Hersheypark 2020 – Chocolate Town, Candymonium & More


Day 2 was off to a much better start. We got great rides on Wildcat, Laff Trakk, Sidewinder, and Lightning Racer.

Farenheit is still enjoyable, but not running nearly as well as some of the other park’s coasters. The rattle in the boomerang, is ridiculous.

Meanwhile, these were by far the best rides I’ve had on Wildcat.

And Lightning Racer was no slouch either, of course. We were so relieved to get in all of the coasters that were temporarily closed yesterday (although their amazing new water slides never did open for us).

But, like I said, this trip really ended up being all about the park’s B&Ms and/or Hypers.

Our rides on Candymonium kept getting better and better. Day 2 rides seemed to be trimmed less for some reason, so the airtime was ideal.

By this point we comfortably concluded that we like Candymonium better than Mako. We enjoy Candy‘s improved execution of a very similar concept, which includes better laterals, stronger overall pacing (thanks to the lack of a midcourse brake run), and a nicer setting.

Mako has a strong first half (or first 2/3rds, really), but after the midcourse brake run, Mako really fizzles out. Candymonium, rather, saves some of its best forces and moments of air for its second half.

Like  Mako, we find the Candymonium‘s first half to be a strong ride with optimal airtime accentuated by its 7-car trains. I think we enjoyed riding all 3 trains equally, but find the sunset colors of the Reese’s train the most fun to photograph.

We really appreciate Hershey’s bold, dramatic choices in color schemes for their rides. Candymonium‘s chocolate brown track and silver supports echo Great Bear‘s stark black track and soft blue supports. 

Likewise, both B&Ms feature flamboyant rolling stock, with Great Bear‘s purple, pink, and yellow trains stacking bold upon bold!

Ahh! The Reese’s trian. So majestic.

Speaking of Reese’s, we also want to applaud Hersheypark’s Reese’s Cup-themed shooting dark ride, which reminded us fondly of the now-defunct Voyage to the Iron Reef at Knott’s Berry Farm.

But anyways, yes, we think Reese’s is the sharpest train on Candymonium, though the Twizzler (red & blue) and Kisses (blue & silver) trains aren’t without their charms. 

Doubling down on your own brands to the point of theming a high-impact thrill coaster to various candies was the subject of ridicule by many, but we can’t deny that Candymonium presents as an attractive, sophisticated product.

We can’t wait to see all of the landscaping come together! In a few years it will have all grown in nicely, too.

The amount of natural foliage left intact on the ride’s main run-out is also noteworthy. Nothing against central Florida, but these views are a little more serene than Mako‘s. 

We’re going to go ahead and finish this report up with a few more glamour shots of Candymonium,

featuring some more of that Reese’s sunset!

Oh, and the new exit gift shop is AMAZING, btw. Really quite a sight!


That about wraps up our Hersheypark coverage! Be sure to find us out on Facebook, Instagram, and Tik Tok, and check out some of our other latest trip reports from this summer:

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