By Denny Dyroff, Entertainment Editor, The Times
Now that crisp autumn weather has arrived, it’s a great time to enjoy outdoor events such fall festivals, historical celebrations, hayrides, wine festivals, mazes and scenic train rides.
On October 8, West Chester will be the site of a special event to determine who can make “The Best Darn Chili in Chester County!” — the site of the West Chester Rotary’s 21st Annual Chili Cookoff (Gay and High streets, Downtown West Chester,www.westchesterchilicookoff.com).
There will be approximately 50 “Chili Teams” competing for the top prize in the following divisions — “People’s Choice,” “Business,” “Restaurant,” “Non-Profit” and “Hometown/Volunteer Cook.” Each team will prepare its best chili and submit a sample to a panel of local “celebrity” judges who name Best Chili in each category.
The family-oriented event, which runs from 10:30 a.m.-3:30 p.m., will also feature a “Just 4 Kids” area on East Gay Street (with kids’ bounces, slides and other games), live entertainment and an array of food vendors.
Vendors will be selling ice cream, kettle corn, as well as art, jewelry and other interesting merchandise.
All-you-can-eat wristbands are $10 in advance and $15 at the gate.
When an area event has been around for more than two decades, it definitely qualifies as a Chester County tradition. The Kennett Brewfest has reached that plateau.
The Kennett Brewfest, which will be held on October 7 in downtown Kennett Square, has been around since before the turn of the century.
Scheduled to run from 1:30-5 p.m., the Kennett Brewfest provides visitors with the opportunity to sample some of the best regional and national craft beers accompanied by great food, great music, and a lively crowd.
Participants can enjoy samples from more than 80 local, regional and national breweries which will be serving more than 175 different beers.
All attendees have access to food and merchandise vendors, live bands, sponsor tables, and more during the entire event. Doors open at noon for the “Connoisseur Tasting” and the regular fest begins at 1:30 pm. All taps will close at 5 p.m.
The food truck court will feature 2 Fat Guys, State Street Pizza, Dia Doce Cupcakes, George and Sons’ Seafood, 22BBQ, La Bamba, Madi’s on a Roll, Taqueria Los Junez and Mary Pat’s Provisions.
Live music will be performed by Carl Filipiak.
Tickets will be scanned at the entrance, where participants will receive their collectible Brewfest tasting cups. No one under the age of 21 will be admitted. General admission tickets are $65.
The Chester County History Center (225 North High Street, West Chester, http://www.chestercohistorical.org/) is presenting “Plagues and Pestilence – A Walking Tour” this weekend.
Beginning at the Chester County History Center on October 7 at 11 a.m. and 3 p.m. and October 8 at 11 a.m., the tour is approximately 1.5 miles.
In the early 1800s, West Chester billed itself as an elegant and healthful place, but the reality was very different. Words like cholera, diphtheria, rabies, and smallpox struck fear into the heart of every West Chester resident — especially those with small children. Treatments were almost worse than the diseases — bloodletting, blistering, and mercury were all part of the early medicinal arsenal.
This tour will explore how diseases impacted families, how they changed burial practices, and how the borough’s medical and scientific minds worked to overcome the King of All Fears — Death.
This walking tour will last approximately 90 minutes. Please plan to arrive 15 minutes before scheduled start time to check in.
Each tour will be held entirely outdoors. Participants should dress for the weather and wear comfortable shoes.
Tours will take place rain or shine and tickets, which are $18, are nonrefundable.
“West Chester Fall Gallery Walk 2023” (www.downtownwestchester.com) is scheduled for October 6.
The event, which will run from 4-8 p.m., will be held on High Street in downtown West Chester – rain or shine.
Guests are invited to explore the vibrant art scene in Downtown West Chester during the fall walk.
This self-guided art tour celebrates the thriving community of artists and galleries that make greater West Chester their home.
Throughout the downtown business area, multiple galleries combine with additional “one-night-only” show hosts to showcase some great local Chester County artists. Attendees can discover stunning artwork, connect with fellow creatives, and find the perfect piece for their home.
This event is free and open to the public with free, on-street metered parking starting at 4 p.m. Participants can pick up a brochure on the night of the walk at any of the participating locations to follow along the route. Many stops will have refreshments and light appetizers available.
Longwood Gardens (Route 1, Kennett Square, 610-388-1000, www.longwoodgardens.org) is a great place to visit any time in the year and always has special attractions to add to the experience.
Longwood’s Chrysanthemum Festival is running through November 12. Innovative plant-growing techniques and displays take center stage by way of thousands of trained chrysanthemums throughout our Conservatory.
Big, bold colors and thousands of carefully nurtured and trained chrysanthemums abound during this imaginative display serving as the largest and oldest of its kind in North America.
Throughout the Conservatory, specialty chrysanthemum forms from fanciful clouds to sculptural spirals not only showcase our horticultural savvy but help preserve an ancient Asian artform that we are beyond proud to perpetuate.
Daily performances in the Main Fountain Garden will feature more than 1,700 spinning jets that spin dance to various music programs. These are no little jets as some shoot up as high as 175 feet in the air.
The 30-minute show is slated for Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays at 9:15 p.m.
The Main Fountain Garden Show fountain performance that begins with a touch of narrated history and concludes with dynamic choreography marrying music and the site’s newest fountain features.
