These Top U.S. Pumpkin Patches Will Get You In The Autumn Spirit
The sun is setting a little earlier. The kids aren't out playing all day and night. The warm nights are a little cooler and the breeze a little stronger. And best of all, pumpkin patches are nearly open. If you love the fall, you probably also love incorporating pumpkins into your daily routine. But why stop at picking out a few pumpkins when you can have a full-blown day of rides, sweets, games, and decorating? Pumpkin patches are like carnivals crossed with petting zoos. Here's a list of some of the most impressive (and fun!) pumpkin patches around.
The Great Pumpkin Farm
The Great Pumpkin Farm in New York has everything you could desire in a pumpkin patch and more. Entertainment including a magic show and a juggling show are offered. And for farm animal lovers, there's a pig race and a petting zoo.
In honor of Halloween, activities include mummy wrapping, pumpkin decorating, and a costume contest. Like a county fair, this pumpkin patch offers rides and tons of sweets, plus specialty Halloween drinks. There's also a cow train and a zombie paintball train.
Cool Patch Pumpkins
Cool Patch Pumpkins in California prides itself on having the largest corn maze, according to the Guinness Book of World Records. In case that seems a little too intimidating, they also have a mini corn maze and a corn bath.
Don't feel like getting lost? There are also hay rides, pedal cars, and, of course, tons of pumpkins to pick. Concession stands offer Tri Tip sandwiches and soft serve, along with plenty of other food options. Coffee carts offer pumpkin pie, kettle corn, and cookies, to name a few.
Radar Family Farms
When it comes to fun activities, Radar Family Farms in Illinois has you covered. Apple blasters, a giant jumping pillow, duck races, a chalk truck, a double-barrel chute, rat rollers, and tram rides are just a few of the options available to the whole family.
This spot takes a regular pumpkin patch to the extreme with wild horse swings, tug of war, a straw castle, and corn ball (a twist on volleyball). And what patch would be complete without face painting?
Vala's Pumpkin Patch
Vala's Pumpkin Patch in Nebraska is great for kids who love games. The patch offers graveyard golf, egg scramble, barnyard sports, giant checkers and tic-tac-toe, and several play areas and yards.
The patch also offers a ton of visual stimulation with varied displays such as the Barnyard Animal Band, a farm equipment display, apple education barn, creepy hollow village, scarecrow band, skeletons in a truck, and so much more. They also have seven different walk-throughs, two of which are mazes.
Craven Farm
Craving pumpkin? With over 50 varieties of pumpkins, Craven Farm in Washington is perfect for die-hard pumpkin lovers. The patch also offers a hayride, apple canyon and apple slinger, farm animals, mini-golf, rubber duck races, and human foosball.
You can also make a scarecrow, discover storybook scenes that incorporate pumpkins, and play I-Spy at the mini barn. There's a market and gift shop for all your harvest needs, and a play yard and picnic tables to enjoy all sorts of sweets.
Hickory Ridge Farm
Hickory Ridge Farm offers famous cider donuts to go with their hot apple cider, among many other fall treats. They also have just added a sunflower field that you can visit, in case you're tired of the corn mazes and fields of pumpkins.
The farm also has a petting zoo, hayrides, barrel train rides, hale bale building area, playhouses, sand piles, and a toddler only play area. Concessions stands offer delicious food that can be enjoyed at their picnic tables.
Three Cedars Farm
Three Cedars Farm in Michigan doesn't end the fun when the sun goes down. Instead, they have private bonfire sites with firewood included. During the day, you can enjoy hayrides, train rides, and Barn Yard Playland.
The playland includes farm animals such as pigs, lambs, hens, goats, and a cow. Kids can visit the talking outhouse, play on the wooden train, meet George the tractor, watch chickens lay eggs, and play on the barn and silo slides or in the corn box.
Jumbo's Pumpkin Patch
Jumbo's Pumpkin Patch in Maryland features free admission on weekdays, and just $5 admission on weekends for children older than three. Unlimited hayrides, a jumping pillow, various play areas, and a petting zoo are all free attractions at the patch.
The patch also features 3,000 square feet of shopping, including a craft attic featuring handmade items from local artisans. Face painting, a corn maze, and a corn cannon are other activities offered at the patch.
Lucky Ladd Farms
As is apparent in this photo, there is a lot to explore at Lucky Ladd Farms in Tennessee. Animal lovers can enjoy pony rides, a barnyard full of farm animals, and Hen House, which features a show and chicken facts. Toddler Town is a park space reserved for small children.
Educational attractions such as a wagon trail and wilderness trail inform kids about nature. For adventure lovers, a tractor train, mining sluice, jump pad, hillbilly games, and a corn maze are available.
Linvilla Orchards
Linvilla Orchards in Pennsylvania has not only a corn maze, but also a straw bale maze. They also offer a pumpkin ring toss, face painting, train rides, pony rides, a Jack-O-Lantern exhibit, and a costume parade.
