Hershey Park on a budget

[heathernfrankie]

How about knoebles instead? family owned amusement park in PA about an hr away from hershey. Free parking, free admission, pay as you go for rides or hand stamps for the day (not on weekend though) Lots of stuff for ages 5&8 yr olds. We live about an hr from hershey but honestly its not worth the money to go there for us until the kids are older and want to do the bigger rides. Also check out dorney park they have a water park next doo0,r knoebles also has a nice pool area. Rates are very inexpensive compared with hershey and dorney. I am not sure about hotels since I live about 30 min from there.

I definately agree. We have Dorney Park almost right in our backyard. I grew up going to to Dorney. Wildwater Kingdom is a neat place and it's not nearly as crowded as Hershey's Boardwalk gets. Knoebels is awesome too. They have a pool that you pay for (I have heard the water is cold because it's spring fed) and a lot of Knoebels is under trees. You don't have the heat of the sun beating down on you. Plus, you can bring your food in and eat in the park too. I would check those out if you can swing it, instead of Hershey.

 

[Ahrizel]

I agree with the other posters who suggested Knoebel's. It's in Elysburg and is very much a family park, great choice for young kids. Free admission, you use tickets or handstamps. Free parking, and picnic facilities. You are welcome to bring picnics in with you, no problems with outside food-but theirs is pretty good too. www.knoebels.com Good luck with your trip wherever you go.
Mary

 

[walkdmc]

Although it's not very budget friendly I would HIGHLY recommend renting a cabana for the day, at the "Boardwalk". You get private access to the lazy river, free drinks all day, a cabana to crash in with a mini fridge full of bottled water, a table, private snack stand, locker, and lounge chairs. They give you a beach bag with enough towels for everyone, sunscreen and cups, all for keeps. That was the best thing about the trip, IMO.

I would also do the "Make your own candy bar" at the Hershey Museum, NOT the guest center which is crazy busy at all times. We enjoyed that.

There are a lot of hotels around but book early, they do fill up. Between Hershey park and the medical center, those hotels get a lot of business.

 

[ADisneyQueen]

I would definately pick Dutch Wonderland over Hershey for younger kids. We did both when our kids were younger and DW was so much better and a lot less walking.

 

[mjkacmom]

I definately agree. We have Dorney Park almost right in our backyard. I grew up going to to Dorney. Wildwater Kingdom is a neat place and it's not nearly as crowded as Hershey's Boardwalk gets. Knoebels is awesome too. They have a pool that you pay for (I have heard the water is cold because it's spring fed) and a lot of Knoebels is under trees. You don't have the heat of the sun beating down on you. Plus, you can bring your food in and eat in the park too. I would check those out if you can swing it, instead of Hershey.

I've heard great things about Knoebels for younger kids, but after checking out the rides online, my 12 and 14 year olds would be bored to tears. Even my 7 year olds do the big coasters at Hershey, so Knoebels might be too tame for them as well. The best thing about Hershey is that, in every area, there are rides for all ages, from the toddler set to the teens.

 

[juliebean]

I would definately second the country inn & suites - it works really well for a family of three kids. They've become our "go to" hotel lately because they have a pool, breakfast & a door in between the bedroom and living room - which allows more privacy to get dressed and also to put the younger kids to bed earlier. I think they are very similar to embassy suites (2nd choice), but significantly less money.

However, I have to say, we went to Hershey last August for the first (and last) time. It was awful. It was 95 and humid and there is hardly any shade. We went for a sunday evening/monday thinking it would be less crowded on a Monday. Not a good guess apparently.

So, we enjoyed Sunday evening (although we only stayed about an hour because a 4 year old just can't go that late and still get up the next morning - so I think it's a questionable benefit if your children are young and need set bedtimes), got to the park nice and early on Monday. We were doing okay for the first hour and a half - me with 8 and 4 year old girls on little rides, teenage son and dad on rollercoasters. Crowded and hot, but still manageable. The kids wanted to go to the waterpark section then, but it was so packed we convinced them to have an early lunch first. After lunch, still too packed to sit anywhere or move - so we convinced them to go wait in line for rides and do a few more rides towards the back of the park. By about 3 we could delay no longer - and all of a sudden the wave pool looked a lot less full. So, we hurry over and find out that it will be closed for an hour while the lifeguards scoop up the "problem" and disinfect the wave pool because someone didn't make it to the bathroom! Now, the lines for the kiddie sandcastle section are 45 minutes to go in for 15 minutes and it was about an hour to get on the lazy river. We ended up leaving and going back to the hotel pool! What a waste of over $250 for tickets! I cannot imagine going back - maybe we just hit a bad day - but the memory is just one I doubt we can get over. This is where I think Disney is much better - plenty of places to sit and relax, separating out parks instead of one big one, and the whole fastpass idea is genius.

