Alexandria, VA – Is there such a thing as too much chocolate?
Finding a vacation destination for family members spanning three generations can be quite a conundrum. But for the Alexandria-based Miller family, chocolate lovers to the core, the lure of Hershey, PA, “The Sweetest Place on Earth,” the challenge of answering that question was too great to resist.
With an amusement park offering the most rollercoasters in the Northeast, a giant water park, a zoo, exquisite gardens, and an elegant spa, what more could anyone ask than a family holiday at Hershey?
The Millers have been making the easy 2½-hour trip from Alexandria literally for generations. This July marked three generations (now spread across two continents) enjoying Hershey together.
There was grandma Marlene; her daughter Natalie, who first started coming to Hershey as a toddler; her daughter’s two children, Cole, 8, and Maya, 5; her husband, Simon (making the trip all the way from Cape Town, South Africa, to complete the circle); and her son’s two daughters, Helena, 13, and Audrey, 8, Alexandrians like their grandma.
In a vain effort not to overdose, the family booked two nights at Hershey Lodge, chosen for its family atmosphere, attached indoor pool complex, and free shuttles to the amusement park and other attractions. They were greeted at check-in with (what else?) chocolate bars.
To avoid the unprecedented heat wave hitting Hershey during our stay, we spent the first day (hot but before the worst hit) at the amusement park where the younger generation rode as many rides as possible, some many times. Roller coasters, at increasingly scary levels, were the favorites.
When 100-plus-degree temperatures hit the next day, Marlene, Natalie, and Helena headed to the elegant spa in the Hotel Hershey to celebrate Natalie’s and Helena’s birthdays. Helena’s was particularly significant; at 13 she is now a teenager.
After enjoying a Cocoa Facial featuring an edible Chocolate Facial Mask (Marlene), a Venn Supercharged Age-Reversing Facial (Natalie), and Sweet Feet, “The Ultimate Chocolate Experience for your Feet” (Helena), we headed in our robes to the spa restaurant. Natalie and Helena were greeted with Birthday Wishes and “surprised” with candle-adorned dessert selections.
Natalie, Helena, and Marlene all said the spa experience was their favorite part of the trip, though Helena added the roller coasters.
In the meantime, ever-patient Si took the three younger ones to Hershey Park to experience the giant Boardwalk Water Park, which they loved and which Maya called her favorite experience.
All of us collected back at the Lodge for some cool-down time in the rooms followed by the free shuttle to Chocolate World where Helena helped the young ones create their own chocolate bars and personalized tins for the bars. This (and the roller coasters) was Cole’s favorite experience at Hershey.
Hershey offers much more: an 11-acre Zoo, a 23-acre Botanical Garden with a Butterfly Atrium, and an interactive Hershey Story Museum that tells the story of Milton Hershey and the Hershey Industrial School.
Hershey has much to offer all ages and is staffed by very helpful and courteous employees. Our only disappointment was the well-worn condition of the Lodge itself with rooms that gave no hint of their chocolate legacy and, to be honest, each person commented separately on the fact there was no chocolate on their pillow like every other hotel in places that do not have such a huge supply so readily available.
Perhaps that reaction just proves that there is no such thing as too much chocolate.
Visit Hersheypark.com to learn the many different packages available and for directions to the park.
