Loch Ness Monster is the classic looping coaster at Busch Gardens Williamsburg.
What was once one of the world’s largest roller coasters is now dwarfed by quite
a few at this Virginia park, but Nessie’s historical significance cannot be understated.
But is this coaster timeless or dated? Find out in this review of Loch Ness Monster.
Busch Gardens Williamsburg opened in 1975. The park’s first three coasters were off-the-shelf
clones, but they made a major splash with their first custom coaster in 1978. Loch
Ness Monster would open as the world’s tallest and fastest roller coaster. Built by Arrow Dynamics,
this looping coaster would stand 130 feet or 40 meters tall and reach speeds of 60 mph or 97 kph.
But the ride’s record-breaking height wasn’t its signature feature. Rather it
would be the world’s first and currently only remaining set of interlocking vertical loops.
Placed in the Scotland section of the park, Loch Ness Monster is themed to
the famous mythical beast. The ride’s largest elements are fittingly placed over the water
and those interlocking loops are one of the most iconic sights in any theme park.
The ride’s paint scheme is also fitting with the yellow track and green trains.
The main course doesn’t have much theming outside of a helix in a rock cave. However,
the start of the queue line has some expedition paraphernalia including submarines, diving suits,
and camping gear. Then the station is lightly themed to a Scottish castle and that’s where my
wait usually starts. I usually don’t have to wait more than a few trains for this coaster. This ride
can back up on busy days though due to its lengthy cycle time and lower capacity than the B&Ms.
Loch Ness Monster originally opened with 4 trains, each seating up to 24 riders across 6 cars.
The park realized the 4th train wasn’t efficient, so they reduced the ride down to three train
operations, but each train received an extra car. Nessie operated in this manner for decades
and it was possible to have two trains going through the loop simultaneously.
This dueling effect was a sight to behold. Now Loch Ness Monster only operates with
two trains. The crew usually has the next train ready to go once the prior one hits the brake run
between the simple restraints and lengthy ride duration.
Station to station, this ride is nearly 3 minutes in duration.
This coaster received an extensive refurbishment a few years ago
and the original Arrow trains were replaced by similar but new ones from S&S. But they look and
feel identical. Right down to the restraints. You have the same over-the-shoulder harnesses.
I think your height can have a major impact whether you like Loch Ness Monster.
If you’re too small, your ears will get trapped between the over-the-shoulder restraint, causing
painful headbanging. If you’re too tall, your legs could be pressed against the fiberglass seatback.
If the latter is an issue, the very front row does have some extra leg room.
However, I prefer to ride in the back car. This ride has a trio of satisfying drops back there.
Once dispatched, you navigate a small dip and a few turns in route to the lift hill.
This section is higher off the ground than you may expect, but you never have much speed.
You then begin the climb up the ride’s once record-breaking lift hill. It’s a pretty slow
lift, but you can bask in the glory of the Arrow anti-rollbacks for the whole ascent.
Once at the top, you turn 90 degrees and get a great view of the back half of the park.
But you don’t have much time to admire the sights since you’re soon dropping 114 feet or
35 meters down to the water’s surface. If you’re in the back, you get some decent ejector airtime
on this drop. That’s a signature feature of these Arrow loopers with straight drops.
You then rise up a massive turnaround. You start to turn left before you reach the apex,
so those up front get some good laterals in place of airtime.
This turn hugs the trees and borders the Land of the Dragons kiddie area,
so the latter is actually one of the better places to photograph this coaster.
After a slow turn, you head down the ride’s second drop. There is a trim at the start, which
holds the train back for a second. But once the train clears the brake, those in the back get a
quick pop of airtime. It sort of catches seasoned coaster rider’s off-guard because of the delay.
You then rip through the first vertical loop. The pullouts around the inversion
and the loop itself both offer good positive Gs. I love a classic Arrow vertical loop.
You then rise upwards, giving a nice pop of airtime for those up front. This next part
is mostly out of view of guests. You turn right and head into a mid-course brake run.
It will slow the train a little, but not too much since you don’t have much speed to begin with.
You then enter this cool looking rock cave, which holds a long downwards helix.
While the darkness tries to make the element exciting, there is no sugar-coating it.
This helix is awful. It’s painstakingly slow and boring. It’s the definition of a dead spot.
When you emerge into daylight after what seems like an eternity,
you quickly hop upwards, which gives a quick pop of airtime for those up front. You then ascend
the ride’s second lift hill. This along with the prior helix really disrupt the flow of the ride.
At the top, you slowly turn 90 degrees to the right and navigate another sizable drop. While
it’s not as big or powerful as the first two, those in back still get a weak pop of airtime.
You then whip through another forceful vertical loop. It’s probably an optical illusion,
but the loop looks equal in size to the prior drop, so it’s pretty surprising how punchy this
loop is. And the valleys on both sides of the element also apply some positive Gs as well.
You then curve upwards and to the right into the brake run,
getting some weak laterals along the way. This ends the 3240 foot or 990 meter long coaster.
Now let’s talk about two possible issues with Loch Ness Monster. First, the pacing. While I like this
ride’s start and finish, the middle section is one of the most egregious dead spots of any coaster.
That helix and second lift hill really disrupt the ride’s flow.
I think this would be a stronger coaster if they didn’t exist.
Second, the smoothness. The Achilles heel for most of these old Arrow loopers are the transitions.
But I’m glad to say that Loch Ness Monster navigates its turns fairly fluidly. They aren’t as
smooth as a B&M, but they don’t jerk the train. Where this coaster does exhibit some roughness is
in the valleys where the coaster exerts its highest G forces.
The pullouts after each drop and loop are fairly shaky. I’m tall enough that it’s only
a minor nuisance for me, but it can produce headbanging if you’re on the shorter side.
So what would I rate Loch Ness Monster? I would give this classic Arrow looper a 6.5 out of 10. I
love this ride’s setting between the abundance of trees and ride’s best elements being placed above
the water. And the drops and vertical loops are highlights as well. However, this coaster’s pacing
is problematic. Many rides have a mid-course brake run, which momentarily halts the action.
Loch Ness Monster has a full on commercial break with that lengthy helix and second lift.
The shaky valleys are another small issue for me.
While this coaster is dated, it still offers an enjoyable ride experience between the airtime
and forceful loops. I usually only ride this once a visit since I ride Alpengeist for my inversion
fix, but I cannot deny this coaster’s impact on both its park and the entire coaster industry.
There’s a reason Loch Ness Monster is as iconic as it is. I’m glad Busch Gardens
invested to refurbish this coaster a few years ago to preserve it for generations to come.
Compared to the other Arrow multi-loopers, I think I prefer the ones that pack in more inversions but
I do appreciate this coaster’s uniqueness. I doubt we’ll see a layout quite like this ever again.
So those are my thoughts on Loch Ness Monster at Busch Gardens Williamsburg.
What are your thoughts on this famous Arrow looper? Do you like its layout or do you think
it’s a little too old-fashioned? Let me know down in the comments. If you enjoyed this review, I’d
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lot more roller coaster and amusement park videos here at Canobie Coaster. Thanks for watching!