Inside Hershey

Hersheypark Crowds, Hersheypark Strategies

 
Hersheypark traditionally has its biggest crowds of the season between mid-July and mid-August, so the park is normally jam-packed in the absence of any extra events. Because of all those "extras" this weekend, expect longer lines at Hersheypark attractions on Friday, Saturday and early on Sunday.

If you're heading to the amusement park, you may want to employ some of our time-tested Hersheypark strategies!

I'd suggest arriving at the gate before its official opening (or, if you're staying at the Hotel Hershey, the Hershey Lodge or at Hershey Highmeadow Campground, take advantage of the "Hersheypark Sweet Start" — an extra hour to enjoy many of the park's rides before the official opening.) Remember that it takes time to get from the parking area to the gate—at least 15 minutes.

If you're planning on enjoying the Boardwalk waterpark area, walk there directly and get your locker quickly. Then do the Whirlwind, the Vortex, the Waverider, the lazy river and the wave pool in the morning. Lines can be prohibitively long there between noon and 6:00 p.m.

If your priority is rollercoasters, you'll want to be at the Hersheypark gate for opening as well. Head for the top coasters on your list immediately, and you'll be able to ride without the hour-long waits that develop later in the day.

If you have small children, walk to the Midway America section of the park first and ride the kiddie rides there first (this is contingent on being able to convince your kids to walk past all the great rides in Founder's Circle, of course). Then work your way back to the front of the park. By the time you get back to Founder's Circle, lines there will have measurably decreased. I've taken my kids to Hersheypark late in the afternoon many times this season — they've been able to walk on most of the Founder's Circle rides at that time. Conversely, don't expect to ride the Carrousel quickly at 11:30 a.m.

Don't forget about the Hersheypark preview plan: you can use your prepurchased Hersheypark admission ticket to preview the park the evening before at no extra charge. Just arrive at the gate at 7:30 p.m. to get a head-start.

If you have a trust fund, or you saved that Christmas money from Grandma, consider spending the extra cash for the Hersheypark Sweet Access Pass. Time is money, y'know! Along with other perks, the pass features five hours of V.I.P. concierge service, which gets you front-of-the-line access to many popular rides.

Hersheypark does have cabanas at the Boardwalk area, and they're a good deal for groups of four who want a little extra privacy and a few extra waterpark perks. While the cabanas are reserved for Hershey's resort guests first, I've seen the "Cabanas Available" sign up every time I've arrived early at the Boardwalk this season.

Don't forget to take in a show — when the weather is hot and your dogs are barkin', there's no better place to be than the Music Box Theatre. It's a cool refuge in the afternoon, and the "Lightning Strike" show is well worth seeing.

Finally, two of my most important tips:

• Don't forget the sunscreen
• Drink plenty of water

Those last two tips will put you in a better position to enjoy the rides all the way to closing (and they'll help you stay in a better mood all day long!)

Caution: Big Weekend Ahead | Hershey Events

It's looking like a big tourist weekend in Hershey ahead, with several events drawing diverse crowds to our small community.

The 10th Annual Quilt Odyssey begins its run today at the Hershey Lodge & Convention Center. This isn't your grandmother's craft show: it's a sophisticated show of fabric art, and draws thousands of enthusiasts. Quilt Odyssey runs July 30 through August 2.

Tomorrow, Kid Rock and Lynyrd Skynyrd hold court at Hersheypark Stadium for, oh, about 30,000 fans. As with any concerts in the Hershey summer concert series, discounted tickets to Hersheypark are part of the deal:

Ride the day away at Hersheypark before you rock and roll all night! Hersheypark offers a special discounted admission price of just $32.95 to concert go-ers when purchasing a Park ticket the day before, day of, and/or the day after the concert. Concert-goers may purchase one Park ticket per day on any or all of these three days. You must present your concert ticket or ticket stub at the Hersheypark Front Gate on each of the days to receive the discount. Purchase Park tickets at Giant Center Box Office when you purchase your concert tickets. Available for summer concerts held at Hersheypark Stadium, Star Pavilion, Giant Center, and Hershey Theatre during the Hersheypark
summer public operating season (May-September).

The North American Final of the Hershey's Track & Field Games takes place this weekend as well. Athletes and their families begin arriving today, and many will spend tomorrow touring Hershey attractions. The games themselves take place at the Milton Hershey School's Henry Hershey Field.

Last, but not least, the Hershey Public Library's 2009 Books Sale begins on August 1. This may seem like a blip on the crowd radar, but the event brings plenty of traffic to the library's Cocoa Avenue neighborhood. With 60,000 items on sale at bargain prices, it's worth checking out!

Now, for a few words on how all these events affect your Hershey plans.

