October arrives and suddenly my Instagram feed turns orange. A visit to a
pumpkin patch is about more than just the photographs though, it is a great
autumn day out. We have some brilliant farms in Essex that grow their own
pumpkins and gourds so you can choose to get your pumpkins direct from the
growers. There are also some fun pop up patches where pumpkins have been
bought and arranged for the purpose of entertainment. Which ever kind you want
this post has you covered. You might also want to check out our guide to what to do in Essex this October half term as there are lots of pumpkin and
Halloween themed activities in that post too.
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| There are some great farms growing their own pumpkins in Essex (taken at Hatter's Farm) |
The Best Pumpkin Patches in Essex for 2024
Tips For Visiting Pumpkin Patches
Wear wellies: they get muddy.
Dress for the weather: while some have undercover areas, the pumpkin patches
are mostly outdoors so it can be cold and wet. While fancy dress can make for
some great photos, warm and dry children will have more fun.
Bring wipes: The toilet facilities at some of the locations are temporary
portaloo type toilets and there may not be running water so it's worth bring
reusable wipes or baby wipes for cleaning muddy hands.
Protect your car: we have a ground sheet in our car we can put muddy pumpkins
on, but you could use a bin bag or carrier bags instead.
Prebook: most pumpkin patches ask you to prebook
Don't leave it too late: whether you want great photographs or great pumpkins
the best choice are earlier in October. Patches don't want to have too many
left over so the numbers will dwindle as you get closer to Halloween.
Where To Pick Your Own Pumpkins
Events range from free to £££, check the organisers website or Facebook page
to confirm age suitability and latest availability. This list contains pumpkin patches and events which are primarily about the pumpkins. I have not included events which are general Essex attractions (like Barleylands or Old MacDonalds farm which are full days out and have Halloween theming in October, you can find out about these events in my half term post).
Listed in alphabetical order.
This year Calcott Hall Farm pumpkin patch is open Tuesday 29th, Wednesday
30th and Thursday 31st October 10am till 3pm. They grow their own
squash and pumpkins on the farm and primarily sell them via the farm shop,
but on Tuesday to Thursday in half term the fields are open for you to pick
your own. There is also a little ghost hunt around the shop and pumpkin
carving opportunities.
No booking required.
One of the most popular pumpkin patches or the Essex/ Herts border the
Halloween Experience and Pumpkin Patch at Cammas Hall is available to
visit from 5th to 31st October 2024. They claim to have their biggest
pumpkin patch to date plus creepy props to pose with and The World's Only
Erupting Pump-cano.
The huge 6 acre dinosaur themed maize maze is a fun experience and is 15% cheaper if booked with the Pumpkin Patch or Resurrected tickets (their evening offering). This year's Halloween show "The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde." will be running twice a day on weekends and three times daily during day half term (booked separately but get 10% discount if bought with pumpkin patch/ resurrected tickets).
The playground, farm shop and cafe are also open.
Prebooking is required. Tickets cost £5 to £7 per person depending on the date.
The huge 6 acre dinosaur themed maize maze is a fun experience and is 15% cheaper if booked with the Pumpkin Patch or Resurrected tickets (their evening offering). This year's Halloween show "The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde." will be running twice a day on weekends and three times daily during day half term (booked separately but get 10% discount if bought with pumpkin patch/ resurrected tickets).
The playground, farm shop and cafe are also open.
Prebooking is required. Tickets cost £5 to £7 per person depending on the date.
Cammas Hall Farm Resurrected - Halloween Nights are running selected
nights from Friday 18th October 6pm to 9pm (last entry at 7.30pm) if you
are brave enough to visit after dark. Visit the pumpkins and spooky goings
on. Live music 6.45 to 8.15pm features some great cover acts including
Freddie Mercury, Amy Winehouse and George Michael. Pre-booking required.
Tickets cost £10.50 (adults), £8 (children) for nights, plus booking fee.
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| Cammas Hall has lots of activities beside just choosing a pumpkin in their patch |
Cobbs Farm is a working farm which opens shortly before Halloween for a
Pick Your Own Pumpkin Patch. Open 10am-4pm on Friday 18th to Sunday
20th October and Thursday 24th to Thursday 31st October 2024. Expect no
frills, but all pumpkins are grown on site and range in price from £1 to
£15. Refreshments available from Tasha's Tasty Treats, serving homemade
cakes and hot and cold drinks.
No booking required. Free entry.
No booking required. Free entry.
Coggeshall Pumpkin Patch, Abbey Farm, Abbey Lane, Coggeshall, CO6 1RD
There isn't a lot of information available about this pumpkin patch, but it is worth visiting this farm if you live nearby to check out if you want to support growers directly when buying your pumpkins. Open Friday 25th October till 31st (or until they run out of pumpkins).
No booking required. Free entry.
