I am super glad that it’s already Tuesday. It’s a bit tough getting back to the usual routine after being away last week at Hershey Park followed by the long Holiday weekend. I want to quickly recap our trip today and then tomorrow we can chat about yesterday’s 4 mile race!
Our trip last week to Hershey Park was such a good time! We were there for three days/two nights which gave us plenty of time to enjoy lots of chocolate and a ton of activities.
We stayed at the Hershey Lodge which I would definitely recommend if you are planning a trip to Hershey. It’s worth staying on property for so many reasons! The Hershey Lodge offers a ton resort activities, a nice fitness center, shuttle buses to the attractions, free parking at hotel, discounted park tickets and plenty of free chocolate!
Housekeeping left us Hershey’s Kisses when they made up our room but we ate those before I could take this picture.
A super cool new feature for this season located inside the Hershey Lodge (just opened Memorial Day Weekend!) is their indoor water park, Hershey Waterworks.
Waterworks has fun options for all ages. There were many water park activities for the little kids plus Twizzler water slides that start and end inside the building but twist outside!
My son spent a lot of time playing basketball in the pool. It was nice to relax at Waterworks each day of our stay rather than be on the go exploring attractions the entire time.
We have been to Hershey several times before so we didn’t need to see and do every single thing although, I am not one to stress about seeing every attraction on any trip I take. That’s way too stressful and vacation shouldn’t be stressful.
There’s also a food area (Cocoa Cabana) in Waterworks where my son bought a frozen chocolate bar for us as an afternoon snack break from the pool.
The Hershey Lodge is super big. Although we were far from the lobby, our room was nicely located near the Waterworks part of the lodge which put us also super close to the outdoor activities (tennis, outdoor pool, basketball and mini golf) plus the fitness center.
I hadn’t played tennis in a few years so this was really fun. We really took serious advantage of all of the activities at the Lodge to make it feel like a real vacation rather than just a trip to an amusement park.
We made s’mores by the fire pit at the Lodge one night which was delicious and as my son said, a good experience.
We had breakfast both mornings at Lebbie Lebichers which is one of the four restaurants located inside the Hershey Lodge. We went with the breakfast buffet option which is always our favorite type of hotel breakfast.
Of course I had steel-cut oatmeal plus a ton of fruit with yogurt and chocolate chips. Chocolate at every meal on this trip!
With every check came either Hershey Kisses or baggies of chocolate.
The Bears Den, which is a hockey-themed restaurant, is also located inside the Hershey Lodge. We dined there twice because we really liked both the food and atmosphere.
I ordered the veggie burger both times. It was topped with a Portobello mushroom plus lettuce and tomato but I also added sautéed onions mushrooms from the toppings list. I chose the side salad and we split a side order of onion rings.
One night after dinner we had the Puck sundae. The brownie which was the “puck” part of the sundae, was really dense and fudgy just how I like it.
Every time we go to Hershey we do the free Chocolate Tour at Chocolate World. The tour is similar to a ride experience at Disney World. It takes you through the process of making chocolate and then at the end, you receive a Hershey’s chocolate bar.
It was tough deciding which chocolate dessert to have at Chocolate World since there are SO MANY OPTIONS but I went with the Hershey’s Kisses brownie.
What I love about Hershey is that the actual amusement park is almost like an added bonus! Between the Hershey Lodge activities and Chocolate World, going to the park becomes an extra in some ways.
I bought a one day park pass through the Hershey Lodge concierge which offers you the best discounted pricing. The ticket also allows you to enter the park the evening before your day pass which is a super cool feature. We spent time at Hershey Park Tuesday evening and then went back Wednesday morning.
My son likes the games. This one was like a plinko, you know, from Price is Right?
I am absolutely not as young as I used to be because the same rollercoasters that I loved as a kid now make me want to throw up, faint or pray for my life.
As you can see from this photo while riding the Super Dooper Looper, my eyes are squeezed shut as I try to survive what used to thrill me as a kid.
I won’t stop going on rollercoasters though. I loved them so much when I was younger that I refuse to give in to how they make me feel now!
We had lunch at Hersheypark Place after walking through ZooAmerica (which is the zoo inside Hershey Park). Those crayons in the cup to the side of my salad were for me because I wanted to color while I waited for my lunch.
Seriously after every meal we were receiving chocolate.
I could have done without the major traffic on our way home from our trip. We cruised our way through Pennsylvania, even did okay getting through New Jersey but once we hit the George Washington Bridge heading back to New York, forget it.
Have I mentioned that I now wear my Pro Compression socks for long road trips? They make a huge difference in how my legs feel when cramped up in the car!
I went with my calf sleeves for this road trip and may have looked funny when we stopped at the rest stops but who cares. I was comfortable.
You can be sure that even before I went to the bathroom once we arrive home that I started up the laundry. Worst part about a trip to coming home to do the laundry! I am all caught up now and it’s a great feeling.
I will be back tomorrow to recap yesterday’s race!
Linking up with Meg’s week in review. 🙂
[bctt tweet=”recapping our trip to Hershey Park! #hersheyparkhappy #Hershey #chocolate #vacation #weekinreview ” username=”cookiechrunicle”]
How do you feel about rollercoasters?
