Hershey Family Vacations

Hershey has an outstanding amusement park. Still, I was trying to justify the three-hour trip from central New Jersey, which is really about four and a half hours when you travel with a 7-year old. Why come here, when there are plenty of good amusement parks nearby? The answer comes down to one word: chocolate. I am wild about it. I like high-end chocolates, dark chocolate, and Hershey's Kisses. I was a bit worried about over-indulging on our visit. At the end of every meal, like when you get fortune cookies at Chinese restaurants, here they give you Kisses. Most of the shops had bowls of Kisses and Miniatures next to the registers for the taking. When we checked into The Hotel Hershey and The Hershey Lodge, our room keys came with chocolate bars. Upon exiting some exhibits, we were handed more candy.

To offset this we did a lot of walking. The amusement park is first-rate. Roller coaster enthusiasts come for the wooden and steel rides. The newest coaster is Fahrenheit, a thrill ride that ascends 121 feet with a 97-degree drop. We heard the screams from across the large parking lot. I must admit that I prefer less death-defying rides. My son and I went on The Howler, which is rated a "medium" thrill ride. It has a few twists and turns, and you can control how fast you spin around in the air. We also liked the bumper cars and Classic Car ride, where kids can drive a car on a controlled track.