While many campgrounds see peak business in the summer months, Jellystone Park locations across North America are gearing up for some of their busiest weekends in September and October.
The parks are offering fall festivals and halloween-themed events designed to attract families well into the autumn season.
“Families love our fall festival and Halloween-themed weekends,” said Trent Hershenson, vice president of marketing for Camp Jellystone, which franchises more than 75 Jellystone Park locations in partnership with Warner Bros. Discovery Global Experiences.
The fall weekends feature activities such as scarecrow making, fall crafts, apple bobbing and pumpkin spice cooking competitions. Halloween weekends bring trick-or-treating, costume contests, magic pumpkin patches, campsite and cabin decorating contests, haunted houses, mummy wrapping and zombie chase games.
“Most locations offer a combination of scary and not-so-scary experiences so families can choose the weekends with the types of activities that best fit their children,” Hershenson said in a press release.
In Ohio, the Big Prairie location in Holmes County will host a range of events including an Apple Dumpling Festival Weekend from Sept. 26-28, a Harvest Hoedown Cider & Donuts Weekend Oct. 3-5, a Fall Flannel Festival Oct. 10-12 and a Fall Foliage Fiesta Oct. 17-19. Activities span from cider pressing and wagon rides to lumberjack games and scenic hikes.
The Burleson, Texas, location will offer six consecutive fall weekends starting in late September with pumpkin decorating contests, costume fashion shows and an annual haunt spectacle. November will bring three “Gobble ’Til You Wobble” weekends with turkey-themed games and a pumpkin spice cooking competition.
In Caledonia, Wisconsin, the season begins Sept. 5-7 with a fall fiesta and continues with six consecutive weekends of themed activities, including wrap-a-mummy contests, pumpkin bowling, monster costume parties, spooky storytelling and a Wizards and Warlocks Weekend.
Cochran, Georgia, will feature a chocolate lovers weekend in late September and a Fall Frenzy Weekend Oct. 10-13. The location’s Halloween events will run the last two weekends of October, with pumpkin carving, trick-or-treating and other seasonal activities.
In Endicott, New York, a Magical Pumpkin Weekend is set for Sept. 19-21, followed by multiple Halloween weekends through late October. Themes include wizards and witches, a monster dance party and a zombie-themed weekend with zombie relay races and gellyball games.
Other locations hosting extended fall and Halloween programming include Estes Park, Colorado; Hurricane, Utah; Jamestown, New York; Lake Charles, Louisiana; Loudon, Tennessee; Monticello, Iowa; New Douglas, Illinois; and Pelahatchie, Mississippi. Activities range from haunted hikes and Day of the Dead celebrations to gumbo cookoffs and interactive storytelling with park characters.
With more than 75 locations in the United States and Canada, Yogi Bear’s Jellystone Park Camp-Resorts offer pools, water slides, family activities, character appearances and glamping-style accommodations. The parks aim to extend the camping season beyond summer by offering themed weekends that appeal to returning and new guests.
Camp Jellystone is part of Warner Bros. Discovery Global Experiences, which operates entertainment destinations and experiences inspired by Warner Bros. properties including Harry Potter, DC, Looney Tunes, Scooby-Doo and Game of Thrones.
Featured image by Jellystone Park