Carwardine Colony

Carwardine Colony is the flagship park of the Carwardine Parks chain. It is the largest park in the Carwardine Parks chain. It is located in Newport News, Virginia.

Design and construction
During the 1973 oil crisis, real estate agent Christopher R. Carwardine had read an article about a family who were angered that they had to take a 2-hour drive to Lakeside Amusement Park in and continually refuel along the way, which inspired Christopher to feel he could develop his own theme park. In 1975, Christopher registered "Carwardine Colony" as a trademark, and used it for the name of his real estate company (Carwardine Colony Real Estate Inc.) for a few years to keep the trademark while he planned his amusement park.

After a few years of being unable to find a good site in the area, Christopher purchased a disused landfill in  known locally as the "Trash Heap from Hell". Over a 2-year period, the land was cleared & re-developed to create the Carwardine Colony amusement park. The park was mostly financed from Christopher's real estate earnings; as well as insurance money Christopher's police officer brother Jason A. Carwardine received from the when his police cruiser was involved in a head-on collision with a suspect's truck during a police chase.

Christopher, his wife Hiroko, and Christopher's college buddy Marv Simpleton helped with constructing the park. Christopher personally spent 12 hours a day, every day to reassemble The Flying Turns, a vintage bobsled coaster that formerly operated in Georgia and Ohio, in it's new location at the park, and Marv spent several days and nights assembling the Carwardine Mines mine train coaster, which was built by Arrow Development, while also working on the theming for the attraction.

In early 1979, several plans changed, a railroad idea was added with the addition of two 3-foot (914 mm) narrow-gauge locomotives from Mexico, inspired by the. The railroad would follow the same layout of the Skyway, but located under it towards the outer circle.

In mid-1979, the Carwardines and Simpleton were joined by Dean Joe Fawkes, a successful showman active on the East Coast's state and county fair circuit. As new roller coasters and rides began to be added, the three parties began to hire more and more workers to get the park finished. The, the and  also invested in Carwardine Colony Real Estate Inc. as they had interest in the under-construction theme park as well. An US$15 million advertising campaign produced by the Atlantis Advertising Corporation of was plotted.

Opening
Carwardine Colony, with it's final construction cost estimated at US$121 million, was officially opened on May 25, 1980 by the of the time,  (a rarity for many U.S. theme parks) along with Christopher R. Carwardine and Dean Joe Fawkes. At the time, the park employed 230 employees and operated from Monday to Saturday, with the park being closed on Sundays for maintenance work. Carwardine Colony was described as "Newport News' answer to Disneyland" by the media due to it's ambitions. Reportedly, fellow Virginia theme parks and  were so interested in what their competition was building that staffers from the aforementioned parks would visit the park in disguise to scope it out. It was notable at the time for being one of the very few theme parks in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States where a single admission fee covered unlimited turns on all of the rides and attractions. This admission fee was $10.99 for an adult and $5.00 for a child. The park welcomed 730 guests on it's first day of operation. Within the first four months of operation, Carwardine Colony attracted 340,000 guests and was predicted to be the biggest tourist attraction in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States by the mid-1980s.

and teamed up with Carwardine Colony,  and  to produce the Carwardine Colony Album in 1981.

1980s
In 1981, nothing new was added, and the only changes were fixes of problems that were on opening day.

The first major post-opening addition came in 1982 with the Cyclone, a wooden coaster made to resemble the Coney Island Cyclone, it originally came with two buzz bar trains.

In 1983, The Space Capsule was removed from the park due to high maintenance, this was the first ride to be removed from the park.

1984 was a big year for Carwardine Colony, as the Carwardine Hotel, the official hotel of Carwardine Colony, and the Newport News Amphitheater, a large outdoor amphitheater frequented by major acts, both opened; in addition, similar to what McDonald's was giving out at the time, Olympic raffles were handed out, in which if America won a gold medal to all raffle holders, a free day at Carwardine Colony was given, this saw the park's attendance soar. Also in 1984, a projection tunnel was added to the end of Flying Turns with CGI effects, the same footage would be used on the ride until the park's Silver Jubilee event in 2005, in which newer CGI developed by Blur Studio was added to the ride. The older CGI returned for the 40th anniversary in 2020.

In 1985, the Care Bears began appearing at the park, and Lasso was built at the park as the park's first suspended coaster and Virginia's second suspended coaster after The Big Bad Wolf, unlike The Big Bad Wolf, which is low to the ground, Lasso is more along the lines of Vortex at Canada's Wonderland or Flight Deck at Kings Island due to the fact it stays higher off the ground and focuses more on diving turns instead of flat turns, mainly to differentiate it from The Big Bad Wolf, this was one of the 1985 "Fear Duo", the other being Fear Fall, an Intamin 1st Generation Freefall, the first of it's kind in the state, both rides opened on May 1st, 1985 to an event that was broadcasted on several TV stations across Virginia, several cable channels to broadcast it through out the United States, and a day later (May 2nd), a free VHS of the event was given to passholders.

