Any Hersheypark Natives Out There?

I'm going to Hersheypark, Dorney Park, Six Flags Great Adventure, and Kennywood next week. The forecast right now says scattered thundershowers for the day we're planning to hit Hersheypark, with a 60% chance, ie, almost certainly.

What is their typical policy on coasters? Their website just says "don't leave for rain! Check out other things!"

I know storms usually shut everything down, but how about rain? Will the coasters run in light rain? Do they get them running immediately after steady rain clears? Overall, would someone who goes there often recommend still going because of low crowds?

I may have to rework or cancel the trip based on the weather forecast.

Thanks, all.

If its Andrea your worried about that will clear out later tonight. I know HP has a weather station to determined what to do about rides. They will run most rides in a light rain though. I have noticed the last time I was there and it rains was about four (4) years ago, Storm Runner was down. Everything else was open until it came down a bit harder. The big issue with HP and rain is that the ops tend to ignore guests in there lines and chat up other operators. But again, that was a long time ago and I'd bet its all changed by now.

I gotta admit, I saw a video somewhere which explained their codes. If I can find it, I will post it for you.

/EDITED.

I believe I remember them saying in a light rain they will shut down the major coasters. they have a level system, much like they have a thrill rate, they have a similar rating as to what rides to shut down depending severity of a storm, how close it is, that kind of stuff.

Ofcourse tetsu was also on the same trip I was, and has a much better memory than I do

I live about 2 hours south of HP. They shut down Fahrenheit and Stormrunner for light rain, and it wouldn't surprise me if they did the same for Skyrush. Most of the other rides stay open until thunder/lightning occur, at which point basically everything is shut down until the storm passes.

Usually, rides are back up and running 15-30 minutes after the rain passes in my experience. I wouldn't worry too much about that. I would definitely recommend going despite the weather forecast.

*"Check out other things" means "Spend your money on our chocolate factory tour", btw.

Thanks for the notes, all.

At the time of this post, all of the days we're in parks say either "scattered t storms" or "partly cloudy". Scattered is better news than just "t storms", cuz I'm assuming they will go on and off, and maybe things will open up inbetween. I'm just not sure though, this is a relatively big trip and I'd like to not get rained out, so I have to decide if we should cancel or not.

Usually rain doesn't bother any amusement park... It's lightning/thunder. 20 minutes after any lighting/thunder moment is standard avoidance, and anything other than this is silly or naive. But I don't know exactly and I don't know if anyone has exact expertise on this, or else I just have to say I'm insanely jealous of you [:(]

Originally posted by CKidd

Of course tetsu was also on the same trip I was, and has a much better memory than I do.

Really, was it the "Rush the Sky" thing last year? And thats for the compliment lol.

If your doing Hershey and/or Dorney today, I would avoid both. Looks like a wash out for us. Not sure what the others are expecting though.

All I can say is bookmark the NOAA Doppler Radar and refresh it every 15-30 minutes while you're at the park. If you see a storm coming, head for a ride while you still can.

I'll be at Hershey this Saturday. It was calling for rain but it changed to sunny finally