If you want to dine at any Hershey-area restaurant that takes reservations, make them now. If you want to grab a quick lunch at Houlihan's, be there before 11:30 a.m. or expect a long wait for a table. If you were thinking of popping over to Chocolate World to buy a few bags of the new Meltaway Kisses, try Target instead. The Outlets at Hershey have great school shopping sales...but I'd recommend waiting until Monday or Tuesday to take advantage of those sales. If your route to work involves any Hershey thoroughfares, allow extra time this Friday, Saturday and Sunday.

And plan for things to be back to normal around Hershey...by September!

The Best Ice Cream in Hershey?

There are several fantastic ice cream shops in and around Hershey: there's a newly-renovated Dairy Queen on East Chocolate Avenue; Philip Arthur's Ice Cream near Chocolatetown Square; and Mazzoli's, just west of where Cocoa Ave. crosses Governor Rd. Mazzoli's even makes its own ice cream, which is uniformly excellent.

But there's another wonderful ice cream outlet that's less well known — the Cloverdale Ice Cream Center at the Milton Hershey School. This gem is only open on weekdays from 12:00 noon to 3:30 p.m., and only for the summer. So you have until mid-August to try some MHS Spartan ice cream.

Students from the Milton Hershey School run the stand, manning the scoops and the cash register. Cones are available for $1.00, and half-gallons can be carried home (or to your hotel room!) for $3.99. We recommend the Honey Vanilla (so smooth and creamy!) and the Chocolate Palm Tree (vanilla with chocolate chips and coconut).

To find the Cloverdale Ice Cream Center, travel east on 322 to Meadow Lane. Turn right — toward Founder's Hall — at the stoplight. Take the second left into the Cloverdale Barn driveway. You'll see the ice cream center on the left; there's ample parking, and a beautifully landscaped picnic area.

And don't forget: you have only a few more weeks to sample Spartan Ice Cream. Don't delay!

Goodbye to Starbucks Chocolates

 As we predicted six weeks ago, The Hershey Company officially announced today that it will no longer produce and/or market the line of Starbucks chocolates that was launched in early 2008.

The Cacao Reserve line is another casualty in the company's premium chocolate line. Which leaves us with the Scharffen Berger line (which is no longer produced in the iconic Bay Area factory) and the organic Dagoba line.

With the company abandoning the Joseph Schmidt brand and the Starbucks brand this year, one has to wonder what will become of Hershey's Artisan Confections line.

Hershey Gardens Butterfly Festival

The annual Butterfly Festival at the Hershey Gardens will take place this Saturday, July 25 from 10:00 a.m. to 12:30 p.m.

The Gardens will host a butterfly-themed art exhibit and offer special crafts and kids' activities, plus the Butterfly House is at its peak with many spectacular varieties of butterflies and moths. There's no extra charge for the Butterfly Festival—simply pay the regular Hershey Gardens admission.

The Milton Hershey School Celebrates a Centennial | MHS 100

In just a few weeks, the Milton Hershey School will launch a series of events to celebrate its 100th anniversary.

Well before his death, Milton S. Hershey and his wife Catherine decided to create a boarding school that would educate orphan boys. On November 15, 1909, the childless couple signed the Deed of Trust creating the Hershey Industrial School.

In 1915, Catherine Hershey died; three years after that, Milton Hershey made the decision to leave his entire estate to the school. The school was renamed the Milton Hershey School shortly after Mr. Hershey's passing, nearly three decades later. The Hershey Trust Company bears the responsibility of administering the trust for the school; the trust's assets are estimated to exceed $6 billion.

Today, the Milton Hershey School is thriving, educating and caring for more than 1,700 boys and girls from Pre-K through Grade 12, all of whom reside on campus. Alumni are fiercely loyal to the school and to Mr. Hershey's legacy.

Little Bits from Hershey | Twitter

If you'd like all those little tidbits of news that aren't quite big enough for a blog post, please follow The Hershey Insider on Twitter!

For example, if you're interested in knowing that the Calder Cup will be at Hersheypark today from 3:00 – 5:00 p.m. — it's on Twitter!

If you don't want to bother creating a Twitter account to follow us, it's just as easy to check the right column for the latest tweets or subscribe to the Hershey Insider TweetFeed here.

Segway Tours at Hotel Hershey

Don't be surprised if you see groups of yellow-helmeted Segway riders around the Hotel Hershey — it's a new way to tour the hotel grounds!

Marc and Moire Brandt of York own the business, which takes guests around the Hotel Hershey's 280-acre property for 90-minute tours (after a one-hour training session on the Segway). The cost is $90 per person, and tours are offered daily at 9:00 a.m., 1:00 p.m. and 5:00 p.m.

See Segway Tours of Hershey for more information.

