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[PolynesianAlex]

I just got back and i had an OK time gave me a little warm up for disney next month. On most of the rides there was always 3 or 4 groups of people talking about wdw ( All good things)

I just have to say if you are thinking to FLY to hershey park its not worth it at ALL

there "Resorts" are 400$ a night for a GOOD room thats INSANE.. for a weekend its a great get away .

If you ever went to Hershey tell me your thoughts

( By the way they have a statue of "Mr Hershey" in the front set up like the partners statue . Did the hershey statue come before or after the Partners?

[MerriH807]

We just got back from our trip to Hershey Park. We were there July 20 - 24th. We did not stay at a Hershey Resort. I felt they were way over priced and not worth it. Instead, we stayed at a Hampton Inn for a reasonable rate that included breakfast.

The park itself was very clean. We waited on lines for rides for little time and sometimes with no wait at all. There were plenty of rides for my younger child as well as some nice choices for my older child.

I was a bit squimish about heading over to the the Hershey Waterpark - The Boardwalk. I am not a big fan of waterparks and get grossed out easily from floating bandaids and slimy pavements. I was pleasantly surprised at the waterpark. There was lots of things to do and once again all age groups were accomodated. It was VERY clean! Everything from the dressing rooms to the water attractions themselves.

Hershey is also very strict on designating areas as a "bathing suit" area and "non bathing suit areas" This also helps I believe in maintaining the standards Hershey park is trying to achieve.

We had a great time found it to be affordable and a great value. We also visited the Stroudsburg Railroad and Lancaster while we were there.

I should also mention that my friend went over the weekend as opposed to the during the week and the water attractions had time limits to accomodate everyone. When we were there, for example, we stayed in the small wave pool for as long as we wanted....

[vcgirl925]

I think for a "regular" amusement park it's great. You can't compare it to disney or of course you'll be disappointed. But if you compare it to dorney park (in the pa area) or a 6 flags, you'll be very impressed. It's very clean, the rides are good, and the people are pleasant. Also, we love the hershey factory, the 3d movie, the trolley tour of the town of hershey, and the shopping at the hershey store with the HUGE amounts of candy. The hershey gardens and the hershey zoo are very nice as well.

[Shenanigoat]

I like Hershey's Park. It's no Disney theme park, for sure, but it's one of the better non-Disney parks. What I really like in Hershey PA is the "kisses" that are street lights. It's a great little weekend trip.

[sharonabe]

We go to Hershey Park every year for my husband's company picnic. What I like most about it is that there are little kid rides all over the park. So when we have older kids who want to ride the big rides, there is always something close by for the little ones too. This way, the family gets to stay together even though we aren't all riding the same rides all the time. It's a great park with something for everyone!

[goofy4prez]

I've never been to Hershey; with us living so close to Cedar Point (1hr) we just don't get out to visit other parks unless we are going to be out there anyway. Other than WDW there is not a better amusement park in the country than Cedar Point. At least if your a roller coaster enthusiast that is.

I will say that when we had a 5 night getaway to the Smoky Mountains in Tenn. this past Memorial Day weekend, we did spend a day at Dollywood and found that to be a very nice little amusement park.

[RMulieri]

I live near there...as a local themepark its ok.But I don't go that often.

[rgf207]

We live about 1 hour from Hershey. It's a really nice park with some really good rides. The one thing I notice is that the cost of food, drink and snacks are sooo much moref expensive than WDW.

It cost me $15 for a turkey leg, macaroni & cheese and a drink. Everytime I go there I think that WDW prices aren't all that bad

[LUVMICKEY]

We are going to Hershey the weekend of August 15. It will be our first time back there in several years and we are looking forward to it. We have always heard very positive things about it in the past few years. We know it won't be anything like Disney, but with everything we've heard, I think we're going to enjoy it.

[princesspiglet]

I live in Hershey and work for the Hershey Corp. My family loves Hersheypark and we are there at least 3x a week. Sometimes we just go over after work and ride a few rides and head home. We spend the whole day there on Sunday. Rides first and then boardwalk until close. I think it is the next best thing to Disney. I worked at Cedar Point for two summers in college and I think it is a great park, but it is more for teens and adults. HP has rides for everyone. You also can't beat dancing with all the characters, Chocolate World, Hershey Gardens and the Hershey Story. HP has also has some great shows with wonderful cast members, like Dragon Gate and The Ultimate Road Trip.

[rotlex]

We live an hour or so from Hershey and visit at least 3 times a year. Once during their spring in the park event, once during regular season, and always at Christmas time. (They do Halloween too but we don't always make it).

Overall, I think it is one of the better parks outside of Disney, and in some ways, has a "Disney feel" to it. (Much more so than Dorney Park which is only 5 minutes from our house).

While it is no Disney of course, as others have said, it is a great home town park. There is a good assortment of rides for all ages, and I never get tired of the chocolate factory area.

[princesspiglet]

( By the way they have a statue of "Mr Hershey" in the front set up like the partners statue . Did the hershey statue come before or after the Partners?


The Hershey statue of Milton Hershey was built in 2003 to celebrate the parks' 97th anniversary. The partners statue was added to the Mk in 1995.

[Ktharee]

I love Hershey Park! Lot's of fun all year round. It's not the kind of thing where you say "should we go to Disney or Hershey this year?" but it's a great less expensive (and closer for us) alternative. Their new boardwalk area is fantastic. Prior to that, it's was just "alright". But they have really stepped things up. Dutch Wonderland on the other hand, needs some serious updates!:goodvibes I was there when I was 5 (32 years ago) and it's basically the same park!