1986 was a rather smaller year, only adding a Broadway theater, due to the fact Carwardine was focusing more on their other parks than Carwardine Colony (besides the Kids Show). Also, in 1986, the park was now open on Sundays, to keep it in line with it's sister parks. Also in 1986, The Carwardine Colony Kids Show, hosted by Christopher R. Carwardine and with an audience of kids from all over the Mid-Atlantic United States, debuted on, and was produced at the studios in. The series then moved to in 1989 (along with a move from the CBN studios to the Hamptons Mediaplex in, and then later to a purpose-built studio (Carwardine Studios Poquoson Annex) in ) and again to  in 2011.

In 1987, Skylab, a Huss Skylab (similar to an Enterprise), was added, with a rather notable marketing campaign for what's essentially a portable ride, with the tagline "It's Gonna Make You Sick!" being popular among Virginia, with several bootleg shirts being produced with the tagline next to an image of the Skylab at Storytown USA.

In 1988, the "Colony Quadruple Threat" came into action with four new rides opening. The first two, Pool Sharks and Shot Tower, opened up in March, with the Shot Tower gaining 3 hour lines due to it's ride experience, the third was Carwardine River Rapids, which opened up in April as the first river rapids ride to have a heated water system, making it able to operate year round, and finally, in May, Vortex opened up as "The South's First Pipeline Coaster" and gained 5 hour lines due to it's uniqueness. Manufactured by TOGO of Japan, this coaster was considered a "Hybrid Coaster" on brochures and later, the website instead of a "Sit-Down Coaster", "Standup Coaster", "Suspended Coaster" or "Inverted Coaster".

In 1989, Cosmic Avenger opened, but more major was the opening of the Colony Coast waterpark.

1990s
For the 1990 season, Carwardine gained the rights to the Simpsons characters for 10 years, it was extended for 5 years and 1 year twice before being sold to Universal Studios, it also announced it's rights to the Mario characters with a new dark ride, they also celebrated it's 10th anniversary with several major events, in that year, City Jet was relocated from Kid's World and added in, in addition, Phoenix Twister was added and lots of other stuff. Also, Dippin’ Dots made their Carwardine Parks debut here in 1990 starting off with just carts before eventually expanding to full-fledged stands in the following years.

In 1991, TMS (Tokyo Movie Shinsha) America opened their offices in Carwardine Studios, so Carwardine wouldn't have to pay to export several stages of animation for their video queue shows, although inking and painting was still done in Japan. Also, in 1991, the futuristic buildings of the 1980-built section of Time Machine were repainted with pastel colors.

In 1992, The Defects was filmed there, and Super Cyclone was added to the park, resulting in Cyclone being renamed to Classic Cyclone. 1992 also saw the launch of the Carwardine Colony newsgroup, which was sold to a fan in 2000 to focus on Carwardine Forums.

In 1993, a kiddie expansion and a refurbishment to the Super Mario World dark ride were done, but the most notable has to be Nitro Rush, "The South's First Hyper Coaster", which was also the first hyper to use Arrow's prototype supports previously used on Drachen Fire and later used on Tennessee Tornado.

In 1994, the trim brakes from City Jet were removed to increase the intensity of the ride.

In 1995, American Arrow, a coaster bought from Germany, was added. Also in 1995, Time Machine was undergoing a refurbishment to compete with Walt Disney World's New Tomorrowland.

In 1996, Hurricane Fran hit Carwardine Colony and damaged several wooden structures, most notable rather huge chunks of Classic Cyclone and Super Cyclone, causing them to be closed for the rest of the season while Custom Coasters International retracked the broken parts of the coasters, estimated to be around 35% of Classic Cyclone and 20% of Super Cyclone.

In 1997, Beach Beast was added to the park, along with The MarioKart Experience.

In 1998, Chaos and Triple Star were added to the park. Also, that year was the final season for the railroad.

In 1999, Monstar, Count Coasterula and King Cobra were added to the park. Monstar had been in the works since around 1996 in order to become the tallest coaster in the world, although it would be beaten by Superman: The Escape at Six Flags Magic Mountain and Tower of Terror at Dreamworld, both of which opened in 1997. However, it still opened as the world's tallest complete-circuit coaster, and had several marketing campaigns.

2000s
In 2000, as the Carousel began using Ian Monteil’s original/cover music (covers ranged from classical pieces to pop songs, both old and new, alongside various other kinds of music), Carwardine began releasing various CDs of the Carousel’s soundtrack in a series called The Carwardine Colony Carousel.

In 2001, Blaster was added to the park.