On a more positive note - my son went to Dorney with his school for the end of 8th grade trip and they had a blast. And if we want little rides/water park - we really like Land of Make Believe in Hope, NJ. Six Flags in Jackson, NJ has been a lot of fun too and we like the safari drive that comes with it.

Sorry to be so negative about Hershey. I'm usually the one saying "hey it wasn't that bad". I mean we go to DW over spring break and I don't think it's bad. But, this trip to Hershey was really that bad!

 

[tyniknate]

Knoebels is a fantastic park. We live 20 minutes from there and the kids have a great time every time we go - several times a year (16,11,7). Is it Disney? No - nothing compares to Disney. But it's clean, family friendly, a great assortment of rides, great park food and very reasonably priced with free admission, free parking, and free picnic facilities if you wish to bring your own food. To say your kids would be bored to tears and never have visited is an unfair statement.

Hershey Park is an hour from where I live and it is very expensive! Even with discounted tickets I don't believe it is worth the money. Unless your kids are total coaster junkies (and don't mind waiting 1 1/2 hours in line) - the park just isn't worth the price. And the food - don't get me started on the quality of food and the prices.

 

[mjkacmom]

IHowever, I have to say, we went to Hershey last August for the first (and last) time. It was awful. It was 95 and humid and there is hardly any shade. We went for a sunday evening/monday thinking it would be less crowded on a Monday. Not a good guess apparently.
!

I wouldn't write it off - there is no way we would go to Hershey in August (or WDW). We've had great luck going during the week in May and the beginning of June. I remember going a couple of years ago for a preview, and ds8 stayed on a coaster for at least a half hour (none of the rides had any lines). As for the waterpark, I've heard it's only worth it if you get there when the park opens - getting there in the afternoon is like getting to TST, and wondering why there is such a long line.

My kids love coasters, and love Hershey. Dd14 went to Great Adventure last year, but didn't like it as much as Hershey - it's a different feel.

 

[Kycha]

Knoebels is a fantastic park. We live 20 minutes from there and the kids have a great time every time we go - several times a year (16,11,7). Is it Disney? No - nothing compares to Disney. But it's clean, family friendly, a great assortment of rides, great park food and very reasonably priced with free admission, free parking, and free picnic facilities if you wish to bring your own food. To say your kids would be bored to tears and never have visited is an unfair statement.

Hershey Park is an hour from where I live and it is very expensive! Even with discounted tickets I don't believe it is worth the money. Unless your kids are total coaster junkies (and don't mind waiting 1 1/2 hours in line) - the park just isn't worth the price. And the food - don't get me started on the quality of food and the prices.

And I think some of your statements about Hershey are unfair. I've been to Hershey many, many times(40+) and have waited 1 1/2 hours in line maybe 3 times. And that was during peak summer season. And the food, while not gourmet, is decent. Now, I've only been to Knoebels a couple times. Prior to going I heard many rave reviews about their food. Personally, I wasn't that impressed. And last time I was at Knoebels(company picnic) it rained pretty hard. All of the big rides/roller coasters(about 50% of all rides) were closed due to the rain. Pretty big let down for us. I've never seen them close rides at Hershey due to rain.

 

[juliebean]

I'm sure you are right about the heat being a huge factor in how unpleasant the trip was, but I did also have safety concerns about just how many people were packed into that waterpark section. I really felt like that if there was an emergency (besides "do do" in the pool) it would be difficult to get people out or get help in. I mean it was like sardines in that area. A couple of times my 4 year old got knocked down by people trying to squeeze by her while she was waiting in line for the sandcastle area (she is really small - it doesn't take much). I guess you have to not plan on using that part on a hot day...

I know a lot of people love Hershey, but I think it would require a small miracle to get us to try again. That said to all those that love it, I totally get the whole chocolate theme and I love that it helps the school for disadvantaged children. I just really felt like I should have saved the $500 we spent on tickets, food, and hotel for a better experience.

 

[Yoshi]

The problem is the Boardwalk was just poorly planned. They rushed to get a waterpark built and put it in the middle of the park instead of keeping it either away from the rides area like at Dorney or a separate admission park so it can't keep up with the crowds. And now to expand they already removed the river rapids and will probably remove other nearby rides when they need more room. A park that gets 2.6 million visitors a year cannot have a waterpark with just 4 large slides, 2 play areas, 2 wave pools and a lazy river. I never saw a wavepool with a 45 minute wait before and then a time limit of how long you can stay in the water.

We went to the Boardwalk once and now just skip it when we go to the park, I'd rather go to Wildwater Kingdom at Dorney that has way more slides and better crowd control.

Hersheypark is still my favorite non Disney park since I really like the coasters and how they have rides for everyone but I can't help but feel that many of the recent additions have been added without putting much thought to them, besides the Boardwalk, how can a park that size add a coaster like Fahrenheit that only seats 12 riders per train and only has 3 trains (and sometimes only runs 2) and gets a very low amount of riders per hour compared to other coasters they could have added instead.