These displays will be presented daily at 1:15 a.m., 1:15, 3:15 p.m. and 5:15. There will also be performances on Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays at 6:15, 7:15 and 8:15 p.m.
The “Illuminated Fountain Performance” will be staged Thursdays through Sundays at 9:15 p.m.
One of Longwood’s most popular fall family activities – “Pumpkin Playgropund” – opens on October 6 and runs through October 30.
The attraction is located in the Children’s Corner in the Idea Garden for interactive play. Families can find the perfect opportunity for a festive fall photo amid the whimsical seasonal display of pumpkins, gourds, and corn husk towers.
Admission to Longwood Gardens is $25 for adults, $22 for seniors (ages 62 and older) and college students, $18 for active military and veterans and $13 for youth (ages 5-18).
Winterthur Museum, Garden & Library (5105 Kennett Pike, Wilmington, Delaware, 800-448-3883, www.winterthur.org) is presenting a special attraction on October 7 – “Truck & Tractor Day.”
Kids big and small are invited to celebrate the season at Winterthur during a day of farm-style fun.
Visitors will be able to get up close to trucks and tractors, check out other vehicles and equipment, suit up in firefighter gear, take a hayride, and even milk a mechanical cow.
The event, which runs from 10 a.m.-4 p.m., is included with admission. Members free. This is a rain or shine, drop-in event, although you may register in advance.
Winterthur is currently showcasing a new exhibition “Ann Lowe: American Couturier” now through January 7, 2024
In 1964, The Saturday Evening Post referred to fashion designer Ann Lowe as “Society’s Best-Kept Secret.” Although Lowe had been designing couture-quality gowns for America’s most prominent debutantes, heiresses, actresses, and society brides—including Jacqueline Kennedy, Olivia de Havilland, and Marjorie Merriweather Post—for decades, she remained virtually unknown to the wider public. Since then, too little recognition has been given to her influence on American fashion.
Ann Lowe’s recently emerging visibility as a designer stands in contrast to much of her career and the countless unrecognized Black dressmakers and designers who have contributed to American fashion for generations, including her own grandmother and mother. She blazed a path for others to follow and her legacy is still felt in fashion culture.
This is the largest exhibition of Ann Lowe’s work to date, featuring 40 iconic gowns, many that have never been on public display, and it will illuminate her evolution as a designer from the 1920s to the 1960s. The exhibition will also feature the work of contemporary couturiers and fashion designers whose current design practices, perspectives, and career paths reflect the trajectory of American fashion emanating from Lowe’s foundation. These include B Michael, Tracy Reese, Amsale Aberra, and Bishme Cromartie. Elizabeth Way, associate curator at The Museum at the Fashion Institute of Technology, is guest curator of the exhibition.
Born in Clayton, Alabama, into a family of African American dressmakers, Ann Lowe (ca. 1898–1981) learned the skill of dressmaking from her mother and grandmother. She developed not only expert technical skills by the time she was a teenager but also her distinctive style—feminine, elegant, and often incorporating her signature hand-made floral elements. Her extraordinary career took her through the Jim Crow South, from Montgomery, Alabama, to Tampa, Florida, and in 1928 to New York City. Lowe’s work made her an asset to wealthy society women around the country, yet she also experienced the tumultuous hardships of the fashion business and segregated America in a period of dramatic change.
Ann Lowe’s workplaces her among America’s significant fashion designers, and her life illustrates a legacy of Black women’s knowledge and skills that began as enslaved labor. Lowe modernized this legacy and expanded it to international visibility, positioning herself as a creative designer, a fashion insider, and a vital contributor to American culture.
Admission to Winterthur is $25 for adults, $23 for seniors and students and $8 for children.
Newlin Grist Mill (219 South Cheyney Road, Glen Mills, newlingristmill.org) will host its Fall Harvest Festival on October 7.
The family event, which runs from 10 a.m.-4 p.m., features free admission.
The Fall Harvest Festival is Newlin Grist Mill’s biggest event of the year.
Activities and demonstrations this year include apple cider demonstration, beer brewing display, open hearth cooking, Chinese tea culture, puppet show, hayrides, and pumpkin painting.
There will be shuttle buses and directions for parking. There is a $5 per car parking fee.
Chaddsford Winery (Route 1, Chadds Ford, 610-388-6221, www.chaddsford.com) is presenting its “Adult Trick or Treat” event every Saturday and Sunday through October 29 from noon-7 p.m.
Visitors will be able to “Trick or Treat” for wine and seasonal snacks at Chaddsford’s wildly popular, adults-only Halloween program as they visit a variety of Halloween-themed pairing stations located throughout the Winery grounds.
The “Pairing Menu” features Greeting Wine: 2022 Sparkling White; Station 1 Cinderella: The White Standard Kernel Clark’s Garlic, Rosemary and Parmesan Popcorn; Station 2 Red Riding Hood: The Red Standard Éclat Dark Caramel Truffle; Station 3 Goldilocks and the 3 Beers: Victory Prima Pils, OsoSweet Bakery Cafe German-style Scone; Station 4 Rumplspritzen: Sangria Spritzer,
Asher’s Dark Chocolate Orange Peel; and Station 5 Snow White: Spiced Apple, Caramel Stroopwafel.
Tickets are $40.
