Roadtrip with five little ones Chicago to NJ

I was looking through the forums, and I was not sure where to put this question (I am new here). I am planning on traveling starting tomorrow from Chicago IL to Marlboro NJ. There are two ways to do this. Either we could go with the 80 the entire way or we can change over to the 76 (Penn. Turnpike) halfway in.

We are planning on stopping tomorrow night along the way and spending Tuesday somewhere fun for the kids. In the past, we've gone a little bit out of our way to go to Dutch Wonderland in Lancaster, PA. This time, we're looking for a new thing to do that would be fun for the kids and more on the way.

Also, there will be some rain for a few hours at some point on Tuesday, so an indoor alternative would be great as well.

Any ideas?

Thanks

Welcome!

Years ago, I used to go back and forth from Chicago to Red Bank - not that far from Marlboro. I was young then, and routinely drove straight through. NOT advisable, especially with a carful of antsy kids! The last few times I made that trip when I was still living in Chicago, I stopped for the night around Youngstown OH or Brookville PA. I always took I-80 to save on tolls.

Best way to Marlboro from I-80 is PA-33 south to I-78 east to I-287 south to US-9 south to NJ-18 south.

I can't really think of anything along I-80 in PA that would be a fun place to spend a day. If you took the PA Turnpike instead, of course there's Hershey, but that's just too far to drive in one day from Chicago.

Thank you very much for the advice!

Actually, right now Hershey (right next to Lancaster) is our only option. That is what we ususally do, but as you said, we are looking for something closer.

I'm afraid the next closest things I can think of are Cedar Point and Geauga Lake (formerly Six Flags Aurora).

Thanks!

I will look into Geauga Lake.