Echoing what History Buff said: going uphill takes to towards the entrance/exit, downhill is deeper into the park. A good thing to keep in mind should you ever get lost/mixed up.
** Related to the hills: If you plan on making a circuit around the park I suggest going clock-wise. Upon entrance I head left and go down Hill Street (affectionately called Cardiac Hill by many around here). This hill is much steeper than the hill you'll take on the right side of the park.
My favorite craftsman to watch is the glassblowers. I also enjoy the candy store next-door (fingers crossed you come by while they're doing a demonstration!).
Grandfather's Mansion is a hidden gem of an attraction (IMO). It's sort of a fun house, located on a quiet street just behind the General Store buildings on Main Street. Also, check out the jail located in this area--nice photo opportunity.
My family still makes an effort to ride the Train every time we go. Rides depart every 20-30 usually, just go by the depot and check out the departure times.
For water rides Lost River is still my favorite, and I highly suggest it. But in the chance that the line is longer than you'd like to wait but you still really want to get wet, you might want to check out River Blast. It seems to have shorter lines, and you are guaranteed to get soaked.
To be honest, all of the food on park is good. It's not 5 star, but it's good. We all seem to have different favorites among the skillet meals: mine is the Sausage Medley at the Lumbercamp Falls Skillet. For sit-down we usually do the Riverside Ribhouse.
And this can't be stressed enough: Ice Water is Free. It's going to be hot this weekend, make sure to drink up! If you're planning on getting many sodas or specialty drinks you might consider getting a refillable mug. Frozen lemonade is one of my favorite (but there are two kinds in the park--you want the ones that say "Silver Dollar City original" or something like that, not the "Minute Made")