Hershey's Gifts Closing on July 31

The Hershey Company has announced that it will close its Hershey's Gifts online store and catalog, effective July 31.

Philly.com has more details on the decision to shutter Hershey's Gifts here. And the Harrisburg Patriot-News reports that 12 jobs will be eliminated as a result of the closing.

The good news? From now until July 31, Hershey's Gifts will offer automatic 25% discounts on all gift items.

**UPDATE** Hershey is back online in time for the holiday season! Hershey's Gifts is now the Hershey Store.

More on the Hotel Hershey's Grand Expansion

One month after the official opening of the Hotel Hershey renovations and new construction (officially titled "The Grand Expansion"), we're still getting used to all the changes. It's almost like an entirely new property on Pat's Hill!

The finishing touches have been put on the hotel's new entrance, which includes new signage, a new access road, new parking lots, and an expanded porte-cochere.

A sparkling new lobby now leads to new boutique shops:

The Jeweler (open now)
Featuring exclusive jewelry, watches and gifts, including Le Vian® Chocolate Diamonds™, Roberto Coin, Tissot, and Monica Rich Kosann.

Shine Swimwear (open now)
Featuring designer sunglasses, cover-ups, and luxurious straw totes and hats, as well as "Hot Chocolate!," the hotel's signature swimsuit collection

Cocoa Beanery (open now)
Offering specialty coffee by the fireplace, as well as snacks, espresso, gourmet teas, Hershey’s Hot Chocolate, freshly baked pastries, and delicious chocolate desserts.

Signatures (open now)
Showcasing signature apparel and gifts available only at The Hotel Hershey, Signatures offers select logo apparel for men and women, and a special line of kids' clothing featuring swimwear, hats, t-shirts, and more.

Holidays (scheduled to open in September)
Each year from September to December, Shine Swimwear by The Hotel Hershey will transform into Holidays, a store containing limited edition and one-of-a-kind holiday furnishings, Christmas wreathes, richly detailed nutcrackers, holiday angels, Santas, candles, traditional Christmas art, and hand-crafted ornaments by Christopher Radko.

The Spa Boutique (scheduled to open in November)
Offering elegant yoga-wear, relaxation tapes, motivational books, aromatherapy candles, scented eye pillows, lovely sleepwear and the spa's signature lotion and potion favorites.

Sweets (scheduled to open in November)
Choose your favorite mouth-watering cupcake or design your own cupcake at this new bakery. Sweets also features a variety of delectable Hershey's chocolate.

A Storied Home (scheduled to open in December)
Shop here for elegant home decór, including decorative crystal bowls, picture frames, hand-painted serving pieces, and beautiful sterling silver candlesticks.

Behind the original hotel, you'll find a whole neighborhood of family accommodations, meeting space, recreational opportunities and a new eatery.

The Hotel Hershey's Woodside Cottages anchor the new neighborhood. The six four‐bedroom cottages and four six‐bedroom cottages are named for the hotel's indigenous trees: Beech, Birch, Cherry, Dogwood, Hemlock, Hickory, Maple, Oak, Pine, Sycamore. The native stone structures are nestled in a lovely wooded and landscaped area.

As you might expect, these aren't rustic cottages and no "roughing it" is required. The ten cottages all offer luxurious hi-tech homes away from home, and include private outdoor entrances, large bedrooms and warm common areas for families to congregate.

Guests have the option of renting individual bedrooms or reserving an entire cottage, which includes a great room. Upper‐level great rooms feature cathedral ceilings, antique timber beams and a grand fireplace with hand‐chiseled Pennsylvania stone. A large dining table seats eight to 10 guests.
The lower great room at the six‐bedroom cottage is designed with fun and relaxation in mind and includes a classic card table that seats six. All great rooms include a fireplace, flat‐screen television, microwave, refrigerator/freezer and a sink at the wet bar. They also feature large French doors that lead out to a welcoming porch with casual seating.

Meeting planners will welcome the meeting and catering opportunities added in the Grand Expansion as well. The Meeting & Catering Cottage, named “Mountain Laurel,” is located among the guest cottages and provides groups with a convenient location that is deliberately removed from the activity of the
main hotel. Mountain Laurel is noted for its privacy, staff attentiveness, and easy access to the restaurants and accommodations of the main hotel.

 The new restaurant, Harvest, is at the center of the new neighborhood. Offering a slightly more casual dining experience than the Circular Dining Room, Harvest features a  menu rich with locally grown specialties.

Recreational opportunities abound in the cottage area as well. The executive golf course is no more, but in its place you'll find an all-weather ice rink, an expansive beach volleyball area, basketball courts, tennis courts, a playground for preschoolers and a much-needed outdoor pool and water park facility with cabanas. Also available to hotel guests are shuffleboard, bocce, croquet and hiking trails.