Hersheypark (HP) Discussion Thread

[HPCrazy]

It's the same list as always, just Fahrenheit is now on there. I hope to get up there for that again before my friend and I go in June. Still not as good as HP in the Dark goes though.

[YoshiFan]

Nice, to see more coasters open. I am hoping to go on Easter Sunday this year. I tried to go last year, the high winds kept me away since it was also cold out then in 2008 or 2007, it was in the 30's that day and only Comet and SDL opened but if it was warmer I still would have gone. I really want to try to go to the park on a slow day since I never have a chance to marathon ride at Hershey and I hear Easter is always empty.

[HPCrazy]

I wouldn't really say that they have more coasters open, just one. Storm Runner usually runs (except last year) so Fahrenheit is really the only new one running. Last year on Saturday, they had to open up Midway unnannounced because of Harley Davidson's thing being that day, which made the place super crowded. I had planned on making Comet my first wooden coaster of the season, but that quickly changed to Lightning Racer when I saw it was running.

[coasterkid495]

Well didn't they refurbish Storm Runner last year?

[alilstronger]

I usually go to Springtime in the Park every year. A lot of years they open the entire park. Least from my experience.

[impf]

I'm going to the Hershey Park in August and sleep in in the Hershey Lodge. Now I have two questions:

 

1. Has anybody used the Hotel Shuttle from Harrisburg Amtrak Station? What's the price for the shuttle and what's the price for a taxi?

 

2. Does the Hershey Lodge provide baggage storage. I will leave the park in the evening. So I need to store my baggage after check out.

 

Many thanks for your help

Daniel

[jedimaster1227]

Hersheypark has sent us a new press release about their special discounts created solely for the month of March.

 

March is traditionally known for its “madness,” but this year it will be known for its “sweetness” as http://www.Hersheypark.com unveils the deepest discounts ever available on Hersheypark tickets. From March 1 through March 31, visitors to http://www.Hersheypark.com can participate in “March Sweetness,” an opportunity to score the sweetest ticket prices to Hersheypark and the best value on Hershey Resorts accommodations. All tickets and accommodations purchased through March Sweetness must be used by July 1, 2010. The earlier the purchase is made, the greater the savings on Hersheypark tickets. A maximum of ten tickets is allowed per transaction. Pricing is as follows:

 

· March 1 to 7, tickets are $20 off regular admission

· March 8 to 14, tickets are $18 off regular admission

· March 15 to 21, tickets are $16 off regular admission

· March 22 to 31, tickets are $14 off regular admission

 

In addition, vacationers wishing to stay overnight in Hershey also can score sweet savings with our Kid’s Stay, Play and Eat FREE Package at the best price of the season. Available at both The Hotel Hershey and Hershey Lodge, packages offer one-day complimentary admission to Hersheypark for the entire family; free breakfast for kids 17 and younger (staying in the same room with a paying adult); and admission to Hershey Gardens and The Hershey Story, The Museum on Chocolate Avenue. Prices start at $295* at Hershey Lodge and $395* at The Hotel Hershey.

 

Sweet savings are just part of the online fun, as http://www.Hersheypark.com hosts its own March Sweetness Tournament featuring the beloved Hershey’s Product Characters in their sweet brand of basketball action. The tournament kicks-off March 1 on the website, and visitors are encouraged to participate by picking who they think will win the tournament. Videos of the basketball action will be posted on the site and updates of the action will be reported via Twitter to website viewers. At the conclusion of the tournament, a grand prize will randomly be awarded to the online participants who picked the tournament winners.

[jedimaster1227]

Hersheypark has sent us their latest press release about Springtime in the Park.

 

Hersheypark is busy putting the finishing touches on “Springtime in the Park.” This year the annual celebration is scheduled for April 2 through 4 and April 10 and 11, two weekends that provide perfect opportunities to gather the family and enjoy an exciting preview of the 2010 Park season.

 

Hersheypark will be open from 10 a.m. to 9 p.m. on Friday, April 2 and on Saturdays, April 3 and 10. On Sundays, April 4 and 11, Hersheypark will be open from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. (The Park will not be open to the public on Friday, April 9.) One-price admission offers access to more than 40 of the Park’s rides, admission to live entertainment shows, and entrance to ZooAmerica North American Wildlife Park. Select games, retail shops and food venues also will be open.

 

Admission will be $23.95 for ages 9 to 54, $15.95 for ages 3 to 8 and ages 55 and older, and free for children 2 and younger. Consecutive-day and group admission plans will be available, and a parking fee will be charged. Tickets may be purchased in advance online at http://www.Hersheypark.com or at participating Giant Foods stores in the Hershey and Harrisburg area after March 27. The website will list all participating Giant Foods stores.

