October is one of my favourite times of the year and this weekend we visited Hendrewennol Fruit Farm in the Vale of Glamorgan to pick our Halloween pumpkins from their pumpkin fields. The farm is family run and is a lovely, friendly and popular place for families to visit.
It was a beautiful sunny October morning and on the entrance to the fruit farm a family walked past us carrying a crate of freshly picked pumpkins which added to the excitement.
Moreover, the entrance to Hendrewennol had an abundance of beautifully arranged orange pumpkins on display. Pumpkins were everywhere – on the floor, across the ceiling beams and perched on table tops. It felt very American and the feeling that Halloween was just around the corner.
In the corner of the café were giant handmade broomsticks which were being created for the Halloween event which the girls thought were so cool.
On our arrival at Hendrewennol, we were warmly welcomed and given a guided tour by Tom the manager. He was very informative and provided us with all sorts of information about the various types of pumpkins, the upcoming Halloween Event (which is running during the October Half Term) and how the farm has developed from a family business.
The pumpkins that are available to pick here are smaller than you would find in the supermarket but they are suitable for carving and to eat.
The girls were excited to pick their pumpkins, so we set off to the Pumpkin Patch. This was a short walk away and the girls led the way by following a trail of signposts for the Pumpkin Patch.
As we had some lovely Welsh rain the day before, the ground was a bit muddy so I would recommend wearing your wellies as there was a little bit of squelching but this added to the fun of being out in the countryside.
I doubt that a supermarket is one of a child’s favourite places to visit, so it was much more fun for them to be able to pick their own pumpkin straight from the field, rather than from a giant container at the end of an aisle in a supermarket.
I loved seeing from the girls’ faces, the satisfaction and sense of achievement that they had had by picking out their own perfect pumpkin. This is a fun way of making memories with the addition of a little mud on their clothes. The pumpkin hunt was well worth it.
Tom advised that the pumpkins can be washed, dried with a cloth and if stored in a cool dry place such as a garage or cupboard then the pumpkins would last for around 2 months, meaning that with Halloween 4 weeks away they would last for us to carve.
Admission and parking was free and the pumpkins you pick from the fields are charged based on their size from £2.00 to £4.00.
Hendrewennol is also running a Halloween event starting on October 23rd running through the half term. It is really popular so it’s best to get your tickets early which you can purchase online from their website.
There are lots of Halloween themed activities on offer including pumpkin carving, a broomstick school, a spooky village for younger children and a scary terror trail for older children.
If that wasn’t enough there is also web making, fairground rides, wood fired pizzas, toffee apples and freshly made welshcakes. It looks lots of spooky fun and the great thing is you can pay for the activities that you are interested in making a great value Halloween day out.
There was also a corn maze, hay bales to climb on, a bouncy castle and sand pit for children to enjoy.
We had a great time at Hendrewennol and if you are looking for a fun autumn activity for your family, it’s well worth visiting. Most of all, be sure to pick up a pumpkin or two on your way out.
Enter our competition to win 2 pumpkin patch tickets and 4 terror trail tickets for the very popular Halloween themed event at half term at Hendrewennol. For your chance to win please like our Facebook page, comment and share our post.
NB We were invited to visit Hendrewennol Pumpkin Farm. All content and opinions are entirely my own.