In 2002, the Super Mario World ride was updated once again.

In 2003, Carwardine Colony did their "3 for 2003" event, which featured Rainbow Brite's Star Chase, Redwall: Escape from Malkariss, and Sagwa's Rickshaw Run all opening at the park that year. PBS Kids Neighborhood also replaced Kids Kountry that year. In the same year, Carwardine Colony held the Great Carwardine Colony Treasure Hunt, which included a sweepstakes with prizes including a $5 million cash prize, a L-T Passport, a new 2003 Subaru Forester and a trip to Aruba.

In 2004, Twin Spiral and Double Dash Dueler were installed.

In 2005, two new soundstages were added to Carwardine Studios.

In 2006, Chaos and Skylab closed forever, Chaos due to maintenance and Skylab due to age.

In 2007, PBS Kids Neighborhood got renamed back to Kids Kountry and Zero G-Force opened to the public. Along with that, Colony Coast got a $15 million dollar upgrade, including the addition of a lazy river, in which previously the park was oft-criticized for lacking a lazy river, along with some new slides.

In 2008, Carwardine Colony was featured alongside Carwardine's Great America, Six Flags Kings Dominion, Virginia Thrills and in Virginia Tourism Corporation ads featuring the slogan "".

In 2009, minor park improvements were made.

2010s
On Labor Day 2010, Launchpads and Calypso closed for relocation.

In 2011, the park got a new logo, the logo was first shown in February 2011, and during March of 2011, it was starting to be put on trash cans, refillable cups and souvenirs, the changes were complete by August 2011.

In 2012, Zyclone opened. This coaster was named that to avoid confusion and likely as a tribute to the Pinfari Zyklon model, although Pinfari never had a presence at this particular park. Super Cyclone also closed for good at the end of the season and was scrapped for parts.

In 2013, King Cobra was added to the Colony Coast waterpark.

In 2014, park improvements happened.

In 2015, an expansion to the kiddie area opened.

In 2016, Nightmare: The Scream Machine and Slideboard Central world both open.

2020s
Between March 2020-June 2020, the park was closed for three months during the COVID-19 pandemic.

In 2021, Dropsanity was added, and Time Machine got a new section dedicated to the 2000s.

In October 2021, Carwardine Colony announced that a new area, 4 new rides - two of which being brand new coasters - would open sometime in 2022, giving it the record of 24 coasters in one park. It was confirmed that the area bordering Kids Kountry and Mine Shaft that contains Redwall: Escape from Malkariss and Redwall: Slagar's Challenge would be split into a new area - Redwall Abbey - with the addition of a new coaster, Jess' Wall Crawl. In November, it was announced that one of the four new rides would be a drop tower integrated onto the existing Zero G-Force tower structure, the drop tower ride would be named "Silverwing - Dive of Fear". The other two new rides were "Springfield Swings", the world's tallest swinging tower ride, and "Randomizer", a Vekoma launched coaster with several layouts that the riders could get to vote on which to take. An increased presence of Nickelodeon and ViacomCBS properties was also announced. While Zero G-Force's name remains unchanged, it received a Silverwing retheme to tie in with the new drop tower addition, with Shade Silverwing depicted on its new logo and a meet-and-greet with Shade Silverwing and Marina Brightwing added outside the station.

After the ICON Park incident, Springfield Swings, which was built by the same manufacturer as the drop tower that caused the incident, was put on indefinite hold until a verdict came out in June saying that Funtime's Starflyers are safe "if all safety precautions are followed".

The 2022 rides opened as followed - Nick Central on April 9th, Silverwing: Dive of Fear on May 5th, Jess' Wall Crawl on May 12th, Randomizer on June 4th and Springfield Swings on June 24th (the latter was originally supposed to open on March 5th).

In 2023, the "Carwardine Colony: Repaint The Colony" project will begin, giving 25 different rides new coats of paint.

Areas

 * Entrance (the "Main Street" of the park)
 * Coney Island (based on Coney Island in New York City)
 * Kids Kountry (kids land; renamed PBS Kids Neighborhood from 2003-2007, name changed back to Kids Kountry in 2007)
 * Mine Shaft (themed to a stereotypical 19th century mineshaft)
 * Time Machine (themed to decades of the past and the future that may be)
 * Redwall Abbey (themed to the Redwall franchise)

