I will kind of give you the big overview here of the park. I go very year when I am down in Florida with this year's visit being the fourth visit. We stayed in Kissimmee this year (about three weeks ago actually) and it took us an hour tops to get there. Please note that they are doing construction on I-4 and they have been doing lane closures in the evening so this could affect you on the way back and make your trip an extra hour.
As for the park itself, if you are going for just the rides you may be disappointed. There are very few non-roller coaster rides there and the coaster's while good, are spread out all over the park which means long hikes in between. That said, there are numerous non ride activities you might want to check out that you might kick yourself if you didnt see them and found out about them later.
The lorikeet exhibit is one of my favorites in the entire park (and this is coming from a roller coaster enthusiast) It is a bird exhibit where you can buy a small cup of nectar and the birds will land on your hand and drink from this small cup.
Kids will enjoy the Land of the Dragons which is a huge playground which I feel is better than any playground Disney has to offer for no other reason than you have fairly clear sitelines of the rugrats the entire time they are playing.
Adults will enjoy the Anheiser Busch Hospitality House where one can sample some of Anheiser Busch's fine products. They also offer a 45 minute beer school where you get more samples and learn how AB products are manufactured. Well worth the time invested.
One place to eat that no one mentioned is the FestHaus. There is free entertainment here almost all the time, usually the same you would get at the German buffet in Epcot. The food is not as high quality as that found in Crowne Colony and it is cafeteria style, but it is nowhere near the prices found at Crowne Colony either.
If you want to see the animals quickly and just move on with the rides I would suggest the train and also the skyride. Both take you through the Veldt and you will get to see pretty much all the animals that are on the safari and on Rhino Rally. The safari is an upcharge of 29.99, however, it is worth every penny when you are petting a live giraffe and feeding him.
As for my favorite part, the coasters, here are a few things to know...
Gwazi is a dueling coaster which means the trains have several near misses on the track. It is very spectacular but they rarely do it anymore because of the lengthy loading procedures needed for this ride. However, if you ask one of the ride operators politely, they will hold your train in the station until the other train is ready to go and duel them. Well worth it if you can.
If you wait for the front car for only one coaster in the park, that coaster has to be Montu. Other rows do not provide good visibility as you are on the ride, and Montu is one of the most visually stunning coasters I have ridden.
One last thing, this park IS NOT Disney so do not expect the same quality of service you get at Disney, in fact not even close. The ride operators at Busch Gardens are some of the worst I have ever seen at any park anywhere (and I have been to many parks). Many of the food service employees have problems with English and arent the most friendly. Also be very careful to follow ALL safety procedures for Gwazi as that ride enforces some very strange rules. They provide lockers before boarding the ride and it is advisable to lockup anything that isnt nailed down as the ride operators will take it from you or just not let you ride when you get to the platform and you cannot guarantee that the item will be there on the platform when you get back. They took my two way radio from me after seeing me put it in my fanny pack because of their no phones or radios on the ride rule.