RALEIGH, N.C. (WNCN) — Halloween is coming up fast and that means it’s time to get your decorations out, plan your costume, and of course, get the Halloween staple — pumpkins!
There are tons of places you can get pumpkins, whether it’s from a supermarket, home improvement warehouse, big-box store, or maybe even your own backyard.
But let’s be honest, there’s nothing quite like taking a trip out to a pumpkin patch and enjoying North Carolina’s great fall weather while trying to find the perfect pumpkins for your fall display.
Although experts say there’s likely to be a small shortage of pumpkins this year, many patches across the state have more than just bright orange pumpkins — if you venture out to a local farm there’s a good chance that not only can you pick your favorite pumpkins, but you can also take a hayride, get lost in a corn maze, visit with the farm animals, scoot around in a barrel train or even enjoy food from local food trucks.
Below we’ve compiled a short list of pumpkin patches across the state. No matter where you are in North Carolina, you shouldn’t be too far from any of these places. Click on the links for ticket prices, hours and more information.
TRIANGLE:
Page Farms – 6100 Mt. Herman Road, Raleigh. Page Farms lets you pick strawberries in the spring, blackberries in the summer and pumpkins in the fall. While you’re there, take a hayride, tour the farm on the Cow Train, check out the farm animals, and try to find your way out of the corn maze.
Naylor Family Farm & Giant Corn Maze – 6016 U.S. 401 North, Fuquay-Varina. As the name suggests, Naylor Family Farm features a giant corn maze for you to get lost in. Once you’ve made it out, or before you head in, you can pick your own pumpkin from the patch, take a hayride, visit the “Pig Pavilion” to see Mabel and her piglets, step aboard a 100-foot pirate ship, mine for gems, visit the animals, or take a winding trip around the Barrel Train track.
Camp Chestnut Ridge – 2902 Mt. Willing Road, Efland. Open Saturdays in October, you can check out the farm and find the best pumpkins to bring home, plus say hi to the farm animals, gather around the campfire or take a trip around the farm on a hayride.
Phillips Farms of Cary – 6701 Good Hope Church Road, Cary. Serving the area for more than 100 years, Phillips Farms of Cary is open throughout the year and features a farmers market, strawberry fields in the spring and Christmas trees in the winter. So, what’s on the farm in the fall? A straight-from-the-vine pumpkin patch, corn maze, pumpkin launcher (cannon or slingshot!), pygmy goats to feed, all sorts of kids activities, and on Friday and Saturday nights, four terrifying attractions that are part of their Haunted Farm.
Holder Hill Farm – 4822 Holder Road, Durham. Open to the public for its second year, local family farm Holder Hill Farm is a real working farm and they have real straight-from-the-vine pumpkins for you to pick in their seven-acre patch. In addition to the pumpkins, guests are invited to see and feel other crops, take a hayride around the farm, visit their farm animals, have some fun in one of the farm’s multiple play areas, and even take a walk through a nature trail on the property.
SANDHILLS:
Gillis Hill Road Produce – 2899 Gillis Hill Road, Fayetteville. Gillis Hill Road Produce is the market where the produce from Gillis Hill Farm is sold. The farm has been around for nine generations, according to the official history provided by the farm. The produce spot has a huge variety of pumpkins to choose from ranging in size from miniature to big ones that are perfect for Jack-o-Lanterns. While there, you can also walk your way through a big corn maze, let your kids go wild on the playground, check out some of the animals on the farm, and even grab a hot dog from the hot dog stand or maybe get something from a local food truck.
Gross Farms – 1606 Pickett Road, Sanford. The farm has been owned by the Gross family for five generations and features a giant 10-acre corn maze with more than four miles of winding pathways. This year’s corn maze celebrates 20 years of fun on the farm. Pumpkin-pickers can head right over to the pumpkin patch located near the corn maze and pick their favorite pumpkin right from the vine. While there, you can take a hayride on the farm and kids can play in a large play area that features slides, a huge jump pad, a pirate ship and more.