Flat rides

 * Carousel (1980; a Charles I. D. Looff carousel that previously operated at a park in Plattsburgh, New York and at Rose Park in Georgia, includes a Looff Sea Dragon amongst the horses, originally played calliope and fairground organ music from Audio Fidelity (after being converted from using a band organ sometime during it's time in Georgia; said organ was a 73-Key Verbeeck fairground organ), in 2000, they were replaced with both original and cover tracks in a fairground organ-style by Ian Monteil (the exact aforementioned 73-Key Verbeeck, which was kept but not used by both Rose Park and Carwardine Colony, was sampled for the soundtrack)) [Coney Island] {No Q-X}
 * Carwardine Mover (1980; a one station WedWay PeopleMover across Carwardine Colony, rerouted in 1999 and 2003 for Monstar and Sagwa respectively, this is one of the few attractions Carwardine owns to use technology based off of Disney's) [Entrance] {Q-X}
 * Carwardine River Rapids (1988; Intamin River Rapids ride) [Coney Island] {Q-X P}
 * Circus Twist (2019, a Nanfang Crazy Circus) [Kids Kountry] {Q-X P}
 * Cosmic Avenger (1989; A Zamperla Telecombat ride) [Time Machine] {Q-X}
 * Dropsanity (2021; S&S Spin Shot) [Coney Island] {Q-X P}
 * Enterprise (1980; a HUSS Enterprise) [Time Machine]
 * Himalaya (1980; a Mack Himalaya) [Coney Island]
 * Logging Rampage (1980; An Arrow Log Flume, slightly re-routed by Hopkins for Redwall in 2003) [Mine Shaft] {Q-X}
 * Mega Man ZX Double Strike (2007; A Zamperla Hawk 48 ride) [Time Machine] {Q-X P}
 * Octo Attack! (1980; An Eyerly Monster ride, formerly "Monster" (1980-1996), "Octopus" (1997-1999), and "Krake Attack" (2000-2011)) [Mine Shaft] {Q-X}
 * Phoenix Twister (1990; A Huss Condor ride) [Mine Shaft]
 * Pirate (1980; A Huss Pirate Ship ride) [Time Machine]
 * Pool Sharks (1988; A Mack Rides teacups ride themed to billiard balls) [Coney Island]
 * Redwall: Slagar's Challenge (2003; a S&S Space Shot 3-Tower Combo Complex, once held the record for the world's tallest drop tower) [Redwall Abbey]
 * Silverwing - Dive of Fear (2022; a Intamin Drop Tower perched on Zero G-Force) [Time Machine]
 * Sky Tower (1980; A Huss Sky Tower ride) [Entrance]
 * Sky Whirl (1980; A Waagner-Biro/Intamin Sky Whirl dual triple ferris wheel ride, only remaining Sky Whirl in the United States) [Coney Island]
 * Springfield Swings (2022; A Funtime Starflyer, tallest Starflyer at 550ft in the air)
 * Square Loop Sky Ride (1980; A Von Roll round trip VR-101 with 4 stations, retracked by Doppelmayr in 2012) [Entrance, Mine Shaft, Time Machine & Coney Island]
 * Super Mario World (1990; A dark ride themed to the "Super Mario" video games, refurbished in 1993 for Super Mario World, 1995 for Yoshi's Island, 1996 for Super Mario 64, 2002 for Super Mario Sunshine, 2007 for Super Mario Galaxy and 2017 for Super Mario Odyssey, formerly sponsored by Delta Air Lines from 1990-1996) [Mine Shaft]
 * Surf's Up! (2007; A Zamperla Disk'O ride with a surfing theme) [Coney Island]
 * The MarioKart Experience (1997; A go-kart track located under Monstar, sponsored by Goodyear) [Coney Island]
 * Triple Star (1998; Huss Tri-Star ride, relocated from Riverside Amusement Park) [Coney Island]
 * Twister (1980; Mack Swing-Bob ride) [Coney Island]
 * Wipeout (1982; A Chance Rides Trabant ride) [Mine Shaft]

Kiddie rides
All of the park's kiddie rides are located in Kids Kountry. Kids Kountry saw two updates, first one in 1993, again in 2003 when it became PBS Kids Neighborhood, once again in 2007 to remove the PBS Kids licenses, and once again in 2015.


 * Baja Buggies (2015; A Zamperla Jump Around ride with dune buggies)
 * Blast Off! (2015; A Zamperla Jumpin' Tower 16 ride)
 * Care Bears’ Care-ousel (1980; A small Theel carousel themed to the Care Bears, Formerly known as "Kids Kountry Carousel" [1980-1986]; was the only non-PBS Kids attraction during the PBS Kids Neighborhood era)
 * Convoy (2003; A Zamperla Convoy ride, formerly known as "Oscar's Sloppy Jalopies" [2003-2007])
 * Disk'O (2003; A Zamperla Disk'O Coaster, formerly known as "DragonflyTV Halfpipe Simulator" [2003-2007])
 * Fire Chief (1997; A Zamperla Crazy Bus ride themed to a fire truck, formerly known as "Barney's Fire Department" [2003-2007])
 * Mini Motorcade (1980; A Hampton Rides kiddie umbrella ride with motorcycles and jeeps, formerly known as "BJ's Rockin' Road Race" [2003-2007])
 * Mini Twister (1980; A kiddie Himalaya ride, formerly known as "Darren's Mine Cart Challenge" [2003-2007])
 * Rocket Ships (1980; A Hampton Rides Sky Fighters ride, formerly themed to Dragons and known as "Zak & Wheezie's Dragon Flyers" [2003-2007])
 * Roundabout (1980; A Mangles Kiddie Whip ride, formerly known as "Bert's Pigeon Race" [2003-2007])
 * Ship Ahoy! (1993; A Sartori Mini Pirate Ship ride)
 * Sky High (1993; A Zamperla Mini Enterprise ride with helicopters and robots, formerly "Noddy Airways" with planes [2003-2007])
 * Teacups (2015; A Zamperla Mini Teacups ride)

