anyone do Hershey Park?

[missmun52]

We cant do Disney again this year and was thinking of taking a trip closer to home. We were thinking about going to Hershey Park. We have never been so dont know where the best place to stay is as well as the best time to go and crowds.

Any tips and advice would be great!

 

[DCbride]

We went last July (Fr-Sun) and it was a nightmare! The room was $500 for the weekend and we waited 30 minutes in a line to enter the wave pool. Definitely skip a summer weekend. And I think Memorial weekend there are still soccer tournaments.

That being said, we love the area and Hershey off season. We usually stay at the Springhill Suites, about a mile from the park. The Hershey Hotel is beautiful and has an amazing spa. There are outlets and a zoo close by and of course the park itself and the chocolate factory.

If you can go during the week that would be better during high season. If possible I would try to go either May or Sept. Even Oct is great since they have Halloween decorations.

 

[mjkacmom]

Hershey is like Disney - much less crowded in the off-season. We've gone during the week in June (our schools get out the end of June), the crowds are low, and the weather is usually warm. There are so many hotels in the area that are MUCH cheaper than staying onsite (and the Lodge is actually farther away than many, but the shuttle is nice). The only reasonable Hershey accomodations are the campgrounds - even the Lodge is about $300 a night. There are usually coupons here on coke cans or Dunkin Donuts. Last year we did the after 4 get in free promo, and used a coupon for the next day ticket.

 

[queensara]

We live about two hours away from Hershey, so we have been there numerous times. Depending on how long you want to stay and how far you want to drive in the morning maybe staying in Harrisburg would be your best bet. With traffic it would be about 20 min to 30 min drive. Harrisburg is the capital of PA, so there are many things to do there. They have an awesome science center. It is called the Whitiker (sp) science center. You could also stay in Lancaster. The drive to the park would be a bit longer, but there are nicer outlets there than the ones in Hershey. There is also another amusement park which is actually Hershey's sister park called Dutch Wonderland. Also in Lancaster you could do the whole Amish thing. My suggestion if it is doable is to go to the park on a weekday if you are going after mid June. Hershey has had a bit of snow this yr so they have snow days to make up, I think most schools in the area don't get out until like June 10th. You can also get discounted tickets at the Giant grocery store. Hope this helps. If you have any more questions just pm me. I am quite familiar with the area.

 

[bigdisneygroup]

If you can go during the slower season of may or june Hershey is offering a good deal on tickets right now. I'm signed up for their newsletter and they emailed it to me.

 

[karemore]

I was thinking about going to Hershey Park, but after reading the reviews on tripadvisor I decided against it.

 

[Ava]

I grew up about an hour from Hershey so we went to Hershey Park a lot when I was a kid. In recent years it has expanded a lot - they now have a whole water section that wasn't there a few years ago - but I don't think they've been able to keep up with their growing popularity. We went 3 or 4 years ago on a summer weekend day and it was PACKED. I think we only got on 4 or 5 rides the whole day because the lines were so long. They could definitely benefit from some type of "Fast Pass" system on the bigger rides; lines were consistently 60+ minutes for the big coasters.

That said, Hershey is a nice park with a lot of great rides (and chocolate!). Just don't go on a weekend day in the summer. Go during the week or while area schools are still in session.

 

[brockash]

We go almost every year, and have never really had a problem with crowds. We certainly don't go on the weekend, but I don't really go to any theme park on the weekend. We usually end up going on a weekday towards the end of June and haven't had any problems with crowds. I will say in the last few yrs. the park has grown a lot and it's getting hard for us to do everything in 1 day, so I'd recommend doing 2 days there if possible.

 

[Mkrop]

We got to Hershey every year and we love it there. We are not far from the area but we do stay over.

We do stay at the Hershey Lodge. It has an early entry feature that gets you in an before regular guests. Two sections are open so we are able to get those done. As soon as they could DH and DS12 got in line for Farhenheit while DS7 and I got a locker for later. This was right at regular opening time.

I would not go on a weekend at all.

We also did the preview plan before and we able to knock out some rides.

We made the mistake of doing rides first then the waterpark midafternoon, it was packed.

We have gone in May, the day fter Memorial Day and in early June and had the parks to ourselves.

We also do Chocolate World before we go in for the Preview Plan.

