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Hersheypark (HP) Discussion Thread


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Without having the specifics in front of me, I know its something like one skip-the-line to use for each coaster, and you don't get to pick your seat. I'm sure one of the locals on here can give more detail.

 

Thanks for the rain policy info. I am trying to choose a weekday to go later this month but will have to plan in advance due to work (I have to have someone cover me) meaning Id be going rain or shine. With GreatAdv this isnt an issue since I know they'll run everything unless lightning. I wouldn't mind a rainy day @ Hershey as it would keep the crowds away just don't want to go all the way out there (2.5 hour drive) for a day trip and have everything shut down all day.

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I'm not sure about skipping the line, because there isn't a separate line. But inside the station, Hershey blocks off the middle seats on the trains and reserves them for Fast Lane only. It hurts capacity, and gives you the worst seats to ride in.

The fact that they would rather send the Fast Track seats empty than fill them with normal guests makes it so much worse.

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Hershey's Fast Track is a mess. Also, it doesn't seem to work on Laff Trakk which is one of the rides where you'd need it most.

 

yeah, it's a very strange system. First of all, it is barely advertised. Second, it really DOES sell out (most flash passes announce that are only sold in limited quantities, but they still sell a billion of them, but a couple Saturdays ago, by 12pm all the fast tracks were sold out). Third, they do rope off the lousy middle seats of each train and these seem to go out empty almost everytime because there are not many fast track patrons (which is really odd thing to do). I never saw a separate fast track line, but there must be some way to get through the line?

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^you go through the rides exit up to the platform on most coasters. Skyrush, Fahrenheit and Storm Runner you go up the elevators. The fast track system is garbage and it needs an overhaul. It's been a mess since it debuted in 2012.

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Hershey's Fast Track is a mess. Also, it doesn't seem to work on Laff Trakk which is one of the rides where you'd need it most.

 

I believe because it is Laff Trakk's first year it isn't part of the program; maybe in future years? Skyrush's first year it wasn't part of the program.

 

The rows closed off are also used for the park's accessible program, and any other vip program access they have. Employees should obviously be filling in the rows when not used however.

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I feel like of any US park, Hershey would be the most likely to get an Intamin woodie. That would be great and all, but it's still unlikely because with RMC snatching up all the records there isn't much they could market it by. Intamin made it clear they won't do inversions on wood coasters, and I doubt they could go for steepest drop. I don't see how it would be worth the expense.

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I feel like of any US park, Hershey would be the most likely to get an Intamin woodie. That would be great and all, but it's still unlikely because with RMC snatching up all the records there isn't much they could market it by. Intamin made it clear they won't do inversions on wood coasters, and I doubt they could go for steepest drop. I don't see how it would be worth the expense.

Skyrush doesn't break any records or has anything marketable except for its seating arrangement, and yet here we are.

 

"Largest wooden roller coaster we've ever built" is enough. Heck, you might even be able to play the "largest / best / fastest / etc wooden coaster in Pennsylvania" card.

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RE the fast pass.

We looked into it before we went. It was $60 for 9 rides. There were time windows for each ride...but so long as you did not arrive EARLY for anything you could do the ride at any time you wanted...ie if Skyrush was a time of 11am..you could still go at 3pm in the afternoon. You could not however go at 10am to use the fast pass.

 

I used it on one of my days at the park due to family circumstance..and it worked OK. I did NOT like the entry through the "exit" of the ride...but the time windows were OK after being told about the time flexibility in them. Passable on a busy day..but needs some work.

I reiterate what was told to me...stay at a Hershey property and get the evening preview perk AND the early entry to the park the following day. That cuts down on a lot of the line times.

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RE the fast pass.

We looked into it before we went. It was $60 for 9 rides. There were time windows for each ride...but so long as you did not arrive EARLY for anything you could do the ride at any time you wanted...ie if Skyrush was a time of 11am..you could still go at 3pm in the afternoon. You could not however go at 10am to use the fast pass.

 

I used it on one of my days at the park due to family circumstance..and it worked OK. I did NOT like the entry through the "exit" of the ride...but the time windows were OK after being told about the time flexibility in them. Passable on a busy day..but needs some work.

I reiterate what was told to me...stay at a Hershey property and get the evening preview perk AND the early entry to the park the following day. That cuts down on a lot of the line times.

