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Knoebels

OK, I'm going out on a limb to say I think Amusement Parks makes sense as its own thread as they tend to be destinations unto themselves, separate from any city they may (or may not) be near. If we go to an amusement park, odds are we'll need to eat and we're almost guaranteed to have limited choices.

This weekend we returned to Knoebels in north-central PA. They've won the park industry "Golden Ticket" award for best amusment park food for about 15 years running now. They are known for both a wide variety (there's not much overlap between all the spots to eat) and quality.

The standout we tried were the simple pierogies. They were really fresh and filling for lunch. We ate in the Alamo restaurant for dinner and ordered a variety of italian dishes. They ranged from pretty bad to kinda OK, the best being spinach ravioli- 3 softball sized ravioli with generous spinach filling. The specialty chicken and waffles is too bland for my tastes (I've tried it on a prior visit), while the on-premise fudge is very good.

We didn't try a few other things that the park is known for, but will next time: real alligator bites, potato pancakes, fried pickles, etc.

The food is all inexpensive, especially relative to other parks. And with no parking and no admission charges (you pay by the ride) it turns out that the park can be really inexpensive overall....we spent less than $15 per person on rides over an 8 hour visit.

We've been to about 20 different amusement parks and the only food we look forward to more is at Boma on the Walt Disney World property (though not technically in a park).

Knoebels is a wonderful place.

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Busch

Busch is far superior to Knoebel's. It's the Amusement Today Golden Ticket Awards which label Knoebel's best food but this has far more to do with the traditional nature of Knoebel's as well as Knoebel's supporting several industry clubs who reward them for their twilight zone like ambience and legitimate charm. Having said this their food cannot compare to Busch and several others. Still, the Knoebel's are a wonderful family who champion and speak very well for the industry.

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Knoebels; Busch


I hate the old fashioned haunted house where you ride through a completely dark room and pass through strings hanging down from the ceiling.


My wife and daughter rode for the first time Saturday. They didn't speak to me for a while.


Busch is far superior to Knoebel's. It's the Amusement Today Golden Ticket Awards which label Knoebel's best food but this has far more to do with the traditional nature of Knoebel's as well as Knoebel's supporting several industry clubs who reward them for their twilight zone like ambience and legitimate charm. Having said this their food cannot compare to Busch and several others. Still, the Knoebel's are a wonderful family who champion and speak very well for the industry.


Yeah, I hear ya. I agree that Busch's worst is probably better than Knoebel's worst - their Chicken Parm cheese film was more frightening than the strings in the Mansion. And overall, this isn't too different from a 'which fast food is better' discussion - they're all meh.

I guess for me I'd rather be forced to eat in Knoebels than in Busch, and that's my criteria. But I'm not going to defend it too strongly.
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Hershey Park

Hershey Park is also fun to visit when it is open for its winter Candylane. It is really busy Thanksgiving weekend but other days are not usually that bad. It can be cold and the entire park is not open, but nearly all the rides that are open are targeted for younger children.

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Hershey Park


Hershey Park is also fun to visit when it is open for its winter Candyland. It is really busy Thanksgiving weekend but other days are not usually that bad. It can be cold and the entire park is not open, but nearly all the rides that are open are targeted for younger children.


Yeah - that's our favorite time to go - hot chocolate [jus' kiddin'], kettle corn, soup...the park is all lit up, the crowds are managable and you don't get hot. We've been to DW, HP, KD and Cedar Point in the fall/winter and really love it.

At one point in HP we were waiting to board the monorail while below us the Hershey Bears were entering the back door of the old hockey rink for practice. That was a few years ago...I wonder which of today's Caps were in that bunch??
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