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| Get lost and find your fortune at Hatter's Farm Pumpkin Patch in Essex |
This patch opens on Saturday 5th October 2024 and is open every weekend in
October as well as half term week. Activities include: straw pyramid
and an inflatable bouncy tractor, mini Maze Pumpkin Puzzle and a Halloween
Mega Maze. Refreshments and picnic area available. Entry this year
costs £5 per child, £7 per adult which includes all activities, the maize
maze and a small pumpkin.
No booking required.
Fobbing Farm Shop, Waterworks Lane, Fobbing, Stanford-le-Hope SS17 9HT
This pumpkin ‘palace’ in Stanford-Le-Hope gives you a chance to pick
your pumpkin while having photos with ghosts, ghouls and witches. They
even have singing pumpkins and a Halloween shop to look around, open
25th October to 1st November.
Prebooking required. £3 per child, accompanying adults go free.
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| The Pumpkin Jump Pad at Foxes Farm (Colchester) |
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| Remember your wellies for the Pumpkin Patch |
Foxes Farm Produce.
Basildon: Watch House Farm, Wash Road, SS15 4ER. Colchester: Green
Lane, Aldham, CO6 3PR
Foxes run two pumpkin patches, one in Basildon the other in
Colchester. They are open every weekend in October from Saturday 5th
October and from 12th October to 1st November 2024. Although the website
also warns they might run out of pumpkins so wont definitely be open up to
Halloween. Both sites have pumpkin picking and some games, but the
Colchester location probably has the best options with a maze, jump pad
(£3 per child) and licensed bar. The Maize Maze is included in the price
and has swings in the middle which were popular. Pumpkins grown on
site.
Twilight sessions run on select dates in October and start from 6pm,
tickets cost £8 per person. Pumpkins and some activities cost extra.
Prebooked ticket required for entry. Tickets cost £5.50 to £6.50 per
person with discounted group ticket for 4.
George Yard Pumpkin Patch, George Yard Shopping Centre, Braintree, CM7 1RB
George Yard Shopping Centre in Braintree are running a free pumpkin patch event on
31st October from 10.30am. In addition to picking a pumpkin (while stocks last)
they have face painting, a selfie spot and more.
No booking required, free.
The Green Barn Farm Shop North Benfleet Hall Fishery, Benfleet SS12 9JR
For £5 entry per person there are 5 acres of pumpkins to choose from.
Entry cost includes a pumpkin of your choice and a ride on the pumpkin
express ( a vintage tractor ride to the pumpkin field and back). There is
also a play barn (open on most dates), animals and pedal tractors to play
on. For an additional cost there is also a maize maze.
Prebooking required. Open 10am to 3pm every weekend from 28th September and every day in half term week.
Prebooking required. Open 10am to 3pm every weekend from 28th September and every day in half term week.
This pumpkin patch is open weekends in October and every day from 23rd to
31st October. Pumpkin Nights are running from 5pm to 8.30pm on the 19th,
20th, 25th, 26th, 27th, 29th, 30th and 31st of October.
They have large pumpkin fields to choose your traditional pumpkins from and tables full of a variety or squash and gourds. Activities include a pumpkin cannon (£), maize maze (£), marshmallow toasting (£), face painting (£), hay mountain and mini maze, Hatter's haunted mad house and roaming actors. The Maize maze costs £3 per person and cannon £2.50 a shot or 3 for £7. Pumpkins ranged from £1 to £12. There are refreshments available at peak times. Read our review here.
They have large pumpkin fields to choose your traditional pumpkins from and tables full of a variety or squash and gourds. Activities include a pumpkin cannon (£), maize maze (£), marshmallow toasting (£), face painting (£), hay mountain and mini maze, Hatter's haunted mad house and roaming actors. The Maize maze costs £3 per person and cannon £2.50 a shot or 3 for £7. Pumpkins ranged from £1 to £12. There are refreshments available at peak times. Read our review here.
Prebooking required and entry costs £3 to £5 per person (depending on
date) plus booking fee and evening sessions are £7 per person plus booking
fee. There is an undercover area for wet days. Dogs welcome.
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| Enjoy toasted marshmallows this year at Hatter's Farm |
Hurleys Pumpkin Forest,
Christmas Tree Farm, Woodham Road (Old Road), Battlesbridge,
Wickford, SS11 7QL
Open weekends in October plus everyday from 25th to 31st October.
Twilight sessions are 4pm to 7pm on 25th to 30th October. Activities
(subject to availability) include: Precious ring swing, witches maze,
pumpkin bowling and welly wangling. Tickets cost £3 to £4 per person
with a discount for families of 4.
Prebooking required.
Prebooking required.
Open 12th October to 2nd November. Lathcoats have PYO Pumpkins, outdoor
games, photo ops and a Halloween Hunt. They have some pumpkins for posing
with undercover, but it's the Halloween trail that we found more fun: you
have to find 6 stamps and some letters and then you can claim your treat
from the farm shop (it was a Halloween biscuit or free-from biscuit when
we visited). This is located next to the animal area.
