My name is Katelyn, and I am 2 1/2 years old. My mommy and daddy took me to Sesame Place this Forth of July weekend and I want to share my experience with fellow 2 and 3-year olds.

Tickets: Mommy and daddy bought a package from the near-by Sleep Inn (more on the hotel later). For $180, the package included one night of stay, 2 Elmo Passport, a Meet and Greet pass, and free breakfast. The price comes out to be about even, but daddy said that with the package we get the Meet and Greet pass and I can get to be alone with Elmo. Woo.. who could resist that??. We also bought an additional Elmo’s Passport for $35 (vs. $36.95 at the gate).

Our original plan was to check in the hotel on Friday 7/5/2002, go to Sesame Place (with Elmo’s Passport) in the afternoon, and return the next day on Saturday since the Elmo’s Passport allows us to return to the park one additional visit. The problem, as we later found out, was the returning trip must not be on a Saturday. So, we ended up buying 3 twilight passes for Friday at $19 each (for after 4 PM visits, no returning trip), and used the Elmo’s pass (first visit) for Saturday, with one returning trip saved for later. Did you get all that? It’s kinda difficult to explain, especially since I’m only 2 1/2, but they say I’m mature for my age.

Parking: Both days we parked at General Parking, which is right across the street from the park entrance. Both days we were lucky enough and parked pretty close to the entrance, and saved some money. Mommy and daddy said that they have never seen me ran so fast, as I dashed across the parking lot towards the Big Bird entrance. I think it was all in their head.

Day 1: We arrived at the park at 5 PM, so it wasn’t too crowed. The weather was beautiful, and people were generally nice. Daddy said he read elsewhere that people here can be rude sometimes (like this one guy who punched the Cookie Monster), but I must say that they were all very nice to us. I didn’t feel like getting near the water today, so I stayed at the dry attractions. I’m a living proof that one can have a great time not getting wet at this park. I had a great time walking the balance beams, playing slide with daddy, and oh get this, my (or is it daddy’s) favorite part is the 4-story-tall nets. We had to walk across this giant nets way above the ground, and my shoes keep dropping into the holes and daddy had to save me many times. It was very challenging and exciting, and Daddy and I had so much fun climbing it. This is highly recommended to adults and children.

We also saw the 7PM parade, in which I got to meet (in person finally!!) Big Bird, Cookie Monster, Zoe, and my personally favorite, Elmo. There we also dancing ladies who kicked their legs way high, and I believe I enjoyed the dancing ladies as much as the next 2-year old. Oh, daddy wants me to remind you that it’s better to stand on the side of main street that’s opposite from where all the attractions are. We were next to the fire truck, and people were 2 deep instead of 5 or 6 deep on the other side.

Day 2: We got to the park at 11 AM, and parking wasn’t bad. The first thing we did today was to visit Elmo’s World Live, in which they reenact a Elmo’s World show. I got to meet Dorothy, the Piano, the Shade, Mr. Noodle’s cousin Mr. Noodle, and Elmo. It was fun. Make sure you stay after the show to have your pictures taken with Elmo.

After the show we got something to eat (a pizza and a hotdog). The indoor cafeteria wasn’t very crowed either, and was ACed and allowed us to take a break from the outside sun. We then went again to the balance beams, slides, purple ball pit, and got onto the nets 2 more times. We also spent some time at the arcades, where daddy won all kind of stuff animals for me tossing balls, fishing, and whacking moles, as if I don’t already have hundreds of stuff animals. Again, the staffs were courteous and friendly, and other visitors were also very nice. We didn’t see any of the anticipated unfriendly or aggressive people.

In the afternoon we went and used our Meet and Greet pass. Basically it’s a place where about 30 families at a time can spend some time with characters (in our case, Elmo and Bert) in relative isolation. The fact is that even if you don’t have a Meet and Greet from your hotel, you can go in and meet Elmo. The fenced-in area is just off to the left from the entrance of the park, and there is only someone there to check for your M&G ticket at the beginning of each 30-minute session. You can just walk right in if you don’t see anybody standing at the door.

Hotel: We stayed at a new (3 1/2 months-old) Sleep Inn in Bensalem PA, which was about 15 minutes from the park. Mommy and daddy selected Sleep Inn because they have had several good experiences with Sleep Inns in their past family vacations (before I was born). I wonder how they could possibly have had any fun without me being there? But anyway, the room was a suit and had a frig, a microwave (which was important), and it was very large, clean, and comfortable.

Overall Impression: Even though I didn’t feel like getting near water this time, daddy and mommy stayed with me near the dry area and we had a wonderful time. I was on my feet for 3 hours on Friday, and 6 hours on Saturday, and I didn’t even feel tired (even though I slept like a BABY on the drive back). They said that even the adults can have a great time here just like the kids. I look forward to my returning visit this year.

Recommended: Yes