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211. Mary Kwiatkowski on the DarKoaster and Curse of DarKastle at Busch Gardens Williamsburg

11.06.2023 by Dan Heaton // Leave a Comment

DarKoaster is the newest roller coaster at Busch Gardens Williamsburg.


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Busch Gardens Williamsburg continues to evolve as a regional park with a solid ride lineup. It became a full-day park in January 2021 and has added several new attractions in the past few years. The highly anticipated Pantheon coaster finally opened last spring after delays from the pandemic. Next up was finally replacing the dark ride Curse of DarKastle with a different kind of attraction. Manufactured by Intamin, the DarKoaster arrived this May as the park’s 10th roller coaster.

Mary Kwiatkowski joins the Tomorrow Society Podcast to talk more about Busch Gardens Williamsburg.
Photo by Mary Kwiatkowski

This episode of the Tomorrow Society Podcast is all about DarKoaster and the history of this space. Mary Kwiatkowski returns to give her thoughts on this launched indoor straddle coaster. She visits Busch Gardens Williamsburg regularly and knows a lot about its background. During this episode, we delve into the Curse of DarKastle and its evolution. Mary describes the changes that happened to the original version of that simulator and what ultimately led to its sad demise.

Mary provides her reactions to the DarKoaster and how it fits within the park’s coaster lineup. She talks about what works and a few changes that could make it better. Mary and I also cover the recent announcement of upgrades to the classic Loch Ness Monster coaster. It’s getting a restoration, updated queue, and other enhancements that should keep it operating well for a long time. We conclude the podcast by talking about a cool recent addition to Busch Gardens Williamsburg and play a fun game. I really enjoyed chatting with Mary and learning more about the DarKoaster and its history.

Show Notes: DarKoaster

Learn more about the extinct Curse of DarKastle dark ride in this detailed article from Theme Park Tourist (August 28, 2017).

Follow Mary Kwiatkowski on Twitter and Instagram and listen to her talk about pop culture on the Kowskicast and Rob Has a Podcast.

Listen to Mary Kwiatkowski’s past Tomorrow Society Podcast appearances in Episode 126 and Episode 168.

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Categories // Tomorrow Society Podcast Tags // Busch Gardens, Busch Gardens Williamsburg, Interviews, Podcasts

About Dan Heaton

Dan’s first theme-park memory was a vacation at the Polynesian Resort in 1980 as a four-year-old. He’s a lifelong fan who has written and podcasted regularly about the industry. Dan loves both massive Disney and Universal theme parks plus regional attractions near his hometown of St. Louis, Missouri. His favorite all-time attraction is Horizons at EPCOT Center.

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