Hersheypark aka: Hershey Park

Bleh. Not good, the rides often crash, it’s crowded, and there is barely anything to do.

had a good time. would love to go back some time. you get to see how they make the candy.

I went there for the first time yesterday and was really dissapointed in the park. I wouldn’t say it’s not worth visiting but I wouldn’t say it was worth it either. I thought it was going to be something totally different then what it was. See I’m from Maine and if I wanted to go to an Amusment Park I would’ve stuck with Funtown/Splashtown it really is along the same lines as Hershey Park which I thought was going to be more themed.

The huge water slides are amazing! :] I went there with my school.

Here are some tips for making the most of your visit to Hersheypark, with a few tips for dining and other attractions.

Tickets and the Free Preview Evening

If you plan on spending more than two days at Hershey park, consider a season pass. It will pay for itself - not only does it cover your admission to the park, it also gives you free parking, a 15% discount off food and merchandise in the park and a coupon book with excellent deals (10% off purchases at Chocolate World, for example). If your time is more limited and you’ve purchased one-day tickets, make sure you get to Hersheypark for the Free Preview Evening - the evening before your full day at the park, you can get in a couple hours before closing for free, and it’s well worth the trip. Crowds are lighter, and you have the chance to get a feel for the layout of the park.

Making the Most of Your Day

If you plan to try the waterpark attractions in the new Boardwalk theme area, a good advice is to wear your swimwear under your clothes and be at the main gate right at opening time (10 a.m.) Then get to the Boardwalk (on the far end of the park, in the shadow of the Ferris Wheel) as fast as you can and send one person to get a big locker there - they go quickly, and they’re essential if you want to stow your swimming suits and enjoy the rest of the park after the Boardwalk. Another person should go to the wave pool area and claim lounge chairs for the family - lounge chairs are very hard to come by after 10:30.

Whew.

Now you can enjoy the park!

If you like big water rides, do the Vortex and the Whirlwind at the Boardwalk first to avoid hour+ waits later in the day. Then enjoy East Coast Waterworks. The wave pool, where your lounge chairs are located, is a fairly central location and a good place to relax with a drink and a snack mid-morning.

By noon, the Boardwalk is elbow-to-elbow people and the rides have long waits. That’s when you change, stow your swimsuits in a locker and head out to the rest of the park. The rides around Midway America (just outside The Boardwalk) should have short lines. If you’re getting hungry, a great recommendation is the Sidewinder food court area. There are several good food stands there - a favorite is Mixed Grille, where you can actually find healthy food, and it’s made from scratch. But there’s a good burger stand, a sausage concession, a smoothie place and an ice cream place there, as well as a Subway - and it’s a nice shaded area that tends to stay quiet.

Another tip: Take a break in the heat of the afternoon and head to air-conditioned Chocolate World. It’s just outside the main gate of Hersheypark, but it’s easy to get a handstamp for a quick return to the rides. Chocolate World has reconfigured almost everything - new chocolate tour ride, new merchandise area, a fairly good 3-D show, a chocolate-tasting experience, the “Factory Works” (kids get to “work” on a Kiss assembly line, nice for the picture and the experience, but pricy). It’s worth spending an hour here, and the Kit Kat Cafe on the upper level is usually quiet, with some good drinks. The milkshakes in the food court area are excellent and don’t miss the Scharffen Berger/Dagoba/Schmidt’s “artisanal chocolate” island in the food court area if you appreciate good chocolate! There are often surprises to be found around the central garden area - there is a lone box of Green Tea Kisses, which are not available in the United States (the next day, they were gone!)

Once you’ve returned to the park, don’t forget to take in the shows. It’s a nice break from the crowds and the entertainment value is excellent, whether you choose the aquatheater or one of the music/dance revues. If you’re in Hershey over a weekend, be sure to hang around the park late on Saturday—a fireworks show takes place at 10:15 p.m. every Saturday in the 2007 season to celebrate the 100th anniversary of Hersheypark!
Tired of Hersheypark?

If you’re in Hershey for more than a day and you want to see some other attractions, a trip on the Hershey Trolley (tickets and departures from Chocolate World), lunch on the veranda at the Hotel Hershey, a stroll through the Hershey Gardens (don’t miss the Children’s Garden and the Butterfly House) and a visit to Adventure Sports on 743S (batting cages, mini sports cars and boats, miniature golf). Stop by Bricker’s Pizza on West Chocolate Avenue for an Old World Pizza. Don’t miss the Kiss-shaped streetlights while you’re downtown, and by all means, drive past the factory to see the Hershey Cocoa hedges on the east side.

But if you like chocolate… which i do… it’s totally worth it!

As you enter the park, you are entering a place of many many delicous food stands. While entering you might come across Rhinelands Famous Familia, Craftbarn, or that little stand that sells smores and turkey legs. While all of these places are very appetizing, there is one that seems to stand out more. One little stand named Shakey’s Drive In. While you can find many stands that sell burgers, how many stands can you find that sell mini burgers? Not many. Not only are they mini burgers; they are delectable treats small enough for the kids, and big enough for the adults (if you get the combo of course) But there has to be a name for these mini burgers topped with perfectly grilled onions. Sliders is what they call them. Although Sliders can cure the common cold themselves; why not try some popcorn chicken or cheese bites as well. They only add to the flavor. With the prices of food in the park it’s nearly impossible to afford anything to fill you up. Although at Shakey’s, you can get a slider for only 2.01. Not only can you sit down and eat; you can sit down and be entertained. Directly next to Shakey’s is the Milkmen stage. The Milkmen are a vocal quartet smooth enough to soothe any afternoon headaches. After you buy the sliders and enjoy the Milkmen, you could use some refreshment. Leaving Shakey’s you could walk to the left and find an ICEE stand not far down the path. Although a lot of the time they are only limited to 1 or 2 flavors. (It’s the damn matinence crew) You could always leave Shakey’s and walk to the right on the path and find Planet Pepsi. At Planet Pepsi you can practically find any drink possible. (excluding coke products) So the next time you visit the park, stop buy these 3 stands. You’ll be glad you did.

Shakey’s Drive In, conveniently located directly across from the Chevy Music Box Theater.

This is not the same Hershey Park I went to when I was a child. I took my children to Hershey Park last weekend hoping it would be just as magical for them as it was when I went there 30 years ago. It wasn’t.

The Park has lost a lot of its charm. It was overcrowded in terms of people and the number of new attractions they’ve tried to pack into the small space. Their new Boardwalk area was too small and way too many people were trying to find a place to relax on the fake beach.

We won’t be going back any time soon, even though we live 35 minutes away.

I have been coming to Hershey park since I was a child. We stay at the Hershey Highmeadow Camp ground, you can take the shuttle in so you dont have to pay for parking, It runs every 15 min. We { my whole family} goes every year for a few days. It is a family park so kids of all ages can enjoy.Also you really can smell the chocolate. Dont forget chocolate world, the museum, the concerts,and the park it self pay one price ride the rides all day how much better can that be. hope you enjoy as much as us thats why we have been going the for at least 35 years now.

Haha, well it didn’t phenomenally changed my life but it taught me to conquer my fear! Of rollercoasters. I know it’s no Six Flags but the park had some of the most intimidating coasters I’ve ever seen, my oh my. My boyfriend made me ride every one of them and in the end, I was a happier person for it.

Avoid the wooden coasters, though. They’re not so much thrilling as they are painful, cuz the ride isn’t as smooth.