Details: We spent the weekend in Pennsylvania and Hershey’s Chocolate World took up one of those days. We drove there and spent the night at Hilton Garden Inn in Hummelstown, PA.
Vanessa’s Thoughts:
I thought Hershey’s Chocolate World was a lot of fun! My cousins surprised me by joining us for the day so that was even more fun. My favorite part was designing my very own chocolate bar. I thought it was cool to watch the process of my candy bar being made. I especially liked designing the wrapper (and of course eating the candy bar when it was finished!). It was very yummy. I put pretzel and chocolate cookie bits in my bar and then sprinkles on top.
I also thought the 4D movie was great. There were special effects in the audience, like air being blown on our seat and bubbles coming down. I thought that was fun and really cool. We wore 3D glasses, so it made the characters look like they were coming off the screen into the audience. Outside the theatre, there were pictures of the candy bars at famous locations around the world, such as the Eiffel Tower or the Great Wall, so that was neat to look at. The main thing I did not like about our trip was the lines. There was a long line to get into the parking lot and then again while we waited for the trolley. Luckily, I was able to run around and play with my cousins while we waited for the trolley, but I would have preferred a shorter wait.
At dinner that night, I had a cheeseburger. There were so many options on the kid’s menu, so that was great. Some places don’t give you much of a selection, but this place did, which is a little surprising since it is a brewery. My cheeseburger came with french fries and ice cream as well so that was great. Though we had to take the ice cream home because after the calamari appetizer (and eating candy all day) I did not have any room for it. I never thought I would say that! Overall, I liked Iron Hill Brewery and Restaurant and it was definitely kid friendly so check it out next time you visit Hershey PA.
We did not spend much time in the hotel until after dinner. I went straight to the pool once we got back. The pool was clean, though the water was a bit chilly and it had a slight yellow tint to it. I’m not sure if it had to do with the lighting in the room because the pool was clean, but both my mom and I did notice the color. I do wish it was a salt water pool because I like those better but overall the pool was great. There were several other people there, so it did feel a bit crowded since the pool was not huge but I made friends with a girl who was in town for a soccer tournament so that was fun. The hot tub was nice too as kids were allowed to go in with an adult. A lot of people would go into the hot tub, get hot and then jump into the cold pool. It made the water feel not as chilly. The only thing that was slightly disappointing was that the hotel did not have an arcade/game room, but mom said we would not have had time to visit it anyways so it really was not a big deal.
Rating:
Mom’s Two Cents: First thing to know is that Hershey Park and Hershey’s Chocolate World are 2 separate attractions. They are next door to each other and Hershey’s Chocolate World is free to enter, but if you want to do any of the attractions, such as Create Your Own Candy Bar, then you need separate tickets. We decided to just focus on the chocolate for this trip so we did not visit Hershey Park. We bought the Adventure 1 bundle ticket that included parking plus 4 attractions. The Create Your Own Candy Bar was by far everyone’s favorite activity. It was really cool to pick your ingredients, design the wrapper and then watch it each step of the process. You follow your candy bar along the conveyor belt as the shell is poured, the ingredients get added and it is then covered with chocolate, cooled and wrapped. It really was neat.
In addition to the attractions, there is a gift shop, places to eat and lots of photo opportunities. Candy is given out at almost all of the attractions so you will leave with way more candy than you want. The staff was super friendly and accommodating as well. Traffic getting into the parking lot was a nightmare. We waited in line for 30 minutes only to be told the lot was closed and we had to turn around and park on the other side of the park. This made us miss our first attraction, but Hershey’s policy is to rebook or refund you if you miss an attraction so it was not an issue. Traffic also caused the trolley to be 30 minutes late, but staff was very apologetic and handed out candy as part of their apology. If you are arriving mid day like we were, definitely plan for traffic and leave yourselves extra time to park. I thought 45 minutes would be plenty of time but it was not so learn from our mistake!
We stayed at the Hilton Garden Inn Hershey hotel. The hotel was clean and 5 minutes from the park so that was great as we were quite tired at the end of the day. They have a pool and fitness center and both were well kept. I used points to pay for our stay so it was not a big deal that breakfast was not included in the rate, but there are other hotels in the vicinity that do include a free breakfast so something you may want to look into. There was free coffee, tea and water in the lobby so we were able to refill our water bottles on the way out, which was nice since we had a full day of activities planned. My only complaint about the hotel was the pillows. They were, as Vanessa describes, “smushy”. Your head sunk right to the mattress as soon as you laid down. Even stacking two pillows on top of each other did not help. I typically find beds in hotels super comfy and relaxing but my neck and shoulders were definitely sore in the morning due to the lack of support. I have not stayed at Hilton in a while, so I am not sure if all their pillows are like this or we just had back luck but that was the one thing I did not like.
For dinner we went to Iron Hill Brewery and Restaurant. We passed it on the trolley tour (which was super interesting and informative by the way) and the bright umbrellas and outdoor seating caught my eye. I felt like my husband could use a drink after the long day so I chose the brewery with him in mind, though unfortunately he did not love it. It was busy and the waiter spilled his beer on the table and did not provide a coaster, so it left the table pretty wet. Then the appetizer came (fried calamari) and it was definitely served in the wrong dish. The basket was super deep, but the calamari only covered the bottom layer of the dish, so it made the portion look very small. Vanessa and I thought it was yummy and ate it up, but I agree that plating could have been better. Finally, his chicken sandwich was dry so he could not catch a break that night. Vanessa and I had much better experiences with our food (I had the pork belly sandwich) and I thought the kid’s menu was quite extensive and reasonably priced. There were also activities to pass the time, though we did not have to wait long for the food to arrive. Vanessa and I would return to Iron Hill Brewery and Restaurant but I don’t think my husband would. There were lots of restaurant options though in the area so he has plenty of places to choose from the next time we visit.
Overall, we had a great trip. If your kids are not super into rides, then just going to Hershey’s Chocolate World is definitely the way to go. And if your kids are into rides then stopping by Hershey’s Chocolate World is definitely a great way to spend an afternoon or a couple of hours, depending on how many attractions you want to do. Hershey’s Chocolate World is primarily inside so scorching heat or rain will not dampen the experience at all. Because the area attracts so many visitors, there are tons of options when it comes to lodging and restaurants. We choose places in close proximity to each other because we did not want to drive more than we had to but there are lots of options across all price points. Some people even pair it with a day in Harrisburg (which did have slightly cheaper hotels, but nothing significant). We chose to explore caves and ice cream for the rest of our weekend but there really are a lot of attractions in the area so you can easily keep yourself busy for multiple days. If you have not ventured out to Hershey, PA then definitely add it to your list!
Resources:
Hershey’s Chocolate World: https://www.chocolateworld.com/home.html
Hershey Park: https://www.hersheypark.com/
Hilton Garden Inn Hershey: https://www.hilton.com/en/hotels/mdthegi-hilton-garden-inn-hershey
Iron Hill Brewery & Restaurant: https://www.ironhillbrewery.com/hershey-pa