 

I would also suggest to save your fast pass money and instead stay at the Hershey Hotel or the Hershey Lodge (the lodge is the cheaper of the two.) You will get in 3.5 hours before park close the day before your ticket and my experience is that the lines really die down at night. Plus you will get into the park an hour early at 9am and it's like having an hour of ERT on Skyrush, Comet, and SDL (those are the only 3 coasters that open early). I was able to ride Skyrush 4-5 times each morning I visited without having to get off. The preview night and the early entry are great perks and I think a better option than the fast pass.

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I forgot where I saw it but I could have sworn an interview Sander Kernacs once said that Intamin is capable of adding inversions to their wooden coasters and that it is possible, but there is absolutely no demand for it; El Toro, their most recent installment, was back in 2006 when the idea of inversions on wooden coasters (other than SOB) was unfathomable. Nobody really wanted inversions on wooden coasters; nobody even realized how marketable it was and how much the GP ate it up until RMC came along and made it commonplace on their installations. Of course, Airtime>Inversions always and forever so I'm not exactly complaining

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RE the fast pass.

We looked into it before we went. It was $60 for 9 rides. There were time windows for each ride...but so long as you did not arrive EARLY for anything you could do the ride at any time you wanted...ie if Skyrush was a time of 11am..you could still go at 3pm in the afternoon. You could not however go at 10am to use the fast pass.

 

I used it on one of my days at the park due to family circumstance..and it worked OK. I did NOT like the entry through the "exit" of the ride...but the time windows were OK after being told about the time flexibility in them. Passable on a busy day..but needs some work.

I reiterate what was told to me...stay at a Hershey property and get the evening preview perk AND the early entry to the park the following day. That cuts down on a lot of the line times.

 

I would also suggest to save your fast pass money and instead stay at the Hershey Hotel or the Hershey Lodge (the lodge is the cheaper of the two.) You will get in 3.5 hours before park close the day before your ticket and my experience is that the lines really die down at night. Plus you will get into the park an hour early at 9am and it's like having an hour of ERT on Skyrush, Comet, and SDL (those are the only 3 coasters that open early). I was able to ride Skyrush 4-5 times each morning I visited without having to get off. The preview night and the early entry are great perks and I think a better option than the fast pass.

 

not to mention, the Hershey Lodge also has a free shuttle, so you save on parking. (parking at the Lodge is free), AND has a few very good, and reasonably priced restaurants on site.

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Going to make my triumphant return here on Monday. What should I expect in terms of crowds? Plan on getting there at opening, and will presumably be there all day. Will I be able to get every coaster in? My priority, needless to say, is Skyrush, but want to hit everything at least once with re-rides as necessary.

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I feel like of any US park, Hershey would be the most likely to get an Intamin woodie. That would be great and all, but it's still unlikely because with RMC snatching up all the records there isn't much they could market it by. Intamin made it clear they won't do inversions on wood coasters, and I doubt they could go for steepest drop. I don't see how it would be worth the expense.

Skyrush doesn't break any records or has anything marketable except for its seating arrangement, and yet here we are.

 

"Largest wooden roller coaster we've ever built" is enough. Heck, you might even be able to play the "largest / best / fastest / etc wooden coaster in Pennsylvania" card.

 

The seating arrangement was a BIG selling point, in fact it's still the only one in the entire world where you can choose a wing seat or not. "Ride the edge". Marketing departments love crap like that. Hershey can't build the biggest rides but every ride since Stormrunner has had a unique and/or "world's first" selling point. Intamin woodies are the most expensive kind of wood coaster out there, they'd need something that's at least a first for the area (that area includes SFGA).

 

But I mean, I still think its possible. I'm sure Intamin could come up with some new spin on it for one of their best costumers.

 

I know I've defended Wildcat in the past, and I still like it, but honestly, it's time for it to go. It's too rough, and the layout just isn't that great. It's time for something better to take its place, preferably something wooden. And made by Intamin. Call it Wildcat's Revenge.

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The seating arrangement was a BIG selling point, in fact it's still the only one in the entire world where you can choose a wing seat or not. "Ride the edge". Marketing departments love crap like that.

"Ride the edge" gets a resounding "meh" from me, because I never take the winged seat by choice.

 

Also, am I the only one around here that thinks Wildcat is at the very least "okay"?

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