This weekend we visited the National Forest Adventure Farm for the opening weekend of their 2020 Halloween Spook-tacular event.
We’ve visited the NFAF for several events before, including Christmas, Paw Patrol and Spudfest, so were excited to head along to check out their Halloween Spooktacular as the team always know how to put on an event – and this really did not disappoint!
Lily is a huge fan of Halloween. We don’t trick or treat, but she likes to give sweets out at the door, so with things being a bit different this year, we wanted to make sure we could have some fun at plenty of events, kicking off with the NFAF on October 10th.
Booking & timeslots
The National Forest Adventure Farm is set in Burton-on-Trent and surrounded by stunning countryside.
The farm is currently offering pre-booking for their sessions only, with either morning sessions from 9-1 or afternoon from 2-6. The Halloween Spooktacular event runs on the 10th, 11th, 17th-31st October and 1st November 2020.
Arrival
We arrived for our morning session at 9am, where a few other people arrived so there was a short wait at the entrance while each group went in.
You showed your booking to the team behind the screens who gave you a pumpkin picking voucher for each child and you could pick up a map and timetable from the basket as you went through.
Broomstick training
We started at 9.30am with the broomstick training in the marquee. Tickets were given to you for the various timeslots once you arrived at the farm. It lasted about 15mins and Lily really enjoyed this.
Each child had a hoop to stand in and their own broomstick to keep them away from other children/families. There were picnic benches for the adults to sit in at the back and thr sides to watch.
The team member in fancy dress then kept the kids entertained by teaching them how to “fly” a broomstick. Lily loves organised entertainment like this with other kids around, so was in her absolute element.
Some of the very young kids didn’t quite get the jokes or what they were meant to be doing, but as it was only 15mins long and in a covered area away from the rain, it really was a great little session as part of your day.
Mummy maize maze
The mummy maize maze was probably the highlight of our day. We had a huge downpour, but that didn’t put a dampener on it at all!
I felt like a kid again, running through the maze with Lily, she was giggling away trying to find the mummies through the maze.
Even without a map, it was still easy to find the end again, and with other people so spread out in there, you didn’t often cross other families.
Cauldron chaos
I was unsure what this one was, and you had to head quite far into the maze, so we weren’t quite sure where we were going, but once we found the witch in the middle with her giant cauldron, Lily had a great time – despite another huge downpour!
It was only a short session and one other family was there. The witch gave some little rhymes and riddles, where you then collect items from around the edge to put in the cauldron. Lily’s favourite was definitely the zombie head 😂
Funfair
There is currently a funfair set up with rides for all ages, including a little carousel, helicopters, and a giant whizzer, as well as a few funfair games to win prizes.
Ride tokens are £1 each with each ride costing 2-3 tokens, and they only accept card when buying the tokens from the hut by the funfair.
Pumpkin picking & tractor ride
Tractor rides run throughout the day to the pumpkin patch. You can then use your token to collect a pumpkin from the field (one free per child) and then jump on the next tractor to head around the field, back to the farm again.
Along the way you see the animals in the fields as well as scarecrows to shout at! The team were lovely as always, and although it is very muddy, they do offer shoe coverings if you’d like to use them! We do recommend your wellies though…
The tractors run throughout the day and are regular as there are two running at the same time, so you don’t need to pre book or wait long for the next one. Families on each ride are also limited to keep you spaced out from other groups.
There are plenty of pumpkins to choose from in the fields too and you can spend as long as you like choosing your pumpkins. Just bring a bag or wait til the end of your stay to get one, unless you don’t mind carrying it around with you or nipping back to the car with it!
It was also great to see a wheelchair accessible pumpkin patch set up near the mazes too.
Other activities
There are so many other activities to enjoy while you’re on the farm too, including the indoor animal barn where you can pet the guinea pigs and feed the animals (feed available at the entrance to the farm when you arrive).
There are go karts for smaller children as well as bigger ones for older children or adults. Lily was in her element on these and the team member managing it was really lovely.
All the usual fun on the farm is also available, including barrel rides, frisbee, play areas, JCB area, farm animals and more. Read our previous review to find out more about what you can get up to when you visit NFAF.
Food and drink
Food and drink is available throughout the farm including at the Grill and Chippy. Hot and cold drinks and treats are available from the Grill kiosk by the go karts area as well as another by the funfair area.
You can also buy hot food such as children’s meals, fish & chips and even preorder pizza, from the Chippy in the covered area towards the farm entrance. There is a one way system there as well as a small outdoor gift shop there while the indoor one is closed.
Picnic benches are set up under a huge marquee in this area to enjoy your food away from the rain if you wish to sit and have a drink or snack.
The indoor play area with restaurant are currently still closed.
Toilets
The main toilets are still open with a clear one way system in and out. Here you can also find child-friendly toilets, accessible toilets and baby changing.
There are also portaloos around the farm as well as one by the entrance in the carpark should you need it when you arrive!
Accessibility
The maizes are uneven and unsuitable for wheelchairs or pushchairs, and the main pumpkin patch is also too muddy, however the main farm is complete with hard paths to make it accessible.
Although the tractor/trailer ride is currently not accessible, the farm have set up a wheelchair-friendly pumpkin patch, so those who cannot access the main pumpkin patch can still enjoy pumpkin picking.
There are accessible toilets available by the main entrance and the website says there is a disabled toilet with hoist and table – you just need to ask a member of staff for the key.
Covid safety
We felt extremely safe at all times, from the moment we entered the farm. The team made sure everyone sanitised their hands whenever you went on/off an activity, with team members stationed around the farm to limit numbers and make sure everything was cleaned between uses.
The tractor wagon was sprayed between uses, there were screens in reception, food areas and the gift shop area, and there were clear signs as well as one way systems in place around the park.
Staff were wearing masks at all times and visitors are required to wear masks in reception as well as in the toilets areas.
With pre-booking, numbers were also limited, so even on a busy event Saturday, everyone was beautifully spread out throughout the session.
Conclusion
Lily had an absolute great time at the National Forest Adventure Farm and we very much recommend it for a fun family Halloween event this half term.
The staff there are always so friendly and welcoming, with the added bonus of team members in fancy dress too!
The farm are always great at setting up events that are high quality and enjoyable for all ages and this was definitely no exception.
The morning session absolutely flew and we could have easily stayed all day, as by the time we did all the Halloween activities, there wasn’t much time to do anything else!
We also felt very safe at all times thanks to the clear covid-secure measures in place, and with everyone so spread out with activities running throughout the session, it meant there weren’t large gatherings of people anywhere.
We really do recommend their Christmas North Pole Adventure event, however this year they’ve set timeslots for groups of 6 which make in unaffordable for just myself and Lily. If you can get along, it really is so magical and they are fantastic at putting on events at the National Forest Adventure Farm – we can’t recommend it enough 🙂
Thank you again to everyone at National Forest Adventure Farm for yet another fantastic family adventure, even in the crazy downpours we had today too!
What to bring
We recommend wearing wellies or footwear that you don’t mind getting muddy, as well as plenty of layers as it is quite exposed on the farm so you could get chilly.
Make sure you have your waterproofs with you in case of downpours and a few people were sitting on them in the tractor as the seats were wet/muddy.
Thanks to a reminder from someone on my Facebook group, you need to bring a pen for the mummy maize as they don’t provide them 🙂
Face masks are required in the reception area and toilets, but not in the marquees or around the farm.
You can also bring your own sanitiser, however there is also sanitiser around the farm and staff remind you to sanitise before/after activities.
Picnics are also allowed, with benches around the farm for you to eat on, including covered areas.
The 3am Diary 
7 Comments Add yours