Hershey PA while not spending a lot of $$

[burnurcomputer]

Would anyone happen to know what the weather would be like the last week in May.

Also it is possible to do the trolley tour, Hershey world, and Hershey Park within 3 days

Sorry for all the questions but what is the major airport in Hershey or would it be in Lancaster

This area is my "Turf" so I will pipe in now

Yes, its beyond possible. If you are staying multiple days look into getting the season pass for Hershey. Dutch Wonderland is in Lancaster county, Hersheypark is in Lebanon county. Both have Amish and mennonite, just for those who don't know.

Closest Airport is Harriburg International (MDT) when you are looking for flights. If you want to be foolish and fly into Philly to come to see this area be prepare to drive 1 1/2 to 2 hours to get here Fly into Harrisburg, you will be in Lancaster or Hershey in a very, very short time.

 

[jrmasm]

This area is my "Turf" so I will pipe in now

Yes, its beyond possible. If you are staying multiple days look into getting the season pass for Hershey. Dutch Wonderland is in Lancaster county, Hersheypark is in Lebanon county. Both have Amish and mennonite, just for those who don't know.

Closest Airport is Harriburg International (MDT) when you are looking for flights. If you want to be foolish and fly into Philly to come to see this area be prepare to drive 1 1/2 to 2 hours to get here Fly into Harrisburg, you will be in Lancaster or Hershey in a very, very short time.

I'm pretty sure it's in Dauphin County.

OP, with the age of your kids, I think Dutch Wonderland is a much better choice.

 

[Mom23Disneybelievers]

We went to Hershey in May for the past three years. It is a beautiful time of year for Hershey. The only drawback...the water park part of the park was not open, yet. It has been HOT on some of the days we have been there in May. Plenty to do and see in the area.

 

[Shelly F - Ohio]

Here is a nice italian food place we ate at. It was like stepping into Italy. And the food was great and very affordable.

http://dafnos.com/location/

It's close to Hershey too.

 

[Ginny Favers]

We go to Dutch Wonderland and Cherry Crest Farms now (stay at the Fulton Inn) since our kids are young (under 6). When they are older, I am sure we will venture to Hershey, but right now, those parks offer just about all they need, are less expensive, and they love them!

As for Knoebel's, I have to say the first time I went, I pulled up after a 2-hour drive and said, "Why does everyone love this hick place?" And then I went and fell in love. It may not be flashy, but it has so many amazing rides you can not find anywhere else (some I remember from when I was a kid), great food, and it's inexpensive, too. Definitely worth the trip.

 

[htmom]

This area is my "Turf" so I will pipe in now

Yes, its beyond possible. If you are staying multiple days look into getting the season pass for Hershey. Dutch Wonderland is in Lancaster county, Hersheypark is in Lebanon county. Both have Amish and mennonite, just for those who don't know.

Closest Airport is Harriburg International (MDT) when you are looking for flights. If you want to be foolish and fly into Philly to come to see this area be prepare to drive 1 1/2 to 2 hours to get here Fly into Harrisburg, you will be in Lancaster or Hershey in a very, very short time.

Actually Hershey is in Dauphin county. I live here. lol The Amish community is in Lancaster not Hershey. And you are correct Dutch Wonderland is in Lancaster Cty with the Amish "attractions"

The closest airport is MDT. It is a smallish airport but recently rebuilt and it is well appointed.
Three days would be fine to do everything and give you some down time as well.

 

[MMitchell29]

Ok guys i'm getting confused again................ok actually it's not that hard to get me confused Ok so when I was pricing out flights i noticed from New Orleans to MDT (which i assume is Harrisburg) those go for about 300 plus dollars

But from New Orleans to BWI (not too sure where this is) for the same time period is 156.00 dollars

When you guys say "the amish community" not sure what you mean by that. Is there something to do there or is it more or less something to see?

We dont mind driving about an hour away from an airport if that means we can get really great airline tickets

Looking at doing Hershey Park
Hershey world
Trolley tour and just enjoying the sites. So far thats the plan but can change if needed.

 

[punkin]

Ok guys i'm getting confused again................ok actually it's not that hard to get me confused Ok so when I was pricing out flights i noticed from New Orleans to MDT (which i assume is Harrisburg) those go for about 300 plus dollars

But from New Orleans to BWI (not too sure where this is) for the same time period is 156.00 dollars

When you guys say "the amish community" not sure what you mean by that. Is there something to do there or is it more or less something to see?

We dont mind driving about an hour away from an airport if that means we can get really great airline tickets

Looking at doing Hershey Park
Hershey world
Trolley tour and just enjoying the sites. So far thats the plan but can change if needed.

BWI is Baltimore/Washington. It's definitely drivable to Hershey if you budget about 2 hours with absolutely no traffic.