Best thing you ate over the weekend?
What’s on the workout agenda for today?
The Cookie ChRUNicles 
Looks like such a fun trip! I love that there was so much to do in the hotel. I feel like I would never want to leave and go to the actual park! I went through a short phase in my late teenage years when I loved rollercoasters. Before that I was too nervous, and then as I got older they started making me nervous again, and now its just not worth the anxiety. The worst parts of coming back from a trip are traffic and laundry!
I swear the amusement park is an extra! Hershey is such a nice, clean place with so many things to do that going on the rides is a bonus.
I used to love roller coasters but haven’t been on one in so long so not sure how I’d feel now! We are definitely planning for Hershey in August so this makes me excited to see!
ohh, I am so excited for you. do you know where you are staying yet? ive stayed a bunch of places in hershey if you need any planning help!
I really really want to do the Hershey Half some day. I feel like running a half marathon while smelling chocolate would be perfect for me.
Also, I would have a perpetual stomach ache while at hershey because there is no way I could restrain myself.
I would love to do the Hershey half again. it was really a great experience and Hershey is a wonderful town.
Looks like such a fun and relaxing trip! I would have no restraint with all that chocolate. I am not a fan of roller coasters because heights scare me and I don’t like the sensation of not being in control of my movements. Laundry is the worst part of coming home but then life feels so much better when all those dirty clothes are clean.
no need for restraint when at Hershey park, the chocolate is part of the fun! I hope one day you come out east to Hershey and then new York!
I’ve definitely noticed that I can’t handle the crazy rides as well as I could when I was a kid. And even back then they weren’t my favourite 😯 And I’m always wearing compression socks on road trips and plane rides. I’m not 100% sure that they help me a tonne, but I figure the can’t hurt 😆
I do believe the compression socks make a huge difference in how my legs feel during long trips. I wear them on the plane and now for the car too. without them in the car, my legs would cramp up after 90 minutes. wearing them, it took more like 3 hours which was a huge difference! I must be getting old to discuss such things lol
So fun! Today I am headed back to Orangetheory Fitness after taking nearly two weeks off, so this is going to be an interesting workout! Haha.
I went to Hershey only once, when I was at camp in central PA in middle school. I wasn’t tall enough to ride the biggest coasters (do they still do height for rides named by different candies?) but liked the mouse coaster, and the chocolate tour was awesome!
OMG I hate roller coasters! They terrify me, but my husband loves them. I’m not into anything that deals with heights and/or falling from the sky. No thanks. Working this morning was Pure Barre!
This sounds so cool! LOVE the water park and the twizzler slide haha I would never want to leave the hotel! Free chocolate all the time, good restaurants, a water park…. what more could you need? I’m not a rollercoaster fan though. I went to Hershey for a conference a few years ago and we went to the chocolate factory but didn’t have time for the tour. We just walked around a bit and bought some chocolate. Sounds like a really fun trip for you two!
ok so I saw your email and must respond but I got so busy! emailing you right now.
What a fun trip to do with your son, great idea 😀 Hope you’re not all chocolated out…
never too much chocolate!
What a great photo!!!! I love rollercoasters. My favourite one is the Viper? I think it’s called? At Magic Mountain. Oh, maybe it’s called Six Flags now, in California.
I really love rollercoasters. I mean, I used to. I still want to but my body doesn’t agree so much anymore! we have a six flags here in new jersey, I used to go all of the time when I was younger!
Haha, I could go for the chocolate at every meal! Those desserts look incredible. I LOVE roller coasters! Sky Rush, Storm Runner, and Fahrenheit are some of my favorite rides at Hershey. I’d have to say the best thing I ate this weekend was a gingerbread peanut butter cookie peach crumble I made and topped with Nada Moo ice cream. The peaches were so juicy!!! I’m also looking forward to trying the “brookie” (brownie+cookie) bars I made for my Aunt’s birthday tonight. I was drooling at the smell of them when I was baking last night, I can’t wait to dive in! Today’s workout will be HIIT and lower body strength with a plyo burnout. It’s gonna be a killer, eek.
the brookie sounds delicious! I have made those a few times but not in forever!
Looks like an awesome trip! I have never been to Hershey, but everyone says it’s really fun – I should definitely try to get there one day. I loved roller coasters as a kid too, but haven’t been on one in about 15 years….I wonder if I would still like them 😉
you have to get there one time, maybe when you head back out this way for a trip!
I’d officially love to go to Hershey sometime! With my chocolate-loving family, I can’t believe I’ve never been.
you must go! it’s such a nice place
This place sounds amazing, and I’m so glad you had a great time. I love you and your son have a tradition of going there. I need to find things like this and make traditions with Ave. Also, chocolate with every meal and buffet breakfasts…yes please.
PS I love roller coasters and was hoping to go on some this summer but I’m not sure my girls can handle it. Will I be spraying milk everywhere?
you guys should go to Hershey when ave is a little older! I don’t know how far it is from ohio but I saw a lot of ohio license plates. Ha, I recall the nursing days and thinking things like that