Holiday World

Occasionally our troop takes a break from the traditional camping weekends and does something different. One of those activities is a weekend trip to Holiday World!

Since trips like this are significantly different from our normal camping trips, they require a slight modification to the normal packing list. This page is intended to help the attendees prepare for this and similar trips.

Schedule

The schedule for this event will follow what’s done for typical weekend outings. We will depart on Friday afternoon and return on Sunday. We plan to spend nearly the entire day on Saturday at the park, so the Scouts should have plenty of time to enjoy all of the rides and activities at the park.

What To Bring

Scouts are encouraged to consult the packing list on this site, which is a general list of items to consider packing for the trip. However, since we will be spending very little time at the campsite and the majority of our Saturday at the amusement park, some adjustments are needed.

As always, use your best judgment and contact the troop’s adult leaders if you have any questions. Most of the adjustments to the typical packing list fall into the “common sense” category. For those who have not been to Holiday World, or who have not attended a trip like this with our troop, here are some notes to help as you prepare for the trip.

Health Form
As with every troop event, a completed BSA Health Form is required. Since this is just a weekend trip, only parts A and B are required. Scouts that attended a recent trip (such as Summer Camp) do not need to provide a new copy of their health form since a signed form is good for one year.

Travel Attire
Again, as with all of our events, Scouts should wear their Class A uniform during travel to and from the campsite on Friday and Sunday. Uniforms will not be needed on Saturday.

Expenses / Spending Cash
The event fee for this trip is $20 per Scout. It’s a little higher than normal to help cover some of the costs. This fee covers the cost of the amusement park tickets and meals that are eaten at the campsite. Scouts are expected to provide their own funding for other meals and any items they wish to purchase at the park. (See the next section for meal plans.)

Meals
The following is a summary of the anticipated meal plans for this trip. As stated above, each Scout will need to pay for any “dining out” meals. For this trip, that’s basically every meal except for breakfast on Saturday morning.

  • The trip is about 3-hours without any stops. We plan to stop at least once, and that stop will occur near a fast-food restaurant so that everyone can have dinner if desired.
  • As with most trips, the Scouts are welcome to bring “cracker barrel” snacks for Friday and Saturday evening, however, we likely will only need them on Friday.
  • The Scouts will be making breakfast Saturday morning at camp. As such, they should all bring their mess kits.
  • Scouts should plan to purchase their Saturday lunch and dinner meals at the park.
  • We will have a quick (pop-tart) breakfast at camp before heading home Sunday morning. As with the trip on Friday, we’ll likely make a stop at a fast-food restaurant or a gas station, so be sure to include this stop when estimating meal expenses.

Attire
As mentioned above, we require all Scouts to wear their Class A uniforms during travel. Since the park includes a large water park, bring clothes that can be worn to the water park. If it is sunny and hot, the sidewalk in the park will be very hot, so Scouts are encouraged to bring swim shoes, sandals, or aqua socks. They can wear the same clothes at the amusement park as well, however, please note that shirts and shoes are required in the amusement park.

Camping Gear
We will be staying at a group campsite. The camping portion of the trip will be very similar to our other weekend outings. Scouts can use the troop tents, and they should bring any sleeping gear desired. (Cots, sleeping bags, blankets, pillow, etc.)

Park Info

We encourage all Scouts and parents to check the Holiday World Insider Tips & FAQ page for more information about how to prepare and what’s provided. Here are some specific items that are very applicable to our trip.

  • While Scouts should bring spending money if they wish to purchase items at the park, Holiday World is a pay-one-price park, meaning that their admission includes all rides and slides in the amusement park and the water park. This includes tube usage at the water park. Guests can go between the 2 parks as desired throughout the day. So, the only expenses should be for meals, snacks, and any other items the Scouts wish to purchase.
  • Rental lockers are available if needed.
  • Scouts should bring their own beach towel. (That is, if they want one…many will not)
  • Guests can wear water shoes (or similar) in the water park and on most water attractions.
  • The park offers free soft drinks, which include Gatorade, lemonade, iced tea, coffee, and water. Drink stands are located throughout the park.
  • Free sunscreen kiosks are available at multiple locations in the park. Scouts should be sure to utilize this or bring their own in order to avoid a painful ride home on Sunday.