Pumpkin Palooza Returns to Hershey Gardens in October 2025

Hand-painted pumpkins, creepy creatures, gorgeous mums and unique fall displays return this October to Hershey Gardens for Pumpkin Palooza. The annual non-scary Halloween event will be held on Oct. 18, 19, 25 and 26, 2025, from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.

Pumpkin Palooza will feature more than 300 hand-painted pumpkins, representing a variety of themes, on display throughout the Seasonal Display Garden and in the Hoop House. The pumpkins will showcase the artistic handiwork of students from Bishop McDevitt High School, Hershey High School, Lower Dauphin High School and Milton Hershey School. In addition, pumpkins painted by students from York College of Pennsylvania’s Plant & Gardening Club and Student Senate will also be featured. Rounding out the decorations will be large sculptures created with multiple pumpkins, a 14-foot “pumpkin tree,” four special pumpkin mosaics, a 9-foot mum display and displays of gourds, hay bales and ornamental grasses.

Guests can get up close with live animals in the Creepy Creatures Gallery, including tarantulas, various frog species, walking sticks and jungle nymphs. From 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., guests can hold cockroaches.

Hands-on activities for youngsters are also offered at Pumpkin Palooza, and face painting is available for an additional charge. 

Food items will be available for purchase from the Cheesesteak Shuttle, Jack & Joan’s Kettle Corn, Madelyn’s Sweets & Savories, Noel’s Café and Shorty’s Funnel Cakes. 

Pumpkin Palooza is included in general admission, which includes entry into the indoor tropical Butterfly Atrium; members are free. General admission tickets can be purchased online at HersheyGardens.org or in person at the admissions desk upon arrival.