 

[scottmel]

I live in Pittsburgh - about 4 hours from Hershey and go yearly. Lancaster is the AMish community being referenced and in allllll my visits to Hershey I have yet to really SEE Amish communnity. It was a quest of mine to see a working amish farm or see a town close to Hershey. I have yet to find something that I said OH WOW so glad I did that. ONE farm had high hopes but it really got panned on tripadvisor for being touristy, etc. IMHO, there is not much exciting to see in amish community. I think a trip to hershey for 3 days is more than enough time and you can do a lot, etc. Personally I would bag Lancaster and the amish thoughts.There just isn't much EXCITING to see in my opinion

 

[burnurcomputer]

Actually Hershey is in Dauphin county. I live here. lol The Amish community is in Lancaster not Hershey. And you are correct Dutch Wonderland is in Lancaster Cty with the Amish "attractions"

The closest airport is MDT. It is a smallish airport but recently rebuilt and it is well appointed.
Three days would be fine to do everything and give you some down time as well.

Actually, Lebanon county has a very large Plain community as well! Lancaster is much more commercial with its farm land and herritage then Lebanon County. Look at the the Dauphin county line in conjunction to Lebanon county line........ No one said that Hershey Park had Amish living in it, but go less then 1o minutes in almost any direction and you will find Plain people.

Just because the attrations about the Amish are in Lancaster doesn't mean that is where they all live. The Ordnung of the sects can vary in how much contact they have with the English. The poor people in Lancaster have been baraged by the tourists and they have come so much more dependent on the English for their $. Lebanon county has been much more conservative in its approach to the Plain folk living with us, using Lancaster as a cautionary tale.

I grew up in rural Lancaster county, in Manheim. I now "live across the line" in Cornwall. Lancaster county born and bred, now lives in Lebanon. I do not need an education on my birth hertiage as a member of the Pa Dutch community

 

[NLD]

BWI to Hershey: figure about a 2 to 2.5 hour drive.

Philly to Hershey: again figure about a 2 to 2.5 hour drive.

Both could be worse if you hit the traffic wrong. Philly has the potential to be MUCH worse. I live in York County, about 100 miles from Center City Philly, but have to go to Philly regularly for work, and in rush hour it's not unusual for it to be a 3.5 hour commute. What should be two hours turns into three and a half just because of traffic.

So that said... I'd do BWI over Philly in a heartbeat, if you're going to pick a major airport.

BUT.. The most convenient thing is absolutely to fly into Harrisburg (MDT). Very very close to Hershey.


Three days is enough for the area. People keep talking about Dutch Wonderland, but my daughter has been going to Hershey Park every year since she was a toddler and always loved it. (She's eight now.) We did Dutch Wonderland once when she was younger... maybe about four years old?.. and although she enjoyed it, she prefers Hershey Park.

Yes, Hershey is known for the coasters, but there are lots of family rides, too. The Ferris Wheel, the log flume (Coal Cracker), the monorail, the train, the carrousel, tilt-a-whirl, skyview.... And as previous posters mentioned, there are kid rides scattered in every area of the park.

As for the coasters, there are two very tame ones, the Trailblazer (barely even qualifies as a coaster, less thrilling than Big Thunder) and the Super Dooper Looper (it has one upside down loop but it's pretty low speed, my daughter went on it at age 6 and loved it, and that's a kid who wouldn't even ride Expedition Everest at age 8).

The Boardwalk area (water park area) opens May 26 so you'll miss that I guess...


Indian Echo Caverns is nearby, also, if you're looking for more. Haven't been since I was a kid but remember it being enjoyable, and my daughter went with a school group last year and loved it. Google it if you're interested, it'll come right up.

 

[htmom]

Actually, Lebanon county has a very large Plain community as well! Lancaster is much more commercial with its farm land and herritage then Lebanon County. Look at the the Dauphin county line in conjunction to Lebanon county line........ No one said that Hershey Park had Amish living in it, but go less then 1o minutes in almost any direction and you will find Plain people.

Just because the attrations about the Amish are in Lancaster doesn't mean that is where they all live. The Ordnung of the sects can vary in how much contact they have with the English. The poor people in Lancaster have been baraged by the tourists and they have come so much more dependent on the English for their $. Lebanon county has been much more conservative in its approach to the Plain folk living with us, using Lancaster as a cautionary tale.

I grew up in rural Lancaster county, in Manheim. I now "live across the line" in Cornwall. Lancaster county born and bred, now lives in Lebanon. I do not need an education on my birth hertiage as a member of the Pa Dutch community

But if you want to "visit" and see the Amish "attractions" Lancaster is where you would go. My grandmother was Plain, I know where many Mennonite and Amish churches are and have been to many singings. I was raised Brethren. If a person asks me where to "see" the Amish I say Lancaster. The Amish are not uneducated. They know where they make thier money, most of those who disagree with the commercialization have moved into different areas. That is on purpose. I would never tell someone to go into a quiet Plain community to "see" the Amish.

