Iron Gwazi Review: Long-Awaited Record Breaker Opens March 11 at Busch Gardens Tampa

Saturday, February 12, 2022 - 17:21

Off the Track

The Watering Hole

Apart from the coaster itself, Busch Gardens has gone above and beyond to make Iron Gwazi an experience from the moment you arrive. Three coaster-inspired beverages are offered in the snack kiosk to the left of the ride entrance: Iron Gwazi Fizz, a gin-based lemonade, 91 Degree Drop, a vodka lemonade, and (my personal favorite) Hybrid Heat, a Jack and Coke made with Tennessee Fire. These three drinks are available for $13.99, alongside your regular theme park snacks and Gwazi-themed drink and popcorn buckets.

Iron Gwazi's snack selections

On the topic of memorabilia, Iron Gwazi has a killer gift shop area. The shop offers a variety of tees, based on both the new Iron Gwazi design and the retro Gwazi logo, pins, hats, bags, and yes, official Iron Gwazi Squishmallows. (Possibly the best $40 I’ve ever spent.)

Iron Gwazi's gift shop

The Verdict

It was hard to analyze my thoughts properly after my first ride on Iron Gwazi. I'm already such a fan of both Rocky Mountain Construction's coasters at Busch Gardens Tampa, and have been anticipating Iron Gwazi for so long that I think I've sprouted my first gray hairs in my wait. After ten rides and a good night's rest, however, I can confidently say that Iron Gwazi is about as close to a perfect coaster as you can get, and is absolutely a ten out of ten. I'm not sure I could find a flaw if I tried, especially with that fresh, glossy Ibox track.

This ride is tough to rank, even among similar RMC hybrids. It certainly may beat some of the world’s best coasters, but at the end of the day, I find it borderline meaningless to pit such stellar coasters up against one another. Regardless of rank, Central Florida—heck, America—is lucky to have a beast like this at Busch Gardens Tampa. With the addition of VelociCoaster at Universal Orlando in 2021, Central Florida has undoubtedly earned its place as a must-visit location for any theme park or coaster enthusiast—you can throw a rock from Orlando International Airport and hit a world-class coaster.

Iron Gwazi, SeaWorld — Image: Theme Park Tourist

If you take one thing away from this review, take this: get on a plane, a train, a car, a ship. Do what you need to do and get to Tampa to catch a ride (or ten) on Iron Gwazi.

Peyton E. DerrickView Profile

Peyton is a writer and roller coaster enthusiast living just outside Orlando, Florida. She is currently seeking her MFA in Creative Writing from the University of Central Florida, taking classes by day and hitting the theme parks by night. When she's not in the single rider line, you can find Peyton playing music or at the movies.