Kalawi Farm & Ben’s Ice Cream – 1515 N.C. Highway 211, Eagle Springs. Pumpkins, a corn maze, hayrides, barrel trains, homemade ice cream and more — you can find it all at Kalawi Farm & Ben’s Ice Cream in Moore County. Not only can you head to the farm and have fun experiencing all the attractions and picking the best pumpkins from the patch, but you can top it all off with homemade ice cream and waffle cones. Ben’s Ice Cream has a list of standard flavors but they’ve now unveiled this season’s fall flavors like s’mores and coffee.
Hubb’s Farm – 10276 U.S. 421 North, Clinton. Now in its 14th season, Hubb’s Farm’s “Fall Festival, Corn Maze, Pumpkin Patch & Farm Animals Encounter” has a ton of fun attractions to check out. The farm’s maze has been named as a top 15 best corn maze in America by The Pioneer Woman Magazine and a top 25 best pumpkin farm in America by Delish.com. If the 15-acre corn maze and huge pumpkin patch isn’t enough fun for you, make sure to take a wagon ride, jump on the giant jump pillow, dig for shark teeth, speed down the double-barrel giant slide, explore the farm on the trackless express train, visit and feed the farm animals, and a whole lot more.
EASTERN NC:
Briley’s Farm Market – 5290 Old Pactolus Road, Greenville. Briley’s features more than 90 acres of farm and it’s open from the spring until the first weekend in November. The farm specializes in fresh produce and vegetables during the spring and summer and they have a huge setup for fall that includes a big pumpkin patch, corn maze, sunflower maze, cow train, giant tube slide, farm animals and more.
Garner’s Corn Maze – 5878 Highway 70 West, Newport. Garner’s has two options for fall fun. The Fall Festival, which started in 2015, and features a five-acre corn maze, hayride, and four-acre U-Pick pumpkin patch. It also has a mini-farm animal petting zoo, tire mountain with pipe slide, straw bale maze, fossil pit, pumpkin chunkin’, life-sized board games and more. There’s also an option that includes just a hayride to the farm’s U-Pick pumpkin patch. Admission for both options includes a $3 pumpkin voucher.
The Pumpkin Patch at Wesley – 1401 S. College Road, Wilmington. This year will be Wesley Memorial United Methodist Church’s 31st Annual Pumpkin Patch event. The patch opens Oct. 9 and guests can enjoy picking their own pumpkins, listening to local music, eating delicious treats and food truck offerings, getting their faces painted and more.
Brothers Farm Market – 1154 Perkins Lane, Elizabeth City. Brothers Farm Market is run by Bobby, a third-generation farmer, and he goes all-out for fall. Brothers not only has a big pumpkin patch, but a tall “a-maze-ing” corn maze, food and combs so you can feed and brush the farm animals, a graveyard, outdoor games, hayrides, barrel train rides, food trucks every weekend and more.
TRIAD:
J. Razz & Tazz Farm – 466 Peeden Drive, Gibsonville. This agritourism farm in eastern Guilford County offers both night and day corn mazes, a Halloween light show featuring singing pumpkins, educational wagon tours around the farm, a play area for the kids, and, of course, a pumpkin patch where you can pick out your next Jack-o-Lantern.
Kersey Valley Maize Adventure – 1615 Kersey Valley Road, Archdale. Kersey Valley Maize Adventure is more than just a pumpkin patch and giant corn maze – it’s actually an adventure park that’s open daily year-round. Not only can you pick from thousands of pumpkins and try to make your way through the massive maze, but you can also ride a train that rolls through the Wild West and Ghost Towns, take a high-speed trip down the Super Mega Ride N Slide, see how high you can go on the bungee trampolines, mine for gems, and check out about a dozen other attractions.
McLaurin Farms – 5601 N. Church St., Greensboro. Pumpkins, photo ops with scarecrows, train rides, jump pads, petting zoo, a playground with a 40-foot slide – McLaurin Farms has it all, plus more.
Fryes Creek Family Farm – 9970 N. N.C. Highway 150, Clemmons. Fryes Creek Family Farm has plenty of pumpkins to choose from – plus mums and other fall decor, a corn maze, games, a big play area for the kids and yummy food vendors to choose from.
