OT: Which park with 15-month old - Hershey or Sesame Place?

[chellewashere]

I had season passes to Sesame for 2 years just cause I live 10 mins from it. But we would leave before noon on the days we went. That place gets overly crowded...the lines are long and it is full of some of the rudest people I have ever come across. My suggestion is to do Dorney Park..they have Camp Snoopy and the water park is included in the ticket price so if you get to hot hanging out with the rides go jump over and do the lazy river.

 

[micheleq]

I went to SP last June with a group of friends -- we had enough people to get a group discount so the tickets were half price!

It was alot of fun. We did our research and went on the first Tuesday in June. Being a weekday and early enough in the season we weren't over-run by older kids. One pair of women started to chat with me as we watched the kids in a play area said they were locals and we were smart to come early in the season to avoid the crowds.

My girls had just turned 4 and the little one was two weeks shy of her 2nd birthday (and therefore had free admission) and they had a blast.

My one rec. is to bring your own food if you can. The food was horrible and overpriced.

I've had friends go to Dutch Wonderland and love it. I took DD4 to Hershey when she was three and we had a ton of fun. She's not intimidated by the rides, and they have a zoo and a water park there as well.

 

[krcit]

I love Hersheypark. We went every year since my dd was born. I think they have a lot of kiddie rides. Dutch Wonderland is great also. I would do the Hershey/DW combo

 

[mrs.sammich]

I'm all about DutchWonderland. We took the boys last summer - the youngest was 15 months at the time. He was even allowed on the log flume. We went on the weekend and the lines were slow moving, but a friend took his kids during the week and said they had little to no wait. I wish we had known the water area was there. It looked like a great time for everyone. We've gone to Strasburg a few times too. They get Thomas the Tank Engine 'visits' a few times a year, which is really cool- but crowded on weekends. Our boys and our niece like have liked trains from early on.

 

[loveysbydesign]

I had season passes to Sesame for 2 years just cause I live 10 mins from it. But we would leave before noon on the days we went. That place gets overly crowded...the lines are long and it is full of some of the rudest people I have ever come across. My suggestion is to do Dorney Park..they have Camp Snoopy and the water park is included in the ticket price so if you get to hot hanging out with the rides go jump over and do the lazy river.

Are you crazy??? DP and DW are like apples and oranges...you can't really compare them! We live 10 minutes from Dorney and would choose DW over DP any day for little ones under 5! DP is full of tons of rude people who come in busloads from other states. The waterpark is always packed to the gills so you feel like a sardine.

 

[waltskids]

Another vote for Dutch Wonderland! Your little one would be free which is a huge plus and they have great kiddie rides. We did not like the crowd at SP at all (weekday in July) and found the guests to be rude. Loved the atmosphere at DW. We love HP too and just went there this past Christmas and while DS (3) rode many of the kiddie rides, I am not sure if they are ok for a 15 month old. Have a great trip!

 

[Ava]

Ahh, I'm so bad at making decisions! LOL. I hope to be able to go on a weekday so it will be less crowded, I have to figure out my vacation days for the year.

I think we'll skip SP this time - DD has never seen Sesame Street (she doesn't watch TV yet) so although she likes the music on her SP CD, she doesn't know the characters. So that part won't mean anything to her. I think SP will be more fun when she's a little older and will actually care about meeting Elmo & Big Bird.

Now I'm torn between HP & DW. I know I like HP, but maybe we should try DW this time. Always good to do something new, plus it's cheaper! We'll only be down in PA for a night or two, so I don't think it's worth it to do the HP/DW combo - HP is so big now you need 2 days to see it!

ETA: I am looking at DW's website and it looks SO CUTE! I think we will try it. Now to convince MIL! Thanks for the info, everyone!

 

[Mommytink]

We love Sesame. We get season passes every year as we live 10 minutes away. I have been going for 7 years and it has always been clean and fun. I think you will enjoy it.

 

[DonaldsDaisy]

Neither...try Dutch Wonderland! Much better for a child that age and it even has a small waterplay area...plus free parking. Plus the Strasburg Railraod is right near by and would be fun too.