Playground Kountry
Built in 1993 to make a central hub for Kids Kountry. Known as "PBS Kids Backyard" from 2003-2007.


 * Dome Climber (1993)
 * Kountry Swingers (1993; A swing set)
 * Kountry Towers (1993; A large structure with 12 slides perching off of it)
 * Merry-Go-Roundabout (1993)
 * Monkey Bars (1993)
 * Sandpit (1993; An oversized sandbox)
 * Tree Climber (2003; a small play structure designed to look like a tree, resembles the one used in the former PBS Kids Neighborhood sections of some The Mills malls)

Nick Central
A play area in Coney Island that opened on April 9th, 2022. This area, unlike many others of it's kind, is included with park admission.


 * Dora's Treehouse (2022; a RCI Adventure Trail)
 * Fairly Odd Zip Line (2022; An RCI Sky Rail)
 * Flying Dutchman's Ropes Course (2022; An RCI Sky Trail Voyager with three paths - "Davy Jones", "Soul Seeker" and "Ghast Walk")
 * Loud House Maze (2022; An RCI Amaze'n Maze)
 * Rock Bottom Cliff Climb (2022; An RCI Clip 'n Climb)
 * Rugrats Mini Ropes Course (2022; An RCI Sky Tykes)

Restaurants and food stands

 * Auntie Anne’s/Cinnabon (originally just Cinnabon before Auntie Anne’s opened in 2011; located next to Carvel; the restaurant opened before Carvel’s owners happened to buy Cinnabon) [Coney Island]
 * Beachcombers (A quick service food stand) [Colony Coast]
 * Carwardine Cafe (A cafeteria style restaurant) [Entrance]
 * Carwardine Ice Cream Shop [Entrance]
 * Carvel Ice Cream [Coney Island]
 * Club Carwardine
 * Coney Island Hot Dog Hut [Coney Island]
 * Dining Miner [Mine Shaft]
 * Dippin' Dots [multiple stands throughout park]
 * Dippin' Dots/Doc Popcorn [Coney Island]
 * The Subway in the Entrance has a Dippin’ Dots stand connected to it; the Time Machine Dippin’ Dots stand (formerly Snack Station) is Dine-In and offers more than the park’s other Dippin’ Dots stands
 * ICEE Mix It Up [multiple stations throughout park]
 * Insomnia Cookies [Entrance]
 * Kids Kountry Snack Shack [Kids Kountry]
 * Krispy Kreme [Entrance]
 * Marv and Bernie's Southern BBQ Pit [Entrance]
 * McDonald's (Based on the late 1950s take-out design) [Time Machine]
 * Mossflower Woods Tavern [Redwall Abbey]
 * Pizza Hut [Entrance]
 * Slush Puppie [multiple stations throughout park]
 * Starbucks [Entrance]
 * Subway [Entrance]
 * Taco Bell (Based on the original 1960s design) [Time Machine]

Gift shops and game stands

 * Coastal Cove Treasures [Colony Coast]
 * Kids Kountry Trading Post [Kids Kountry]
 * Main Street Merchants [Entrance]
 * Nickelodeon Emporium [Coney Island]
 * Redwall Abbey Trading Post [Redwall Abbey]
 * Time Machine Arcade [Time Machine]

