16 replies to this topic

[Thunderhead]

I'll be heading back to Hershey in July, specifically July 15-19 I think. As far as I know, we will be doing Hersheypark over a two-day span since our last trip in August 2007 was only a one-day trip and we missed a ton of stuff.

Post your tips here so I can get everything ridden and still do the fun Hershey related stuff. Our plan is to go on Monday and Tuesday in hopes that the crowds will be lightest then. My strategy is to head away from Comet and Skyrush and what not, then come back in early afternoon. I do this at Busch Gardens and manage to beat crowds that start with Apollos Chariot. Good idea?

Give me insight, and you will be blessed with the best TR, pics, ride reviews, and anything else you want that is free for me to give.

[The BeastFan]

Now, I'm going on about this having not done Skyrush and only been to Hershey twice, but I usually just start at Comet and work my way back to Lightning Racer/Wildcat and then come back. Obviously, I imagine the area by Comet being packed with Skyrush riders, which I would say just get there early and get Skyrush first. It will be easier on the waits as you're going in the middle of the week. I went in 2008 when Fahrenheit was new and only had a 30 minute wait for it (mainly due to its capacity, Skyrush should chew through lines). Other waits of interest were 20 for Comet, less than 15 for Great Bear and Storm Runner, walk ons for the GCI's, Sidewinder, Trailblazer, Wild Mouse and Looper. One other ride of interest, IMO, is Coal Cracker. Its a neat flume which is elevated for most of the course. You get great views of GB and Looper and the drop is great. Also remember that Sidewinder and Looper have new trains, so those might be of interest for you.

A gem I found in finding food is a BBQ place at the valley where Storm Runner circles around. Its the best food for the price and is amazing.

[Thunderhead]

Thanks Mike, definitely going to have to check out Coal Cracker, I thoroughly enjoyed SDL. Fahrenheit wasn't opened. What time of year did you go? I went the third week in August and it was packed on a rainy day. Crowds didn't lighten up until after 6. I'm just thinking Skyrush will be packed in the morning with people coming in and going right to it with it being right near the entrance.

[The BeastFan]

Last time I went was right around the 4th of July.

[Tori Finlay]

I'd wait til Danny gives his insight, as he's actually ridden Skyrush.

Anyway, I've always headed straight to the back to get the GCI triplets, and check out how Fahrenheit's line is. I usually manage to luck out with Fahrenheit and ride that before the GCIs. The I circle around to do Storm Runner and Sidewinder (again, line determines which I do first), before heading up to Great Bear and finally down to Comet's Hollow. I agree with your original theory that everybody will run for Skyrush and you should be better off if you just come back to it later.

And I've always eaten at Chocolate World.

[Thunderhead]

Thanks Tori! Do you have any idea what lines are generally like on a Monday in Mid-July? If lines are under 45-60 minutes I'd be content. I'll probably take your approach and check out Fahrenheit and the GCI's and maybe spend some time in the boardwalk.

[Vater]

Just something to keep in the back of your mind (if you're able to splurge a little), Hershey now has Fast Track, a skip the line system. 50 bucks gets you immediate rides on all but three of the coasters, and though it doesn't indicate which ones are excluded, I've heard Skyrush, Fahrenheit, and Roller Soaker. Personally, I doubt if you'd need it on a Monday, but I'd probably spring for one on a mid-summer weekend as the crowds can get huge.

Also, the Hersheypark mobile app looks pretty useful.

[Thunderhead]

Just something to keep in the back of your mind (if you're able to splurge a little), Hershey now has Fast Track, a skip the line system. 50 bucks gets you immediate rides on all but three of the coasters, and though it doesn't indicate which ones are excluded, I've heard Skyrush, Fahrenheit, and Roller Soaker. Personally, I doubt if you'd need it on a Monday, but I'd probably spring for one on a mid-summer weekend as the crowds can get huge.

Also, the Hersheypark mobile app looks pretty useful.

I'll definitely download the app, but hopefully I won't need the pass going on a Monday and Tuesday. Thanks!

[Tori Finlay]

I imagine they'll be under 45. It'll probably just be Skyrush and Fahrenheit that'll have serious waits. Storm Runner might if it's being cranky, and Roller Soaker ALWAYS has a horrific line. I've never ridden it because I've never had the patience to wait.