 

[Mickeys.friend]

Don't forget to keep your eyes open for the Hershey/Giant/Pepsi promotion...it starts sometime mid to late April.. You buy 15 20oz pepsi beverages and send in your receipt and you get a free ticket with no blackout dates... You can get 2 per household. We do it every year and use my parents address to get 4 tickets...We get a reasonably priced hotel for a couple of nights and take advantage of the "Preview" the night before we spend the day...You can't beat it. 15 bottles of soda/water, etc costs me about $21 give or take a dollar and an adult ticket is anywhere from $37 (using various coupons) to $50 or so at the gate. Plus you get all the drinks as well!
LIZ

 

[summerrluvv]

I didn't read the entire thread, but we have stayed at the Marriott Towne Place Suites in Harrisburg a couple of times when we went for Halloween and Christmas. Short ride to the park and it's a spotless hotel with a kitchen in your room.

 

[summerrluvv]

Subbing to this. Hopefully we can get there this year. Anything a 2 year old would enjoy? (I'm guessing we don't have to buy her a ticket)?

There is, but I would do Dutch Wonderland instead. AWESOME place, so clean, free parking and the kids LOVED it much more than Hershey

 

[bigmama67]

There is, but I would do Dutch Wonderland instead. AWESOME place, so clean, free parking and the kids LOVED it much more than Hershey

Thanks - I was remembering how much fun that looked! It seems as though we could even stay at the campground right on-site so it would be cheap enough that we can afford to board the dogs for a night or two. I'm not working right no so I'm all about an economical getaway (it's probably the only way we'll get one at all)...Yeah!

 

[bigmama67]

There's one thing about Dutch Wonderland that I find confusing...it says an "Any Two Days" ticket will be $47.95 but a "Consecutive Day Admission" ticket will be $26.95. Why pay $32.95 plus $26.95 to go for 2 days? Why not just pay the $47.95 and use it two days in a row?

 

[sharon_wv]

How about knoebles instead? family owned amusement park in PA about an hr away from hershey. Free parking, free admission, pay as you go for rides or hand stamps for the day (not on weekend though) Lots of stuff for ages 5&8 yr olds. We live about an hr from hershey but honestly its not worth the money to go there for us until the kids are older and want to do the bigger rides. Also check out dorney park they have a water park next doo0,r knoebles also has a nice pool area. Rates are very inexpensive compared with hershey and dorney. I am not sure about hotels since I live about 30 min from there.

I love love love Knoebels!!! I grew up there & went to college right down the street. But, it's TOTALLY different than Hershey Park. It's laid back, non-rushed, easy going awesome place. We visit here every year & stay at their campground. This park brings back the yesteryears of amusement parks.

Hersheypark, on the other hand, is also AWESOME, but in a totally different. It's modern, it's busy, it's crowded and exciting. I have a 15-year old and a 5 year old. Both love Hershey Park. We did a weekend trip last summer to Hershey and we stayed at the Holiday Inn Express Harrisburg East. It was maybe 10-15 minutes from Hershey Park & was about 1/2 the price of the hotels right near Hersheypark. They serve breakfast & have cookies, etc.

RE: Tickets - last year the local grocery store (Giant chain - although where we live it's called Martins) had a deal that if you bought so much in Kraft products they gave you 4 tix to HersheyPark for only $60. The deal was really early in the year - probably in the March/April timeframe before you really started thinking about going to amusement parks. It was a great deal. We took advantage of the preview the night before. We paid for parking that evening, but didn't have to pay it again the next morning. I was really shocked by that; I thought that was gonna be the "catch."

The Giant, there's one right near the park, offers discount tickets every day. It's a pretty big discount too, so definitely stop there on your way in.

To save a good bit of $, we bought a large all-you can drink cup & really took advantage of that all day. Wish we would have bought one the evening before - would have even done better as far as saving $.

Have fun! Hope you work out some good deals to let you go.

 

[summerrluvv]

There's one thing about Dutch Wonderland that I find confusing...it says an "Any Two Days" ticket will be $47.95 but a "Consecutive Day Admission" ticket will be $26.95. Why pay $32.95 plus $26.95 to go for 2 days? Why not just pay the $47.95 and use it two days in a row?

That's weird! Maybe it's an "early bird" special for people that want to buy tix now? Ask on their Facebook page...they are really good about answering on there!

Okay I know why....it's for the folks that bought a one day ticket and have so much fun, they decide they want to come back the next day..... and instead of paying full price, they offer the discount

Oh, I wanted to add...last year I coordinated a group sale and got two tix free. If you know people that also might want to go, (you do NOT need to go the same day!), it's worth looking into!