Last weekend we took a trip to Lancaster. We shopped, we ate and we played at Dutch Wonderland. It’s been a few years since we were last there with Emma, and this was Ryan’s first time. Obviously our little ride lovers both had a blast.
Dutch Wonderland is one of my favorite amusement parks for kids because it’s specifically geared towards them. It really is a Kingdom for Kids and it’s fun for parents, too. There are over 30 rides and as you can see here, tons of photo opportunities.
New for 2014 is Exploration Island featuring robotic dinosaurs in an interactive walk and a fossil dig site. And new to us was the water park, Duke’s Lagoon. Unfortunately, it was a little too chilly to get wet.
We all went on lots of different rides, played on slides, took a boat ride, and drove on the turnpike. I wasn’t crazy about the machine guns on this plane ride, but it made for a cute picture of the two of them.
Story-time with Princess Brooke offered a nice little break for us and it was absolutely adorable. We loved how they encouraged participation from the kids including a quick game of simon says. Even little Ryan participated!
There are a few things in the park that are an additional charge, like face painting and pony rides. We decided to do the pony rides. Emma loved it, and even though we couldn’t get a smile from him, we think Ryan did too.
We also enjoyed a great dive show called Adventures of the Frog prince. The skilled divers put on quite the performance, and there was lots of comedy mixed in. Some of the audience members got soaked.
When I asked Emma about her favorite part of the day, she told me it was when we went on the Wonder House, a “ride” which makes you feel like you’re turning upside down. Ryan loved the Off-road Rally. My favorite part of our day was when I saw this, Dole Whip stand!
The sky ride on the other hand, was terrifying. The older I get, the less comfortable I am with heights. It did provide a great view, though. I was trying hard not to freak out.
Admission at the gate is $37.75 for Royalty (ages 3-59), $32.75 for Senior Royalty (ages 60-69) and $24.75 for Senior Plus Royalty (ages 70 and over). Season passes are also available, and you can save on multi-day tickets by purchasing online. I like how they offer a 45-minute shopper’s pass; if you enter the park and it’s not a good fit, you’ll get a full refund.
GIVEAWAY!
Enter to win a Family 4-Pack of Tickets so that you can enjoy Dutch Wonderland with your family!
I commented on your Duracell post here:
http://girlgonemom.com/duracell/comment-page-2/#comment-273783
Maureen
maureen.tenney@gmail.com
Our family just needs a little vacation, something fun to do, something to relax and spend time together.
I haven’t been to Dutch Wonderland in forever. Last time, it was free to get it and you bought tickets for the rides! My kids will be visiting family in PA and I’d love to be able to share the new Dutch Wonderland experience with them.
My son loves the vehicle rides at DW and would be excited to check out new location of OffRoadRally.
We have never been and would love to take our son! Sounds like such a great fun place.
We need a place that has ride options for little ones!
My husband and I love Lancaster… He went to college out that way and we could visit DW and his alma mater!
My husband has worked 16 12hr days in a row and the kids could really use some fun daddy time!
my family needs a vacation in general. my husband works his butt of just so we can make ends meet so unfortunately we don’t have extra money to do fun things like this but my kids deserve to have fun
We live in PA but have never been to Dutch Wonderland. We have 3 daughters ages 7, 5, and 3. They would love spending the day there!