Jess' Journeys // Hershey, Pennsylvania
How do you resist the lure of a town whose streetlights are shaped like Hershey's kisses? The answer, of course, is that you don't. I've driven through Hershey, PA four times, and I've managed not to stop exactly once.
While the town of Hershey has a lot to offer in general, the main draw is its tourist attractions. While the rumor that the entire town smells like chocolate isn't true, the tourist attractions definitely do.
My absolute favorite part is Hershey's Chocolate World, more specifically the Hershey's Chocolate Tour. It's this absolutely cheesy ride that takes you through the process of how Hershey's chocolate is made. There's even a theme song that almost rivals Disney World's "It's a Small World" song...almost. Plus, this ride is totally free! As an added bonus, you get a free fun-sized candy bar on your way out of the ride.
The first time I ever stopped through Hershey, PA, I was driving to be a camp counselor at a summer camp. I had about an hour and no money at all. Thank goodness for the chocolate tour ride! It was so cool that the next time I drove through Pennsylvania, I specifically mapped my route to go through Hershey again.
My second trip was much more fun. I got to spend an entire day exploring. My mom & I drove into town late at night, and when the doors to the hotel opened, the lobby smelled like chocolate! It was the perfect way to start a visit. The next morning, we got up bright & early for our visit to Chocolate World. This time, not only did I get to ride the chocolate tour ride again, but I got to do the chocolate tasting adventure. With the chocolate tasting adventure, you go into a room setup like a classroom with little paper placemats in front of everyone. On your little placemat, there are samples of different types of chocolate that Hershey's makes. The "instructor" walks you through the history of chocolate and the proper way to taste each one. It was really fascinating. I would definitely recommend doing this.
After shopping in the huge gift shop, we were off to visit The Hershey Story museum. This museum about Milton Hershey, the Hershey's company, and the city of Hershey is really interesting. The museum has lottos interactive exhibits and is really informative overall. My favorite part was the flight of different samples of chocolate from around the world. Imagine those flights of different beers that breweries sell. It's like that but for chocolate. They were delicious. I was really surprised by how much I enjoyed the flavors of the bitter ones even since I don't like dark chocolate generally. The paper placemat that the samples are presented on tells about each type of chocolate, which is really nice so that you can pick out the subtle flavors in each one. Honestly, if I could have convinced my mom to do it again, I would have stayed to drink liquid chocolate for the rest of the day. Unfortunately, we were out of time.
On my way out of town, I finally figured out how to make my house smell like chocolate just like our hotel did. Inside the museum gift shop, they sold cubes for wax warmers that are chocolate-scented! I was skeptical because chocolate-scented things usually smell really gross to me. This was amazing though!
My third time driving through Hershey, PA, I skipped the tourist attractions. Instead, we went on a tour through the outskirts of the area where the cows live who produce the milk that goes into Hershey's chocolate.
If you happen to find yourself going through this region of Pennsylvania, I highly recommend taking the time out to spend a day in Hershey. You won't regret it!
