The summer months are some of the most popular times of the year for guests to visit theme parks in Central Florida and surrounding areas, and the return of Busch Gardens’ Summer Nights certainly gives tourists an extra reason to make the drive over to the Tampa-based thrill park.

Busch Gardens Tampa Bay is only about an hour from Orlando, but if you’re vacationing in Central Florida, this day trip can be well worth the drive time. Busch Gardens is the ultimate family adventure park, offering an array of fascinating attractions centered around the African continent. Not only does Busch Gardens have some of the best thrill rides on the East coast, but they also boast one of the world’s premier zoos, featuring more than 2,000 animals, along with live shows, restaurants, shops and games that provide action-packed fun for the entire family.

At Busch Gardens Summer Nights, guests will experience longer park hours through August 14 to enjoy the “encore” of events they have lined up. The highlighting attraction for Busch Gardens this summer is Cheetah Hunt, a brand new roller coaster at the park that pushes the limits of thrill rides to a whole new level. On this attraction, riders will race across the Serengeti over rushing rapids, through rocky gorges and across the African landscape just like the graceful cheetah. Cheetah Hunt has already broken several records at Busch Gardens, as it ranks as Florida’s first triple-launch coaster, and with its impressive 90-second ride time and 13-acre footprint, it is the longest and biggest attraction in Busch Gardens history.

Not only will guests have the opportunity to experience Cheetah Hunt in the dark each evening, but there is plenty of other fun that awaits guests at night at Busch Gardens as well. Kinetix, a 30-minute nightly acrobatic performance that includes live musicians, singers, dancers and artists from around the world, returns to Gwazi Park every night at 9 p.m., while DJs will be stationed in three different areas of the park beginning each night at 5 p.m. to kick off the night. And be sure not to miss “Cool Illusions with Christopher Cool” featuring magician Christopher Cool every Tuesday through Sunday at the Marrakesh Theater with three nightly performances.  

In addition to all of the events listed above for Busch Gardens Summer Nights, guests will also enjoy the top staples of this park that have made it known world-wide, including some of the best thrill rides in the country, such as the one and only SheiKra. But whether it’s racing across the sky like a cheetah or enjoying the new live performances across the park each night, it’s clear that Busch Gardens Tampa Bay is the place to be this summer!