Any tips for Carowinds Amusement in NC?

Magalex

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A friend and her family are visiting the Charlotte area to visit family. They are planning on visiting Carowinds and other family activities. Any thoughts/suggestions about Carowinds, even places to eat, or any other family activities. Any nice Marriott hotels in the area? They have Marriott points. Children ages are 6 & 9. Any Ghost Walking tours in the area?
 
A friend and her family are visiting the Charlotte area to visit family. They are planning on visiting Carowinds and other family activities. Any thoughts/suggestions about Carowinds, even places to eat, or any other family activities. Any nice Marriott hotels in the area? They have Marriott points. Children ages are 6 & 9. Any Ghost Walking tours in the area?

I live about 2 miles from Carowinds. There is a Marriott Courtyard in Rock Hill SC at exit 82- Carowinds it at exit 90 off I77. In Rock Hill there are plenty of good places to eat right off the interstate. There is one off Tyvola which at exit 6 I believe- I had a seminar there in the spring at it looked nice. They will run into more traffic in this area.

I am not aware of any Ghost Tours. They might want to also check out the White Water Center. They have hiking trails, zip lines, and other fun stuff to do. Carowinds also has a water park that is included in the park admission.

Try this website http://www.charlottesgotalot.com/default.asp?charlotte=58&urlkeyword=Attractions&ddlType=183&page=1
 
I live about 2 miles from Carowinds. There is a Marriott Courtyard in Rock Hill SC at exit 82- Carowinds it at exit 90 off I77. In Rock Hill there are plenty of good places to eat right off the interstate. There is one off Tyvola which at exit 6 I believe- I had a seminar there in the spring at it looked nice. They will run into more traffic in this area.

I am not aware of any Ghost Tours. They might want to also check out the White Water Center. They have hiking trails, zip lines, and other fun stuff to do. Carowinds also has a water park that is included in the park admission.

Try this website http://www.charlottesgotalot.com/default.asp?charlotte=58&urlkeyword=Attractions&ddlType=183&page=1


I was gonna say everything you said. :thumbsup2
 
Any Inside park tips? Anything about the park food or rides? Is this a nice clean bright park?
 
Any Inside park tips? Anything about the park food or rides? Is this a nice clean bright park?

I think its a nice park. I mean its no Disney or anything but its fun. Its a bit cleaner now that it is under new management. I don't ride the Hurler anymore because it hurt my back the last time I rode it, and I despise the Borg Assimilator because I feel like I am going to fall out. Other than that all the other rides are great. As far as Roller Coasters my favorite is probably Top Gun. There's a new one that I can't remember the name of, but I haven't ridden it yet.

One of my favorite things about Carowinds is that you get admission to the waterpark with your park admission.

My advice is that if you go to the waterpark and you want a locker for your stuff, then go to the lockers first thing in the morning before you do ANYTHING else, otherwise you won't get a locker.

The park has your typical amusement park faire as far as food goes. Nothing amazing that I can think of to specifically point out, but nothing bad either.
 
As Angelhalo says it is under new management. They had the park last year too but bought it right before the season started so everything was still pretty much the same. I haven't been since the new owners so don't know if they've made changes in the food etc.

The park is kind of broken up into sections and there are roller coaster type rides in just about every section. The Hurler is a wooden coaster and is real herky jerky for lack of a better term. I still like the golden oldie- ThunderRoad. Its also a wooden coaster but seems smoother.

Parking lots-- they have a new parking lot now for season pass holders. The regular parking lot is pretty big. We like to park at the end and go in the South gate. Its usually not as crowded since most people want to go in the main North gate which is the one you first drive up to. The South gate is also closer to the waterpark area. Get a locker first to keep towels and such.
 
Stop by a local Bojangles restaurant for $10 off coupons. I think one coupon is good for up to SIX admissions.

I haven't been in years, mainly between I'm not a roller coaster person and I've been spoiled by Disney....

Have fun!!! You will see the bridge that is the "border" between NC and SC (the park straddles both states!).
 
Was there with DD and a group last week. Given the kids' ages, the height requirements might be of interest. My DD is about 50-51"; the only rides she couldn't ride were those with a 54" minimum. There are a number of 48" rides, and some 46" (and maybe lower - we didn't go on those). The ride attendants do check, and there are measuring sticks at the line entrances. We saw two separate families try to get on Carowinds' version of Kali River Rapids with a small child and be told "no" because the kids were not 46" (after they waited on line - guess they didn't see the signs or thought they could be an exception). One tip is that if a child is close to one of the height cut-offs you can have them measured and get a colored wrist band - I think near the (main?) entrance; 2 of DD's friends did this.

We packed coolers and went out to the car for lunch, tail-gate style. Just need to have your hand stamped before you leave.

I really like that the water park is there too - made it more appealing for me. It's no Disney (what is?!) but it was a fun day. I thought park was pretty clean, but bathrooms were icky.
 
My DH and I had season passes for the past two summers. I do not advise anyone with young children to go on a Friday or Saturday unless they plan to leave by late afternoon. A very disgusting/vulgar local crowd comes in large masses and can be very unpleasant. For food I recommend leaving the park and eating at Cracker Barrel across the street or Bojangles which is about 2 minutes away on the other side of I-77, inside the park the food is just okay but very high priced.
 