CHARLOTTE (METROLINA):
Hunter Farm – 13624 Providence Road, Weddington. With a huge variety of pumpkins to choose from including heirlooms, carving pumpkins, and gourds, Hunter Farm will have a pumpkin just right for you. Established in 1868, the farm comes really comes alive in the fall. Visitors can hop aboard the covered wagon and get pulled by a tractor to the animal barn to visit and learn about the farm animals. After that, guests can pick a small pumpkin from the patch (included with admission) and look for bigger ones to purchase.
Aw Shucks! Corn Maze & Pumpkin Patch – 3718 Plyler Mill Road, Monroe. If the name didn’t give it away, Aw Shucks! is known for its three-in-one corn maze and big pumpkin patch. The farm’s unique corn maze has two mazes – an indoor pallet maze and a fence maze – inside its huge corn maze. Aside from the mazes and the large selection of pumpkins, gourds, and decorative corn, Aw Shucks! also has an animal barn, gem mining, bonfires, wagon rides, lots of fall foods – and even fishing!
Bush-N-Vine Farm – 1650 Filbert Highway, York, South Carolina. Bush-N-Vine’s pumpkin season runs from Sept. 25 until Oct. 30 and the farm, which is about 50 minutes from Charlotte, has a huge selection of pumpkins to pick from. The pumpkin patch is open Monday-Saturday, but every Saturday in October is a Fall Farm Fun Saturday where you can enjoy pumpkin picking, boiled peanuts, ice cream, donuts and family fun. The farm also has a one-mile hiking trail, observation beehive, and during non-COVID times, hayrides.
Carrigan Farms – 1261 Oak Ridge Farm Highway, Mooresville. The 275-acre farm provides guests with two very different experiences. During the day, families can head to the farm and take a hayride to the huge pumpkin patches – and as people have since 1975 – pick a pumpkin straight from the vine. Guests will also make a stop at the petting zoo and get to visit with the farm animals. If you’re looking for something a little more adult-themed and terrifying, come back on select October nights and visit the haunted trails at “Scarrigan Farms.”
WESTERN NORTH CAROLINA:
Johnny Wilson Farm – 5163 Precious Memories Lane, Granite Falls. Johnny Wilson Farm is a working farm and is known as an agritourism spot. They’re also known for their fall pumpkin patch and 3-acre corn maze. While at the farm, visitors can learn all about farming and the experience of life on the farm. There are plenty of activities available to guests in addition to the pumpkins and corn maze, including a hay maze with a tunnel, apple orchard, tram ride, petting zoo, bounce house and more.
New River Corn Maze – 660 Laurel Gap Ridge Road, Boone. Located on a historic farm near Boone – and along the New River – not only can you get lost in over a mile of corn maze along the scenic river, you can also choose from a huge selection of pumpkins ranging from typical Jack-o-Lanterns to giant pumpkins to heirloom varieties. Jarrahdale pumpkins – best known for making delicious pies – are also available. The farm also has a tram ride and games. It’s recommended that you bring a picnic and enjoy the fall weather along the river.
Eliada Fall Festival – 2 Compton Drive, Asheville. Pumpkins, corn and straw mazes, hayrides, lawn games, corn cannons and more – you can find it all at the Eliada Fall Festival. Not only can you find lots of family fun, but your attendance also helps fund an important nonprofit program for kids in Western North Carolina. The 115-year-old organization provides services for children including psychiatric residential treatment, foster care, workforce development and five-star early learning programs. All proceeds from the event go to the organization.
Darnell Farms – 2300 Governors Island Road, Bryson City. Nestled in the Great Smoky Mountains, Darnell Farms offers a mile-long hayride to the farm’s huge 12-acre pumpkin field where you can pick your own pumpkins right off the vine or you can check out the giant corn maze. Once you’re done picking your pumpkin and finding your way out of the maze, make sure to enjoy the farm’s local apples, apple cider donuts and, of course, their famous strawberry and pineapple Dream Whips.