The Hay Creek Apple Festival (Historic Joanna Furnace, Route 10, Morgantown, 610-286-0388, www.haycreek.org), which also has been around for more than 30 years, is scheduled for October7 and 8.
The festival is a celebration of autumn and especially autumn’s favorite fruit — the apple — with a long list of special activities and an amazing variety of taste treats featuring apples.
There will be more than 2,000 apple dumplings and over 800 apple pies ready for consumption this weekend at the festival. Also offered will be a variety of other treats such as fresh-pressed apple cider, apple waffles, apple crisp, Schnitz Un Knepp, apple fritters and the famous Hay Creek Apple Butter.
The festival will have a variety of family fun events starting with the belly-filling “All-You-Can Eat Apple Pancake Breakfast” from 7-11 a.m. Other family activities will be hayrides, scarecrow building, mini-tractor rides, pumpkin painting, Early American games, pony rides, an “Apple Dessert Contest”, basket weaving, Early American craft demonstrations and rides on the “Apple Barrel Express.”
The festival, which runs from 7 a.m.-5 p.m. on Saturday and from 7 a.m.-3 p.m. on Sunday, will also feature a flea market with over 100 stands. Visitors can shop for crafts, flowers, fall items, antiques and other items related to Berks County history.
Now through October 31, Morris Arboretum of the University of Pennsylvania (100 E. Northwestern Avenue, Philadelphia, www.morrisarboretum.org) is hosting its annual “Scarecrow Walk.”
Visitors will be able to make their own scarecrows, paint a pumpkin and sample different varieties of apples. Weaver’s Way Coop will be on hand with the season’s best local apple varieties.
Morris Arboretum’s Scarecrow Walk is back for its 16th year, and in recognition of those who show courage and care when faced with fright, this year’s theme is “Spooky Scarecrow.”
Visitors will be able to wander through the Arboretum and see scarecrows in honor of a beloved superhero characters, essential workers, or best friend heroes.
Throughout the month of October, more than 30 scarecrows will be on display throughout the Arboretum. Visitors will vote for their favorite scarecrow online to determine the winners. The top three scarecrows win a cash prize with a top prize of $250.
Admission to Morris Arboretum is $20 for adults, $18 for seniors and $10 for youth (ages 3-17).
It’s time once again for the Annual Scarecrow Festival at Peddler’s Village (Routes 202 and 263, Lahaska, 215-794-4000, www.peddlersvillage.com). The festival, which is celebrating its 44th anniversary this year, will run now through October 31.
It is the perfect time to visit and take in the bright, brilliant hues of fall and admire the more than 100 spectacular scarecrows on display. These larger-than-life, colorful, creative scarecrows will line the red brick paths throughout the village’s 42 picturesque acres.
Visitors can vote for their favorites in seven categories: Traditional 1960s Style, Quite the Character, Once Upon a Time, Fright Night, Funny Bones and Kids Only! Ballots can be cast through the Peddler’s Village Mobile app.
The annual “Bates Motel and Haunted Hayride at Arasapha Farm” (1835 N. Middletown Rd., Gradyville, 610-459-0647, www.thebatesmotel.com) will be scaring visitors through October 31.
The haunted hayride through the woods features monsters, special effects and actors. The Bates Motel has haunted rooms with special effects and computerized lighting.
Another attraction is the “Revenge of the Scarecrow Haunted Trail.” A haunted trail is cut through a cornfield inhabited by monsters.
Another popular attraction this year is “Double Edge Axe Throwing.”
Admission prices start at $40.
Pennhurst Asylum (100 Commonwealth Drive, Spring City, 484-866-8964, www.pennhurstasylum.com), which is open through November 4, is on the site of a former mental asylum which has been shuttered for over a quarter of a century.
It has been transformed into a haunted attraction with huge sets, detailed rooms and live actors. Visitors can also explore the labyrinth of underground tunnels.
Tickets are $52 for a combo pass valid for all three Haunted Attractions at Pennhurst: Pennhurst Asylum, The Morgue & The Tunnels.
For “Count’s Halloween Spooktacular at Sesame Place” (100 Sesame Place, Langhorne, 215-752-7070, www.sesameplace.com), which runs now through November 5, the popular amusement park has been converted into a Halloween-themed safe venue for kids with trick or treating, pumpkin decorating, hayrides and a hay maze.
Guests will enjoy trick-or-treating around the park, Halloween-themed shows, participating in our interactive Scarecrow Scavenger Hunt, and unique photo opportunities with everyone’s favorite furry friends dressed up in costume on their Halloween-themed floats!
Featured attractions, which will continue for the next six weeks, are “Neighborhood Street Party Halloween Parade,” “Halloween Light Show,” and “The Not-Too-Spooky Howl-O-ween Radio Show.”
Admission to the park starts at $44.99.
“Halloween Haunt at Dorney Park” (3830 Dorney Park Road, Allentown, 610-395-3724, www.dorneypark.com) is running now through October 28.
The event features scary creatures roaming the park and scarecrows lining line the walkways while frightening activities take place at the following attractions – “Ghost in the Machine,”
“FrightFeast,” “Port of Call,” “Necropolis,” “Roadside Stop and Chop,” “Blood on the Bayou,” “Black Out,” “Tourist Trap,” and “CarnEvil” along with a variety of mazes and “Creepy Scare Zones.” Admission prices start at $42.99.
