Guide to Christmas at Hersheypark: Tips, Events, and Must-See Attractions

Hersheypark Christmas Candylane is a celebration of the season with holiday activities throughout the park. Today I am sharing my guide for the 2024 Christmas at Hersheypark holiday season.

We returned from a quick overnight in Hershey to experience Hersheypark Christmas Candylane and every year I am impressed!

The park is filled with holiday magic with treats, special lights on select attractions, and your favorite characters to meet.

It is a great place to celebrate the holidays and make awesome memories with your family and friends.

Hersheypark at Christmas Time

Hersheypark Christmas Candylane is the holiday event at Hersheypark. It features holiday décor and special events through Hersheypark and the resorts.

It also includes holiday activities at Hershey Chocolate World and Hershey’s Sweet Lights. Guests can see Santa’s Reindeer and have breakfast with Santa.

Wildcat’s Revenge has festive lights on the track. There are decorations throughout the park and special holiday treats and food.

Hersheypark Christmas Candylane

There are rides, shows, character meet and greets, and specialty dining options during the Christmas Candylane event.

Most of the roller coasters and kiddie rides are open during the event making this a great event for all ages.

Visiting Hersheypark is fun any time of the year, but Christmas at Hersheypark gets us all in the holiday spirit! It is a fun family activity to do during the Christmas season.

At Hershey’s Chocolate World they have a large chocolate house decorated for the holidays as well as character encounters like the Grinch and holiday food and beverages.

Hersheypark offer seasonal activities for guests to enjoy, more on that below. Both are within walking distance to each other and have lots of holiday fun!!

Hershey Sweet Lights is a drive-thru lights attraction located close to the park.

2024 Hersheypark Christmas Candylane Dates

Hersheypark Christmas Candyland runs on select dates November 15th-January 1st. Starting on November 15th they are open weekends and Thanksgiving week, except Monday and Tuesday.

In December they are open weekends through December 8th. On December 12th they are open daily through the month of December. Hersheypark is closed on Christmas.

Weekday hours are usually 5:00pm-9:00pm and weekend hours are 12:00pm-9:00pm.

• November 15, 16, 17, 22, 23, 24, 27, 28, 29, 30
• December 1, 5, 6, 7, 8, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30, 31
• January 1

If this is your first time visiting consider doing the rides during the day and seeing the holiday show in the evening when the light displays are on.

How much does Hersheypark cost at Christmas?

Hersheypark Christmas Candylane tickets range from $59.99 and you can find discounted tickets on their website.

Things to Do at Hersheypark Christmas Candylane

Along with the holiday events some rides and attractions are also open, weather permitting. Not every ride is open during the holiday events, but enough are to make it a fun trip.

Some of our favorite rides are Laff Trakk which gets a holiday light overlay. Cocoa Cruiser, Jolly Rancher Remix, Wild Mouse, Wildcat’s Revenge, and Candymonium are typically open during the event.

There are over 45 rides and attractions open to guests of all ages. Expect water rides to be closed. Check here for open attractions or download the Hersheypark app for the most up-to-date information.

More things you can’t miss:

• Noel Light Show-A choreographed light show synchronized to classic holiday tunes and popular Christmas music. (My favorite!!)
• Meet Hershey Characters dressed up in holiday outfits to meet.
• Mary N. Bright Airfield- Start at the Yule Lodge to visit Santa, Mrs. Claus, and the Elves. Then guests can visit Hangar 96 to meet all 9 reindeer before they leave on Christmas Eve.
• TREEville at the Boardwalk- A festive tree trail telling the story of The Sweetest Place on Earth. This starts December 6th.
• Hershey Sweet Lights (This is offered as an add-on to your ticket. It is not at Hershepark.)
• Breakfast with Santa. Weekend November 29-December 24. Reservations required.
• Hot chocolate and seasonal treats available throughout the park.

Hersheypark Sweet Lights

Hersheypark Sweet Lights is a drive thru light attraction through 2 miles of holiday displays. This is located close to Hersheypark but not at Hersheypark.

Hershey Sweet Lights is a ticketed attraction separate from your admission to Hersheypark Candylane. Guests can purchase tickets as a bundle here.

If you don’t want to drive the tour you can purchase tickets for the trolley tour that starts at Hersheys Chocolate World. Learn more here.

Where to Stay for Christmas at Hersheypark

If you want to feel immersed in the Hershey world you can stay on-site Hershey resort options. We have stayed at all three of the resorts during different visits and each offers a unique stay for families.

I have reviews on each Hershey resort to help you decide the best one for your family: Hotel Hershey, Hershey Lodge, and Hershey Campgrounds.

