[tarheel1231]

Google maps is updated, it’s just that they don’t update the 3D view. If you turn off 3D, it’ll show the current layout of the park.

[chknwing]

Google maps is updated, it’s just that they don’t update the 3D view. If you turn off 3D, it’ll show the current layout of the park.

I must be missing something as harbor still under construction in google maps for me.

[tarheel1231]

Under “Satellite”, click the “3D on” option and it should turn off.

[Chris]

Under “Satellite”, click the “3D on” option and it should turn off.

Worked for me. Thanks for the tip!

[CCookieMonster]

OH! No wonder Carolina Harbor is always still appeared to be working on construction. Thanks so much!

[formeryogi]

Story in The Charlotte Business Journal... anybody have access behind the paywall?

https://www.bizjournals.com/charlotte/n ... nto-a.html

[uscbandfan]

Yep... right click and "view source". You have to comb through a little html but its in there.

[tarheel1231]

Before the paywall went up, I saw something about Zimmerman being confident that Fury and the other additions would push Carowinds past the 3 million mark for attendance if that means anything.

[EDIT] Nvm, usc posted it.

What I can gather from this:

-Carowinds attendance is well beyond the 2 million mark
-They’ve gone over the $50 million budget they originally stated
-Cedar Fair compares Carowinds to Kings Island in terms of potential, and believes they can get Carowinds to the 3 million mark
-A hotel of SpringHill Suites’ size typically costs from $20 million to $30 million, and SHS at Carowinds is on the lower end.
-They’ve seen more attendance from the outer markets such as the Triangle (Raleigh, Durham, and Chapel Hill), Augusta and even Charleston, and they’re looking to tap into that overnight market with the new hotel.

[uscbandfan]

Yeah. I started reading about the copyright language at the bottom and I figured I was splitting a few hairs so I took it down.

He said the goal was 3 million because that's what Kings Island pulls in. The original goal was 2 million and they have surpassed that. (He wouldn't reveal the actual numbers.)

He also said that hotels of that size were $20 to $30 million and this one would be on the lower end of that. He's excited about the opportunities the land surrounding the hotel gives them and he wants to make Carowinds more than a place to ride rides. He wants to make it a multi-day experience.

[CCookieMonster]

That's really cool. I can't believe my home park is gonna turn into a destination multi-day park! Well, that's the goal and we've met most, if not all of the goals CF put in place already. But how can the park be a multi day park? Larger water park? Restaurants and some shops? A four seasons resort (HIGHLY unlikely, but I'm playing the guessing game right now.)?

[tarheel1231]

They just need to do what they keep doing. When I look at "destination" parks, the one thing they have in common is that they have multiple "E-ticket" type attractions that you can't experience anywhere else. The Disney and Universal parks have immersive attractions with valuable IP's. Cedar Point has the most record-breaking coasters, combined with the fact that it's on a Peninsula with several amenities. Dollywood has instant brand-recognition in its named due to it being owned by Dolly Parton, Hershey Park is the same way.

Carowinds is in the middle of a market of nearly 15 million people with little to no competition. If Cedar Fair keeps building quality attractions, people will come.

[gabed]

Really good stuff in that interview. Hard to believe that it’s been nearly 5 years since they announced the expansion. Even harder to imagine that even their highest expectations for Carowinds were surpassed.

[coasterbruh]

I'm just saying, it's gonna take more than one park and some shopping to make Carowinds a multiday park for me. Knott's would be the closest example for me and that still have never been a day experience for me.

[cadi40]

Really excited for Carowinds. I think Cedar Fair is definitely trying to make us a destination for families and thrill seekers. What I notice they are doing is in the recent past expansions they have added a ton of themeing in the new areas. If they keep doing this, I think one day we will easily be a multi-day Park. If they add a few more valuable coasters, some out of park activities, another good water park expansion and some more themeing, we will be well on our way to a destination. I wonder if any other CF parks got as prestigious of an outlook as we did.

[tarheel1231]

ATM it looks like California's Great America is undergoing a Carowinds-esque expansion over the next couple of years, though it seems that they're making up for lost time under Paramount (as was the case for Carowinds).