Positively one of the best things about Hard Rock Park is its strong sense of identity. Visiting Carowinds two days later I was reminded how many large parks share the same, pretty non-descript atmosphere, clearly run by businesspeople who only follow the examples set by other parks just like theirs, or from whatever hospitality business courses they took in college, using a soundtrack collected from a local Golden Oldies station as a substitute for ‘atmosphere’. Here the music actually adds to the experience instead of just being used to fill in an empty void (no surprise), the style is cohesive throughout while still feeling like a real park and not some blueprint conceptualization, and there are deft touches of irreverent humor throughout. In every nook and corner there is no question: you could only be at Hard Rock Park.
On your right when you first enter is I Want Candy!, which I didn’t personally go into but it appeared to have a large collection of colorful confectionaries from outside that I am sure every seven year old who passes through the gates will force their parents to make their first stop. In front on the midway is the Hard Rock Car which guests are allowed to sit inside.
If you entered the park early and are in need of some sort of breakfast like we did, your first stop might likely be Amp’d Coffee.
Turning it up to eleven since 2008, this shop had a nicely furnished interior and a good selection of coffees and other pastries. 
Got a warmed jumbo cinnamon roll with a milk and an orange juice, the roll was very tasty. However the prices, especially for the drinks were a bit higher than I was expecting, since those three items cost just over $10.
Opposite Amp’d is All Access Merchandise, featuring a huge selection of souvenirs featuring both rock bands and park icons. The shop was split up into several different rooms, although despite the huge size there was surprisingly little more to offer than a huge collection of t-shirts as well as other standard amusement park knick-knacks including several series of pins. Outside on the midway is an arch that spans between Amp’d and the All Access Merchandise, beneath is a large mural depicting God handing the guitar pick of rock to man in a very Michelangelo sort of way.
Continue onwards and to your left you will find Origins Theater. This is a place that sounds far more interesting than it actually is, and that clearly isn’t saying much. Enter the lobby and there are a couple of guitars and flat screen TVs on the walls running footage such as their poorly done NoLimits Zeppelin re-creation, pretty basic stuff. On the back wall are three stained glass windows depicting legends including one of James Brown which had been signed right before his death. Okay, good anteroom, what’s next?
The next room is mostly bare minus a few more guitars and memorabilia (what a hellish word that is, “memorabilia”…) as it shows a documentary about the origins of the Hard Rock brand. Maybe interesting to watch for a minute or two, but let’s face it, there are better things to do than watch a franchise promote itself. The next room is where the rest of their Hard Rock Park displays, including that giant model of the park, should be located. That is what I was expecting when the only other door out of that second room led us straight into the All Access Merchandise. Awesome.*
Up on the right is the Whammy Bar, which featured a live performance throughout the evening as well as an outdoor seating patio that you can people-watch from the T-intersection as people head off into the other areas of the park.
The mens room also has a questionable mural on one wall (though I’ve heard nothing similar for the women, apparently).
The pavement for the entry midway ends as a large guitar, with the neck leading from the far exit of the All Access Merchandise
and the base making an overlook of the central lagoon, with water jets spouting from the pick-ups. From here you can turn either left into Rock and Roll Heaven (which is what many people do), or right into Cool Country.
Seeing as this is our first visit, crowds are light and there’s no need to rush to the biggest attraction in the park, let’s start this review by going counterclockwise…
* Which is slang for “skip this”.
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