I second this one. I would do Lancaster Co for a weekend. In addition to the kid stuff there is plenty of shopping for Mom and Grandma!

SP is over crowded with older kids. Last summer we actually had to leave the one wet area because of all the 11-14 year olds. They were actually pushing and shoving the little ones while the life gaurds just stood there in a daze. Never again and I get free tickets and live 30 minutes away!

 

[Ava]

I second this one. I would do Lancaster Co for a weekend. In addition to the kid stuff there is plenty of shopping for Mom and Grandma!

Haha, when I called my partner to tell her I think we should do Dutch Wonderland, her response was - "We can go outlet shopping!"

SP is over crowded with older kids. Last summer we actually had to leave the one wet area because of all the 11-14 year olds. They were actually pushing and shoving the little ones while the life gaurds just stood there in a daze. Never again and I get free tickets and live 30 minutes away!

Yeah I noticed on their website they have a program for middle school kids. I don't know if its during regular park hours or not, but that seemed odd to me. I would not think of Sesame Place as being for middle schoolers.

 

[amylevan]

What about Knoebels?

 

[Ava]

What about Knoebels?

Ahh, too many choices! Haha, just kidding. I don't know anything about Knoebels - maybe for future. I think I've settled on Dutch Wonderland for this summer.

 

[lilmissbehaved]

We aren't doing WDW this year (want to wait until DD is a little older) but MIL wants to take us on a long weekend trip. She mentioned Hershey, but then I was also thinking Sesame Place might be good. DD will be about 15 months old when we go. Which park has more things she can do?


I live about 10 minutes from Sesame Place. There is a lot for the little ones but it does get VERY crowded on the weekends. it's a small park and we hop over for a few hours in the morning and hit it the same way we do disney.. In at opening.. Out after lunch. This makes it bearable for us.. Of course when we do disney we go back after dinner.. we don't do this with sesame place. We hit it for half days at a time. When the crowds start getting to me I scram. If you are hitting a hotel 2 half days will be enough. Go to the mall after

Also; schools get out here in June, so if you are able to hit it late spring (May or early June) you will find the crowds a ton more tolerable.

 

[monorailsilver]

I took my dd to Sesame when she was just over 2 & then again when she was just over 3 & at that time my son was about 9 months old.

I didn't feel like we got our monies (is that a word?) worth. I felt like she couldn't do enough of the water activities.

As far as Hershey, the last time I went there was in the late 90's & it was just dh & I.

 

[koadoodle]

I agree with the majority of others. Dutch Wonderland would be the best for your child's age. I used to love Sesame Place when I was growing up but I have heard that it has gone down hill. We might take our DD who will be 3 over the summer there only because I think we can get in free with the military. We decided not to take her last year because I had heard from many people she would be too young to truly enjoy it. I hope you have a great time no matter what you decide.

Michele

 

[Mkrop]

Ahh, too many choices! Haha, just kidding. I don't know anything about Knoebels - maybe for future. I think I've settled on Dutch Wonderland for this summer.

For the age of your child I think you made the right choice. I think you will all enjoy Dutch Wonderland. I love Hershey Park too but I would definitely choose DW for her age right now.

Have fun!

 

[tlh0726]

Ahh, too many choices! Haha, just kidding. I don't know anything about Knoebels - maybe for future. I think I've settled on Dutch Wonderland for this summer.

You made the correct choice.

Have a wonderful time!

 

[kristinw3girls]

No question- Sesame Place is the best place for your child.

 

[spel]

We loved SP last year with our 3-year-old. We went at opening (weird not to call it rope drop!!) on a weekday and it was great! This year we'll try Dutch Wonderland. We're saving Hershey for when they're older.

 

[bakalorber]

Neither...try Dutch Wonderland! Much better for a child that age and it even has a small waterplay area...plus free parking. Plus the Strasburg Railraod is right near by and would be fun too.

Dutch Wonderland by far is the better place to go. Sesame is crazy $$ crowded and not a lot of fun. Hershey is great for teenagers.