[steel-Rock]

^ Last week (Tuesday, June 5th) I rode Skyrush twice right away. Then it got backed up to about an hour wait. Sometime around 4:00 or 5:00 it broke down and didn't work the rest of the day. Comet, SDL, and Great Bear were about 20 to 30 minutes each at that morning time. I came across Fahrenheit next. By early afternoon, I waited 30 minutes. After finding the path to them, I went back to Storm Runner, Sidewinder, and Trailblazer. All of those were 20 minutes or less waits. The real surprise is what happened next. Roller Soaker had about 7 people in line. The sky had turned gray at noon and the threat of rain must have driven people to their favorites that they thought they couldn't ride if a storm got bad. Anyway with short lines, I road each side of Lightning Racer and one trip on Wildcat. Then I did something I don't do very often; I had a thought. There are 12 coasters at Hershey, but I just rode 11. Oh no, not a wild mouse! The stupid things I do for my ego. Fortunately the line and the pain was not very bad. Now it was time to get on the flats. I'm not sure of the order, but Kissing Tower, Coal Cracker, Monorail, and Skyview had to be experienced. That was about it. After the flats, I went back to Comet, SDL, Great Bear, Sidewinder, Fahrenheit, and Wildcat. I ended the day with a mini-marathon back on Lightning Racer. (The Lightning side won every time; strange.) Skyrush, Fahrenheit, and Roller Soaker were new to me. Fahrenheit was the big happy surprise. SDL and Sidewinder seemed to be improved from last time. I always like their flats with Coal Cracker having that nice little bit of air at the end of the drop.

[Thunderhead]

If that's the case when I go I'll be ecstatic. Thanks sR

[Tori Finlay]

I hit Hershey for less than five hours last Wednesday, and managed two ten minute waits, and a fifteen minute wait for Skyrush, plus a plethora of other rides. I'll elaborate more when I post a trip report later. Hopefully it helps, too.

[Thunderhead]

Great, thanks Tori! I need to confirm that I'll be at the park on Monday and Tuesday. If that's not the plan I will make it the plan.

[Thunderhead]

A little update:

We leave on Sunday. Staying at the Hershey Highmeadow campground. I'm extremely excited to ride Skyrush and enjoy the park. It's been 5 years. I only got to ride 6 of the ten that were there when I went so I'm hoping to get rides in the ones I missed.



Based on this I'll be going on Monday and Tuesday. It's been inconsistent this far out but the closer it gets the more it seems it will be a nice day at the park. Kook said he went on a Sunday and experienced a 15-45 minute wait for Skyrush. Hope that's true for Mondays and Tuesdays. Initial plans are to head back to Fahrenheit then work around there since its a capacity killer.

If anyone has any other thoughts or input I'd love to hear it.

Edited by Thunderhead, 11 July 2012 - 01:01 AM.

[Thunderhead]

Monday I went for day one. It was crowded when you looked at the number of people just walking around and parking lot wise, but the longest wait was Great Bear at about 30-35 minutes. I'll have some more in depth stuff when I get home. Just wanted to share the problem I had in line with another guest. Copied from my Facebook.

Yesterday, in line for Storm Runner at Hersheypark I had a "confrontation." Brandon and I were trying to get to row two. A man in row 5 was holding on to a railing seperating row one line and the rest of the lines and blocking the way to get to rows 2-5 by doing so. I waited until the train dispatched in hopes that the congestion would clear up. It didn't. I politely asked which line he was in to see if he would let me by to get to two. He replied to me with an attitude, "Just hold on buddy, we're trying to get something straight." I said...

"Ok, I'm just trying to figure out where you're at so I can get to row two," I said politely.

"I know, just hold on a second." At this point I believe he thought I was some 16 year old he could push around. This time I got a bit of an attitude and told him, "That's fine but there's no reason to get an attitude with me." After I said to Brandon, "Let's go I'm not going to put up with this." We went to row two on Red Train and had the same problem. I asked if I could go to row two, the lady said yes go ahead. If you took the time to read this then bravo. General point is this tool decided to block rows 2-5 so his family could ride together. I'm sorry, I was unaware your family had such a hard time counting. It's such an easy concept. He got in line for Sidewinder afterwards. It was a family of five. I've gotten groups twice that size on the same train.

I also noticed that Hersheyparks's are kind of slow. I don't mean any disrespect but some wait times could really be cut down if they moved a little quicker. Of note was Fahrenheit and Sidewinder. They were extremely show. I also think if they opened the gates sooner to let the next riders in would help. They wait until EVERYONE is out of the station. Just something weird.

[biZarRo]

^It was very slow opening day for Skyrush. They were triple checking every restraint that day, so that would be the cause of it. It was about an hour opening day with 2 trains running, but now since I've been there last Wednesday, it was about a half hour with ONE train running.

[Danny Miller]

Yes. Loading and unloading has improved very much, and like I said in my blog, I think alot of that has to do with newer bins and the crew just simply having the time to get used to checking harnesses and getting into a rhythm of sorts.
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