WaltsMartini
Mouseketeer
- Joined
- Apr 29, 2012
I am a lifelong Disney fan, have been numerous times, but have never taken my kids, now aged almost 3 years and 3 months, respectively. We recently took our toddler to Hersheypark, and it was a great litmus test to determine what he might be like at Disney. If you live anywhere near the park I would highly recommend it as a much cheaper option to give your kid a run through before dropping thousands on a Disney vacation.
Sure, Disney and Hersheypark are VERY different, but here are some things we discovered from our visit that I think will be universal to any amusement/theme park:
Tolerance for waiting in line: approximately 15 minutes for our kid is the max - after that things became painful. Similar to that is -
Stamina: how long can your kid last in a park? Hershey doesn't open until 10 am, or 9 am for season pass holders and guests at Hershey Entertainment owned hotels with a package. However, we quickly learned that our kid got tuckered out - by 1 pm he was dragging, and by 1:30 he was zombie toddler walking. Sticking to nap time and staying at a resort close to the Magic Kingdom will be key for us.
Characters - terrifying or delightful? For us, surprisingly delightful! He LOVED the different characters, which surprised me because I thought he would find them terrifying. When we go to Disney, character experiences will definitely be worth the money/time for us.
What types of rides the kiddo enjoys: Hershey is known for coasters, but they have lots of midway rides for little ones, a Reeses Challenge that is a poor man's version of Buzz Lightyear, and a faux "chocolate factory tour" in adjacent Chocolate World that somewhat mimics a classic dark ride experience. The Classic Cars ride is a direct rip-off of Autopia, as is the spinning tea cup midway ride. There is also a water park and several shows, and several "kiddie coasters." Obviously none have the amazing theming of Disney, with perhaps the exception of the Chocolate World ride.
Not surprisingly, our kid loved the midway rides and Chocolate World ride; surprisingly, he wasn't that into the Reeses Challenge. He just didn't get that you were supposed to shoot the targets. At Disney, we would stick with the classics - Peter Pan, iasw, and would make sure to get a FastPass for Seven Dwarfs Mine Train as he LOVED the kiddie coasters and couldn't get enough. And we would skip the teacups - poor kid couldn't walk straight for several minutes afterwards.
Speaking of not getting enough...
How well your kid deals with disappointment. Rides close, lines are too long, or a ride is awesome and you want to go again and again. You need flexibility to not be disappointed, and toddlers aren't known for their flexibility. We learned to set the right type of expectations - not to promise any specific ride or experience until we were actually there in line - and then we would talk through what was about to happen so it wasn't too jarring.
And finally -
To stroller or not to stroller. For us - Stroller. Hard core stroller. We carried our son a LOT - had we been there longer than 3 1/2 hours we would have been hurting - my husband complained of back pain the next day. It also would have been great to have somewhere to put all our stuff instead of one of us lugging the backpack around all day.
I think any larger amusement park - Dorney Park, Cedar Point, Kings Dominion, etc... could give you the same info about your kid - and I think the $150 - $200 you might drop for one day at one of those parks is well worth it to help better plan your several thousand dollar vacation to Disney. Just my two cents
Sure, Disney and Hersheypark are VERY different, but here are some things we discovered from our visit that I think will be universal to any amusement/theme park:
Tolerance for waiting in line: approximately 15 minutes for our kid is the max - after that things became painful. Similar to that is -
Stamina: how long can your kid last in a park? Hershey doesn't open until 10 am, or 9 am for season pass holders and guests at Hershey Entertainment owned hotels with a package. However, we quickly learned that our kid got tuckered out - by 1 pm he was dragging, and by 1:30 he was zombie toddler walking. Sticking to nap time and staying at a resort close to the Magic Kingdom will be key for us.
Characters - terrifying or delightful? For us, surprisingly delightful! He LOVED the different characters, which surprised me because I thought he would find them terrifying. When we go to Disney, character experiences will definitely be worth the money/time for us.
What types of rides the kiddo enjoys: Hershey is known for coasters, but they have lots of midway rides for little ones, a Reeses Challenge that is a poor man's version of Buzz Lightyear, and a faux "chocolate factory tour" in adjacent Chocolate World that somewhat mimics a classic dark ride experience. The Classic Cars ride is a direct rip-off of Autopia, as is the spinning tea cup midway ride. There is also a water park and several shows, and several "kiddie coasters." Obviously none have the amazing theming of Disney, with perhaps the exception of the Chocolate World ride.
Not surprisingly, our kid loved the midway rides and Chocolate World ride; surprisingly, he wasn't that into the Reeses Challenge. He just didn't get that you were supposed to shoot the targets. At Disney, we would stick with the classics - Peter Pan, iasw, and would make sure to get a FastPass for Seven Dwarfs Mine Train as he LOVED the kiddie coasters and couldn't get enough. And we would skip the teacups - poor kid couldn't walk straight for several minutes afterwards.
Speaking of not getting enough...
How well your kid deals with disappointment. Rides close, lines are too long, or a ride is awesome and you want to go again and again. You need flexibility to not be disappointed, and toddlers aren't known for their flexibility. We learned to set the right type of expectations - not to promise any specific ride or experience until we were actually there in line - and then we would talk through what was about to happen so it wasn't too jarring.
And finally -
To stroller or not to stroller. For us - Stroller. Hard core stroller. We carried our son a LOT - had we been there longer than 3 1/2 hours we would have been hurting - my husband complained of back pain the next day. It also would have been great to have somewhere to put all our stuff instead of one of us lugging the backpack around all day.
I think any larger amusement park - Dorney Park, Cedar Point, Kings Dominion, etc... could give you the same info about your kid - and I think the $150 - $200 you might drop for one day at one of those parks is well worth it to help better plan your several thousand dollar vacation to Disney. Just my two cents