^ There is no tentative
end date. Look to see more and more investments until it starts to plateau.
Ok, here are some tidbits of information . . .
-The talk (more less "you're getting a product") started in 2016, precisely around the time Carolina Harbor was finishing up.
-The stars aligned as Mack had an opening slot for a 2019 coaster and Cedar Fair secured it for Carowinds.
-As we have seen with the last several years of additions, Carowinds is rebranding itself and being more prideful of their Carolina heritage. As the coaster was being planned, the theming and the story was simultaneously coming together at the park. Carowinds is extremely fortunate that Cedar Fair allows them to have a big voice when it comes to how things are executed at the park. We got our first eye opener of that with the conversion of Boomerang Bay to Carolina Harbor. THe parks upper personnel really pushed for the uniqueness of we now know, and love, as Carolina Harbor.
-The park has found a proverbival gold mine with the introduction of the walk around "local" characters. Their presence became more prominent during the teasing campaign for the County Fair addition. We were first introduced to granny when she was going on and on about her prize winning jam. The park decided to expound on that by creating a fleshed out story about her actually making moonshine in a copperhead infested barn, thus naming her "secret" Copperhead Strike.
-The new area, Blue Ridge Junction, is a call back of a previous park area that is now the Carolina Boardwalk.
-The wings restaurant will get a complete gut job and when it returns, it will have decor similar to that of a Cracker Barrel.
-There will be a new path from the current Country Crossroads that will be a segway from that area to the new County Fair.
-The hotel is looking to be ready in the fall of 2019. The park had the option to go with a park branded hotel, like Knotts, but opted for a chain as a plus/plus for everyone. People visiting the are with Marriott rewards are more prone to stay there and the park will be able to fill more rooms in the off season.
-Now, the one thing that has been having us scratch our heads, the in-park teasers around the chain. It balls down to harmless fun amongst the parks. There is no deeper meaning to the teasers other than having fun. So NO, it is not part of some grand scheme or conspiracy theory lol.
-I was under the impression there was only 2 areas left that need attention but boy, was I wrong
!
-2019 further drives home the notion that the layout of the park will be very different from years past.
-This one you guys are gonna love, there was some sacrifices made in order to get more trees by Fury 325 so expect to see more foliage over there.
-The park's focus now is to be as immersive as possible. You're gonna continue to see products accompanied by storylines and theming.
-As of right now, nothing is off the table at Carowinds (even ride removals . . .)
John Taylor is a national treasure when it comes to Carowinds. His passion for his job and dedication to make all things Carolina is definitely seen and appreciated. Combined that with the momentum of Pat Jone, who gets it DONE, you have one powerful team! As Lisa Stryker gets to know the community, especially carowinds connection
hopefully it garners more opportunities and chances for us all!
And one last thing, if those peanut butter and raspberry cookies are not offered in the park i'm gonna cry lol.