The “31st Annual Fright By Night” (Six Flags Great Adventure, Route 537, Jackson, NJ, 732-928-2000, www.sixflags.com), which is running now through October 31, features family-oriented activities during the day and much scarier attractions after dark for teens and adults.
The attractions include “Big Top Terror,” “Blood Shed,” “Aftermath,” “Hell Fest,” “The Manor,” “Fears,” and “Reflections of the Dead.”
Tickets start at $49.99.
Grim Philly’s “Dark Philly History Tour” (www.grimphilly.com) will be held every evening throughout the summer.
Participants can walk with tour guides from the grounds of America’s first White House, Congress, and Liberty Bell to homes and sites of Hamilton, Washington, Franklin, Adams, Jefferson, Madison, Monroe, and more than 10 other Founding-Fathers. The surprising dirt of espionage, murder, sexual license and blackmail highlight the secrets of 1776 with a ghost story or two along the way. This tour is highly researched. And your guide is a historian.
Tickets are $35.
Ghost Tour of Philadelphia (215-413-1997, www.ghosttour.com), Ghost Tour of Lancaster (717-687-6687, www.ghosttour.com) and Ghost Tour of Strasburg (717-687-6687, www.ghosttour.com) operate throughout the winter and offer an eerily entertaining evening of true ghost stories and real haunted houses.
The Ghost Tour of Philadelphia, which is based on the book, “Ghost Stories of Philadelphia, PA.,” is a candlelight walking tour along the back streets and secret gardens of Independence Park, Society Hill, and Old City, where ghostly spirits, haunted houses, and eerie graveyards abound.
Participants can discover the ghost lore of America’s most historic and most haunted city with stories from the founding of William Penn’s colony to present-day hauntings.
The activity is open year-round – weekends, December-February; every night, March-November. Tickets are $24.
The Ghost Tour of Lancaster and the Ghost Tour of Strasburg are based on the book, “Ghost Stories of Lancaster, PA.”
Participants in the Ghost Tour of Lancaster explore the long-forgotten mysteries of one of America’s oldest cities, with haunting tales of otherworldly vigils, fatal curses, and star-crossed lovers. The tour provides the opportunity to experience 300 years of haunted history from the Red Rose City’s thorny past. Tickets are $20.
The Ghost Tour of Strasburg is a candlelight walking tour of the quaint and historic town of Strasburg in the heart of Pennsylvania Dutch Country. Visitors will experience an entertaining evening with a costumed tour guide spinning tales of haunted mansions, eerie graveyards, and spirits that roam the night … in a town lost in time. Tickets are $20.
“Candlelight Ghost Tours” (Fort Mifflin, Fort Mifflin and Hog Island roads, Philadelphia, 215-685-4167, http://fortmifflin.us) are scheduled for October 7, 13, 14, 19, 20, 27, 28 and 29.
Visitors can tour historic (and haunted) Fort Mifflin by candlelight from 7-10 p.m. each night and hear true stories of ghostly encounters. This event is billed as an “authentic experience.”
Philly’s most authentic Halloween event! No decorations. No hype. Just, you, a few candles, and REAL Ghosts! Experience Fort Mifflin after hours on our popular candlelight walking tours through the site. Tours depart every 20 minutes beginning at 7 p.m. and last approximately one hour.
Tickets are $22 for adults and $15 for children (12 and under).
Each September, “Pumpkinland” returns to Linvilla Orchards (137 West Knowlton Road, Media, 610-876-7116, www.linvilla.com). “Pumpkinland,” which runs through November 5, features fairy tale characters from nursery rhymes along with a huge scarecrow and a really tall storybook.
Other activities include train rides, a straw bale maze, hayrides, pick-your-own apples and pony rides.
There will also be “Harvest Hayrides” and “Autumn Moon Hayrides” starting later in September along with “Straw Bale Maze,” “Train Rides,” “Corn Maze” and “Pony Rides.”
Pumpkinland is open from mid-September through early November and takes center stage at Linvilla Orchards. Larger-than-life figures and scarecrows illustrate the legends and lore of the harvest season, featuring local history and some of the many stories of pumpkins and apples.
See our piles of pumpkins in all colors, shapes and sizes – more than 100 tons on display.
Now through November 5, the Strasburg Railroad (Route 741, Strasburg, 717-687-7522, www.strasburgrailroad.com) has a very special event – “Strasburg Rail Road Productions presents…The Legacy of Sleepy Hollow: Not Everything Dies.”
Visitors will discover the true Legacy of Sleepy Hollow at the Strasburg Rail Road. The greatest ghost story ever told did not tell us the whole story.
Guests will join Isabel Crane, the great-great-granddaughter of the legendary Ichabod Crane, as she takes them on a frightful journey filled with sword fights, ghosts, and a centuries-old curse surrounding her family.
It seems that not everyone wants the truth to come out and they’ll go to any length necessary to keep their haunted past a secret. With grand special effects, live horses, and the scariest train ride of the season, this is an opportunity to learn, hear, and experience the Legacy of Sleepy Hollow aboard the historic Strasburg Rail Road.
A pre-boarding act/performance will commence 15 minutes before departure. Please plan to arrive early for check-in and then enjoy the pre-boarding performance before you embark on a memorable journey.
