Montu is an inverted steel roller coaster located in the Egypt section of the park and has been thrilling guests for over 25 years.
Fast Facts:
Official Open Date: May 16, 1996
Location: Egypt
Height: 150 ft
Length: 3,983 ft
Max Speed: 60 mph
Duration: 3:00
Inversions: 7
History
Its grand opening was May 16, 1996, one day after invited media and season ticket holders got a chance to ride.
Montu is named after a hawk-headed Egyptian war god.
When it opened, Montu was listed as the world’s tallest and fastest inverted roller coaster. In 2002, Montu was being advertised as the world’s tallest and longest inverted roller coaster.
Montu was featured in the second episode of Insane Coaster Wars on the Travel Channel on July 8, 2012.
Beginning August 24, 2015, the entire Egypt section of the park closed temporarily as part of the Cobra’s Curse project. Montu received a refurbishment during this closure, including work on its track with some sections being repainted. Originally scheduled to last through September 24, the roller coaster’s refurbishment was shortened to end on September 4, 2015, and Montu reopened with the rest of Egypt on September 5, just in time for Labor Day Weekend.
Following the end of the holiday season, the entire Egypt section closed again beginning January 4, 2016, as work continued on the Cobra’s Curse project. Work on sections of Montu’s track not done in the earlier refurbishment in late summer 2015 was completed, including on both brake runs.
Originally scheduled to reopen by mid-February, Montu would end up reopening on February 25, 2016, after its refurbishment was twice extended.
Around the same time as its refurbishment, new lockers were installed replacing the old coin-operated ones. The new lockers featured self-service kiosks for payment, and charged $1 for up to two hours of time, with each additional hour costing $2. Later in the spring of 2016, a new $5 option allowed guests to use all of the locker locations around the park for up to two hours at a time.
In the summer of 2020, Montu won an award from 10Best for being the ninth-best roller coaster in the country as voted by USA Today readers in an online poll.
Kicking off 2022, Montu was closed beginning January 4 for a refurbishment. Originally scheduled to last through February 18, it was later extended through March 4. As part of the refurbishment, the coaster received a full repaint, including a brighter shade of yellow for the supports.
Additional details and images on Montu will be added in the future.
Sources:
“Coasters by the Numbers” Fact Sheet, Busch Gardens Tampa Bay 8/16/2016
St. Petersburg Times | May 16 1996 – accessed 1/14/2017
Busch Gardens Tampa | Aug 11 2015 – accessed 7/21/2018
Travel Channel | Insane Coaster Wars – accessed 1/21/2019
Twitter – @BuschGardens | Jul 31 2020 – accessed 7/31/2020
Pixels At The Parks | Aug 2 2015 – accessed 8/9/2015
Pixels At The Parks | Aug 30 2015 – accessed 9/14/2015
Busch Gardens Tampa Bay | Attraction Updates – accessed 9/13/2016
Pixels At The Parks | Jan 11 2016 – accessed 1/14/2016
Pixels At The Parks | Jan 20 2016 – accessed 1/24/2016
Twitter – @androckb | Feb 21 2016 – accessed 11/2/2020
Twitter – @androckb | Feb 23 2016 – accessed 11/2/2020
Twitter – @androckb | Feb 25 2016 – accessed 11/2/2020
Twitter – @androckb | Mar 9 2016 & 2, 3 – accessed 11/2/2020
Pixels At The Parks | May 8 2016 – accessed 6/2/2016
Busch Gardens Tampa Bay | Ride Closures – accessed 1/5/2022
Twitter – @BuschGardens | Mar 5 2022 – accessed 3/5/2022
Twitter – @BuschGardens | Mar 30 2022 – accessed 4/1/2022
Last update: February 27, 2023