Summer Snacks at Hersheypark!
Summertime is in full swing at Hersheypark and we are back to see what is new and exciting for 2024. Each year brings new treats, sweets and savory food items to the lineup, and it’s become a tradition of ours to take a little stroll through our home park and pick up some of the new and interesting culinary creations to see what we think. This year, we also upgraded to the brand new Giant Size passholder tier, so we had a one-time fast track to use on any eligible ride as well as the new Giant Size lounge to check out. We started out our day by taking the Skyrush bypass to the hollow, located next to the locker bay past the Starbucks. This pathway provides gorgeous views of Skyrush and Comet and is the quickest way to get to the Hollow from the main entrance (provided it is open for guest access).
We decided to start our day with a front-row ride on the recently refurbished Skyrush. This beast of a coaster still delivers on intensity, now with a bit more comfort thanks to the new restraints. The park also leaned hard into the “air travel” theming post-refurb, which we really appreciate as lovers of all things immersive and atmospheric! It is definitely a must-do coaster in the park, for those brave enough to fly. While in the hollow, we had to check out the construction taking place on the other wide of the creek. Hersheypark recently announced that a Twizzler-themed flat ride called ‘Twizzlers: Twisted Gravity” would be making its debut in the Hollow come the summer of 2025, and we can’t wait to be some of the first to ride this record-breaking attraction.
Next, we enjoyed the bird’s eye view from the Kissing Tower before heading back to Milton’s for our first summertime snack. Tim enjoyed the chicken-fried steak and waffle sandwich while Katie devoured the B.E.L.T. (bacon, egg, lettuce, tomato). It was certainly a strong start to a day of snacking! After a nice breezy ride around the monorail, we found seats for the next “Our Friends from the Sea” show in the aqua theater. This is an adorable educational activity that - fun fact - is included with park admission. We love to see the creatures and learn more about Hershey’s conservation efforts. Close encounters like feeding and photo opportunities can be purchased after the show, if you have an animal lover in your party.
After the show, we noticed the short line for Storm Runner, so we couldn’t resist a ride on this fabulous launch coaster. We were pretty much willing to do anything to stay out of the sun for a few minutes. Next, we went back to the Hollow to try the Nashville hot chicken flatbread. This was another hit for us, the spice level was perfect and the pickles paired really well with the heat from the chicken. After a ride on Wildcat’s Revenge, we made a beeline for the Giant size passholder lounge for a dose of air conditioning. This is one of the perks of being a Giant Size passholder. The lounge is located on the side of the Ferris wheel and features both indoor and outdoor seating areas. Inside, there is a snack vending machine and a complimentary soda fountain for refillable cups and water bottles. There are also plenty of outlets to charge devices. We waited out a small summer rainstorm in the lounge, and then headed to Berks for our final snack of the day, the Dry Gulch dog.
In our final hour of park time, we used our one-time fast track to skip the line for Reese’s cup fusion and took in the sights from Skyview. On our way out, we stopped at photo services to sync up our ride photos to our passes and noticed a new feature. Using AI facial recognition, the system can now pick out your ride photos from the whole day. Creepy, but also kind of cool! We also ran into our friend and fellow Hersheypark enthusiast Tim from Storming Thrills, who joined us for a couple rides on some of Hershey’s best coaster offerings. All in all, we can certainly say that we had a full, fun park day - but how did we rate our 2024 summer snack crawl, as compared to the offerings of previous years at the park? Check out our vlog for our hot (and cold) takes on the summer offerings at the Sweetest Place on Earth!