Please note: Due to the subject matter of this event and its presentation, this event is recommended for ages 8 and older. Parental discretion is advised.
Every weekend in October, The Franklin Institute (222 North 29th Street, Philadelphia, www.fi.edu) is presenting “Franklin Fright” featuring trick-or-treating through the exhibits, creepy guests from The Insectarium, spooky science experiments, liquid scare shows and other frightfully-fun festivities.
Spooky live science shows, Halloween-inspired décor, and the return of the ever-popular museum-wide indoor trick-or-treating adventure takes place every weekend in October during Franklin Fright.
Experience one of the most fun-filled Halloween destinations around with the return of Franklin Fright.
Back by popular demand, young witches and warlocks, ghosts, and goblins are invited to trick-or-treat by knocking on friendly decorated doors in exhibits throughout the museum.
There will be several “Halloween-Inspired Live Science Shows” including “The Lab” “The Electricity Show” and “That’s Gross!”
All programming runs from 10 a.m.-4 p.m. and is included with museum admission.
Admission is $23 for adults and $19 for children. Wearing costumes is encouraged.
For years, Eastern State Penitentiary (2124 Fairmount Avenue, Philadelphia, www.easternstate.org) presented one of the premier Halloween attractions in Philadelphia — “Terror Behind the Walls.”
Last year, the venue tried something different – a new attraction called “Halloween Nights at Eastern State Penitentiary.”
The truly scary attraction, which is running through November 11, takes place at a penitentiary site that was once was an active prison and is now a National Historic Landmark. It is a scream-inducing event featuring laser and special-effect lighting, digital sound, sinister scents, animatronic creatures and 3-D illusions.
There is “Delirium,” a 3D Haunted House where visitors take a mind-altering trip into another dimension –a parallel, neon universe where nothing is quite as it seems. Fascinating creatures emerge from seemingly nowhere as the world you thought you knew shrinks away.
“The Crypt” is another Haunted House. The creatures of The Crypt request your presence. Wade through the mist and into the lair of an ancient clan of vampires. They’ve set the table, but if you’re not careful, you might end up on their next menu.
“Hospital Flashlight Tour” is a guide-led Walking Tour – a 20-minute, guide-led, flashlight tour of Cellblock 3, the Hospital Block.
Another Haunted House is the “Machine Shop.” Hidden away from the world is a long-forgotten machine shop. Evil pervades this space – an evil with one mind but with many bodies. Will visitors survive or will they become just another cog in the machine?
Other attractions are “The Speakeasy at Al Capone’s Cell,” “The Bloodline Lounge,” “The Fair Chance Beer Garden,” “The Voices of Eastern State” Highlights Audio Tour, “Kaleidoscope Hall,” and “S’mores and Lore.”
Admission prices, which vary with the date, start at $39.
The “38th Annual Jason’s Woods” (99 Stehman Road, Lancaster, 717-872-5768, www.jasonswoods.com), which is running through November 5, is a horror show complex that features a combination of live actors, impressive animation and scary special effects.
Popular attractions include “Horrifying Hayride,” “Chamber of Horrors,” “Zombie Apocalypse,” “Lost in Jason’s Woods,” and “Carnival of Fear,” Admission prices are for combo tickets are $25 for three attractions and $40 for five.
“Valley of Fear” (300 W. Bristol Road, Feasterville, 215-942-9787, www.valleyoffear.com), which is open through November 5, features three “heart pounding attractions” — “The Original Haunted Hayride,” “Miles Manor Haunted House,” and “Willie’s Shipwreck Cove.”
There will also be live music every Thursday, Friday, Saturday and Sunday.
The attraction is billed as “America’s Most Horrifying Woods.” Admission prices start at $25.
The “31st Annual Field of Screams” (109 College Avenue, Mountville, 717-285-7748, www.fieldofscreams.com), which is open now through November 11, features four world-class Haunted Experiences and an impressive Midway Area.
Top attractions include “Horrifying Haunted Hayride,” “Den of Darkness,” “Nocturnal Wasteland” and “Frightmare Asylum.”
Ticket prices start at $16.
Shocktoberfest (94 Park Avenue, Sinking Spring, 610-375-7273, shocktoberfest.com) features an array of natural and genetically engineered Zombies in a safe and controlled habitat.
“Schockfest Zombie World” is celebrating its 33rd year with five “Killer Experiences” — “Zombie Safari Hayride Tour,” “Prison of the Dead,” “The Unknown 3.0,” “Ground Assault,” “Zombie Experience,” and “Midway Massacre.”
The attraction will close on November 4. Ticket prices start at $30.
“The 27th Annual Frightland” (309 Port Penn Road, Middletown, Delaware, 302-838-0256, www.frightland.com) features eight special themed areas — “Zombie Prison,” “Ravenwood Cemetery,” “Haunted Hayride,” “Idalia Manor,” “Fear,” “Ghost Town,” “The Attic” and “Haunted Barn.”
Frightland Haunted Attractions has been named a Top 10 Scariest Haunted Attraction in the country by Travel Channel, Forbes and Huffington Post.
The venue includes a variety of haunted attractions including a two-mile Haunted Hayride, four indoor haunted houses and more. The nationally acclaimed Halloween attraction also features live entertainment, carnival amusements and a daytime fall festival.
