BWW Reviews: Enjoy a Luxurious (and Chocolate-Covered) Vacation at the Hotel Hershey

What defines elegance? What defines luxury? So-called luxury hotels are now a dime a dozen, mostly made of poured concrete and glass, twenty or more stories tall, and with mass ballrooms and conference facilities to host a dozen major events at once.

We used to call those "business hotels," not luxury hotels. Somewhere in the proliferation of reduced-service, free-continental-breakfast chains around the interstate highways and mall parking lots of America, any full-service hotel with a concierge floor became mistaken for a luxury hotel. On the other hand, there are still a few true luxury hotels, those with unmistakably elegant appointments, unforgettable dining experiences, and understated but omnipresent superior service - staff that learn your name, housekeeping requests filled in minutes rather than half an hour or more later, availability of whatever you require without fuss or bother, and unmitigated comfort.

Those are all hallmarks of one of America's hotel gems hidden in central Pennsylvania - the Hotel Hershey. Most visitors to Hershey, coming for the entertainment and amusement parks of the area, check into one of the many chain hotels or motels in the area, or in one of the still-standing independents, but fail to check that Hershey Entertainment also has Hershey Resorts, which operates the Hotel Hershey and the Hershey Lodge.

The Hotel Hershey, opened by Milton Hershey in the 1930's, is a Spanish Revival style resort hotel built along the lines of a villa in a postcard Hershey had once seen. Like many of the old, elegant luxury hotels that still exist, it looks nothing like a modern hotel from the outside - it is not poured concrete but stucco, and longer rather than taller, built in a day when proportion ruled architecture. Patios abound, both on the ground level and above, beckoning guests to enjoy the outdoors in fine weather.

And just as most hotel visitors are familiar with "one bed or two?" or "smoking or non-smoking?" at check-in if they're of a slightly older generation, the Hotel Hershey can boast being the only hotel in America whose check-in question (after coming through the valet parking, after depositing luggage with the solicitous porters who are anxious to please) is "milk or dark?" Because this is Milton Hershey's hotel, and there is no escaping the chocolate. Even your key card, your "Hershey card" which can be used to charge various other Hershey-owned activities to your room, is designed to resemble a Hershey bar. Plain and dark Hershey Kisses sit in bowls at the reception desk, and the bars of your choice are presented on the way to your room.

These will not be your last encounters with the joys of chocolate at the Hotel, including in the bar, the Iberian Lounge (there are signature chocolate martinis of various Hershey flavors), and at the "Chocolate Spa," one of the Hotel's major attractions. If you are allergic to chocolate, this is not the best destination hotel - if you like it immensely, however, there is everything for you but a chocolate-fondue-filled swimming pool. (It probably could be arranged, however, given incentive and the right event.)

Chocolate is also available on the desserts at the hotel's restaurants, which include the Italian casual Trevi 5 and the formal Circular as well as Harvest, which presents locally sourced American cuisine. The hotel's head pastry chef, Cher Harris, won the 2013 Ladies' World Pastry Competition; the executive chef and chef de cuisine are similarly credentialed. There is also a café, the Cocoa Beanery, in the hotel's exclusive shopping area that provides all forms of coffee and tea as well as hotel-produced pastries. A review of the Circular's cuisine is on the Food and Wine page (a separate review of the Spa, as well, is on the Fitness page).

Recreational facilities at the Hotel Hershey are extensive, from the spa to the fitness center. The fitness center is for those 16 and over; the Spa provides its full menu of services to adults, with limited spa services for teens at the hotel's salon. The Hotel has indoor and outdoor pools, and access to multiple golf courses, while the formal Hershey Gardens are directly across from the Hotel's grounds for those who would prefer to walk in a park setting. Yoga, fitness circuits, and other classes are available. Aside from swimming, the Hotel also boasts a sports complex allowing for basketball, volleyball, and tennis. Segway tours are available, as is the Hotel's most unusual recreational amenity, falconry. The Hotel also provides access to Hershey's entertainment and recreational facilities, including Hershey's Chocolate World, Zoo America, Hershey Park, and The Hershey Story interactive museum.

Rooms at the Hotel come in various configurations; the room we had contained two double beds with pillow-topped relatively firm mattresses contained in allergen-proof casings. Five feather pillows (in zipper cases inside the Egyptian cotton luxury cases) topped the bed, which was swaddled in layers of 350-thread-count sheets. Non-allergenic synthetic pillows are available on request. The quality of room housekeeping was excellent, although there was a slight, nearly invisible stain on one duvet cover, noticeable only in bright light. Closets are lighted; drawers are lined with Hotel Hershey liner paper.

The bathroom was slightly small by newer hotel standards but was comfortable; towels were thick, absorbent and plentiful. The amenities included multiple Spa At Hershey products, which are produced by Gilchrist and Soames for the Spa. (If you want to continue to use them when you leave, both the Spa and the Spa's shop in the retail area sell them.)

The room also housed a refrigerator, safe, and DVD player in a chest under the LG flat screen television. There were a corded phone on the bed and a cordless one on the desk. Internet access was easy to obtain although it is a bit slower than many users may be used to at home or at work.

There is twenty-four hour room service, which was polite both on the phone and during delivery, and which was extremely prompt as well as beautifully presented upon arrival. The room service menu is based on the hotel restaurant menus. Making changes or substitutions to the room service menu is not difficult. Housekeeping is similarly prompt when called for additional services, such as extra towels, providing replacements for forgotten travel items, and the like; maintenance is equally available should there be any unexpected issues in the rooms. All of the staff proved equally prompt, courteous, and patron-friendly, from car valets in the front to housekeeping and maintenance.

A kids' club is available to allow parents to enjoy adult activities.

Handicapped-room accommodations are available but limited and should be requested at the time of making reservations.

The Hotel Hershey is one of the most comfortable, and one of the most relaxing, hotels this reviewer has had the pleasure of staying at. The closest main airport is Harrisburg, but it is not far from Baltimore-Washington International, and not far from the Pennsylvania Turnpike should you come in from Philadelphia.

Information about the Hotel Hershey is available at the Hotel's website, www.thehotelhershey.com.