The Hotel Hershey

Architecture Rooted in a Founder's Travels

Grand resort hotels built during the early 1930s Depression era occupy a specific place in American hospitality history: they were civic statements as much as commercial ventures, designed to project confidence through permanence. The Hotel Hershey, opened in 1933, belongs firmly to that tradition. Milton Hershey and his wife Catherine drew on their European travels to commission a property modeled on Mediterranean resort architecture, and the physical evidence of that decision has survived nearly a century of use. The green-tile roof, the open terraces, the Spanish mosaic floors, the restored wooden balustrades, the reflecting pools and formal fountain arrangements: these are not period-revival gestures added during a later renovation. They are original fabric, maintained and in several cases restored rather than replaced.

Set on Pat's Hill and overlooking both Hersheypark and the broader central Pennsylvania countryside, the building's position was clearly deliberate. Mediterranean hillside resort architecture depends on topography: the terraces and pools need a view to anchor them. That relationship between building and land still holds. The hotel's grounds function as an extension of the architecture rather than a separate amenity, with gardens, reflecting pools, and hiking trails forming a managed landscape that frames the property on every side.

For guests arriving from the Northeast corridor, the geometry of the trip is practical: roughly three hours from New York City, two hours from Philadelphia and Washington, D.C., an hour and a half from Baltimore, and fifteen minutes from Harrisburg International Airport. That positioning places The Hotel Hershey in a reachable weekend tier for a large urban catchment, without the compressed scale of a city hotel. The difference matters architecturally: the 300-acre footprint allows for a physical spread that properties like The Fifth Avenue Hotel in New York City or Aman New York simply cannot replicate.

What the Grounds Contain

American resort hotels built on significant acreage tend to split into two types: those where the grounds are largely decorative, and those where the outdoor programming is substantive enough to anchor a multi-day stay. The Hotel Hershey operates in the second category. The Hershey Golf Collection's three courses are available to guests, alongside a recreation complex with basketball, volleyball, and lighted tennis courts. Several miles of hiking trails cross the property. Seasonal programming extends to bonfires and s'mores, and the Cocoa Clubhouse provides structured activities for younger guests.

This breadth of on-property activity puts The Hotel Hershey in a different peer category from, say, the intimately designed resort at Troutbeck in Amenia, where the scale is intentionally tighter. The comparison that holds more precisely is the full-amenity wellness and recreation resort model, closer in spirit to Canyon Ranch Tucson or Bernardus Lodge and Spa in Carmel Valley, though with a distinct sense of place rooted in Pennsylvania rather than the American West.

Complimentary guest privileges extend beyond the property itself. Admission to Hershey Gardens, a 23-acre botanical garden with eleven themed sections including more than 30,000 tulips in spring and more than 5,000 roses in summer, is included for all guests. The Milton and Catherine Hershey Conservatory within the gardens houses a year-round indoor tropical butterfly atrium, one of around 25 such facilities operating continuously in the United States. Admission to The Hershey Story Museum, which documents both Milton Hershey's biography and the development of the town, is also included. These are not peripheral add-ons: they give the property a cultural dimension that extends beyond the hotel's own walls.

The Spa and Wellness Offer

Chocolate-infused spa treatments sit at an unusual intersection of marketing and genuine therapeutic tradition. Cacao-based body treatments have appeared on European and American spa menus for decades, and The Hotel Hershey's spa program builds on the property's chocolate association in a way that feels organic rather than tacked on. The spa has been a recognized element of the hotel's offer for years.

Among U.S. resort spas with strong design presence and a connection to landscape, properties like Amangiri in Canyon Point or Post Ranch Inn in Big Sur have set a high benchmark for integrating the spa into the broader physical experience of the property. The Hotel Hershey operates in a different register: its spa identity is tied to place-specific ingredients rather than architectural minimalism, which creates a distinct positioning within the luxury wellness category.

Accommodations: Traditional Rooms to Woodside Cottages

The guest rooms were renovated in 2017 and 2018 while preserving the traditional proportions of a 1930s-era hotel. The standard guest rooms are well-appointed but run toward the compact end. Marble-tiled bathrooms with combination tub and shower are standard across the main building. Premium king rooms add a seating area with a pull-out sofa configuration.

The named suites, including the Milton Hershey Suite and the Catherine Hershey Suite, offer expanded layouts with double sinks in the Milton suite's bathroom. The Catherine suite is noted for its family configuration. The hotel has 326 rooms.

Woodside Cottages occupy a distinct tier. Bathrooms are significantly larger than their main-building counterparts, with a separate shower and a soaking tub fitted with a flat-screen television. Four- and six-bedroom cottages can be reserved by small groups or families as entire units, with access to a Great Room featuring cathedral ceilings, a fireplace, microwave, and wet bar with refrigerator. This format puts the Cottages in a category that invites comparison with compound-style lodging at properties like Blackberry Farm in Walland or SingleThread Farm Inn in Healdsburg, though the Hershey setting and scale are their own thing entirely.

Dining Across Five Venues

Large-footprint resort hotels typically manage their dining programs in one of two ways: consolidate into a single dominant restaurant and treat the rest as supporting service, or build out a genuine portfolio of distinct concepts. The Hotel Hershey operates closer to the second model. The Circular anchors the program as the property's formal American dining room, described as an American dining experience reimagined. Trevi 5 offers modern Italian, while Harvest positions itself around fresh American cooking with local ingredients. Chef's Market handles daytime coffee, sandwiches, and salads. The Iberian Lounge covers cocktails and lighter fare, its name a direct reference to the Mediterranean architectural lineage of the building. Room service is also available.

Five distinct outlets within a single hotel is a significant operational commitment and allows guests to stay entirely on-property across a multi-night visit without repeating a dining context.

Planning a Stay

The Hotel Hershey operates as an Official Resort of Hersheypark, with complimentary seasonal transportation to the park and other local attractions. Complimentary parking is included. These arrangements make the hotel the most operationally direct base for a Hersheypark visit, particularly for families coordinating park schedules with younger children through the Cocoa Clubhouse programming on-property.

For guests whose interest sits more squarely with the resort itself, the combination of the gardens, spa, golf, and multiple dining venues supports a stay that has nothing to do with the amusement park. The spring bloom at Hershey Gardens, with its 30,000-tulip display, and the summer rose garden make April through June a particularly strong window for garden-focused guests. The butterfly atrium runs year-round.

Booking is available directly through the hotel at 100 Hotel Rd, Hershey, PA 17033.