The venue will remain open through November 6. Ticket prices start at $40.
“Elmwood Park Zoo” (1661 Harding Boulevard, Norristown, www.elmwoodparkzoo.org) is presenting “Boo at the Zoo” on October 7, 8, 14, 15, 21, 22, 28 and 29 from noon-3 p.m. each day.
“Boo at the Zoo” features live entertainment, costume contests, costume parades, trick-or-treat stations with candy, prizes, crafts and educational pieces.
Children are encouraged to bring their own treat bags for trick-or-treating. The zoo will not be providing any bags.
“Boo at the Zoo” is free with zoo admission, which starts at $12.95.
The site is also hosting several of its ultra-popular “Dog Days” over the next week.
The Zoo’s “Dog Days” event will be held on October 6, 8 and 11 from noon-4 p.m. each day.
All guests visiting the zoo with a furry friend must complete an online waiver and submit required documents before visiting the zoo. You must upload a copy of your most recent veterinary visit, including proof of vaccine and heartworm test here. All items will be required for you to attend “Dog Days.”
Pricing is $10.95 per dog with each additional dog at $9.95. Regular zoo admission is required for all humans.
Additionally, the Zoo will host a “Harvest Fest” on Saturdays and Sundays through November 5.
The Philadelphia Zoo (3400 West Girard Avenue, Philadelphia, www.philadelphiazoo.org) is featuring a “Giraffe Feeding Encounter.”
Now guests can get up close to the zoo’s giraffe trio in this feeding experience. “Giraffe Encounter” is scheduled from 10:00 a.m. to noon and 1-4 p.m. daily.
General admission for the Giraffe Encounter is $6; Individual, Dual, Family, and Family Plus members is $5; and Family Deluxe and above is $4. Each guest gets one piece of browse to feed. Browse is vegetation, such as twigs and young shoots, eaten by animals. Depending on the day, guests can feed our giraffes acacia browse (which is what giraffes eat in the wild) or another variety like mulberry or honeysuckle.
Considered the tallest land animals in the world, male giraffes can reach up to 18 feet tall and weigh close to 3,000 lbs. Listed as “vulnerable” by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN), with scientists estimating there are fewer than 100,000 surviving in the wild, giraffe are affected by poaching and habitat destruction, with populations decreasing more than 40 per cent over the last three decades.
On October 7, the Revolutionary Germantown Festival will be held from 10 a.m.-4 p.m. at Cliveden (6400 Germantown Avenue, Philadelphia, 215-329-7312, http://www.revolutionarygermantown.org).
The festival features costumed characters, live music, food and drink culminating with a reenactment of the Battle of Germantown, the only military battle ever fought within the borders of Philadelphia.
The majority of the festival’s events are centered at Cliveden, the summer home of the Chew family and the location of General George Washington’s failed attempt to liberate Philadelphia from British control in 1777.
Cliveden of the National Trust will commemorate the 246th anniversary of the Battle of Germantown, educate both the local and regional community about Germantown’s role in our nation’s struggle for independence, and foster dialogue about gun violence and the role guns have played in our nation’s history.
A tradition since the 1970s, the Revolutionary Germantown Festival takes visitors on a journey to the fall of 1777 when Philadelphia—then the nation’s capital—and Germantown were occupied by British forces. The Battle of Germantown was a surprise attack planned by Washington in an attempt to force the British out of Philadelphia.
The 11th Annual Roxtoberfest fall street festival and Oktoberfest celebration (www.roxboroughpa.com/events) will return on October 7 from noon-6 p.m. on Ridge Avenue.
Roxtoberfest started off in 2013 as a small neighborhood street festival by the RDC with help from community partners, businesses, and sponsors. It has grown each year to become one of the most well-known fall festivals in the region.
The beloved signature festival brings together the best of family-friendly fall harvest celebrations paired with the traditional feel of a German beer fest including performances by an Oktoberfest band, the dazzling spectacle of circus performers, spirited competitions, an enticing array of food trucks, a doggie costume contest, plenty of beverages fit for a fall fest, and fun activities to delight the youngest attendees.
While festively walking along Ridge Avenue from Lyceum to Leverington Avenue festivalgoers will enjoy more than 100 vendors, including restaurants, bars, breweries, distilleries, artists, makers, small businesses, community groups, sponsors and more. The event is free and open to the public, with food and drink pay-as-you-go.
A popular event just outside the Philadelphia Metro area is the Pennsylvania Renaissance Faire (Mount Hope Estate and Winery grounds, Route 72, Cornwall, www.parenfaire.com).
This year’s 44th annual staging of the event, which bills itself as “the most wondrous event in all the Knowne World”, is running now through October 29. The festive annual event features authentic Elizabethan food and drink, traditional crafts from the guildsmen of yore and old-time games of skill — and a cast of hundreds of colorfully costumed re-enactors.
Every summer, the Faire, which takes place at Mount Hope Estate and Winery’s authentic 35-acre recreation of a 16th-century village in Olde England, features a new story from a different year of England’s past. This year’s Faire will take you back in time to the year 1558.
More than 70 shows are scheduled throughout each day on the Faire’s numerous stages.
