Replacing the African Queen Boat Ride, Tanganyika Tidal Wave used much of the former attraction’s course and theming, and added a 55-foot drop.
Fast Facts:
Official Open Date: June 15, 1989
Close Date: April 10, 2016
Location: Stanleyville
Replaced: African Queen Boat Ride
Replaced By: Tigris
History
The boats held 20 passengers, and the course of the ride was approximately 1300 feet in length. At the time it opened, a newspaper article reported there were exotic animal sounds pumped in, along with real white rhinoceros and American crocodile exhibits.
The ride was closed for a short unscheduled refurbishment on January 13 & 14, 2014 for “necessary repairs.”
A more lengthy refurbishment occurred in the late summer and early fall of 2015, reopening on October 10.
Following rumors in the spring of 2016 that the attraction’s days were numbered, it was reported on April 10, 2016, that Tanganyika Tidal Wave would close at the end of that day. By the following day, the park had removed the attraction listing from the website. The digital version of the map was also updated to show the attraction area as an empty plot, though the print maps still available at the park continued to show Tidal Wave for several weeks.
Over the summer of 2016, it appeared some of the decorated logs from the attraction were reused to help with erosion control in the Cheetah Run habitat near the front of the park.
While most of the ride was left standing, by the spring of 2017 some demolition work occurred around the end of the ride, including the removal of the exit bridge and a portion of the trough underneath it.
Images
Additional details and images on Tanganyika Tidal Wave will be added in the future.
Sources:
Pixels At The Parks | Apr 10 2016 – accessed 4/14/2016
Saw Pan | Busch Gardens – accessed 1/20/2018
Sun Sentinel | May 14 1989 – accessed 1/22/2018
Orlando Sentinel | Jul 24 1989 – accessed 3/23/2018
Twitter – @BuschGardens | Jan 8 2014 – accessed 4/28/2019
Pixels At The Parks | Sep 1 2015 – accessed 10/10/2016
Twitter – @androckb | Apr 23 2016 – accessed 11/3/2020
Pixels At The Parks | Aug 4 2016 – accessed 8/20/2016
Twitter – @androckb | Aug 5 2016 – accessed 11/7/2020
Touring Central Florida | Apr 22 2017 – accessed 4/25/2019
Last update: November 14, 2020