Guust

Please post your URL and WP admin details and we will have a quick look.
If you went through the setup wizard, then everything should be working as you want.
GD V2 does not use a homepage for your website, you can create that yourself, adding widgets, blocks or shortcodes, depending on your setup.

Can i somehow customize a GD Homepage where I can add search fields, text and more. Customize a search result page where I get the different places shown in 2 columns and a map in a third column.
Your website homepage will be a WP page where you can add those things.
The directory homepage is usually the /location/ page, which should already have your requirements on it, but you can customise at GD > Settings > Pages.

You can use any theme you like, there is no need to use a GD theme.

Let us know. Thanks

Then have a good look at what the differences are between the 2 sites. Then you should have your answer.
Include checking the htaccess and the wpconfig file.

The FTP works, the site is under /public_html/

Can we have your URL and WP admin details in a private reply please.
Thanks

Should be [gd_map map_type=”post”] in V2.

The first issue is fixed, the featured image now loads in the detail page featured image:
https://shoprva.com/places/united-states/virginia-1/richmond-city/food-1/juleps-new-southern-cuisine-2/

What is the second issue?

You asked “What happens to all of the settings we’ve already spent hours configuring for this theme?”
The only things you can change to a theme is usually some PHP code and if you used the “Code Snippets” plugin for that, they will not be lost. Same for the CSS code.
What other configurations are you talking about? Configurations of the GD plugins has nothing to do with the theme.
Being a beta theme, it always was going to need an update.

Everything works fine with WP 5.0.3. 5.0.3 was not a major update anyway.
Thanks