I dont know what is on Trip Advisor but we love Hershey and it can be done with some planning just like any amusement park.

I do wish they had FPs though!

 

[MindyLuvsMickey]

We're about 25 minutes away and go several times a year. We completely avoid going after school lets out. It's so crowded. Spring is a lovely time to go, though.

 

[tlh0726]

We have been season pass holders for the last 3 years. Live about an hour southwest of Hershey.
Crowds pick up around the 3rd week of June.

How many days do you plan on being there?

if you are looking for other things to do, whiile you are in the area you can always take in Gettysburg as well. Just make sure it is not around July 4th, re-enactments create havoc.

 

[missmun52]

I plan on going for about 3-4 days. I wanted to go in the summer because I dont want to take my son out of school. I may end up trying to go end of August, beginning of September. I would love to do things in the area and not just the parks. So I am really open to all suggestions, visiting the Amish country sounds really nice as well as the zoo ect.

 

[FlightlessDuck]

Try avoiding after school lets out. Also, avoid the following dates:

May 1, 7, 8, 14, 15, 21, 22, 28
June 4, 5, 11.

These dates are for Music in the Parks, which is a program where middle and high school concert bands, jazz bands, ochestras, marching bands, and choirs compete and spend a day in the park. It might not be super crowded those days, but there will be band kids all over.

We have gone during Christmas season, when the park is decorated for Christmas. It is not really that crowded, but most of the roller coasters are also not operating then.

 

[tlh0726]

Not sure of the age of your son, but if you go to Lancaster checkout Cherrycrest Adventure Farm. Took us forever to figure our way out of the corn maze.

 

[Butterflies31]

Hey there This is funny.. We actually just booked our Hershey trip for Easter weekend which is spring time there we only paid 75 a night at hershey high meadow campgrounds for a cabin with heat

For 2 days a adult ticket is 31.00
and children under 9 are 23.00 for 2 days
that is buying them from the campground...

Good luck deciding

Hershey is great I have been there several times But Disney Is Magical!!!

 

[OrlandoHelp]

We love Hershey Park but I agree, crows levels are high during the summer months.

We once went over a weekend in May (before memorial day) and the crowds were very low. The water park was not open but it was too chilly for water anyway. The weather was perfect and lines were not long. We had a wonderful time.

We also went once over memorial day weeknd and will never make that mistake again.

 

[ruadisneyfan2]

We haven't been to Hershey since the weekend before 9/11. We too stayed at the Spring Hill Suites. It was close to HP and offered free breakfast. Our kids were very young at the time 5 and 1.5 but had a great time.
The next day we rode the Strausburg Railroad and we all enjoyed it.
http://www.strasburgrailroad.com/

 

[takstarr]

We went to Hershey Park for the first time last June and loved it... Crowds were fine and we had a blast... stayed at the campground, so wasn't too expensive. We also did Choc. World and Trolly tour. Also took buggy tour through Amish country. Loved it all and the whole family wants to go back

 

[tkmac2307]

We've gone to Hershey several times over the past few years. We love it. It is super clean and the people who work there are as friendly and as helpful as the workers at Disney World. We have gone both in June and at Christmas time. June was not bad in terms of the crowds, but we did go during the week. We always stay at Hershey Lodge. They have a lot of kids activities there and the shuttle is really convenient. My only real complaint at the Lodge is the food selection (not great). The park, on the other hand, has some of the best, most varied food of any amusement park I have been to. Hershey has had specials foir staying "on site" for the past two years so keep your eyes open. Have Fun!

 

[brockash]

We've gone to Hershey several times over the past few years. We love it. It is super clean and the people who work there are as friendly and as helpful as the workers at Disney World. We have gone both in June and at Christmas time. June was not bad in terms of the crowds, but we did go during the week. We always stay at Hershey Lodge. They have a lot of kids activities there and the shuttle is really convenient. My only real complaint at the Lodge is the food selection (not great). The park, on the other hand, has some of the best, most varied food of any amusement park I have been to. Hershey has had specials foir staying "on site" for the past two years so keep your eyes open. Have Fun!

ITA with this part. I grew up around that area, so for the longest time, the only theme parks I had been to was Hershey and Disney. Boy did I have a wake-up call the first time I stepped foot in a Six Flags...it was pretty disappointing. I had just assumed all theme parks were like WDW/Hershey