Alpengeist at Busch Gardens Williamsburg
Gs that numb your legsintense and whippy all the way

Busch Gardens Williamsburg, Williamsburg, Virginia

Alpengeist

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6times upside downNo. 12 of 446 US coastersAlpengeistSteel CurtainTMNT Shellra.Scream!
POV
Ride it: back row POV
Back row
seeing snow on the ground in 90 degree weather
What riders love
  • This coaster is the definition of trying to have every drop of blood at your feet.
  • this ride rips you to shreds, it is so incredibly intense and whippy for the entire way through.
  • The positives in the back are crazy and it yanks you through those first four elements.
  • It is so whippy and snappy and feels like it try to throw you out of the train.
  • The sheer size of the inversions are huge and it just flys through it.
  • Every inversion is taken at ludicrous speed and is super intense.
  • Incredible use of the terrain and trees in the layout.
  • Great night rides on this thing because of the great location in the trees.
  • I also like how rhe ride weaves around Le Scoot, the log flume, and how it passes through many buildings, offering several great headchoppers.
Alpengeist Watch Performance Should I ride it? Specifications Reviews Planning History

Watch POVs and more

Alpengeist front seat on-ride 5K POV @60fps Busch Gardens Williamsburg

youtube.com › CoasterForce

Alpengeist POV 5K Back Row B&M Inverted Coaster Busch Gardens Williamsburg, VA

youtube.com › East Coasters

Alpengeist POV 5K TALLEST B&M Invert (Highest Quality) Busch Gardens Williamsburg,VA

youtube.com › East Coasters

Alpengeist off-ride HD Busch Gardens Williamsburg

youtube.com › CoasterForce

Alpengeist Review | The Worlds Tallest B&M Invert! Busch Gardens Williamsburg

youtube.com › Coaster Studios

Alpengeist Review, Busch Gardens Williamsburg B&M Invert | Is Bigger Better?

youtube.com › Canobie Coaster

Alpengeist Review (Busch Gardens Williamsburg) 2019

youtube.com › XscreamThrills

All about ALPENGEIST at Busch Gardens Williamsburg in 1 MINUTE

youtube.com › Mr Coller Roaster

Performance

Vs. other coasters at Busch Gardens Williamsburg

Also the zero-g roll gives one of the strongest moments of ejector airtime I have very experienced.

Lettuce Two

The second half is still really great with some good floater coming off the mcbr drop and the zero g roll and corkscrew giving some quite solid whip, even the ending helix is fun with the snow...

Cooper Zimmerman

...transition and was absolutely shocked when I got crushing positives followed by ejector airtime while inverted and violent whip, followed by even more mental positives and another moment of...

Carter Eckhart

Although there isn’t much airtime and the cobra is so intense, sometimes it’s actually painful.

Bolton Lawless

As long as you get one of the two good trains, it’s a smooth, comfortable ride that you will enjoy and is worthy of the ranking here.

Justin B.

First of all, I remember getting a bit of head banging on the transition into the break run, though it was the only rough patch on an otherwise butter smooth ride.

Anthony Ricciuti

You may experience an occasional headbang, but it’s far from a head-bang-athon like all of those [Mind Eraser](http://www.flickr.com/photos/thecoastercritic/229566253/) installations all over the...

Coaster Critic

The cobra roll and transition into the mid course shake you up but the rest of the ride is a big swooping coaster with plenty of positives.

Jack Jack J.

A huge first drop more akin to a giant helix, forceful immelmann and vertical loops, and the most aggressive cobra roll I’ve ever experienced.

Eric Esty

Thank god the midcourse slows the train down because it would be too intense in the second half, this ride is unhinged.

Elliott Williams

The biggest problem with it are the violent transitions, too violent for my tastes, even though I haven’t tried it in the back row.

Alessandra

Nothing can beat the sheer intensity of Montu’s batwing and second half, but Alpie comes pretty darn close during its very snappy and G-heavy cobra roll!

Kw6sTheater

Fun invert, first drop isn’t intense and kind of feels like you’re just accelerating into the ride so it’s great for people who don’t enjoy first drops.

seth w.

minor headbanging (bumped my ears) but honestly was almost too fast paced for me LOL this pulled the spit out of my mouth (front row...

andrea

...down on a parking lot or some flat lot of land), it’s massive (over three minutes of ride time), it’s fast, it’s themed pretty well (with little touches many[![Superior Coaster Reviews](https://i0.wp....

Coaster Critic

Not quite my favorite, but that first drop rips and it zips along with great intensity.

The Real E-Rock

Yes, it runs out of energy at the very end, but I don’t need a coaster to come flying into the station to be considered a good ride.

Sean Reardon

But once you hit the midcourse, the pacing takes a nosedive.

Eric Esty

Capacity is always a plus on these things so there is never a long wait (even in the front row for me).

Max S.

No line too, lol.

Kofe

Alpengeist is a blast to ride and doesn’t usually have much of a line.

Josh Miller

I almost went on again but the line was too long.

Clementine Northcutt

why does it take 4-5 minutes to board 1 train??

angela
Height fear

The first drop is soooo massive and intimidating!!

@ryanfrieman733

Recommended for people who don’t like huge heights because this doesn’t have a huge height.

Clementine Northcutt
Motion sickness risk

For some reason, this ride gives me slight nausea, something I don’t experience on any other invert.

Coaster Nut

It was intense without being nauseating, and the layout was a fun deviation from the generic B&M invert layout - not just the Batman clones, but Raptor as well.

Jackie ODoyle

Should I ride it?

Organize by

Specifications

195 ftHeight
205 Griffon 195 Alpengeist 178 Pantheon 170 Apollo'sChariot 150 Tempesto 130 Loch NessMonster
170 ftFirst drop
210 Apollo'sChariot 200 Griffon 180 Pantheon 170 Alpengeist 135 Tempesto 114 Loch NessMonster
67 mphTop speed
Pantheon73 Apollo'sChariot73 Griffon71 Alpengeist67 Tempesto62 Loch NessMonster60 073 mph
79°Drop angle
95°Pantheon90°Griffon79°Alpengeist65°Apollo'sChariot65°InvadR55°Loch NessMonsterdashed line: straight down, 90°
6Inversions

What riders say

Praised for

IntenseRider favouriteGreat inversionsGreat themingGreat views

Criticised for

Slowed by trimsHead bangingMade riders sick

This ride is very solid, and has a good mix of intensity in its layout until you get to the last couple of turns.

Caitlin Wilcox, Captain Coaster review

Maybe this was for the better, though, because when we finally took off, the ride felt tedious and wasted no time in making your head feel like the ball in a soccer match, being kicked around between the over-the-shoulder restraints with as much force as humanly possible.

roller rider, Captain Coaster review

The cobra roll was a little rough but that didnt bug me all that much, but then the mid course break run it.

Thunderbolt, Captain Coaster review

The first drop gradually develops speed until entering an immelmann and a vertical loop that aren’t too intense.

Coaster Great, Captain Coaster review

It’s extremely well-paced though and the train glides through the impressive six inversions, including the spectacular cobra roll over the Rhine River.

Theme Park James, published review

This ride is incredible, it’s my favorite B&M invert because it is soooooo intense.

Caiden Varney, Captain Coaster review

Photos

Alpengeist at Busch Gardens Williamsburg
myself (User:Piotrus), CC BY-SA 3.0
Alpengeist at Busch Gardens Williamsburg
myself (User:Piotrus), CC BY-SA 3.0
Alpengeist at Busch Gardens Williamsburg
Coasterman1234, CC BY-SA 3.0
Griffon, Alpengeist, and Loch Ness Monster Rollercoasters shown in close proximity
Cjh1452000, CC BY-SA 4.0
the Loch Ness Monster and Alpengeist roller coaster Tracks in one shot!
Ryan Stryker, CC BY-SA 3.0
Alpengeist at Busch Gardens Williamsburg
myself (User:Piotrus), CC BY-SA 3.0
Alpengeist's zero-g roll at Busch Gardens Europe
Coasterman1234, CC BY-SA 3.0
Alpengeist at Busch Gardens Williamsburg
Coasterman1234, CC BY-SA 3.0
The Alpengeist Roller coaster's cobra roll. (3rd and 4th element)
Ryan Stryker, CC BY-SA 3.0
Alpengeist at Busch Gardens Williamsburg
Coasterman1234, CC BY-SA 3.0
The Alpengeist train running through the Cobra Roll
Ryan Stryker, CC BY-SA 3.0

11 photographs. Swipe or drag sideways.

Planning your ride

History and awards

March 22, 1997Opened

Built by Bolliger & Mabillard, designed by Ing.-Büro Stengel.

$20 millionTo build
3.7 gStrongest force on riders

Golden Ticket Awards, top steel coaster: ranked in 27 polls, 1998 to 2026

2nd1998, its first poll
46th2026, most recent

Sources

Restraint types: Captain Coaster. History, incidents and awards: Wikipedia. Specifications and status: Coasterpedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. From the park and maker: Busch Gardens Williamsburg guide. Also read: Captain Coaster (converted to feet and mph). Rider sentiment and performance scores: rider reviews on Captain Coaster, coastercritic.com, youtube.com, read and scored by AirtimeFever.

Photographs via Wikimedia Commons: Douglas Whitaker at en.wikipedia (CC BY-SA 3.0), myself (User:Piotrus) (CC BY-SA 3.0), Coasterman1234 (CC BY-SA 3.0), Cjh1452000 (CC BY-SA 4.0), Ryan Stryker (CC BY-SA 3.0). Video thumbnails remain the property of their channels and link back to them.

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What riders love, by theme (themes in the order riders pick them most on Captain Coaster): Owen Guistwite, rider review on Captain Coaster: “The first half of the ride made my legs…”; brynley, rider review on Captain Coaster: “This coaster is the definition of trying to have…”; smacd, rider review on Captain Coaster: “this ride rips you to shreds, it is so…”; Darcy N., rider review on Captain Coaster: “The positives in the back are crazy and it…”; Keystone Coasters, rider review on Captain Coaster: “The snap you feel in the cobra roll is…”; Coaster Voyager, rider review on Captain Coaster: “It is so whippy and snappy and feels like…”; Jamoni Roberts, rider review on Captain Coaster: “The sheer size of the inversions are huge and…”; Lettuce Two, rider review on Captain Coaster: “Every inversion is taken at ludicrous speed and is…”; Ben Lilly, rider review on Captain Coaster: “Not only is it super photogenic, but flying past…”; Scott Collins, rider review on Captain Coaster: “Incredible use of the terrain and trees in the…”; IronChef C., rider review on Captain Coaster: “Great night rides on this thing because of the…”; Aric The Kakapo, rider review on Captain Coaster: “I also like how rhe ride weaves around Le…”; Clementine Northcutt, rider review on Captain Coaster: “I also loved seeing snow on the ground in…”.

The photo slider at the top and the fading stills: East Coasters's back row POV, Alpengeist POV 5K Back Row B&M Inverted Coaster Busch Gardens Williamsburg, VA (YouTube), and the page's Wikimedia Commons photographs.