Live shows & meet-and-greets

 *  [Coney Island] (Added 2001)
 * Bratz: Showtime! [Kids Kountry] (Added 2010)
 * Broadway's Summer Home [Coney Island] (Added 1986; venue for "summer productions" of Broadway musicals)
 * Busytown Theater [Kids Kountry] (Added 1990; animatronic versions of Huckle & Sally Cat, Lowly Worm, Lynnie Raccoon, Mr. Fixit, Hilda Hippo, and Bananas Gorilla entertain guests; the showtapes were originally voiced by Carwardine staff until 1995 when they were re-recorded by the cast of The Busy World of Richard Scarry)
 * Care Bears Meet-and-Greet [Kids Kountry] (Added 1987)
 * Coney Theatre [Coney Island]
 * Horse Riding Area & Stables [back of the park] (Added 1986 after Chris decided to take up horse riding)
 * Newport News Amphitheater [technically Entrance] (Added 1984)
 * Skyrotechnics [Coney Island]
 * Redwall Meet-and-Greet [Redwall Abbey; formerly Mine Shaft] (Added 2004; Matthias, Cornflower and Mattimeo mingle with guests)
 * The Rock-afire Explosion [Coney Island] (Added 1991; originally sponsored by Goodyear from 1991 until 1996, sponsored by General Electric since 1997, with maintenance from Creative Engineering, Inc.)
 * Rock-afire Meet-and-Greet [Coney Island]
 * Special Events Arena [Back of the park] (Added 1986; has been used for things like WWE house shows, Carwarween mazes and TV show & video game preview events)
 * Time Machine Theater [Time Machine]

Colony Coast (water park)

 * Carwardine Colony/Colony Coast
 * Carwardine Colony/Colony Coast Gallery

Carwardine Studios
Carwardine Studios is an indoor/outdoor filming studio using for filming live-action commercials for both Carwardine properties and other companies, as well as being used for various TV shows & movies filmed in the Newport News area as well as music videos & commercials for other clients. The studios opened March of 1990. It was expanded with 2 more studios in 1997, another 2 studios in 2001, and another 2 studios in 2005. An effects stage and backlot were added in 2003, the first production to use the effects stage was Kids for Character TV, which also filmed in Studio 4.

The most iconic film shot at the studios was the critical & commercial success The Defects (nominated for three Academy Awards: Best Actor, Best Original Screenplay, and Best Visual Effects), the second most popular was Mickey Mouse, while that film was mostly filmed at Carwardine Studios, with location shoots also occurring in other locations in the Hampton Roads area.

The facility is equipped with high-end HDTV facilities, equipment, and a backlot.

This is considered the biggest studio in "Virginiawood".

Studio 1 (Indoor, 200ft high)

 * Super Mario World ride ad (1990)
 * TMS America Offices (1991-present)
 * The Ride Op (1997, for the dorm scenes)

Studio 2 (Outdoor)

 * Donkey Kong Country ad (1994)
 * Mickey Mouse (1995, movie - )

Studio 3 (Hybrid, indoor section 100ft high)

 * Storage area (1990-present)
 * The Defects (1992, movie - Universal Pictures)
 * Nitro Rush ad (1993)
 * Waterpark Expansion announcement trailer (2006)

Studio 4 (Indoor, 150ft high) [ADDED 1997]

 * Kids for Character TV (2003 TV special)

Studio 6 (Indoor, 125ft high) [ADDED 2001]
CAMERAS: RED Dragon 5K


 * Toon Jukebox videos for "Star Trekkin'", "CAN CAN WORLD", "Girl U Want (Devo)", "Happy Children", "Whirly Girl", "Watch Us Work It", "Danger Zone (VERSION II)", "S.I.B. (Swelling Itching Brain)", "Shake It Up (VERSION II)", "Zoolook", "That Greasy Kids Stuff", and "Butterfly" (filmed 2019; released 2020)

Effects Stage (Indoor, 188ft high) [ADDED 2003]

 * Kids for Character TV (2003 TV special)
 * Toon Jukebox videos for "Star Trekkin'", "CAN CAN WORLD", "Girl U Want (Devo)", "Happy Children", "Whirly Girl", "Watch Us Work It", "Danger Zone (VERSION II)", "S.I.B. (Swelling Itching Brain)", "Shake It Up (VERSION II)", "Zoolook", "That Greasy Kids Stuff", and "Butterfly" (filmed 2019; released 2020)

Roller coasters

 * Blaster (2001-2010; A Vekoma Giant Inverted Boomerang coaster, relocated to Whalom Park as "Launchpads" in 2011; replaced with Zyclone) [Time Machine]
 * Count Coasterula (1999-2015; A Vekoma Bat Flyer family roller coaster; replaced with a Kids Kountry expansion; relocated to The World of Redwall as "Lord Cayvear's Patrol") [Time Machine]
 * Super Cyclone (1992-2012; A RCCA wooden roller coaster; scrapped due to increased roughness along with major wear and tear since Hurricane Floyd damaged the ride in 1999, as well as for spare parts for the other wooden coasters at Carwardine's parks, replaced with a bunch of upcharge carnival-style games) [Coney Island]
 * Vortex (1988-2003; A TOGO Ultra Twister pipeline roller coaster; Sponsored by Pepsi from 1988 to 1995; Replaced with Twin Spiral; relocated to Brilliance Port as "Tornado" in 2004) [Time Machine]