[Melissa07090]

I don't think you can compare Hershey to Disney. Hershey is a bit more of more of a regular amusement park than a overwelming type of park like Disney. We stop at Hershey on our way through PA when I visit my college for the weekend. It is a fun place to stop for a day trip and Chocolate World is great. One of these days I will get there during the summer to visit the waterpark.

[mattmommy]

Love the smell as you get near the parks. You can smell the chocolate in the air. Especially on Cocoa Avenue (near the Kiss lights).

We drive about 3 hours to get there and stay at a really nice Hampton Inn with a nice hot breakfast.

You can get REALLY cheap hotels if you drive a little bit away. I do get fussy and need a middle ground for the cheap (no pool, towels have one side and only a bar of soap-no shampoo) type places and the Hershey Hotel.

[RllngRckBrw]

I love it for what it is. I feel it is a good weekend trip (if you live close enough to drive). It is not a theme park, but a very good amusement park (I feel there is a big difference between the two.) I would rather drive the extra hour and go to Knoebels for the day though. It is a very different park, but reminds me of the classic park. Heck it is still free to enter and a great "classic" experience.

[WriteDisney]

We just got back from our trip to Hershey Park. We were there July 20 - 24th. We did not stay at a Hershey Resort. I felt they were way over priced and not worth it. Instead, we stayed at a Hampton Inn for a reasonable rate that included breakfast.

The park itself was very clean. We waited on lines for rides for little time and sometimes with no wait at all. There were plenty of rides for my younger child as well as some nice choices for my older child.

I was a bit squimish about heading over to the the Hershey Waterpark - The Boardwalk. I am not a big fan of waterparks and get grossed out easily from floating bandaids and slimy pavements. .

We were there last week too and we went in the "wave" pool (lame or what??) and we did see a floating bandaid :scared1:

We stayed at the lodge because it was cheaper then the hilton and holiday inn.. and because of "sweet" hours (think EMHs).. not much is open but the comet area was so we were able to get in quite a few rides and get in line for farenheit first thing.. then great bear and then we hit the waterpark.. was very disappointed with the wave pool.. waves for only 10 minutes? and it was so tiny!.. the new lazy river was nice but there was a line for it.. overall we like Hershey.. we usually make it up once a year.. it is a nice warm up for Disney..

its crazy how many people showed up around 12:30p-1p and how empty it was for the first few hours.. we got so much done..

[LUVMICKEY]

Reading all the nice things about Hershey has just made me even more anxious to go now. We will be staying at the Hershey Lodge for the night. we're about 3 hours from Hershey.

[Dawn68PA]

We live near Hershey and always enjoyed it - until I needed a scooter. HP is not handicap friendly. Some of the inclines are too steep for a scooter and you have to literally go a mile around to get to something. You cannot ride as much as you want. They give you a document that you have stamped after you ride and you can't go back until a certain time later or after you have other stamps (can't remember how it goes anymore, it's been 2 years). One trip as a scooter person made me never want to go back. It was horrible. To make it worse, a lot of people were very verbal about me riding and they had to wait.

You see HP has no handicap entrance, you go through the exit. You cannot wait in line with everyone else as a lot of their rides have stairs. So you go through the exit and wait a little bit and they then tell you to pick a seat. On every coaster we got "told off" no matter what seat we chose. One guy was really abusive and brought me to tears.

Never again. No more HP for me. Disney is the only amusement type park I plan to ever visit again.

[mmtska]

I love Hershey! I think it has something to do with the chocolate ;) It is nowhere near Disney though. I think it's 2 different scales-theme park vs. amusement park as a PP said. I haven't been there in a couple years, but I had fun the last time I went! And when I was little, it was the first roller coaster I went on.

It's probably my 3rd fave amusement park ever-Cedar Point and Kennywood are my top 2. However, even those 3 have different dynamics. CP is more of a thrill ride park. And the lines there suck.

I'd rather just stay at a regular hotel outside of the resorts there though. Too expensive.

[MouseEarsJenny]

Hershey is a fun day trip. They have some great coasters, and I like the cheesy Reese's Xtreme Cup Challenge and the Chocolate World tour cause dark rides at non-Disney parks are hard to find. We've been known to go and just spend a day at Chocolate World, doing the tour, the 3-D show, and the other little attractions in that building. But then, we live an hour away. The amusement park itself is clean, well-maintained, and more level and shady than the much closer Dorney Park. I've let my daughter go there on band trips without signing up as a chaperone (my usual MO for when she is travelling - I'm a bit paranoid :rotfl:) so it's also a pretty safe place.

The hotels do seem a bit overpriced, but Hotel Hershey is definitely a highly rated luxury hotel, so in that context, I would expect high rates. Fortunately, I don't need a hotel to visit.

[glasslipper]

My children are 21 & 16, and we have been going to Hersheypark since they were still in diapers, but haven't been in about 4 yrs.. We would always ride the chocolate factory ride first and get the photo of them next to the candy bars signs for ride height!We do have great memories!

My opinion of Hersheypark, prices have really soared! We used to always stay at the Lodge, but it is just not worth it anymore. Food& merchandise prices are high as well. I really think we have just outgrown it.We aren't into waterparks that much, so we haven't been to the boardwalk area, but it is a nice park and has something for everyone. It has always been clean and and a nice atmosphere when we visited. We also always used to go during the Halloween and Christmas events, and they we nice, but geared toward the younger children.

It's not WDW, but then no other park is. :goodvibes

[Brian_WDW74]

Since this thread isn't really about the WDW theme parks, I've moved it to the Theme Parks Community board. :)

[WriteDisney]

I did notice a hidden mickey while I was there ;)

http://i15.photobucket.com/albums/a355/springstar856/ry3D400.jpg

http://i15.photobucket.com/albums/a355/springstar856/ry3D40500.jpg