 

Entertainment choices during Springtime in the Park will include:

 

·Friday, April 2: Mark DeRose Band in the Hersheypark Amphitheatre and “Our Friends From the Sea: An Educational Sea Lion Experience” in the Aquatheatre

·Saturday, April 3: Chris Linn, “America’s Magical Funnyman,” in the Hersheypark Amphitheatre and “Our Friends From the Sea: An Educational Sea Lion Experience” in the Aquatheatre

·Sunday, April 4: Chris Linn, “America’s Magical Funnyman,” in the Hersheypark Amphitheatre and “Our Friends From the Sea: An Educational Sea Lion Experience” in the Aquatheatre

·Saturday, April 10: 5th Element Band in the Hersheypark Amphitheatre and “Our Friends From the Sea: An Educational Sea Lion Experience” in the Aquatheatre

·Sunday, April 11: Nightwind in the Hersheypark Amphitheatre and “Our Friends From the Sea: An Educational Sea Lion Experience” in the Aquatheatre

 

In addition, other Hershey attractions – The Hershey Story, The Museum on Chocolate Avenue; Hershey Gardens; and Hershey’s Chocolate World – will be open, providing guests with even more entertainment options during their visit.

[Jim S.]

The ride list on their website now includes the rides in Midway America!

[tatertot3710]

Fahrenheit is gone!

[larrygator]

^I was planning on going to meet up with my family, but without Fahrenheit, I'll probably just go in May instead. Bummer

[tatertot3710]

I heard on another site that the park was awaiting parts and the shipment was delayed during the Feb. Snowstorm. At least they'll open Midway, though.

 

6 snow days < Fahrenheit running at STITP

[adavis]

Called the park today about the Fahrenheit closure. Took three wires crossed to get to a person that knew what she was talking about.

 

She said the ride was close to open, really close, and that the refurb team was going virtually 24/7 to have it up and running for STITP. No guarantee is the official line, but if all goes well, the big F will be ready to go.

[tatertot3710]

Fahrenheit is now scheduled to operate during Springtime in the Park.

[ItsDavidU]

Has anyone gone to STITP on Easter day? What are the crowds like? It is really busy or really dead?

[Kingsislandfreak]

going on may with my chorus group

[YoshiFan]

Has anyone gone to STITP on Easter day? What are the crowds like? It is really busy or really dead?

 

I haven't gone on Easter Sunday but have seen trip reports from past years and it appears to be very light crowds. I was planning on going but it looks like for the 4th year in a row, it isn't going to happen.

[carolinacaniac]

Awesome! On the same day that I see that the sun is supposed to be out and the wheather great for everyday of my spring break first weekend trip that is going to be loaded with some parks, I find out that I should be able to get all credits at Hershey (minus Roller Soaker) when I go on Sunday!! Can't wait to get this trip rolling on Friday!

 

-Gary T.

[Ccron10]

I'm heading out there on Friday so hopefully because it's a weekday it won't be as full as it will be on Saturday. And while Fahrenheit will be open, I heard from a source that Great Bear might not be open for the first few days because they are waiting on a part.

But since the whole park is open (minus the water rides) lines hopefully won't be a big problem.

[adavis]

I'll be there Friday as well, I'm the guy with the huge ear piercings and sleeve tattoos. Hopefully it's slow!

[adavis]

SPTITP sucked, no plainer way to say it than that. My buddy and I split from the wife and my daughter as we got through the gates at ten, and hustled on over to Fahrenheit. Got front row on the second train and rode that orange and blue beast for the first time. Very fun coaster, one of my favorite modern loopers ever, to be entirely honest. Got right back on, maybe a ten minute wait, and rode in the back. Awesome energy, even better than the front as far as really feeling a ride goes. Good coaster short wait, we left. Big mistake.

 

Storm Runner was next, another fifteen and we were on, mysteriously the back cars on both coasters were not operating. No big deal. Yet. Storm Runner was fun, very forceful, similar to one one of the double-spire Intamin rides, nowhere near the force of one of their strata rides, obviously. Still, a good ride, with an awesome barrel roll and incredible unique element in the snake dive. I could have done without the headbanging pseudo trick track, but otherwise good stuff. We decided after SR it was time to meet up with the wife and kid again, further rides on SR and big orange could wait...or could they?

 

As we made our way back to the central hub of Hershey, we were dismayed to note that what had started out as a reasonably empty day was turning into a full on deluge of people. Like, thousands of them. The wife, kid, pal and I all booked it over to Sooperdooperlooper so my daughter could do her first looper, and honestly, first decent steel coaster. The ride was down, but even more troubling was the sight we saw as we walked to the looper, The Comet had acquired a line far exceeding its que. The four of us, even the youngest in our group exchanged a look. Hershey's rather mundane woodie had a line that was at least two hours, minutes after SR was a near walk on. We waited for the necessary repairs to to SDL and and boarded the fifth or sixth train.