Without a doubt, the most popular attraction is the Jousting Arena. Visitors to the Faire flock to Bosworth Field whenever it’s time for the Ultimate Joust. Peasants lead cheers for their favorite knights while musicians pound out a heart-thumping beat. The Master of the List announces the combatants and soon an encounter of royal proportions ensues.
The Faire offers a wide variety of activities for visitors, including listening to bagpipe music, checking out handsome Lords in their colorful silks, watching a jester’s acrobatics, learning how to juggle, being the recipient of a gypsy woman’s flirtations and watching the march of Beefeater Guards.
Guildsmen’s Way is the area that features a large variety of merchants and artisans, including jewelers, candle makers, potters, herbalists, leather smiths, clothiers, and pewter makers — all offering for sale and demonstrating their ancient wares.
And there are more than 20 Royal Kitchens located around the faire with menus featuring a wide variety of food and beverage.
Single-day tickets are available at the gate for $32.95. For children (age 5-11) single-day tickets are available at the gate and online for $16.95.
One of the best ways for everyone involved to appreciate the beauty of autumn’s annual color explosion is to ride a special excursion on an area tourist railroad.
The West Chester Railroad (Market Street Station, West Chester, 610-430-2233, www.westchesterrr.net) is running its special “Fall Foliage Express” trains on October 8, 15, 21, 22 and November 5. Trains depart at noon and 2 p.m.
The round-trip train ride travels to the village of Glen Mills and back and lasts for 90 minutes. During the brief layover in Glen Mills, riders can explore the historic Pennsylvania Railroad station and have a snack in the railroad’s picnic grove along Chester Creek.
Tickets are $22 for adults, $18 for children ages 2-12 and free for kids under two.
The Wilmington & Western Railroad (2201 Newport Gap Pike, Wilmington, DE, 302-998-1930, www.wwrr.com) is running its “Autumn Leaf Special” with trains on October 7 and 8 and every Saturday and Sunday through November 4.
Trips are either a one-and-one-half hour roundtrips to the Mt. Cuba Picnic Grove or two-and-one-half hour roundtrips to Hockessin.
Tickets for the “Autumn Leaf Special” start at $18.
The W&WRR also is running its “Hayride Express” on October 6, 13, 20 and 27 at 6, 7:30 and 9 p.m. each night. Visitors can experience a one-hour evening ride through the Red Clay Valley on an original railroad flatcar converted especially for hayrides.
Tickets are $18 for adults, $17 for seniors and $16 for children (ages 2-12).
The Reading Blue Mountain and Northern Railroad (Reading Outer Station, Reading, www.rbmnrr-passenger.com) is running its 2023 Fall Foliage Trains on weekends throughout October.
Passengers can enjoy a train ride to experience the fantastic fall colors that Pennsylvania has to offer.
They will travel over the rails to Historic Jim Thorpe after boarding the train at Reading Outer Station or Port Clinton Station.
Passengers will have time to explore historic Downtown Jim Thorpe during the layover.
Tickets for the all-day excursion start at $49.
The New Hope Railroad (32 Bridge Street, New Hope, www.newhoperailroad.com) is running its “Grapevine Express,” which features “Wine & Cheese Tasting” on October 7 and 8 at 4 p.m. each night.
Riders are invited to take part in a romantic “Wine and Cheese Excursion” and enjoy fine gourmet cheese, artisan crackers, meats, fruit, and our featured local wines. Additional Alcoholic and Non-Alcoholic beverages are also available onboard.
Wine and cheese will be served to passengers as they travel along the same railroad line passengers did when it was built in 1891 connecting New Hope with Philadelphia. The journey travels through the beautiful hills and valleys of Bucks County, along once vital waterways and streams and across numerous trestle bridges.
The excursions will take place aboard one of the railroads lavishly appointed early 1900’s first-class parlor cars.
Tickets are $102.58 (ages 21 and older only).
The Strasburg Railroad (Route 741, Strasburg, www.strasburgrailroad.com) is running its “Wine & Cheese Train” on October 6, 7 and 8 at 5 p.m.
Passengers can enjoy the luxurious, climate-controlled first-class accommodations and a tasting of select wine, cheese, and crackers as they travel in style down the tracks from Strasburg to Paradise and back. The train departs at 7 p.m. and the total trip time is 45 minutes.
“Wine & Cheese Train” boarding is 30 minutes before the scheduled departure. Riders must be 21 or older and have their photo ID ready when they board.
Featured wines are carefully selected from Waltz Vineyards, and cheeses are paired accordingly. Beer and select non-alcoholic beverages are also available for purchase upon request. Riders can purchase a souvenir wine glass on board the train if desired. Glasses are $7 each.
In accordance with Pennsylvania law, alcohol is only served during the train ride. The rail line is not permitted to serve alcoholic beverages while the train is berthed in the station.
This popular train is available on select Friday and Saturday evenings throughout the season. Tickets are $65.
It’s time to welcome autumn and one of the best ways to do this is by checking out the corn mazes at Ramsey’s Farm (Ramsey Road, Wilmington, Delaware, 302-477-1499, www.ramseysfarm.com).
Corn mazes, along with hayrides, a pumpkin patch and scarecrows, will be featured at Ramsey’s Farm, which is located in northern Delaware on Route 92 just south of the Pennsylvania-Delaware state line. The new season runs on weekends now through October.