Flat rides

 * Beach Beast (1997-2019; A Huss Top Spin ride, replaced with more cabanas and a restroom building, while mostly thrown into the scrapyard, one seat was lasercut apart from the rest and resides in the Carwardine Studios) [Coney Island]
 * Carwardine Railroad (1980-1998; all locomotives relocated to Billings' Wild Kingdom and Tokyo Carwardine Colony, track left abandoned for many years until parts of the track slowly, one-by-one, facing demolition due to expansions) [Entrance, Coney Island, Mine Shaft, Time Machine]
 * Calypso (1980-2010; A Mack Calypso ride, relocated to Darien Lake as "Sidewinder", replaced with a part of Zyclone's queue line) [Time Machine]
 * Chaos (1998-2006; A Chance Chaos ride, it had various mechanical issues and was scrapped, replaced with Mega Man ZX Double Strike) [Time Machine]
 * Fear Fall (1985-1999; An Intamin 1st generation Free Fall ride, relocated to New Roseland Park as "Mine Shaft") [Mine Shaft]
 * Kirby's Daring Dash (1995-2000; An Intamin Flight Trainer ride, demolished and replaced with Blaster) [Time Machine]
 * Rotorium (1980-1996; A Chance Rotor relocated from AstroWorld, women wearing skirts were disallowed from riding the attraction due to the nature of the ride, the floor's dropping was disabled in 1991 and the ride was fully demolished after the 1996 season, replaced by Beach Beast) [Coney Island]
 * Shot Tower (1988-2002; a drop tower made in-house, considered the "grand-daddy" of modern drop towers, was sponsored by All Sport sports drink in its final years, demolished and replaced by Redwall: Slagar's Challenge) [Mine Shaft]
 * Skylab (1987-2006; A Huss Sky Lab ride, scrapped and replaced with Surf's Up!) [Coney Island]
 * Space Capsule (1980-1983; An Eyerly Roll-O-Plane ride, first ride to be removed from the park, was on the German fair circuit for a time, now at a park in Iran) [Time Machine]
 * VR Troopers: Virtual Reality Adventure (1995-2002; A 4D motion simulator ride with VR Troopers; the vehicles were sold off and the building was Replaced with Time Machine Arcade) [Time Machine]

Kiddie rides

 * Buggies (1980-1992; A Traver Kiddie Tumble Bug ride, relocated from a travelling midway, scrapped and replaced with Sky High)
 * Roadsters (1980-1992; A carousel style kiddie ride with 1960s style sports cars, scrapped and replaced with Fire Chief)
 * Tiny Tilt (1980-1997; A teacups style kiddie umbrella ride with a tilting platform, replaced with Chaos, relocated to Kid's World)
 * Kiddie Swings (1980-1992; A kiddie Wave Swinger ride, scrapped and replaced with Ship Ahoy!)

Other

 * Ponyland (2003-2007; a mini zoo & "discovery farm" based off the theme park seen in the Arthur episode "D.W. Goes to Washington", replaced with part of Redwall: Escape from Malkariss' queue line when part of Kids Kountry (formerly PBS Kids Neighborhood) became part of Mine Shaft along with Redwall: Escape from Malkariss, the ponies were moved to the Horse Riding Area & Stables or to Chris' own stables, with the structures mostly being demolished) [PBS Kids Neighborhood]

Constant Occurrences

 * During the existence of the Tarzan Swing ride at the waterpark, it was common for people jumping in to expose themselves, with men taking off their pants and women taking off their tops, and was arguably a possible third reason (besides safety and risking getting sued by Gene Mulvihil for copyright infringement) the ride was retired.
 * It is arguably common for Zero G-Force to suffer from rollbacks, to the point where it has to have a 65 degree *F or warmer weather to operate.
 * Several airplanes towing advertisement banners have had accidents near or within the park.
 * On July 1, 2004, a pilot hired by a religious group made a crash landing in the employee parking lot after experiencing engine problems while flying a banner that said "If you died today, would you go to Heaven or Hell?" over the park. The pilot suffered minor injuries and was treated at the park's first aid center.
 * On October 29, 2020, an banner towing plane that was flying a banner for the We Win Together project (featuring a design by Milton Glaser) over the park made an emergency landing in the employee parking lot after the pilot reported engine troubles to nearby ATC.

