Carowinds Opens This Year with Dinosaurs Alive! Planning For the Best Season Ever!

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Mar 28, 2013, 10:39 ET

CHARLOTTE, N.C., March 28, 2013 /PRNewswire/ -- Carowinds opens this year on a historic note! The Thrill Capital of the Southeast www.carowinds.com is excited to celebrate its 40th anniversary as it opens Friday March 29, 2013. The fun doesn't stop there as Carowinds embarks on an exciting season packed with fun events to make everyone's visit the best ever.

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New this year:

Dinosaurs Alive! The largest animatronic Dinosaur attraction in the Southeast. Featuring 32 life sized, roaring, moving dinosaurs with interactive features that will take visitors back to prehistoric times.

Carowinds Grove A new picnic and catering facility to serve the many groups, businesses, and organizations that enjoy a day at the park. This facility now has the capacity to feed as many as 15,000 people in one day.

New Live Entertainment Charlie Brown's Pirate Adventure takes the PEANUTS™ gang along a singing, dancing adventure for hidden treasure on Beagle Island, at the Peanuts Showplace theatre in Planet Snoopy.

New sweet treats! Rita's Italian Ice expand the park's offerings of sweet and cool treats. Rita's is located in the County Fair area of the park.

Thunder Road Rehab Completion After 38 years of thrills this classic wooden roller coaster is now ready for many more. A multi-year renovation is completed, guests will notice smoother dips and turns as they speed through two states.

Mark Your Calendars for all the special events this year!

Easter Eggstravaganza -March 29-31 Easter fun for kids and families featuring a magician, egg dying, interactive puppet show and much more!

Spring Break Spectacular - April 1-7 Close the books and open the fun, Carowinds is open every day for Spring Break. Featuring Carowinds Top Talent on Friday April 5, tweens and teens compete for prizes and the chance to be discovered.

Education Days - Every Friday in April and May Carowinds and Discovery Place partner to show students the marvels of science, physics and engineering.

Fiesta Latina - May 12 We partner with Charlotte's Latin American Coalition to celebrate Hispanic culture with music, dance and comida rica, delicious food!

Joyfest - May 25 The Carowinds Paladium fills with the joyful sounds of gospel music bringing a powerhouse line-up of talent featuring Kirk Franklin, Marvin Sapp and Bone Hampton.

Military Days - Memorial Day weekend, and Independence Day weekend Military personnel receive free admission with a valid US Military ID on select dates (May 26-27 and July 3-4), with special ceremonies to honor the service and commitment of our men and women in uniform.

40th Anniversary Summer Celebration- June 1 A big kickoff gets our 40^th Anniversary Summer Celebration going! Special opening day ceremony and the launch of an action packed calendar filled with thrills, promotions and fun events.

SCarowinds' Halloween Haunt Celebrating its 14^th season, the Carolinas' premier Halloween Event features zombies, the demented, and ghoulish taking over the park starting September 14 continuing weekends through October 27.

Carowinds is owned and operated by Cedar Fair Entertainment Company, a publicly traded partnership (NYSE: FUN). In addition to Carowinds, Cedar Fair owns and operates ten other amusement parks, four water parks, one indoor water park, and five hotels across the US and Canada. Cedar Fair also operates the Gilroy Gardens Family Theme Park in California under a management contract.

Contact: Julie Whitted
704-587-9050
[email protected]

SOURCE Carowinds