[the_man]

Fury looks like a great ride and I like the idea of the new entrance, but holy cow the execution of it looks awful, it looks like you're entering a prison. I really hope its not finished. It's like they already had CP's designed and were like "well that looks decent, so maybe itll look OK there too."

[dabrian]

Pretty sure there are exactly zero prisons with an entrance like Carowinds.

[coasterbruh]

if it is, that's the prison I wanna go to. Forget those prisons?with all those fence and bsrbwire. The ones I know don't have huge LED screenspavers...

[pproteinc]

Yea the is never on until mid April or so plus it's still cold and windy. I doubt anyone going to vortex or to ride slingshot wants to have a cold mist or splash on them. It could freeze the way the temps are going then that'll be a whole other issue.

[coasterbruh]

I can say for certain its gone for good...There is no fence surrounding the fountain that was once there...

[the_man]

The screen looks like it belongs at a sports stadium. Once again, I like the idea of what they did but the way it turned out looks very stereotypical Cedar Fairish. They could have made it more colorful, nice brick paths, landscaping, etc. The way it looks now its all grey and very little detail. If you want to see a re-do done right look at what Disney did with Magic Kingdom and Animal Kingdom in their hub areas, they put a lot of attention to detail and made them look better. Carowinds new entrance looks like every other suburban development made in the past 10 years.

[RollerBee]

We got bigger restrooms and the new centerpiece is beautiful! It is quick to get in the park and out. Not to mention the best B&M coaster ever built! I find it interesting that the Pet Prison err Center is still where Central gate was along with the Lost & Found Perheps more to come?

[Littlegiles]

I'm pretty sure you'll see more landscaping once the weather is actually warm enough to not kill it. It seems a bit unfair to complain about the outcome when the park just completed major construction. They can't put in lots of colorful flowers and border plants before the weather will support it. Of course, they could have waited and opened the park in April, but I'm glad they didn't.

I found the new entrance to be really welcoming, but at the same time able to accommodate the massive amount of people that arrive on a daily basis. I feel the flow through the new entrance is much smoother and user friendly than the old entrance. I was most the way over the new bridge before I even realized it. It flows effortlessly into the park.

I know it is a big change and it isn't going to be what everyone wants, but I think everyone will agree it is what is needed. As for it looking very Cedarfairish, I would agree, but considering it is owned by Cedar Fair, that seems appropriate.

Wondering what today is going to be like there since it is still below freezing at 10am.

[Littlegiles]

I can say for certain its gone for good...There is no fence surrounding the fountain that was once there...

Gosh....next you'll be making up some crap about Santa Clause and the Easter Bunny not being real.

I think what people seem to realize is what a complete PITA water features are to maintain. I admit I like fountains and against my better judgement I have a pool in my backyard and planning a pond. They are a part time job to maintain and i don't have thousands of people visiting them everyday. Imagine the gum, spit, money, trash, and god only knows what else, that gets put into those public fountains on a daily basis. They saved tons of trees and have planted tons more. Let's look at the positive aspect of what is there.

I quit going to this park for a long time because it was turning into a carnival set up in a blacktop parking lot. It was hot, uncomfortable and if you didn't ride coasters there was nothing really to do. It has come a long way and now I enjoy visiting and even purchased a season pass this year. Lots of shade and places to chill out and people watch, great food and some amazing rides.

Ok....I really need more coffee cause that is two soapbox posts in two different topics. Ugh.

[the_man]

I live in Southern California and I saw what Cedar Fair did to Knotts Berry Farm in the early 2000's - while its cool that they want to make Carowinds a better coaster park IMO they have to be careful to not ruin the park while doing it like they did with Knotts.

Oddly enough since Ouimet came on board they have done a good job turning Knotts around and trying to make it an all-around better experience again. The old Cedar Point entrance looked bad and the new one was needed: the "basic" look kind of fits CP, whereas Carowinds had a pretty entrance before.

Once again, i'm not against the idea of the new entrance, it just looks like they tried to appeal to the "yolo crowd" and tried to look cool & sleek, in the process they made everything look "meh." I've been to CP, Valleyfair, Canada's Wonderland, etc and walking up to another park now and seeing the all-to-familiar Cedar Fair "look" is just really unappealing to me.

[tylerSC]

I think the new entrance is nice, modern, and functional, with wide open spaces that allow better crowd flow management. I think additional landscaping with grass, trees, and plants will be added as time allows. And having Fury pass over and under the entrance adds a new feeling of excitement and anticipation as you enter the park. And while there is no longer a Plantation House or castle serving as a signature structure, the addition of Fury 325 takes the place of this in a much more exciting and dramatic fashion. Overall I think they have the right idea and did an outstanding job.. But I do wish they could have included or saved the water fountain.

[coasterbruh]

The screen looks like it belongs at a sports stadium. Once again, I like the idea of what they did but the way it turned out looks very stereotypical Cedar Fairish. They could have made it more colorful, nice brick paths, landscaping, etc. The way it looks now its all grey and very little detail. If you want to see a re-do done right look at what Disney did with Magic Kingdom and Animal Kingdom in their hub areas, they put a lot of attention to detail and made them look better. Carowinds new entrance looks like every other suburban development made in the past 10 years.

So what you are saying is you want fake grass and character statues? I have been thru the new entrance several times and it looks great, what little I remember. I was kinda busy looking at fury and not checking out the hues of bricks and buildings lol. It makes the park look bigger, Makes for an easier flow and looks more accessible. I, for one would think colorful bricks would be an eyesore and child like. This aint no chuck e cheese we are dealing with here.

But alas, we all have our preferences of what we like.

[the_man]

I was kinda busy looking at fury and not checking out the hues of bricks and buildings lol.

I guess that's the difference between you and me . I think i've made my point now though going to get off the soapbox, i'm going to Carowinds in a couple months and looking forward to riding Fury

[coasterbruh]

Wait...you are just going by the pictures? Your opinion would change once actually seeing it in person...

[Jonathan]

It is a little bare right now, but that is in part because it was designed to handle large crowds, but hopefully as some of the landscaping goes in and trees grow it will look nicer. Remember all of this only came together in the last few weeks.