Ramsey’s “Pumpkin Patch” has been in operation since 1995 and the farm’s varied mazes have been delighting and baffling visitors who return each year for the popular annual event. The owners of Ramsey’s Farm raise pumpkins, gourds, ornamental corn, popcorn, feed corn and hay.
The farm’s pumpkin field stretches over 12 acres and yields approximately 20,000 pumpkins each season. Hayrides around the farm will be offered from 11 a.m.-5 p.m. each day. Visitors will be able to shop for pumpkins and other items at the farm store. There will also be hot food and beverages available for purchase.
Tickets are $8 for the corn maze, $5 for the sorghum maze, $3 for the hay maze, $3 for pumpkin painting and $3 for a hayride.
This is the time of the year when farms in the area become a bustle activity — a time for harvest. But it is not harvest matters that are causing a bustle of activity at Cherry Crest Adventure Farm in Ronks (150 Cherry Hill Road, Ronks, 717-687-6843,www.cherrycrestfarm.com).
The farm’s popular annual “Flashlight Maze” is now underway and will continue every Friday and Saturday night through November 4. Cherry Crest Adventure Farm has reserved several weekends during the autumn months for Flashlight Maze.
This special activity allows visitors to experience the Amazing Maize Maze in total darkness. All you need are flashlights and a few friends.
The Flashlight Maze is a nice, non-scary, Halloween alternative that has appeal for people of all ages. The Flashlight Maze, which has a $12 admission fee, is open from 6:30-10 p.m. with the last entrance into the Maze at 9 p.m.
The main attraction is Cherry Crest’s “Amazing Maize Maze,” which is billed as “the world’s most dynamic and interactive corn maze.” It is a five-acre corn maze with over two-and-one-half miles of paths, scenic bridges, and clues.
Participants can walk at their own pace as they encounter the “Kernels of Knowledge” along with a variety of clues, tunnel slides, and watering stations. They can also check out a bird’s eye view from the two bridges and watch everyone’s flags waving high above the corn.
The average time to complete the “Amazing Maize Maze” course is one hour. Ticket prices start at $19.
On weekends now through October 21, the Kalmar Nyckel will be offering public sails from the Kalmar Nyckel Shipyard (Copeland Maritime Center, 1124 E. 7th St. Wilmington, Delaware, http://kalmarnyckel.org).
For two decades, the Kalmar Nyckel, which has its home base in Wilmington, has been hosting riders all over the world – especially in Delaware.
A ride on the Kalmar Nyckel is a totally different from most tourist water rides.
The ship is a beautiful recreation of the original Kalmar Nyckel, which was built in Holland in the 1620s. Her mainmast is taller than a 10-story building and she carries 7,600 square feet of sail area and six miles of rigging.
The original Kalmar Nyckel was a Swedish-owned, three-masted armed pinnace that sailed from Goteborg, Sweden in November of 1637 and brought the first permanent European settlers to the Delaware Valley.
Carrying 24 settlers from four countries (Sweden, Finland, Holland, and Germany), she landed on the banks of the Christina River. The site, which became known as “The Rocks”, can be visited at Fort Christina Park off Wilmington’s East Seventh Street.
The Kalmar Nyckel made four documented round-trip crossings of the Atlantic, more than any other “settlers’ ship” of the era. The original ship was lost in the late 1600s.
In 1986 a group of citizens established the Kalmar Nyckel Foundation to design, build and launch a replica of the Kalmar Nyckel at a shipyard adjacent to the original landing site.
The new Kalmar Nyckel was constructed there and was launched on September 28, 1997. She was commissioned on May 9, 1998, and now serves as Delaware’s sea-going Ambassador of Good Will. She is a fully functional sail training vessel and has represented Delaware all over the country.
Tickets are $40 for adults and $25 for youth (ages 17 and under).
Hope Lodge (553 South Bethlehem Pike, Fort Washington, 215-343-0965, http://www.ushistory.org/hope/) will be presenting a “Guided Mansion Tours” on October 8.
Hope Lodge was built between 1743 and 1748 by Samuel Morris, a prosperous Quaker entrepreneur. Morris acted as a farmer, shipowner, miller, iron master, shop owner, and owner of the mill now known as Mather Mill. Hope Lodge is an excellent example of early Georgian architecture, and it is possible that Edmund Woolley, architect of Independence Hall, offered advice in building. Samuel Morris owned the estate until his death in 1770.
The site opens at 12:30 p.m. with self-guided tours starting at 1 and 2:30 p.m. The closes at 4 p.m.
Tour admission is $8 for adults, $5 for seniors (age 65+) and for youth ages 6-17, and free for children under 5.
Schuylkill Banks Riverboat Tour (www.schuylkillbanks.org/events/riverboat-tours-1) presents “Secrets of the Schuylkill” now through October.
The boat ride is a one-hour family-friendly tour of Philly’s second biggest river featuring sights such as Bartram’s Garden and Fairmount Water Works.
Riders can discover the Hidden River on a fun and educational riverboat tour while seeing spectacular views of Philadelphia.
They can also learn about the past, present, and future of the tidal Schuylkill River and its impact on Philadelphia on a one-hour Secrets of the Schuylkill tour which costs $25 for adults and $15 for children (age 12 and under).
Tours depart from the Walnut Street Dock, under the Walnut Street Bridge, east bank of the Schuylkill River.
