WildEagle2014 Posted March 17, 2015 Posted March 17, 2015 My fiance and I plan on being there the entire weekend and will be posting a thorough update on all the park changes and refurbishments...and there's going to be a LOT to cover!!! Just four more days...so excited!!!!
WildEagle2014 Posted March 17, 2015 Posted March 17, 2015 Looks like we have a new shop in Craftsman's Valley replacing the wagon shop...Stone-Penland Pottery.
dstephe9 Posted March 17, 2015 Posted March 17, 2015 Preferred parking is $22 but gold pass holders receive it for $12 (get a $10 discount) So unless regular parking went up, preferred parking is actually $12.00 more.. Regular parking still $10?? I can't seem to find it! That's at least what is showing up on their site for me.. Haha
jimmiemac02 Posted March 17, 2015 Posted March 17, 2015 ^Yep, you're right. I didn't add it to the cart and look at the tax.
dstephe9 Posted March 17, 2015 Posted March 17, 2015 Has anyone been able to tell if preferred parking is a lot or garage? I know its probably the lot they where building.. I know at one time there where rumors it was a parking garage.. Just curious
thrillerman1 Posted March 17, 2015 Posted March 17, 2015 Looks like we have a new shop in Craftsman's Valley replacing the wagon shop...Stone-Penland Pottery. I always liked ducking in the wagon shop to see what they were hand building. I never could imagine they sold too much, but I could be wrong. I thought they did amazing craftsmanship and glad I got to see it in person. I will look forward to checking out the new shop in its place.
coasterfreaky Posted March 17, 2015 Posted March 17, 2015 That's unfortunate about the wagon shop. It was a "Dollywood Original" store, there since at least 1986. I always enjoyed walking through there.
DollyWould Posted March 17, 2015 Posted March 17, 2015 Looks like we have a new shop in Craftsman's Valley replacing the wagon shop...Stone-Penland Pottery. Other changes I noticed include the Liberty shop by the fountain (?) being changed to "Southern Life"; the ride accessibility center is now adjacent to The Emporium; Friendship Fountain is no longer on the map (What!?! Why would that be removed? Hopefully it's still there...just not on the map.) Seriously now, it had better not been just paved over! Has anyone heard if they're doing a 30th Anniversary exhibit anywhere in the park? The 25th Anniversary exhibit was in the same space where Rudolph's Holly Junction debuted during this past Smoky Mountain Christmas Festival.
WildEagle2014 Posted March 17, 2015 Posted March 17, 2015 Concerning parking...it's hard to tell where the preferred parking lot will be. It could be at the new DreamMore guest parking area...or perhaps in the lower lot closest to the handicapped parking area. That portion of the parking lot has now been divided into three sections, with two of them being blocked by limited access gates. Probably the area outlined in blue will remain the handicap parking area. The other two portions could be preferred parking and bus parking perhaps? It's hard to tell because no signs have been placed yet. It's also going to be interesting to see where Dollywood Cabins guests will park.
WildEagle2014 Posted March 17, 2015 Posted March 17, 2015 Looks like we have a new shop in Craftsman's Valley replacing the wagon shop...Stone-Penland Pottery. Other changes I noticed include the Liberty shop by the fountain (?) being changed to "Southern Life"; the ride accessibility center is now adjacent to The Emporium; Friendship Fountain is no longer on the map (What!?! Why would that be removed? Hopefully it's still there...just not on the map.) Seriously now, it had better not been just paved over! Has anyone heard if they're doing a 30th Anniversary exhibit anywhere in the park? The 25th Anniversary exhibit was in the same space where Rudolph's Holly Junction debuted during this past Smoky Mountain Christmas Festival. Unfortunately...it's true. Friendship Fountain is gone. All pavement there now.
DollyWould Posted March 17, 2015 Posted March 17, 2015 (edited) ^^^WTF? Why would they do that? I swear every year they keep removing unique elements from the park. Prior to this they removed the large heart archway figure from Showstreet. I know these things cost money to keep up, but the southern charm is slowly disappearing & becoming just another asphalt jungle. Majorly disappointed! They could have at least put some other type of landscape feature in it's place...ridiculous, honestly! I would expect something like this from Six Flags, but not Dollywood! Does anyone know if the Cas Walker's building has been demolished? Edited March 17, 2015 by DollyWould
betterday85 Posted March 17, 2015 Posted March 17, 2015 I would assume the fountain was removed to try and improve the people flow around Market Square. It can definitely be a bottleneck during busy times and after Celebrity Theatre shows end.
coasterfreaky Posted March 17, 2015 Posted March 17, 2015 Good grief, really the fountain is gone?! It's a little weird to me they would remove that fountain for better people flow, but they sure don't care enough to fix the path from the main entrance going up to Thunderhead, which is way too narrow. Wth??