 

The daughter loved her first looper, and I had a nice time on the aged Shwartzkopf, especially next to my yipping six year old. The Comet was even busier as we passed it to head to Wildcat, Great Bear had yet to spin a train and the park was filling faster and more full than anything I've ever seen outside of Cedar Point on a Saturday. Only, not like that. This park was dead, and now was alive and teeming with rude, mouth breathing idiots all too welcome to jump a line, make disparaging comments about my looks, or just walk up and snap a picture of the freak. Let it be noted, the latter two I'm used to, though never in this frequency, but I've never borne witness to a such a hive mind mentality in an amusement park, not even Disney. These people rolled in like fat mountain locusts and worked from the front to the back of the park in a swarm, destroying the good times of all who were too slow to move ahead of their advance.

 

The Wildcat was fun, nowhere near the banger I'd heard it to be and Lightning Racer was fun as well, though I do feel the Wildcat to be a smidge underrated and Lightning Racer to be a bit over. Regardless, two fun woodies. At this point, the park was literally impenetrable with people. Surprisingly, this was also the point where Great Bear started to roar in the form of a few test runs. Intrigued, we crossed the park.

 

B&M Coasters, with the noted exception of flyers, tend to have an extremely high rider turnover ratio. So when we again split from the wife daughter team to que up for the lone B&M in the park, it was expected that the short line would lead to a quick ride. This was not to be. Numerous incidents of line jumping, some I caught, some I didn't, extreme rudeness from other patrons of the park and then the real shocker, only one train was running. Just over an hour later, after waiting through just two lines of aluminum dividers we were able to ride Great Bear. Only not together.

 

I hopped through, tossed my sandals in the appropriate bin and saw the gate slam shut on my friend. We had both been dismayed to see Great Bear running only one train, but had been even more so to see it running with up to ten seats empty. Now we knew why, the ride ops cared so little to fill the trains that they were letting the gates shut before people could even get through to ride. A single rider line separates the men from the boys as far as parks go, and Hershey was so woeful as to not even let a ride fill when there were single riders whose turn was next.

 

We reconvened with the group, Great Bear ranked for me as better than Raptor, not as good as Batman. There are better inverts and there are worse, but I did dig this one. At this point however, the park had been fully taken over, it would have been hard to buy food, much less ride anything. Nine hours in a car each way and six hours into Hershey and we called it good. Great variety of rides, very good staff for the most part, and still one of the worst trips I've ever taken. As we left I checked Fahrenheit's que one last time, there was no way it was less than three hours.

[SharkTums]

Whenever the weather is nice, Hershey seems to fill way over capacity! Their operations have never impressed me and they offer no skip the line program.

 

At least you got some good rides on the Intamin's before giving up!

[adavis]

Whenever the weather is nice, Hershey seems to fill way over capacity! Their operations have never impressed me and they offer no skip the line program.

 

At least you got some good rides on the Intamin's before giving up!

 

Admittedly, the weather was great, the Intamins were great, and there should be little to be flustered about. That said, the park was very poorly run, I cannot imagine them turning away anyone, regardless of the crowd in the park. To put this in perspective, my wife wanted to buy a pretzel. She couldn't.

[chocofan2]

SPTITP sucked, no plainer way to say it than that. My buddy and I split from the wife and my daughter as we got through the gates at ten, and hustled on over to Fahrenheit. Got front row on the second train and rode that orange and blue beast for the first time. Very fun coaster, one of my favorite modern loopers ever, to be entirely honest. Got right back on, maybe a ten minute wait, and rode in the back. Awesome energy, even better than the front as far as really feeling a ride goes. Good coaster short wait, we left. Big mistake.

 

Storm Runner was next, another fifteen and we were on, mysteriously the back cars on both coasters were not operating. No big deal. Yet. Storm Runner was fun, very forceful, similar to one one of the double-spire Intamin rides, nowhere near the force of one of their strata rides, obviously. Still, a good ride, with an awesome barrel roll and incredible unique element in the snake dive. I could have done without the headbanging pseudo trick track, but otherwise good stuff. We decided after SR it was time to meet up with the wife and kid again, further rides on SR and big orange could wait...or could they?

 

As we made our way back to the central hub of Hershey, we were dismayed to note that what had started out as a reasonably empty day was turning into a full on deluge of people. Like, thousands of them. The wife, kid, pal and I all booked it over to Sooperdooperlooper so my daughter could do her first looper, and honestly, first decent steel coaster. The ride was down, but even more troubling was the sight we saw as we walked to the looper, The Comet had acquired a line far exceeding its que. The four of us, even the youngest in our group exchanged a look. Hershey's rather mundane woodie had a line that was at least two hours, minutes after SR was a near walk on. We waited for the necessary repairs to to SDL and and boarded the fifth or sixth train.