Tickets for the pumpkin patch can be booked online for £2 per person
plus £1.00 booking fee, under 1’s are free. The Halloween hunt is
charged separately at £4.50 per person when booked online (or £5 in
person) and includes an activity booklet, pencil and spooky treat. There
is also a cafe on site.
It's also fun to pick your own apples from their orchard while you are
there.
You can read
more about visiting Lathcoats Farm here.
The courtyard is filled with a display of pumpkins and gourds of all size.
Great for photo opportunities and buying beautiful and interesting autumn
products. Open from late September 2024. If visiting from mid October
onwards the Christmas barn is also open with a beautiful range of Christmas
decorations.
No booking required, free entry.
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| For decorative pumpkins, squashes, gourds and even Christmas decorations head to Norpar Flower Barns |
This pumpkin patch is on a working family farm in Braintree. Booking
required: adults £5, children £3, Under 2’s are free. There is a decorated
faraway forest with an interactive quiz, games area, giant art board, loads
of photo opportunities and hot and cold refreshments. Open 29th September,
weekends in October and everyday from 25th to 31st October 9:30am – 5:00pm.
Prebooking required.
The Pumpkin Picking Village is back for 2024. If you plan to visit the
Halloween Festival at Marsh Farm (12th, 13th, 19th, 20th, 26th October - 1st
November) you get free entry to the Pumpkin Picking Village which I think is
the most enjoyable way to do it with young children, but you can also visit
the Pumpkins without paying the extra money for Marsh Farm entry.
The Village is open from 27th September to 31st October with the main aim to be a brilliant backdrop to photographs, and maybe tempt you to buy a pumpkin or two while you are there. There are a number of "Pumpkin Nights" evenings (12th, 19th, 26th, 27th, 28th, 30th and 31st October) which include access to fairground rides (these are not normally included as part of the Marsh Farm attraction), dog friendly sessions (limited times on 29th September, 5th, 11th, 14th, 17th, 22nd& 23rd October and the following night sessions (13th and 20th October) and SEN sessions (limited times on 28th September and 6th October).
The Village is open from 27th September to 31st October with the main aim to be a brilliant backdrop to photographs, and maybe tempt you to buy a pumpkin or two while you are there. There are a number of "Pumpkin Nights" evenings (12th, 19th, 26th, 27th, 28th, 30th and 31st October) which include access to fairground rides (these are not normally included as part of the Marsh Farm attraction), dog friendly sessions (limited times on 29th September, 5th, 11th, 14th, 17th, 22nd& 23rd October and the following night sessions (13th and 20th October) and SEN sessions (limited times on 28th September and 6th October).
The pumpkins are not grown on site and the village is entirely set up each
year for the purpose of entertainment. Standard entry £2.99 to £5.99 per
person (depending on date), nights are charged at £9.99 (plus booking fee)
per person if you prebook online. If you choose to buy a pumpkin to take
home they are priced between £3- £100. As well as the pumpkin posing there
is a Halloween shop to buy decorations and refreshments.
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| There are more twilight sessions than ever before at pumpkin patches in Essex this year |
This pumpkin patch on a working farm is open Friday 11th to Sunday 13th
October and Friday 18th to Thursday 31st October.
Open daily 10am to 4pm. All pumpkins grown on site. Expect Straw
Bale Mountain & Slides, photo ops, refreshments and over 20 varieties
of pumpkins and squash.
No booking required and free entry.
No booking required and free entry.
Prittlewell Priory Pumpkin Patch, Victoria Avenue Southend, SS2 6NB
For one weekend only (26th to 27th October) the lawn at Prittlewell Priory will be transformed into a pumpkin patch. Choose a pumpkin and enjoy actvities including face painting, crafting and a children's trail. 11am to 4pm. One pumpkin per ticket. Adults £7, children £5.50 (plus booking fee), under £s free.
Prebooking required. Very limited onsite parking, other car parks near by.
Scott's Halloween Pumpkin Picking Barn,
Scott’s of Southend Garden Centre, Sutton Road. Rochford, Essex, SS4
1LQ
Open 1st to 31st October 9am – 5pm daily. SEN Sessions: Every Monday
and Wednesday, 3pm – 5pm.
Admission is £5 for adults and kids aged 2+, kids under 2 are free. It was
previously free and good for disabled access, but they have moved it to a
new polytunnel and charge entry. Admission fee includes access to the
indoor pumpkin barn, NEW outdoor pumpkin patch plus a pumpkin of your
choice, any size or colour! Additional pumpkins all £4.50 each.
You can also book a Halloween themed afternoon tea package between 14th-
31st Oct (Adults are £30 per person, kids are £17 per person) or their
Haunted VR Ride which is open during weekends and half term in October and
costs £5 per person, suitable for 2yrs+.
Twilight Sessions run on 25th, 26th, 30th & 31st October from
6pm – 9pm cost £25 per person and are suitable for 8 yrs and up. These
feature a Halloween disco, games, spooky characters and cirque performers.
*Information given in good faith, always check the website and social media of the pumpkin patches before booking or visiting*
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