Halloween might save it’s big hurrah for the last day of the month, making it a solid 31 days of every young child asking “How many more days until Halloween?” I personally call it Halloween month. I feel like as soon as the calendar page turns over to October, you better have a solid plan for costumes, as the calendar starts to fill up with fall festivals, and trick-or-treating events to the point where by the time the big night arrives, I start to debate whether or not my children even need more candy in their lives. Don’t panic, I value the tradition of door to door trick-or-treating, so though I might fantasize about not going out in the 29 degree driving freezing rain, of course I throw on an extra layer and parade around the neighborhood.
However, for those who are looking for a new family tradition, or want to soak in every minute of this fall holiday, we had the pleasure of experiencing a Halloween event like none other that we have been to. Greenfield Village Hallowe’en event was admittedly not what I was expecting, but instead it was a multisensory event that was enjoyed by our three generations.
Media tickets were provided by Greenfield Village for us to experience this holiday event. As always I do my best to represent the opinions of each person in our crew that attended.
{2020 Update: This review is based on the 2019 event, and as with most things in 2020, things look a little different this year. Greenfield Village states that they have reimagined the event to be a fun socially distant event. They have discontinued the trick or treating stations, and dining events. I am going to leave the information in this review, because I would imagine once we get through the current pandemic, we can expect things will go back to their usual state.}
I was so excited to take the kiddos to this event, and just as excited to share the experience with my parents as well. I have vivid memories as a child of attending an event at a similar historical curation in upstate New York. I remember parading around in my pink superhero costume, collecting candies such as old fashioned candy sticks, carmels, and even wooden nickels.
If I’m being honest, if you are just looking to maximize your candy stash, you would be better served to find a local trunk or treat. This event shines in it’s unique entertainment, however, you can look forward to ten treat stations as you travel from land to land within the event, which ranged from traditional candy to Better Made Potato Chips, and even a commemorative postcard. Plus treats such as cookies and hot beverages for sale.
Are you still focused on my spelling of Hallowe’en, and wondering if my finger wandered over to that apostrophe accidently? Don’t worry, you are not alone. I had to go do some research because I had never seen this before. Now that I learned that it has Celtic origins, I am wondering how I grew up in a Celtic town, and never heard this before. It began as a pagan tradition that was celebrated during the harvest, and eventually merged in with the Christian tradition of All Saints’ or Hallows’ Day. But I’m not here to get into a history lesson, I just wanted you to know that the apostrophe was intentional, and now it’s given you something else to go off and Google when we are done here.
Be sure to order your admission tickets well in advance of your visit, by early October popular times, and entire dates will be sold out. When you purchase your tickets, you will select an entrance time. {2020 Tickets are sold out at this time.} Those with young kiddos will want to buy as early as possible so that the earlier time slots are available. This allows you to take your time walking around. It is important to understand that you can’t just arrive and expect to get in. At 6:30, while waiting for our will call tickets, I stood next to a family with young children all dressed up for the event at the ticket counter, they were being told that the earliest admission was 9:00pm. They were frantically searching on their phones for an alternative activity for their kids who had high hopes of trick or treating.
Though we found that by taking our time winding our way through the event path, we didn’t really have time to take in dinner, however, if you were to arrive earlier in the evening, you might want to enhance your experience with one of two sit down dinner options. The Eagle Tavern hosts a Harvest Supper that boasts not only fabulous food, but music and games as well. Whereas that option seems a little more sophisticated for the spirited adult, there is the Hallowe’en Fairy Tale Feast. This option begins with a horse drawn carriage to whisk you away to a festive dinner complete with storybook characters, music and activities for your kiddos. Your admission ticket is included in these dinner options, but do require advanced reservations and do sell out even faster than the tickets.
Immediately upon entering, you will notice the hand carved pumpkins. Over 1,000 hand carved pumpkins will light the path that will guide you through the event. We hypothesized how the pumpkins were carved, but turns out that Greenfield Village hosts a pumpkin carving event that friends and families of their employees are invited to attend. I can attest to the fact that it is very entertaining to look at nearly each of the thousand pumpkins and guess what they are supposed to be (or maybe get some inspiration for your own carvings, if you haven’t done that yet. Cue the power drill?!).
If you have children who are sensitive to different sensory stimuli, Greenfield Village has put together some outstanding resources for sensory needs. These include both a social story on what to expect at the event, but also a map that explicitly lists the different types of stimuli that you will encounter at each bend. Though generally my children do not have aversions to sights and sounds, Buggie has been having a difficult time with anything remotely spooky this Halloween, which I am certain is a normal phase, and one in which Buddy has been capitalizing on any chance he can.
One of the first entertainers that you can encounter along the path is the Grim Reaper. Although Buddy and Bubba could have stood for a good long time trying to taunt the Grim Reaper into interacting with them, Buggie was terrified, and huddled up with the grandparents, who shuttled her a little further down the street so that she was away from her perceived threat.
As you continue on your winding path through the park, you will come upon five main entertainment stops. The first stop was the Top Hat Side Show. Juggling, magic, and tightrope walking to delight young and old.
Continuing along, you will find more spooky surprises. Skeleton bands entertain from the gazebo just before you enter the haunted covered bridge. Pirate dance parties, magical fairy gardens, and giant witches brooms every few yards, allowed for almost non-stop entertainment throughout the park.
One of the highlights of the evening was just before we exited when the kids got to speak with the great and powerful Oz. They were mesmerized by the fact that a seemingly digital face was able to carry on a two way conversation with them – magic!
Just before the exit, we stumbled past the flying monkeys through the enchanted forest, and then took a pause to wait for the headless horseman to ride past.
What a great evening of fun and frights! One of my highlights was actually an interaction the kids had with another guest there in costume. I think Buggie was pretty impressed with this teen in a Jack Skellington costume complete with stilts.
Nights of fresh air, and lots of walking make for quiet rides home. Just like with any travel, as a mom, I enjoy the giddy chatter as we are pulling away, followed by the quiet lull as they all self reflect while they drift off to sleep, followed by a coffee stop for Mama and Daddy as this was a late night for all, but totally worth it. So in our opinion, this event is very appropriate for kids, teens, and adults alike, and we will be back!
If this event sounds like your kind of fun, you should certainly check out our post about the Old Fashioned Holiday Nights at Greenfield Village.
