(File Photo of People Getting Off of HersheyPark Slides)

Noah Haswell, Beaver County Radio News

(Needham, MA) Three amusement parks in Pennsylvania got included in a recent TripAdvisor ranking of the best waterparks and amusement parks in all of the United States. According to TripAdvisor, this list is compiled through Tripadvisor’s Travelers’ Choice Awards Best of the Best, which they say get awarded to any places that “receive a high volume of above-and-beyond reviews and opinions from the Tripadvisor community over a 12-month period.”  Number 3 on that list went to Knoebels Amusement Resort of Elysburg, Pennsylvania, which is the biggest amusement park in the United States with free admission. Knoebels Amusement Resort includes friendly rides for kids like a haunted mansion and bumper cars, roller coasters, a championship 18-hole golf course, camping, swimming and a museum for mining. In 2026, Knoebels Amusement Resort will be celebrating its 100th season in operation. Number 15 on that list went to Splash Lagoon Indoor Water Park Resort of Erie, Pennsylvania. Splash Laggon Indoor Water Park Resort has an inviting feel throughout the season, with a variety of slides and rides, a lazy river, pools, a surf wave experience, a VR arcade and more close to Lake Erie. Number 18 on that list went to Hersheypark of Hershey, Pennsylvania. This park was created for Hershey’s Chocolate Company employees back in 1906 and its treats and rides make it an iconic park. The closest to these three parks on this TripAdvisor best waterparks and amusement parks in the United States list is Cedar Point in Sandusky, Ohio with its extreme roller coasters, including the Steel Vengeance and Top Thrill Dragster. Known by some as the roller coaster capital of the world, Cedar Point made it to Number 16 on this list by TripAdvisor of the best amusement parks and waterparks in the United States.