Family Fun in the Fall at Hersheypark

Hersheypark is the largest amusement park in Pennsylvania. Every year it gets millions of visitors from around the world. We live about 20 minutes from the park and enjoy visiting during the Spring, Fall and Holiday seasons. During those "off-seasons" the park is typically open during the weekends and is less crowded...hence why we like to visit during those times of the year. 

We had 11 members of our family go to Hersheypark for fun Fall activities back in early October 2025. We arrived early in the evening, got parked and through the entrance gates. They were busy but not what I would call overly-crowded. We did have to wait in some lines to get onto rides, but we didn't have to wait long. 

During the Fall season the weather is still nice. We had great weather with the majority of us wearing summertime clothing. We did bring along light-weight jackets for the chillier evening. You definitely want to dress appropriately for current weather conditions and wear comfortable walking shoes. Don't bring any large bags into the park. I typically wear a small cross-body bag to hold my family's belongings. There are lockers that you can "rent" throughout the park too.

For the adults in our group they enjoyed  a quick adult beverage from Troegs Brewery while we were there. The kids in our party got popcorn, soft pretzels, ice cream and other snacks to enjoy. Early in the season we purchased their refillable beverage cups and were able to refill those while we were there. If I'm correct, you can get one refill in your cup every hour or two. There are refill stations located in the park.

During the off-season times not all of the rides are open. We got on two rollercoasters, the kissing tower, the vintage antique cars and a few other things. Our main mission that evening was to go through the new Halloween Haunted House attractions. Oh my gosh...so much fun! They were scary but not overly-so. We had kids as young as 10 in our party and they enjoyed the haunted houses too!

After spending 3 1/2 hours we headed out of the park...but before leaving we did a little bit of shopping at a few of the stores. We picked up some souvenirs, gifts and Hershey's candy to take home along with us. If you want to avoid crowds and long lines when you're leaving...leave 30-40 minutes before the official closing time. You'll get out of the parking lot a lot faster.

Overall, our family had a great time visiting Hersheypark during the Fall season. We will be back again once Candyland is up and running during the holiday season.

Shop for a Good Cause at VIM Thrift Store

VIM Thrift Store is located on N. Wildwood Blvd. in Cape May Court House, New Jersey. If you're unfamiliar with the area...it's located in a little shopping strip plaza before you go across the bridge into North Wildwood. This thrift store uses all their proceeds to fun at least 1/3 of all clinic expenses. They help fill the gap with providing medical care to the uninsured residents who live in the area.

The thrift store accepts new and gently used items such as: apparel, accessories, kitchen goods, furniture, handcrafted items, seasonal products, jewelry, collectibles, home decor, small appliances, lamps and lighting products, etc. You'll find all kinds of different products in the store. 

One of the things I like about VIM Thrift Store is that they keep everything very clean and organized. You won't find a bunch of dirty "junk" in their store. On top of that, everything is very reasonably priced and clearly marked. You won't have to dig through boxes or bins to look at items you're interested in.

We enjoy visiting nice thrift shops (like this one) and antique stores when we're traveling. We visited this particular store for the first time earlier this month and were extremely impressed. Matter of fact, we purchased 5 items on the day that we visited.

The group that runs Vim's Thrift Store is called Volunteers in Medicine who offers free healthcare for the uninsured. You can visit their website and Facebook page to learn more about them. They do have a second store at Cedar Square Shopping Plaza in Seaville, New Jersey if you're interested in visiting that location.