One unique thing about this spot is their various hayrides, including one that goes to the Witch's house and an autumn moon hayride. They also offer many classic carnival treats, such as candy and caramel apples, apple cider donuts, funnel cakes, apple fritters, cotton candy, and caramel corn.
Rock Creek Farm
The gorgeous mountains views at Rock Creek Farm in Colorado are enough to make a visit to this patch worth it. But aside from getting amazing family photos, you'll also enjoy their family fun area. The space includes a toddler-friendly hay bale maze and a giant inflatable slide.
A twist on the traditional corn maze, their Apollo Moon Landing Mazes offer four different mazes that vary in length from 0.4 miles to 4.8 miles. The maze also features a "Whodunit?" game where children can search for the culprit and find Farmer Joe.
Walter's Farm Pumpkinfest
Walter's Farm was given the honor of being pegged as the best pumpkin patch in Kansas in 2018. And that was before they added these 2019 attractions: giant Adirondack chair, wishing well for charity donations, pumpkin Plinko game, and a treehouse.
The patch is broken up into The Woodlands, Prairie Playground, Crow's Nest, Hilltop, Riverside and Fun Acres. Each area has its own list of fun activities such as pumpkin cannons, the Climb and Crawl, a Cinderella carriage, graveyard golf, and so much more.
Papa's Pumpkin Patch
Papa's Pumpkin Patch in North Dakota has a large selection of activities that range from free to $4, but most activities are only a buck. These include zip lines, monster wagon rides, corn cob slingshots, pedal carts, and an obstacle course.
The obstacle course includes 12 to 15 side-by-side obstacles so that family members can race one another. A 15-minute hayride across the prairie is guided by two draft horses, giving an old country ambiance. Little ones can enjoy corn cribs (corn sandboxes), wee zips (cable trolleys), and several play structures.
Roloff Farms
You may recognize the Roloff family from TLC's Little People, Big World. Located 30 miles West of Portland, Oregon, Roloff Farms offers free admission and free parking. For ten dollars you can enter the Adventure Zone, where there are tons of activities. Throw in an additional five dollars and you'll also get a 30-minute wagon tour of the entire farm.
The Adventure Zone includes a hay pyramid, giant slingshots, a petting zoo, putt-putt golf, Little Lucy's Ball Race, a Spooky Forest Trail Loop, and more.
Aloun Farms
Aloun Farms is, like most of Hawaii, breathtaking to look at. Their annual pumpkin festival includes free tractor-pulled hayrides. In addition to picking from over a dozen varieties of pumpkins, you can also enjoy the gorgeous sunflower fields and farm-style food, including sweet corn and string beans.
Pony rides, picture booths, and games add to the thrilling experience. However, Aloun Farm's primary objective is to educate children on Hawaii's incredible agriculture and to encourage residents to eat local.
Bennett Farms
Bennett Farms in Alabama is such a beloved spot that they even offer a season pass for $20 to those who want to visit more than once during the season. The pass is a steal considering that general admission is $10. The admission is worth every penny considering it includes all farm activities, and there are many.
You can try samples from the cookhouse, take pictures in front of fall displays or in teepees, play ring toss, decorate a scarecrow, ride the wagon train, race ducks, and lots more.
Cox Farms
If you like slides, Cox Farms in Virginia is the place for you. The space includes a barrel-style treetops slide and miner's sluice and slide, a wide barn slide, a slide that extends from a castle, another that extends from a volcano, a mountain slide (pictured here), and a dino slide, which has six side-by-side slides that enable families to race one another.
You can also enjoy live music, see a cow milking demo, feed a goat, visit the tractor museum, mine for gold, take a hayride, and perform farm chores.
Tom Thumb Pumpkin Patch
Some people aren't farm people, and that's okay. If this describes you, you'll likely prefer the Tom Thumb Pumpkin Patch at the Dallas Arboretum and Botanical Garden. The Pumpkin Village features houses and displays that use more than 90,000 pumpkins.
The theme, "It's The Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown," offers guests the chance to get a photo with Charlie Brown, Peppermint Patty, and Marcie topiaries. Enjoy a hay bale maze or simply walk through and marvel at the grandiose displays.
Pumpkin Hollow
Pumpkin Hollow in Arkansas offers tons of attractions for Halloween lovers including a flashlight maze, forest of fright, and misery manor. For competitive children, zombie paintball and Nerf wars are a great chance to take down family members.
Family-friendly activities such as pony rides, a friendly forest, tire mountain, a corn maze, hayrides, and a pig scramble are fun for all attendees alike. Do some corn grinding or visit the barn learning center for an inside look at farm life.
Yahoo Farm
Yahoo Farm in Georgia brought the joyous Easter Egg hunt of April to autumn with their weekly pumpkin hunts. Children help reunite the pumpkin bunny with her lost pumpkins. On Saturday evenings, guests can enjoy a marshmallow roast.
You can also sharpen your pumpkin skills with pumpkin trivia. For those who love to give their home an autumn feel, seasonal decorating supplies are offered. A wide variety of decor for sale means that guests can give their front porches some fall curb appeal!