Frontier Town - the next midway to be transformed

There are 3 On Call shuttle pick/dropoff locations at LHP alone. In addition to Sandcastle, Breakers, Famous Daves/Marina, Front Gate shuttle stops.

Plus in bad weather the drivers will drop you off closer to your Cabin/RV if they have time permitting. (p.s. Tip the driver, it's courtesy)

Yeah, I get that. But honestly, at the end of a long day, is it worth waiting for a shuttle? Are exhausted kids going to be in a better mood having waited for the shuttle?

Also, if they had an additional gate back there, could they conceivably have fewer shuttles, offsetting the cost (or some of the cost) of staffing an additional gate?

Again, I don't think it will ever happen. But there are arguably justifications for having one back there.

While I can see a new paint job on the Colloseum in and out I don't think it needs much else. If the midway was redesigned as stylish I assume that would mean things coordinating and it's really hard to do that when you have a building like the Collosseum not far from the Pagoda and a little ways down you have Snoopy Boutique with a giant fiberglass beagle overlooking the doorway and paw prints on the side of the building and the thing is a can't imagine the main midway without these things. I love them as they are.

I don't mind the differing styles. I think that add's character. It doesn't have to look like Main Street at Disneyland but more so Disney Springs. Fresh looking buildings (and facades) and fresh landscaping, pavers, water features, etc. What I dislike most about the midway is the landscaping and concentric arrangement of the 'islands' underneath Skyride. It's out of style and it wouldn't cost much to improve that. Another thing I don't like are the little subway and coke 'mini buildings' or 'carts' along the midway. They give it more a carnival feel than a theme/amusement park feel. And Midway Market. Don't get me started with Midway Market ;)

The main midway could definitely use some Ouimet Magic, but there are other areas that have higher ROI that should be addressed first.

-Sandcastle Suites needs a serious upgrade, and it will be the last of the resort properties to get any attention.

-The Cedars could be developed into revenue generating property.

-The Marina properties could use some upgrading and additional entertainment options (possibly coincide with a Cedars development)

-Food services in park could use a major overhaul.

-Harmony Hall style facility.

These areas could be refreshed/developed and command higher revenue streams than they currently provide, adding to the ability for future capital investments.

Would the Cedars location work for a hotel?

I think the main midway is signature CP and shouldn't be changed outside if required maintenance. Nothing wrong with the flower beds, I think the landscapers do a very nice job with those.

Nightclub, I agree with all of those suggestions, and I think they will be addressed within the next few years. But none of those areas are within the park and I was more so referring to in park specific needs. The only area within the park that is lacking esthetically now is the Main Midway (of course that's solely subjective opinion). Food Service improvements are more general throughout the park and a Harmony Hall-esque structure would go well where the current pavilions are (on the main midway).

Pete: I think the landscapers do a fine job. But I also think they don't have much to work with in the front of the park.

Not necessarily as big of a deal as some of the other suggestions or ideas, but I would really like to see the blacksmith shop on the Trail open back up. I'm not even sure when it went dormant, but it would be nice if it were reactivated. I know it is not a major draw by any means, but it would be just as interesting as the glass blowing or candle making or wood working shops. Right now it seems like one of the bigger wastes of space.

XS NightClub said:

The main midway could definitely use some Ouimet Magic, but there are other areas that have higher ROI that should be addressed first.

-Sandcastle Suites needs a serious upgrade, and it will be the last of the resort properties to get any attention.

-The Cedars could be developed into revenue generating property.

-The Marina properties could use some upgrading and additional entertainment options (possibly coincide with a Cedars development)

-Food services in park could use a major overhaul.

-Harmony Hall style facility.

These areas could be refreshed/developed and command higher revenue streams than they currently provide, adding to the ability for future capital investments.

I really like this post. I've stayed at Sandcastle for our 5 day trip every year since the 2008 refresh. The rooms are ok, but the rest of the hotel really, really terrible. They need to completely renovate, maybe to the point of reconstruction. The crossover wing concept is way outdated.

Harmony Hall blew me away at Carowinds. I love that concept and think it would be great at CP. If you ever go to Carowinds, eat there.

Overall park food service deserves the full attention of management in my opinion. The Frontier Inn was ok this year, certainly Chick Fil A is missed. I find the basic food options so lacking. Took the shuttle to the main gate once during our July trip this year, about 10 others in there with my wife and I. I stayed out of it, but all 10 of them spent the trip from Sandcastle to the main gate complaining about the food. Kids and adults. It really stayed with me.

Regarding the food, I'd like if the chicken tenders and waffle fries at Frontier Inn were available elsewhere in the park. Those chicken tenders are unlike any of the other ones and who doesn't like waffle fries?

CP Maverick said:
Would the Cedars location work for a hotel?

Random thought? Or, did I miss something?

I respect that some wish the main midway to remain unchanged. I get this, because there have been some other areas of the park that I wished to remain unaltered, despite perhaps being in the minority.
I'm not saying that touches such as the pagoda and snoopy boutique should be removed to achieve uniformity. Nor did I intend to imply that the MM should be made to look like Main Street specifically.
I just think that a substantial cosmetic makeover to make it look beautiful, uniform, and less like a tacky, jumbled mess of a carnival would be most welcome.
I can envision a beautiful Boardwalk/amusement theme makeover that could retain some of the trademark touches while greatly improving the overall aesthetics.
For example, WDW's Main Street was inspired by Walt's childhood home of Marceline, Missouri. Main Street is a much-improved, idealized vision of Marceline that is much better cosmetically than the real thing, but invokes all of the idealized charm, spirit, and fantasy of a small town USA in a bygone era.
Doing something like this to the Main Midway that invokes an idealized rendition of a classic Boardwalk/old-time amusement park would be spectacular at the point IMO.

Speaking just of cosmetics, is it just me or are there a lot more cracks in the various midway pavements than in the past? I know that these are often dug out and re-poured as needed in the off season and are not necessarily at the top of the pecking order list. But I was surprised to see so many cracks in a variety of places on a recent visit.

Are they cracks, or are the cuts? There is a distinct difference between them. The former is usually caused by the settling of the soil beneath the walkway. Depending upon the area, there are walkways that were originally poured back in the early 1960's and some cracking is to be expected. What they did when I was there is replace whole panels of walkways instead of just filling the cracks.

Cuts on the other hand are usually straight line and fairly wide (2-4 inches) and were done to install anything from water and drain lines to com and PA cable, not to mention power.

No, what I saw were definitely CRACKS and not cuts. For the life of me now, I cannot remember which section(s) of the park I was in, but it was definitely more than just one isolated midway and not necessarily all in older poured areas. I know that some cracking was near some of the newer brick accented areas. Next time I am there, if I think of it, I will try to take better mental notes!