 

The daughter loved her first looper, and I had a nice time on the aged Shwartzkopf, especially next to my yipping six year old. The Comet was even busier as we passed it to head to Wildcat, Great Bear had yet to spin a train and the park was filling faster and more full than anything I've ever seen outside of Cedar Point on a Saturday. Only, not like that. This park was dead, and now was alive and teeming with rude, mouth breathing idiots all too welcome to jump a line, make disparaging comments about my looks, or just walk up and snap a picture of the freak. Let it be noted, the latter two I'm used to, though never in this frequency, but I've never borne witness to a such a hive mind mentality in an amusement park, not even Disney. These people rolled in like fat mountain locusts and worked from the front to the back of the park in a swarm, destroying the good times of all who were too slow to move ahead of their advance.

 

The Wildcat was fun, nowhere near the banger I'd heard it to be and Lightning Racer was fun as well, though I do feel the Wildcat to be a smidge underrated and Lightning Racer to be a bit over. Regardless, two fun woodies. At this point, the park was literally impenetrable with people. Surprisingly, this was also the point where Great Bear started to roar in the form of a few test runs. Intrigued, we crossed the park.

 

B&M Coasters, with the noted exception of flyers, tend to have an extremely high rider turnover ratio. So when we again split from the wife daughter team to que up for the lone B&M in the park, it was expected that the short line would lead to a quick ride. This was not to be. Numerous incidents of line jumping, some I caught, some I didn't, extreme rudeness from other patrons of the park and then the real shocker, only one train was running. Just over an hour later, after waiting through just two lines of aluminum dividers we were able to ride Great Bear. Only not together.

 

I hopped through, tossed my sandals in the appropriate bin and saw the gate slam shut on my friend. We had both been dismayed to see Great Bear running only one train, but had been even more so to see it running with up to ten seats empty. Now we knew why, the ride ops cared so little to fill the trains that they were letting the gates shut before people could even get through to ride. A single rider line separates the men from the boys as far as parks go, and Hershey was so woeful as to not even let a ride fill when there were single riders whose turn was next.

 

We reconvened with the group, Great Bear ranked for me as better than Raptor, not as good as Batman. There are better inverts and there are worse, but I did dig this one. At this point however, the park had been fully taken over, it would have been hard to buy food, much less ride anything. Nine hours in a car each way and six hours into Hershey and we called it good. Great variety of rides, very good staff for the most part, and still one of the worst trips I've ever taken. As we left I checked Fahrenheit's que one last time, there was no way it was less than three hours.

 

As a rides employee, I would like to apologize personally for your visit. I did not work at the park today, but I have worked as a ride operator for two full seasons and I spoke with my friend who did work today about how the first operating day of the year went. Keep in mind, that today was the first day of "real" work for probably hundreds of ride operators. In addition, the good weather caused RECORD turnouts today at the park. However, Rides is a great department at Hershey and they really do strive for guest satisfaction, and I bet they were probably disappointed in the way today went as well. I believe Great Bear probably has only had one train put together and inspected so far this season, and it was thought that the one train that was operational would be enough for expected crowds. Tomorrow will be another first day for even more Rides employees, and if the crowds are anything like they were today, it will probably be a strenuous day for both employees and guests. I hope that, during your visit, you did have a good overall experience, though. And again, I feel bad for the slower-than-normal loading times and unanticipated waits that you experienced.

[HPCrazy]

No surprise to me. I was told it was worse yesterday than the day before Easter last year. I remember going on that day and waiting approx 45 min for Great Bear, second row with an almost filled queue. I never EVER seen the Comet with a line like that on the busiest day that I was there, and that includes setting up some temporary switch-backs in the midway. I predict today will be even worse by far....double or even tripple the amount of people over yesterday.

 

I agree with Sharktums, Hershey really needs to invest in a ride reservation system, similar to Fastpass, or something like Six Flags uses (even if it requires a small fee). When my family and I go to Disney, we always take advantage of Fastpass sometime during our stay. It really does help, even at times in the off-season. The park should've looked at something like this for this season, with no new rides on the roster. That, plus the new entertainment options should've been the 2010 headliners. I think that they would be surprised on how popular such a system would be for the park, especially for rides like Fahrenheit (way too overrated, even over Storm Runner). Speaking of that, I really hate being in a mob of very rude teenagers and young adults (who are usually told by security guards to slow down along the way) who run to it every year when Alex and I walk back there for my first ride of the day.

 

If Hershey doesn't see a need for this option, then they need to add some more single rider lines to some of the more popular attractions. I remember riding Fahrenheit during its first season and, of course, the queue was full on a non-busy day due to its newness, I decided to take the single rider line and only waited five min for the third row. Can't beat that! I think Comet, Great Bear and Storm Runner all should have single rider lines installed elsewhere, if people don't mind riding by themselves or with another rider.