Top Pumpkin Picking & Carving ideas for 2021

1. Hatton Adventure World - 23rd - 31st Oct.

(Warwickshire)

At Hatton Adventure World you can pick pumpkins with the tots until your heart’s content this October! Or if you want more of a thrill, why not brave the witches, warlocks and ghouls all hiding in the haunted house!

Book online for guaranteed entry. Under 2’s enters free of charge. Open daily from 10am.

2. Thornton Hall Country Park - 11th-15th & 18th-22nd Oct

(North Yorkshire)

Thornton Hall is jam packed with Halloween themed activities this October, with plenty of pumpkins for you and the little ones to carve into creepy figures. Not only that, there will also be wondering ghouls around the park and spooky shows for the entire family.

3. Camel Creek Family Theme Park – 23rd -31st Oct

(Cornwall)

There’s a free pumpkin for every child at Camel Creek this Halloween! Along with plenty to do with a Bug Disco Ball, brand new Scare Zones as well as Halloween themed soft play areas.

4. Heatherton Word of Activities – Starting from 8th Oct

(Pembrokeshire)

For the very first time this October, Heatherton Word of Activities is bringing you 'pick your own pumpkin.' Choose your very own pumpkin to take home - and capture some fabulous Halloween memories with your little witches, wizards and ghosts!

Entry to our Pumpkin Patch will be available for the following times in October: Fridays(8th, 15th & 22nd Oct: 2:00pm to 4:30pm)

Saturdays, Sundays and every day throughout October half term (23rd-31st):

• 10.30am to 12.00pm
• 12.30pm to 2.00pm
• 2.00pm to 4.30pm

5. The big sheep – 18th – 31st Oct

(Bideford)

Pumpkins are pumpkin carving are always at the heart of Halloween at The Big Sheep. What great is that they create Spooktacular events for all ages so all families can enjoy Halloween equally.

Dates for the diary:

• Preschool and baby week: Mon 18th- 22nd Oct
• Main half term week Spooktacular: Sat 23rd - 31st October

6. Colchester Zoo - 23rd – 31st October

(Essex)

Colchester Zoo is hosting a family friendly Pumpkin pick between the 23rd – 31st as part of their Shriek Week. You’ll be able to carve your pumpkin as well as enjoy the light show. If you are brave enough, there’s also the Halloween Trail, where you can stop by the Witches’ Craft Coven.

7. Battersea Zoo - 23rd - 31st Oct

(London)

Visit the zoo this Halloween half-term and enjoy a spooky schedule of events and activity days for the whole family! From arts and crafts to special opportunities to come close to some of the zoo's creepy crawlies.

23rd Oct- 31st Oct - ZOO PUMPKIN TRAIL

Explore the zoo in search of hidden pumpkins to complete the spooky quiz to win a prize!

Top Tips for Pumpkin Carving & Care

Despite having a reputation as a messy pastime, pumpkin carving is a major highlight of the Halloween festivities. You can take as serious as you want or make it as fun as you wish. From Frankenstein to the wizard of oz, the possibilities are endless. To help you along we’ve put together a quick list of our tops tips and amazing design ideas.

1. Choose a good Pumpkin

Start from the ground up, literally! Whilst there's a whole range of Pumpkins from small to tall, you should try and pick a pumpkin that matches your design idea. If you are looking to carve little toads, then try a baby pumpkin a ‘bumpkin’ instead. If you are carving Frankenstein, then you want to look for an ugly, knobbly pumpkin. If you are carving something intricate, then pick a large smooth pumpkin.

2. Get a good carving set

They say a good craftsman never blames his tools, well in this case we don’t want to find out.

Pumpkin carving sets are great fun and really help make when it comes to the fiddly parts on your pumpkin masterpiece. You can pick up an inexpensive set from the likes of Amazon for a fair price. See below our free 30-day Amazon Prime trial. Please always be on hand when carving with the little monsters.

3. Get a big bowl and baby wipes

Before you start, make sure you have a large bowl for all the messy Pumpkin guts! A plastic bowl is preferable incase your pumpkin puts up a fight and your bowl gets bashed about. Having a large bowl with and bin bags at the ready really helps keep the mess under control. Keeping the mess under control also goes for the kids, have baby wipes on hand to give them a quick wipe down once you are finished.

4. As fresh as a daisy!

Once you’ve carved your masterpiece, you want to see it last till Halloween! Giving it a quick bath in cool water will allow it to hydrate, helping it stay fresh for longer. Once it's had its little bath you can give it a quick wipe with a drop of bleach to keep the mould at bay. Finally, pat down both the inside and outside of the pumpkin with paper towels and wick away any excess moisture. Your pumpkin is now ready for the big night!

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