The resorts typically have activities during the holidays like letters to Santa and character meet and greets.

Hershey Chocolate World During Christmas

Hershey Chocolate World is located at the same parking complex as Hersheypark. It is a very large store with bake shops, a free factory tour, and paid activities to enjoy.

During the holidays they have specialty treats as well as photos with Santa and cookie decorating with Mrs. Claus. Guest can also meet the Grinch and other characters.

New for 2024: Hershey’s Illumination. Dancing light show at the Hershey Chocolate World entrance. This runs every 20 minutes starting at 6:00pm.

Guests can also view the Hershey’s Holiday shop decorated with candy. It is free to walk around Hershey Chocolate World and is worth including in your visit.

Is Hersheypark Christmas Worth It

Yes! A visit to Hersheypark at Christmas time is worth it. They decorated the park beautifully and it is an awesome event.

You also will find less crowds than a summer visit and will have shorter wait time for the rides.

Weekend Itinerary for Holidays at Hersheypark

I like to share how we plan our visit to make it easy to plan your visit. This is an itinerary we planned for a visit to Hersheypark during the holidays.

Day 1: Hersheypark Christmas Candylane Special Event

We left our home in Rochester around 12 after the kids morning activities, and started our drive to Hershey. The 4 hour drive had us arriving at dinner time.

We surprised the kids with this visit, and had lunches packed in the car and ready to go. The drive takes you through some really pretty parts of Pennsylvania.

We have driven it so many times!  If you need to stop for snacks or bathroom breaks I suggest stopping at a Sheetz.

They are clean, have a gas station, and many snack options. It’s also a half way point for us and a good time for a stretch.

We arrived around dusk, checked into our hotel and started our way to the park.

Our plan was to explore Hershey Chocolate World and then we had tickets for Hershey Sweet Light on the trolley. The trolley takes you through a guided tour of miles of holiday lights.  

You can drive this yourself but we opted for the tickets so we could relax and enjoy the lights. It is spectacular!!

They sing songs and the lights are incredible. We all loved it and you receive a sweet treat during your ride!!

After visiting Hershey Chocolate World and the trolley tour we made our way to experience Hersheypark at Christmas.

One of the things I really love is you can enter the park the day before your actual purchase tickets. Guests can enter the park 2.5 hours before closing!!

We had tickets for Sunday but were able to enter the park at 7:30 on Saturday night.  This was a really cool perk and all I had to do was show our Sunday tickets.

Always check the website for times and to confirm but this “preview night” is typical.

Saturday night we watched Noel Light Show and visited Santa Clause and his reindeer. We also went on a few rides.

Not all Hersheypark attractions are open.  Please check the website.  A lot are open and we were not lacking for things to do.  Our favorites were:

• Laff Trakk (Indoor Dark Rollercoaster decorated with lights for the season. This also had the longest line.  If you want to ride it arrive early or at the end of the night. (42 inches to ride)
• Kissing Tower-A tower that lifts up and rotates.  Gorgeous views of the town and park.
• Reese’s Cupfusion
• Monorail-This takes you around the park and it was a nice way to see everything from a different view. It is a great attraction to rest your feet and see the lights from above.

The park has a really cute way of checking height.  They are set up by candy character.  So you could be a Kiss or a Reese or a Twizzler.  My kids were Kisses (36′-42), Resses (42′-48), and Hershey (48′-54′).  

Outside the park there are places to check their height by standing next to a statue of the character. Learn more in this article about Hersheypark ride height.

We stayed until 10:00pm close at the park. It was so beautiful walking around and seeing the lights all over the park.

Remember to dress for the season. We wore hats, gloves, and winter coats.  When the sun goes down the temperature will drop!

We were having so much fun that we went back in to Hershey Chocolate World and took a few rides on the Factory Tour. At around 10:45pm we left the park!! It was a packed day but we had so much fun!!

Day 2: Hersheypark

Sunday morning we ate breakfast at the hotel.  It was typical bagels, cereal, yogurt, and a few hot choices.  My kids love hotel breakfast so they were very happy.  I love coffee…so I was happy too!!

Then we packed up, checked out and were first in line to enter the park!! I always arrive early when visiting theme parks to stay ahead of the crowds.

On Sunday we spent the day riding attractions. Most of the holiday activities are in the evening so we used this time to ride attractions.

If you only have one day you may want to do rides first and then start exploring all the Christmas activities at the park.

Hersheypark Christmas Candylane is a great place to celebrate the holidays and enjoy time together as a family. We really enjoyed this holiday event in Hershey, PA.

Read Next: 25+ Hersheypark Tips to Make the Most Out of Your Visit

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