Busch Gardens Tampa Bay has named Jon Vigue park President (as first reported by @SaxOnTracks). Mr. Vigue formerly served as Vice President and General Manager of Wild Adventures Theme Park in Valdosta, Georgia. At Wild Adventures he was part of several major projects including the opening of the Safari Campground and developing the park’s 10-year master plan. Mr. Vigue replaces Brian Bacica who left Busch Gardens in late 2025 to become park president of LEGOLAND Florida Resort. Mr. Vigue is the park’s 3rd president in as many years, but he’s potentially a great long term fit for the park. There are many similarities between Busch Gardens and Wild Adventures given the mix of animals, rides and adjacent water parks, so the fit is obvious. Mr. Vigue is also very active in IAAPA, serving as the Chair of the Food & Beverage Committee. We wish Jon tremendous success and look forward to seeing him at the park.

Disney is famous for being built on former Florida swamp land. Given that Florida is known for being a mosquito mecca, how does Disney assure you’re not spending your vacation swatting away bugs? It turns out it’s not just one thing, but a combination of things in an eco-friendly comprehensive program. The heart of the program is a barely detectable liquid garlic spray coupled with constant water circulation and design considerations to prevent standing water. Disney also uses mosquito natural predators like bats along with traps as part of a comprehensive control strategy to target the whole mosquito life cycle. There are even chickens involved in Disney’s mosquito strategy, but more about them later!

The “Splashville” sign is up at the new water park at Hamilton Crossing in Bartow County. It looks sincerely great with “Bartow County” in small red text and then a big blue wave. The sign also has a great internal lighting package that the crew was showing me pictures of from a test the night before that looked stunning. This sign will pop both day and night and lights on both the front and the back.

The LEGO Group acquired the LEGOLAND Discovery Centers and LEGO Discovery Centers from Merlin Entertainment back in Spetember 2025 in a ~$250 million deal. The acquisition includes 29 facilities in nine countries which attract around five million visitors each year. It does not include the 11 LEGOLAND Theme Parks and Resorts which Merlin to continue operating under licence from the LEGO Group. Merlin will now focus on the theme park locations while the LEGO Group will see the LEGO Discovery Centers as an important addition to their global network of retail stores allowing fans memorable hands-on brand and shopping experiences