Welcome to TBO.com. Skip directly to: our Keyword Search, Section Navigation, Content.

TBO.com - TBO is Tampa Bay Online

Entertainment

TBO > Entertainment

Night Safari Adventure Shows Animals After Hours

By SARAH HOYE

shoye@tampatrib.com

Published: November 22, 2008

TAMPA - Park visitors don't have to bother with lines or crowds when they venture into the African nightlife on Busch Gardens' new Serengeti Night Safari excursion.

Tour groups enter the Serengeti Plain after the park is closed with handheld lanterns and night-vision monoculars to witness the nocturnal behavior of free-roaming hippos, lions, zebras and giraffes. Groups are limited to 40 people and participants must be 21 or older .

The two-hour tour begins after sunset at the Safari Club on select Friday and Saturday nights. Tourgoers dine on appetizers (pita and hummus, tabouli, cheese platter) and Anheuser-Busch beer before exploring the 65-acre plain.

A pair of khaki-clothed tour guides equipped with red lights (that won't disturb the animals) lead visitors through the Edge of Africa and Serengeti Plain areas of the park on foot and riding atop trucks. During a rest stop at a campfire, participants are entertained with stories and games.

"When you work at a park like this, you get some unique experiences," said excursion creator Bill Street, director of education and conservation at the park. "I started this because I wanted to bring my wife out here. The idea is to transport people to an African safari."

After the excursion, tourgoers return to the Safari Club to swap stories over dessert and coffee.

"We turn off all the lights and it feels like you're someplace else," Street said. "It's about the experience and being able to share it."

The Serengeti Night Safari costs $60 at Busch Gardens Africa, Tampa. All food and beverages are included in the cost of the tour ticket. Tourgoers do not go on any rides and visit only the Crown Colony, Edge of Africa and Serengeti Plain areas of the park. For more information, call (888) 800-5447.

Reporter Sarah Hoye can be reached at (813) 259-7832.

Share this: