Busch Gardens Tampa Bay · Operating · 2024
Phoenix Rising
44 mph
Photo: Busch Gardens Tampa Bay · Official park / manufacturer media
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Phoenix Rising opened in 2024 on the former Sand Serpent footprint in Pantopia, giving Busch Gardens Tampa a suspended family coaster that flies over the Serengeti Plain at up to 44 mph with a 42-inch height minimum. Vekoma's layout packs twists, turns, and drops into a compact circuit aimed at multi-generation groups rather than extreme thrills. It replaced the Mack wild mouse that had occupied the site under three names across two Busch Gardens parks.
Specifications
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Ride profile
Scaled against Busch Gardens Tampa Bay's operating coasters
Park intensity
Speed
44 mph
#6 of 8 at Busch Gardens Tampa Bay
Ride experience
- Family
- Steel
- Suspended
Ride details
Min height
3'6"
Specs from buschgardens.com
History
Sourced timeline and background for Phoenix Rising.
Timeline
2024
Phoenix Rising opens
Vekoma's suspended family coaster debuts on the former Sand Serpent footprint in Pantopia, flying over the Serengeti Plain at up to 44 mph.
Background
After Sand Serpent closed in 2023, Busch Gardens Tampa Bay redeveloped the Pantopia footprint into Phoenix Rising, a suspended family coaster from Vekoma aimed at guests as short as 42 inches. Official marketing frames the ride as a mythical flight above the Serengeti Plain, with twists, turns, and drops that top out around 44 mph rather than chasing park height or speed records.
The coaster fills the mid-intensity gap between Sesame Street's Air Grover and the park's B&M / RMC headliners, giving families a modern steel credit on a site that had hosted a relocated Mack wild mouse for nearly two decades. Pantopia's surrounding flats and shops keep the area oriented toward younger guests even as the skyline now carries a suspended track instead of wild-mouse switchbacks.
Phoenix Rising is the clearest recent signal of Busch Gardens Tampa's family-coaster strategy: replace aging mid-tier steel with a manufacturer platform that rides smoother, themes cleaner, and still clears a full Atlas roster slot.
History primarily sourced from buschgardens.com. See also our data policy.
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Sources & official links
We link out to parks, manufacturers, and the pages where facts and media come from.
- Busch Gardens Tampa Bay — official sitebuschgardens.com(opens in a new tab)
- Busch Gardens Tampa Bay on Coaster AtlasPark page
- Ride specifications sourcebuschgardens.com(opens in a new tab)
- Vekoma — manufacturervekoma.com(opens in a new tab)
- Hero photo (Busch Gardens Tampa Bay · Official park / manufacturer media)Image license & attribution(opens in a new tab)
- History & background sourcebuschgardens.com(opens in a new tab)
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