By Marilyn Odesser-Torpey
Unless you really enjoy pawing through piles of sweaters, rummaging through racks and scrounging for something -- anything! -- for the person who has everything, do your shopping in Hershey and Harrisburg this season. You’ll find the perfect presents for everyone on your list at prices that will fit any budget.
You’ll have to go through the security checkpoint at Harrisburg International Airport to get to the
Perfectly Pennsylvania store, but the real security is knowing that you’ll find so many great gifts there. For your favorite football fanatic, get the Perfect Penn State Fan Basket, complete with football, hat and Teddy bear; the coolest coil on earth -- a slinky, in the original or stocking stuffer size or even in 14-carat gold.
At any of the seven galleries along the
Rt. 15 Byway of the Arts, hundreds of original, hand-crafted and affordably-priced creations from oil paintings to ornaments, wood carvings to wearables and by more than 200 of the area artists and artisans, from oil paintings to ornaments, watercolors to wood carvings and vases to violins wrap-ready. You can even support young up-and-coming crafters from Harrisburg Area Community College (HACC) by purchasing student-made, one-of-a-kind, Pennsylvania-style redware. To make the deal even sweeter, you can save 15% off all of your purchases from the seven Rt. 15 galleries by simply downloading the special “holiday shopping pass” from the Web site.
And speaking of sweet, you can never go wrong with chocolate. From the
Spa at The Hotel Hershey you can give a Cocoa Facial Experience pampering package with all of the products needed for a spa-style at-home facial. Or you can also opt for an edible extravaganza from Sweets, the new all-cupcakes all-the-time boutique at
The Hotel Hershey by filling up a pretty pink box with a variety of the trendy treats and maybe adding a recipe book and serving plate to complete any cupcake connoisseur’s collection.
The many merchants at
Palmyra’s Farmstead Market also offers plenty of gift-giving goodies from gingerbread men and “spice boyz” to more than 50 varieties of gourmet, hand-dipped, chocolate-covered pretzels to organic raw milk cheeses. And don’t forget Fido and Fluffy when you’re holiday shopping. The market has plenty of pet presents too. There are even handmade greeting cards so you can send your heartfelt sentiments to all of your special someones.
For the perfect hostess gift, go to
Hunters Valley Wines in Liverpool for a bottle of its Country Spice wine. Be sure to pick up an extra bottle for yourself so you can drink a toast to a successful and stress-free seasonal shopping spree.