very tough to get much of anything done as the lines get to be very long and quickly. While the park closes an hour earlier towards the start of things, it could be the better option to avoid the long lines.

Now, then tickets. There's a few ways you can go about this and depending on how much time you're spending in the area a couple make more sense than others. We sadly only get to be there one night of the year, but a multiple night visit is definitely something to consider here.

Single day tickets run $75 a person and that gets you into the park for the full day, but if you're going to be there for more than one day, definitely check out the Fall Fun Card. At the same price, and including as many days as you'd like from September 12th thru November 1stt, it may be a good way to save a bit. If you're really in it for the long haul, and want to see more than just Busch Gardens, there's the Bounce Ticket which includes Colonial Williamsburg, Busch Gardens and free parking for only $98 a person. That one's only good between September 8th and November 1st.

There's also a number of other ways you can make your visit a bit easier, especially if you're there later in the year. First on that list is the Quick Queue. This one can be a bit of a no brainer to make sure you'll get to every maze in the park, and also a few rides as well. That said, they can get a little pricey at the event goes on. Prices range $45 to $60 for the single use, and $70 to $80 for the unlimited option depending on what you're night planning to go.

Click to see the huge menu that's being offered!

Alright, one last thing before we get to the mazes guide for this year. Going to talk about the Blood Banquet meal that they offer up. In the past, this was a $40 affair, but the price has come down to just $22 and the show seems to have changed for 2015 as well. I can't say much on the quality of the food or the show, but the last time we experienced it in 2013, it was great. Hopefully that continues this year as well, we'll see!


With all that of the way, let's get down to the mazes and how you should go about hitting this year's event to get the most out of it!

Unlike Busch Gardens Tampa, Williamsburg doesn't close the park earlier, it's open all day and that can give you a bit of an edge with some things. If you're interested in seeing some of the shows, like Monster Stomp on Ripper Row or Fiends, they do have showings earlier and that could free up some time later in the evening for you.

Since you're already in the park, you'll likely have seen the Ripper Row scare zone on your way in so I'll leave that out of this. However, it looks pretty awesome at night and may not be a bad thing to swing back around at some point to see it in action.

I've been thinking about this for quite a while and there's two different ways one could go and the reasons behind each are valid. One is the path with the least doubling back for mazes, but does mean that you'll pass through a few scare zones when it's pretty light out still. The other favors hitting up scare zones later, but at the expense of having to double back for the outdoor mazes. So, for the sake of this I'm going to go with my gut and option one.

Route #1: Scarlett's Revenge, Catacombs, Bitten, Lumberhack, Cornered, Cut Throat Cove, Deadline.

With three new mazes, the quick thought is to get to one of them first and at the back of the park to avoid any rush of new guest arrivals. I'm not sure that's the best way to go about this. However, you can get to one of them first by making Scarlett's Revenge your first stop.

The others are outside and until it's dark enough out they're not going to be that great of an experience. Early in the season this is going to make a world of difference as sunset isn't until around 6:45-7pm and it won't be fully dark until nearly 7:30pm. That's an hour and a half to kill before they're going to be worth it.

So, with Scarlett's Revenge out of the way first, you could possibly hit up Fiends if it lines up schedule wise or just head back to France to give Catacombs a go.

Again, Catacombs is another indoor maze, so the lighting won't matter as much here as it does with the other attractions. Yes, the Demon Street scare zone experience will be diminished some, but that's just nature for ya on this one, but there should be time to circle back to it. More on that a bit later though.

Once through Catacombs, I'd probably make a beeline to either Bitten or Deadline. Since we're looking to get to the new stuff with this guide, I'd go with Bitten on this one. Again, it's indoors, so the lighting won't make any difference for the experience and that's the key, right?



This route will also take you through Demon Street, Wendigo Woods, and Vampire Point. Sadly, it'll be pretty bright out still, so may want to come back and take your time with them.

With Bitten down, I'd go straight to Lumberhack as it's right next door. Being outside, it's a little tricky lighting wise, but after three mazes and walking two thirds of the park it should be dark enough. If not, maybe take a run on Verbolten or grab something to eat at Das Festhaus until the lighting gets just right.

Well, that or a drink at Open CASKet, both are pretty good options when you get down to it, but if drinking isn't your thing, there's Verbolten there to cover things in the mean time, maybe Mach Tower if drop rides are your thing. 

Assuming things work to plan, and you've done Lumberhack, it's time to double back a little bit and hit up Cornered. It's not that far, and should still give you a straight shot to everything afterwards as well.

Cornered is another outside maze, and by this time in the night it definitely should be dark enough and since you're already in the back of the park, it makes sense to make the most of your time and avoid doubling back too far. Time is of the essence!

Alright, at this point we've managed to get through two thirds of the park, hitting up 5 mazes. That leaves only two to go, Deadline and Cut Throat Cove. I'd say at this point it really doesn't matter which you do first as both are a bit away from Cornered.

Though, it's likely easier to go and get Cut Throat Cove out of the way on your journey to either of them!

Two reasons for this one, you don't have to deal with steps and it's on the way if you're crossing into Itally from Germany. You'll pass through Pirate's Cove doing this as well, and for once the lighting will be right!

Depending on the crowds and how much time you have left before the park closes, take the time to enjoy the scenery.

Could go back through and see the scare zones that you went through due to it being too bright, hop on a few rides for that total darkness ride you've wanted to get and just relax. If you can, go for taking the train from Festa and cruise around until you get to New France and you'll be pretty set there. Trains are fun, and ride in the dark is always fun during Howl-O-Scream too.

It may seem like a fairly fast paced and hectic itinerary, but with only 4 hours on some nights, it's going to be tough to do everything in one go. In the past we've actually said this event needs to be done in two days due to the hours they're open, and I think that still may apply here, even more so when it gets later into the season and the crowds get really big.

Not sure if we'll get to test this route out when we visit for opening night on September 25th, but if we do, I'll update things accordingly so you have the best info we can give you to survive this year's Howl-O-Scream at Busch Gardens Williamsburg!