Looking for something fun to do with your kids? Or maybe you just love ice cream? Let’s check out the Turkey Hill Experience in Columbia, Pennsylvania.
A visit to the Turkey Hill Experience has been on our bucket list seriously, like, forever. Every single time we’re in Pennsylvania, or going through it, I look up how far away we are from it, and it is always over two hours away. Pennsylvania is really deceiving. It’s big, wide, and everything is always in the opposite direction.
Not kidding.
But when we were meandering about Hershey last month, we actually found ourselves only about thirty minutes from Turkey Hill, and FINALLY, we were able to go and get it crossed off our list.
Located in downtown Columbia, the place was easy to find and, although the parking lot was fairly full when we arrived, we were able to find spaces up the hill a bit.
The layout when you walk in is a little … weird and counter-intuitive. Although there is a Guest Services desk right inside the door when you enter the building, you actually have to go upstairs to purchase the tour tickets. The downstairs registers are strictly for gift shop purchases.
Once upstairs, there are a few different options to choose from, between the self-guided tour and a few tastings. Because of the timing of the tastings, and because we were heading back on the road home right after this stop, we opted for just the tour, and paid our admission (they give discounts for AAA, btw).
There were a lot of guests milling around, and some kids racing around, and it was generally happy chaos. You can meander on your own from room to room, learning about Turkey Hill and their product line. Some rooms are filled with placards of information about the company, some have interactive displays, and there are a few tasting areas, one with their iced teas, and one with a variety of ice creams. No limit on how many items you taste, and the ice cream tastings are very generously portioned (which means we all actually stopped after trying one flavor!). There were several new flavors that day that I haven’t heard of!
Because we were there a few days after the holidays, it was fun to see all their creatively decorated trees! I was hoping they would have a cute little ice cream scoop or other food-themed ornaments in their gift shop, but alas, they did not.
Overall, the kids were happy with our stop, and we had a fun hour and a half. I just left wanting a more in-depth behind-the-scenes peek. It is really aptly named “experience,” as opposed to factory … because I wish it had been a little more like other tours we have done, like Ben & Jerry’s and the Vermont Teddy Bear Factory, and you actually got behind the scenes looks at a working factory. This wasn’t that.
All in all, it was an enjoyable visit, and if you happen to find yourself in the area, you might want to check it out.
Turkey Hill Experience
301 Linden Street
Columbia, PA 17512
1-844-VISIT-TH
Hungry for more to do in Pennsylvania?
Grove’s Candies was a cute little candy shop we discovered in Hersey.
Fenicci’s was a fun and casual restaurant we’ve visited before.
Roadside America is a good stop when you need to break up a road trip.
Madeline’s first visit to Hershey!
And my Pinterest board dedicated to Pennsylvania visits.
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