Sorry to go OT

 

[Sagginit]

another slightly OT travel tip, since you are not from the area and will be driving, watch for buggies. i have been out there a few times and it always seemed to be common sense, where there are amish, there are buggies. however on a trip out there with a friend we saw one come thru an intersection later at night and the person driving was really shocked and had no idea to look for them on the roads.

 

[2Pirates2Princesses]

If we aren't able to do the night before "preview" hours (my kids go to bed early), do you think we should get a two day (consecutive day) park ticket for Hersheypark or just stick to a one day park ticket? We probably won't do most, if any, of the thrill rides/coasters because even my oldest kids don't really like coasters; but we do want to visit the small zoo (ZooAmerica) and spend a little time in the water park area (Boardwalk). We also plan to visit Chocolate World on a separate day. No interest in Dutch Wonderland though. We are either going Memorial Day weekend for two days or in June for three days. Thanks

 

[MMitchell29]

BWI to Hershey: figure about a 2 to 2.5 hour drive.

Philly to Hershey: again figure about a 2 to 2.5 hour drive.

Both could be worse if you hit the traffic wrong. Philly has the potential to be MUCH worse. I live in York County, about 100 miles from Center City Philly, but have to go to Philly regularly for work, and in rush hour it's not unusual for it to be a 3.5 hour commute. What should be two hours turns into three and a half just because of traffic.

So that said... I'd do BWI over Philly in a heartbeat, if you're going to pick a major airport.

BUT.. The most convenient thing is absolutely to fly into Harrisburg (MDT). Very very close to Hershey.


Three days is enough for the area. People keep talking about Dutch Wonderland, but my daughter has been going to Hershey Park every year since she was a toddler and always loved it. (She's eight now.) We did Dutch Wonderland once when she was younger... maybe about four years old?.. and although she enjoyed it, she prefers Hershey Park.

Yes, Hershey is known for the coasters, but there are lots of family rides, too. The Ferris Wheel, the log flume (Coal Cracker), the monorail, the train, the carrousel, tilt-a-whirl, skyview.... And as previous posters mentioned, there are kid rides scattered in every area of the park.

As for the coasters, there are two very tame ones, the Trailblazer (barely even qualifies as a coaster, less thrilling than Big Thunder) and the Super Dooper Looper (it has one upside down loop but it's pretty low speed, my daughter went on it at age 6 and loved it, and that's a kid who wouldn't even ride Expedition Everest at age 8).

The Boardwalk area (water park area) opens May 26 so you'll miss that I guess...


Indian Echo Caverns is nearby, also, if you're looking for more. Haven't been since I was a kid but remember it being enjoyable, and my daughter went with a school group last year and loved it. Google it if you're interested, it'll come right up.

Thank you so much this helps out a lot I think i will narrow it down to BWI or Harrisburg (for the convenience) and do Hershey Park, Hershey World, take a trolley tour and look into Indian Echo caverns.

I was looking at May 30-June 2 because BWI offered some terrific rates.

Now this board walk area you speak of is this near Hershey park as well?

 

[jrmasm]

Thank you so much this helps out a lot I think i will narrow it down to BWI or Harrisburg (for the convenience) and do Hershey Park, Hershey World, take a trolley tour and look into Indian Echo caverns.

I was looking at May 30-June 2 because BWI offered some terrific rates.

Now this board walk area you speak of is this near Hershey park as well?

It's inside the park.

 

[punkin]

Since this has turned into a bit of a Hershey Park thread, may I ask if it is possible to drop kids off at the park without having to go in yourself? I have a bit of a complicated situation...the girls in question will be 13 and 14. They are both good and responsible girls. DD's school is going to Hershey and she cannot bring her friend (no longer goes to the school, but still has friends who do). I am willing to drive them and pick them up, but they will be with friends the whole day and I really don't want to spend the time in the park alone.

 

[htmom]

My son is 10 and I personally feel more comfortable being in the park but when he is with his friends (9-13 yrs old) they go off on their own. I would say next summer I would be ok with the "drop off" scerinio (sp? lol)
I lived across from the park when I was a kid (yep that brick house with the barn across the road was my parents student home Rosemont) and I started getting dropped off around 11. But most of my friends were around 12-13.
So personally I wouldn't have a problem with the girls being in the park together. Give them a cell phone and let them go. They will be fine mom. (((HUGS)))

 

[htmom]

Oh and for dropping off my mom used to just drive into the Chocolate World Parking lot and drop us off in there. Then we wouldn't have any parking lots to cross or things like that. Most of the time she would run in Chocolate World for cookies for herself too.

 

[NLD]

The Boardwalk area is inside Hershey Park, it's the water attractions area of the park. It's included in your Hershey Park ticket, no separate admission.

Doesn't open until the end of May, though.