Isolated Incidents

 * On August 14, 1993, a shooting occurred at the Carwardine Colony parking lot, injuring 5 people and killing one, since then, Carwardine has founded the "Protect the Colony" parking lot security staff for the park, before the 1994 season, when it became "Protect the Parks" and was applied to all the US Carwardine Parks.
 * On June 16, 1995, a brawl broke out in the Mine Shaft section in front of the Super Mario World ride, within an hour, security was called and both families were banned from the park for the rest of the 1995 season.
 * On May 18, 2001, the back of the train on King Cobra derailed during the final half of the ride cycle. 3 riders were injured and airlifted to area hospitals. Causes included poor translation of the manual from Russian to English and the replacement of wheels in the back car. King Cobra re-opened for the 2002 season after some modifications, then was re-themed as Cyberchase: Hack Attack for the 2003 season.
 * On August 28, 2002, the final day of Shot Tower's operation, the battery for the buttons inside the ride vehicle ran out a week earlier than expected, leaving the final riders stuck for 30 minutes. The ride had to be manually dispatched via the control panel. All riders were treated on the scene for dehydration and were given "I Was the Final Survivor of the All Sport Shot Tower" T-shirts.
 * During the 2010 Carwarween event, two people died:
 * On October 5, during a Carwarween concert at the Newport News Amphitheater sponsored by, Ari Wilson, the former lead singer and guitarist of the glam metal band Bronze-Age, died of a heart attack after performing duties as a sound engineer for 5-Starz.
 * On October 23, scare actor Thomas Brooks, a native, committed suicide by jumping off a cell phone tower in the employees' parking lot. Brooks was reported to have been distressed after he feared he had seriously injured a young girl earlier that night while she was in one of the scare zones.

Trivia

 * The park has a building height limit of 550 feet, one of the few parks with a height limit taller than 500 feet.
 * In 2021, Carwardine Colony got the Golden Ticket Award for Best Park, breaking Europa-Park's long-running winning streak.
 * With 22 coasters, Carwardine Colony holds the world record for most roller coasters in an amusement park, beating out Six Flags Magic Mountain's 20 and Cedar Point's 17.
 * The projection tunnel added at the end of Flying Turns for Carwardine Colony in 1984 is the first ever use of CGI for a regional theme park chain.
 * According to a 2012 interview with the animators, the CGI took 5 months to complete.
 * Welcome to the PBS Kids Neighborhood was the name of the TV broadcast of the opening day celebrations for the Kids Kountry area when it was renamed PBS Kids Neighborhood.
 * There is a bowling alley located below the Sky Whirl attraction, in a similar fashion to the basketball court inside the Matterhorn, it is accessible by employees only (though it has occasionally been opened to the public for events such as PBA Tour events and Open Houses) and was installed because Chris Carwardine was an avid bowler, and often took up bowling when he wasn't focusing on his company.
 * The idea of a drop tower perched on Zero G Force had previously been tried, but it was cancelled.
 * Since the idea was resumed, the park now has two drop towers.
 * There were plans to convert Ponyland into a Horseland-themed attraction, however due to creative differences between DiC and Carwardine over how the concept would be applied to the area, it was instead chosen to remove Ponyland altogether.
 * Another cancelled DiC/Carwardine concept was a Bolliger & Mabillard Floorless coaster to replace Toboggan and Skylab themed to Inspector Gadget, but due to DiC's financial problems at the time, the idea was scrapped, and Toboggan was kept, while Skylab would last a few more seasons.
 * The park uses a fleet of Volkswagen 181 (a model known as the Thing in the US) vehicles as employee and maintenance crew transport. 10 of them are gas-powered and 5 are equipped with TDI diesel engines to aid towing capability in case of things such a parade float breakdown.
 * A rumored second gate could come in 2025.
 * Early concepts showed Chaos was originally going to be StarFox themed.

Easter Eggs

 * The words "Friends don't let friends use "friends don't let friends" sentences" are written on one of the emergency exit doors for Studio 6 of Carwardine Studios. This phrase had been coined by Christopher R. Carwardine to mock an employee at Carwardine Colony who made a T-shirt reading "Friends don't let friends visit Disneyland."
 * The original sign for "Chaos" can be seen at Colony Coast as part of the theming for Hurricane Hill.

Notable hotels near park

 * Carwardine Hotel by the Colony (closest hotel, located right across from park, opened 1980)
 * Carwardine Funtown Inn & Suites Newport News (second closest hotel, located next to Carwardine Mills; opened 2001)
 * Holiday Inn Newport News - Carwardine Colony (approximately 0.4 miles away; opened 2011)
 * Staybridge Suites Newport News - Carwardine Colony (this and the above hotel are located next to each other, with this being the farther of the two hotels; also opened 2011)
 * Knights Inn (opened 2001)
 * La Quinta Inn and Suites (opened 2000)
 * Clarion Hotel & Suites (opened 2002)
 * Red Roof Inn (opened 2003)
 * Motel 6 (opened 2004)
 * Sonesta Select (opened in early 2021, replacing a Courtyard by Marriott that opened in 2008 and replaced a Howard Johnson hotel; the adjacent Howard Johnson's Restaurant remained as it was owned by a separate franchisee and wasn't included in the sale to Sonesta)
 * Rodeway Inn (opened in 1987)
 * Days Inn (opened in 2001)