DollyWould Posted March 17, 2015 Posted March 17, 2015 (edited) I would assume the fountain was removed to try and improve the people flow around Market Square. It can definitely be a bottleneck during busy times and after Celebrity Theatre shows end. Yes, I agree that it could be a difficult area to navigate at times, especially before & after parades, etc. My point is that this was a focal point & a reference point for the park. E.g: To get to the Celebrity Theater, go to the fountain & turn left up the hill, etc. Now, what would a host say? Go to the huge boring slab of asphalt in front of Market Square & turn left? LOL I know I may be over reacting a little (it's a fountain & not a coaster!), but it's the small details in a theme park that make up the big picture and it uniqueness. Keep taking those away, one by one, and it's just another park. I remember when Adventures In Imagination first opened, the concrete had a multi-colored midway leading up to "Chasing Rainbows" museum. Now that's long gone, of course. That is an area that is need of attention in the form of being renamed/rethemed since SMWA is long defunct (as well as "Imagination Cinema")! Edited March 17, 2015 by DollyWould
DollyWould Posted March 17, 2015 Posted March 17, 2015 Good grief, really the fountain is gone?! It's a little weird to me they would remove that fountain for better people flow, but they sure don't care enough to fix the path from the main entrance going up to Thunderhead, which is way too narrow. Wth?? Agreed, coasterfreaky! Some poor decisions are being made. I LOVE Dollywood, but this is disappointing.
betterday85 Posted March 17, 2015 Posted March 17, 2015 Yes, fountain is 100% gone but I have been told that it will be moved to a new located to be announced later...
coasterfreaky Posted March 17, 2015 Posted March 17, 2015 Yes, fountain is 100% gone but I have been told that it will be moved to a new located to be announced later... Awesome. I was definitely not happy with that, but as I was eating lunch I forgave them for it...knowing they have good taste and do make overall good decisions...even when I don't know the full story or reasoning behind it.
WildEagle2014 Posted March 17, 2015 Posted March 17, 2015 Sorry guys, the fountain isn't being replaced. Confirmed with the park. What is being moved to a new location is the Stars from the fountain.
dstephe9 Posted March 17, 2015 Posted March 17, 2015 Seems as if they are really trying to make the park a lot more efficient for larger crowds.. First thing though, they need to draw in those larger crowds.. I know sometimes in the summer they can be large but other times not so much haha The crowds aren't nearly as large as the bigger parks
jimmiemac02 Posted March 17, 2015 Posted March 17, 2015 That's really sad about the fountain. It was one of my family's favorite picture spots in Dollywood.
Shavethewhales Posted March 17, 2015 Posted March 17, 2015 ^^^WTF? Why would they do that? I swear every year they keep removing unique elements from the park. Prior to this they removed the large heart archway figure from Showstreet. I know these things cost money to keep up, but the southern charm is slowly disappearing & becoming just another asphalt jungle. Majorly disappointed! They could have at least put some other type of landscape feature in it's place...ridiculous, honestly! I would expect something like this from Six Flags, but not Dollywood! Yeah, we've had plenty of discussions along these lines over the years for both DW and SDC. These are/were incredibly special parks that were formed out of rare circumstances, but now they have become decidedly more corporate as they've gotten huge. If you pay very close attention, some of the changes are heart breaking. However, at the same time the company is also still doing a lot of incredible work with their new additions. It's certainly conflicting to be a long-time fan following these parks sometimes. I know a lot of the old DW fans that used to hang around ended up fading out because so much of what they loved has disappeared. Personally though, I've learned that you simply can't let your sentimentality grow out of control if you want to have fun following these parks. A lot of awesome stuff simply fades away in this business, especially with these two parks in particular, but as long as the stuff that replaces it maintains the same spirit and quality, it's all good in the end. It is definitely good to talk about the details you like and why you like them though. Certainly let DW know about your feelings here. You'll notice SDC went to notable efforts to incorporate fan and guest comments in the creation of Fireman's Landing. With all the overturning that takes place in park management, they need to hear that somebody cares about this stuff every once in awhile. You'd be amazed at how many interesting pieces of SDC have slipped away just because no one was around any longer to remember the significance. Positive criticism from long-time fans is increasingly useful.
cwgator Posted March 17, 2015 Posted March 17, 2015 I'm glad I was able to see the fountain when I visited last year for the first time.
larrygator Posted March 17, 2015 Posted March 17, 2015 Oh noes!!!!! Dollywood is "declining by degrees"
ernierocker Posted March 17, 2015 Posted March 17, 2015 While the fountain was an iconic feature at Dollywood, if you search this thread, you will not see it mentioned until this week. That's 511 pages of posts and no one has brought it up until its removal has been discovered. I am not saying you do not have a right to be upset, I understand to some degree, but there are other features in the park that are more prominent. The park is expanding, yes attendance will increase, and improving crowd control in this area will do more to an overall positive guest experience, than keeping the fountain. Like shavethewhales said in his post, while Dollywood has been moving away from preservation in order to expand the park, they have done a great job in building new attractions that still fit the overall theme of the park and the area surrounding it. As long as they are relocating the stars, I think the purpose of the fountain can still be preserved, which is for Dolly to say thanks to all of her industry friends who have visited and performed at the park in the past. The idea was originally started with the Friendship Gardens, so I am sure they will not disappoint in their new home.
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