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For chocolate lovers, Hershey is the place to be

published October 03, 2005

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( 109 votes, average: 4.7 out of 5)
What do you think about this article? Rate it using the stars above and let us know what you think in the comments below.
As someone who thinks chocolate should be one of the main food groups, it was a natural choice for my family's vacation. The scent of chocolate floated through the air each time the cocoa trains rolled by the hotel and, yes, the streetlights are shaped like giant Kisses. It is every chocoholic's fantasy come true, but even non-chocolate lovers can find something enjoyable and relaxing to do in and around Hershey.

A WORLD OF CHOCOLATE


While Hershey may be home to the largest chocolate-manufacturing business in the world, put aside any Willy Wonka-esque fantasies about sampling the latest inventions and swimming in rivers of chocolate. Hershey stopped offering real factory tours in 1973. In its place is Hershey's Chocolate World, the official visitors center of The Hershey Co.

And here's the big twist: It's free.

Talk about family-friendly! A sign as you enter asks visitors to please dress appropriately. "No thongs, Speedo bikinis, or brief halter tops."

Strolling Hershey-product characters greet you throughout the facility for photo opportunities. While there, visitors can view the chocolate-making process beginning with the harvesting of the cocoa beans and ending on an Epcot Center-like ride through a simulated Hershey's chocolate factory. The smells of chocolate are real, even if it is behind glass, and the Hershey Kiss assembly line is interesting. Also behind glass is a giant tub of liquid chocolate that looks inviting enough to bathe in. (You can't do that here, but it can be done! More on that later.)

Hershey's "Really Big 3-D Show" has an admission fee, but the movie is worth the small price of the ticket. The special-effects-filled movie by the makers of Disney's "It's a Bug's Life" is about - what else - chocolate making.

Also free is the relatively new feature Hershey's Factory Works Experience. Young children enjoy getting a paper hat and pretending to work on the line in the Kisses factory. For a fee, you can get your child a factory ID card with his photo and a small tub of Kisses.

Then it's off to the gift shops and food court filled with every product, new and old, made by Hershey, along with T-shirts, mugs, stuffed animals and just about any candy-related gift you can think of. Nothing free here. In fact, in the "Things-that-make-you-go-hmmmmm" department, you may wonder why a giant Hershey bar that costs 95 cents at the grocery store around the corner is $1.95 at Chocolate World.

Don't miss the Hershey's Bake Shoppe filled with tantalizing pastries and desserts. Kids can decorate their own cupcakes. Tell them not to ask for M&Ms, though.

Finally, the Hershey Trolley leaves from Chocolate World. Singing conductors treat you to a musical history of Hershey while pointing out attractions throughout the town. Nearby is the Hershey Museum where guests can explore the stories of Milton Hershey, his business and his town. Admission is charged.

HERSHEY PARK

You may want to invest in a two-day package when it comes to HersheyPark, the 110-acre amusement park in the center of town.

Featured are 10 roller coasters including Storm Runner, a high-speed-launch coaster introduced last year. Two coasters allow younger riders, including the SuperDooper Looper, which turns riders upside down. What's nice is that games and kiddie rides are interspersed around the large rides so people like me have something to do while the big kids are on the coasters and anything else that goes off the ground.

Musicals and live bands give visitors a way to beat the heat inside air-conditioned theaters, or you can hit the six water rides.

Tip: Go to ZooAmerica on the same day you visit HersheyPark. Admission is included and you enter from within the park. If you go to ZooAmerica separately, an additional admission fee is charged. The zoo is an 11-acre park with more than 200 animals representing five regions of North America. Check out admission plans before you go. For example, if you purchase your tickets the evening before you plan to go, you can enjoy the park for 2 1/2 hours of preview time that night for free.

INDIAN ECHO CAVERNS

Just a few minutes from Hershey is the Indian Echo Caverns in Hummelstown. If you can ignore the wannabe stand-up comedians leading the tours, you may enjoy walking about 110 feet below the ground into a giant natural cavern inhabited by early explorers and the Susquehannock Indians more than 300 years ago.

The tour is 45 minutes long and the guide explains the cavern's geology and history, and shows the beautiful formation of the cavern. He also shares stories and legends about the Pennsylvania Hermit, William Wilson, and "The Mystery Box." The temperature is a constant 52 degrees and the cavern is not wheelchair accessible. Cameras with flash and camcorders are permitted.

WHITAKER CENTER OF THE ARTS

The nearby state capital of Harrisburg is filled with cultural activities and great restaurants and malls. A great place to visit if you have children 5 and older is the Whitaker Center for the Arts that opened in 1999. Among its attractions are the Sunoco Performance Theatre and an IMAX Theatre, where we saw "Fighter Pilot," which takes you behind the scenes at a Top Gun military training school. It's not for those who get motion sickness easily. The nine major exhibit areas of the Harsco Science Center explore physical science, natural science, life science, technology, mathematics and links between science and the arts.

THE SPA AT HERSHEY

Yes, you can bathe in a tub of chocolate or have it massaged into your skin! The Spa At The Hotel Hershey is a haven of old-world elegance, timeless sophistication and lots of Hershey's chocolate.

The newest addition to the town draws its influence from High Point mansion, the home of chocolate magnate Milton Hershey and his wife, Catherine. It features stained-glass windows, marble landings, pecan paneling and beautiful views of the hotel's formal gardens.

Day spa treatments range from the Whipped Cocoa Bath, a foaming chocolate milk bath for $45, to the Chocolate Fondue Wrap, where warmed moor mud and essence of cocoa revitalizes and nourishes the skin as it relaxes the body for $105.

My personal favorite was the Cocoa Massage: Hershey's signature chocolate-scented massage oil along with a classic Swedish massage. Spa packages start at $120 for the Hershey Kiss to $322 for the Chocolate Escape.

A bargain, in my book!

IF YOU GO

Visit www.hersheypa.com for details or call (877) 772-9988.

Guests of Hershey Resorts have access to the courses at Hershey Country Club, as well as two public courses, Parkview Golf Course, which offers 18 holes of golf on challenging greens, and Spring Creek Golf Course, a nine-hole course specifically designed with junior players in mind. For overnight packages, call (800) HERSHEY.

The heart of Amish country, Lancaster, Pa., is a 30-minute drive from Hershey and is home to Dutch Wonderland. Named Best Kids' Park in a 2004 survey by Amusement Today, hundreds of amusement park fans voted Dutch Wonderland Family Amusement Park among the "Top Five Best Kids' Parks" in the world. The 48-acre park has 30 rides, special shows and nearby attractions such as the Lancaster County History Museum, Wonderland Mini-Golf and The Gift House at Kitchen Kettle Village. Also featured are events that showcase kids' talents and interactive shows the whole family can star in.

New interactive attractions include Duke's Lagoon water play area, the Adventures of the Frog Prince fairy tale high-dive show, and story time with the Princess of Dutch Wonderland.



Lisa Reicosky is a staff writer for The Repository in Canton, Ohio.

© Copley News Service

published October 03, 2005

( 109 votes, average: 4.7 out of 5)
What do you think about this article? Rate it using the stars above and let us know what you think in the comments below.