Get there at park opening....just like for WDW. IMO the food is nasty and high priced. As a PP said, I'd either tailgate or eat somewhere else. My DD had a Season Pass last year and we went a couple of times. Even though we're local we just don't go there often. After the visits last year I know why...the park looked run down and in need of a facelift. With the prices they charge they could do a better job of making the park look nicer. I'm not a big thrill rider so there's not much for me to do. The water park is very nice though.
 
My DH and I had season passes for the past two summers. I do not advise anyone with young children to go on a Friday or Saturday unless they plan to leave by late afternoon. A very disgusting/vulgar local crowd comes in large masses and can be very unpleasant. For food I recommend leaving the park and eating at Cracker Barrel across the street or Bojangles which is about 2 minutes away on the other side of I-77, inside the park the food is just okay but very high priced.

I second the don't go on Sat. especially. I think every wanna be rapper, gang banger and hoochie momma from the surrounding area is rounded up and dropped at the gate each saturday. Sunday afteroon is usually much more family oriented.
 
Our family went on Tuesday, June 30. Only the north gate was open. The crowds were almost non existent. We did a walk on to just about every ride. The longest we waited was for Cobra, for which we waited about 15 minutes.

As others have stated, food is very expensive. For example, one counter service restaurant had four small to average size chicken fingers and fries for over $8. All meals were about the same price. You can buy a refillable drink cup for $7.99, but refills cost $2.99. Or a small drink, maybe 20 oz, for $3.49. Large drink, maybe 32 oz, for $3.99. You can get water for free, but they give it to you in a 6 or 8 oz cup with too much ice. Many folks do go off site for lunch (or a picnic at their car), then come back to the park. They do inspect all bags as you enter, making sure you are not bringing in any food or drink.

All employees were very friendly, and they were very visual about safety. Before a ride would leave the station, all had to give a thumbs up, and press the button saying it was good. A number of employees asked how we were doing while we were walking in the park.

They have alot of carnival style booths which cost extra. Just walk by. Don't make eye contact. That overstuffed animal is really not worth the $50 you spend to 'earn' it.

I had not realized that they had changed owners, but I thought things were nicer than the last time we was there a couple of years ago. Some rides had new names. Top Gun is now Afterburn. Borg is Nighthawk. I couldn't figure out why they changed the names, but having a new owner makes sense.

They do have a kiddie section. As someone else mentioned, if the kids are tall enough to ride some of the rides, get the wrist band. It saves alot of hassle. The Park Map is also very good about listing the height restrictions.

It is a nice day park. Just be prepared for the food cost. Check out their website for adminssion deals. They did have a one day pass for four people for a total of $99.
 
I had not realized that they had changed owners, but I thought things were nicer than the last time we was there a couple of years ago. Some rides had new names. Top Gun is now Afterburn. Borg is Nighthawk. I couldn't figure out why they changed the names, but having a new owner makes sense.

OOps I am so used to calling them by their old names that I forgot to change their names in my above posts. Makes sense since it is no longer owned by the movie company, Paramount.
 
OOps I am so used to calling them by their old names that I forgot to change their names in my above posts. Makes sense since it is no longer owned by the movie company, Paramount.

Oh, we continued to call them by their old names, even though we knew they had changed. It will always be Borg and Top Gun. Heck, we still call the purple roller coaster Scooby Doo, even though it has been the Fairly Odd Coaster for a few years.

As I was writing my post, I had to ask my DD's what the new names were.
 
If you are going to leave the park for lunch and want to go to a restaurant there is a new Cracker Barrel across the street but if you turn right out of the main entrance and go about 1.5 miles there is a Fatz Cafe and a shopping center with a number of restaurants- I believe there is a CiCi's pizza and a couple of other things. There is also a Sonic over there.

Since we live so close we never eat in the park.
 
I was going to pay on-line for a friend's ticket, but had a problem with the site. When I called the cm said to buy the ticket at Harris Teeter or Bi-Lo, that they were the cheapest ones available. I'd suggest checking the site and then calling the park to see what they say.
 
There is a good restaurant in the same plaza as carowinds. It's called Papa Pino's. They have an all you can eat Italian buffet.
 
I just wanted to add that Discovery Place in Charlotte is a nice place to visit if they have time. It is not far from the Carowinds exit. Our family went to the new Shipwreck Pirate exhibit this weekend. It was good.
http://www.discoveryplace.org/home/discovery_place-home.php


in 6th grade I did a field trip. Friday was Discovery place and Saturday was carowinds.

I have nothing to offer except that as a kid--the cool thing we did was stand on the border within the park. In 6th grade it seemed cool to be in two states at one time. I guess we were easily entertained.
 
I have nothing to offer except that as a kid--the cool thing we did was stand on the border within the park. In 6th grade it seemed cool to be in two states at one time. I guess we were easily entertained.

We used to do that as a kid too.:lmao:

To be honest I have done it as an adult. :flower3: Just made me feel like I was 8 yo again. :laughing:
 












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