Parent Take: 5 farms well worth a family visit in the fall

Seattle-area farms come alive in fall, but each offers a different kind of experience. Some are packed with rides and activities, while others are better for picking produce, watching animals, or having a slower day in the country.s

We visited the five large farms in the greater Seattle area to learn what makes each one special, who each is best for, and what families should know before they go. All these farms offer free admission to U-pick produce, including pumpkin patches and country stores, but you’ll need a general admission ticket to enter the fall festival grounds. For more on festivals check out Learn m Seattle’s Child’s Fall Festivals Around Seattle

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Remlinger Farms

• Location: Carnation, WA
• Best for: Full-day experience

What it’s like

Remlinger Farms is a popular destination for seasonal fruit U-pick, and it has an extensive family fun park with kids’ rides open during the summer and fall months.

​We visited during the Harvest Festival opening weekend, and the farm when the fun park area was packed with kids—that meant, there were long afternoon lines for major rides. Remlinger’s is one of the largest Harvest festivals within a 40-minute drive from the Seattle area and wee spent six hours on the farm and still didn’t get to all the rides and attractions.

What families can do

Remlinger Farms is an easy day outing, especially for Eastside families at only a 30-minute drive away. It offers seasonal U-pick, aan on-site brewery and restaurant, a birthday party venue, arcade games and, of course, farm workings. The farm goes all in on the festival when it comes to fun for the families: There are 30-plus rides (some for the tiny tots and many for the older kids seeking high-energy fun) and they are all included in the general admission ticket.  The steam train ride around the park, mini paddle canoes, carousel, mini Ferris wheel, and animal barn were all appropriate for small kids. The rock climbing, high-intensity roller coaster, drop towers, and giant swing are are geared toward older kids who want more thrilling rides.​

Very few of the rides require a separate ticket. Those that do include the zip line adventure, pony ride, apple cannon, and gem mining. This year Remlinger Farms included a scavenger hunt along with the corn maze.

If you prefer only the pumpkin patch, you don’t need admission tickets (its free to visit) and you still get an amazing fall photo backdrop with giant pumpkin decor. The patch field also includes a tractor-themed play area, with slides for kids.

Don’t miss: Complete the Corn Maze Scavenger Hunt to enter a raffle draw. Winners are selected at the end of the festival and receive a grand prize of an overnight stay at Salish Lodge and Spa.

Vizhi’s tips

• Plan for an entire day of fun, because you’ll need it.
• Prioritize the pony ride if you’re interested, because it closes at 4 pm.
• Do the Family Fun Park in a clockwise loop if you have tiny tots; otherwise, go anti-clockwise for thrilling rides.

Good to know

• Food options: The on-site farm food menu includes both vegetarian and non-vegetarian options, with dessert and snack booths around the family fun park.
• Restrooms: Flushable multi-stall restrooms in the family fun park, with porta-potties installed around the farm
• Reservations:  None required. Tickets can be purchased either online or upon arrival.
• Facility rentals: Private space rentals with customizable Family Fun Park packages, and arcade game packages. Check out Remlinger Farms’ website for more.
• How much time to allow: Minimum five hours to go through the rides in the Family Fun Park, corn maze, and the pumpkin patch

This farm also hosts the Fall Harvest Pumpkin Festival. For dates, admission, and additional fall events, see Seattle’s Child’s Fall Festivals Around Seattle guide.

Plan your visit

• Where: 32610 NE 32nd St, Carnation, WA 98014
• Website: remlingerfarms.com

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Stocker Farms

• Location: Snohomish
• Best for: Full-day experience

What it’s like

Stocker Farms is one of the largest farms in the area and has over 30 attractions for a fall visit. You can easily make a full day out of it. We visited on their fall festive opening-day afternoon; the farm was buzzing with families. My little one had a blast playing for half a day. She enjoyed almost all the farm attractions for kids ages 2-12, including classic cow trains, a hay ride, a pig race ride and a zip line.

There’s a whole lot here to excite kids, including a chocolate cannon shot for children, where kids pick up candies shot out of the cannon, pumpkin cannon shooting on an old-school bus during a hay ride, and two giant bounce pillows (one for toddlers and one for the older kids).

What families can do

Visiting stocker farms is a one-stop-shop kind of experience and a perfect spot for families with kids ages 2-12. They have age-appropriate play structures and attractions, with a well-planned activity flow around the farm field that makes it easy for families to move from one activity to the next without scrambling. They have a Mega slide, a sports ball arcade, and a large corn maze for the older kids and adults.

My 4-year-old enjoyed the pedal trikes along with most of the other attractions mentioned above. For the fall festival, you’ll also find farm-made foods like classic apple cider donuts, apple cider, and pumpkin-flavored treats, plus food trucks with espresso, and a beer garden for those age 21 and older. A nighttime haunted corn maze experience is best for adults.

Don’t miss: Candy cannon at 4 p.m., a pumpkin spice latte with an apple cider donut on top, and a hayride.

Vizhi’s tips

• This farm is packed with activities for high-energy farm attractions. So plan to arrive midday and stay until 4 p.m.
• Dress up for ample fall-themed photos. This farm has truly great photo backdrops for family portraits.
• Save pumpkin picking for last.

Good to know

• Food options: Amazing lineup of food from the farm, plus food trucks on site, including a Mexican cuisine truck.
• Restrooms: The best! Surprised to see a standalone, multi-stall restroom setup with a water facility. They also have porta-potties around the festival field.
• Reservations: Online reservations can save you 20-27% compared to purchasing at the gate.
• How much time to allow: Three to five hours. Last entry is at 5 pm.
• Plan your visit

Plan your visit

• Where: 8705 Marsh Rd, Snohomish, WA 98296
• Website: stockerfarms.com/fall-festival

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Craven Farm

• Location: Snohomish
• Best for: Full-day experience

What it’s like

Craven Farm gives you a rustic, old pumpkin-patch vibe from the moment you arrive. The farm opens up to the public mainly during the Sunflower Days and the Fall Harvest festival and hosts Sunflower Days from late August until Labor Day, inviting the public to spend slow, sunny days on the farm. It includes rustic play elements for kids, with antique discarded boats and trucks to climb on, under the shade of the apple trees.

What families can do

We visited on the day of their 2026 fall festival opening. They have over 30+ varieties of pumpkins for U-pick. The farm is glowing with pumpkin decor, along with the smell of pumpkin donuts, apple cider, and their popular funnel cakes with pumpkin cream. The sunflower field was still in full bloom by the end of September.

My 4-year-old loved the jump pad, and we enjoyed the mini golf area, which had Fall and Halloween-themed elements before we braved the kids’ corn maze with Paw Patrol-themed boards. A pumpkin quiz focused on numbers, colors, and shapes and kept even the youngest of of us engaged. Cute bouncy animal hoppers let kids hop around and play. After that, we briefly stopped by the sunflower field for a quick photo shoot.

We stopped by the animal barn and visited the baby goat, chickens, and bunnies. After all the playtime, we enjoyed delicious hot apple cider; it was my little one’s first-ever apple cider tasting. This farm also hosts a fall festival, Wednesday to Sunday, 10 a.m.to 6 p.m. through Nov. 1.

Don’t miss: Mini golf field in the farmyard, Apple cider and donuts, Wagon ride, cow train, and the kids’ corn maze.

Vizhi’s tips

• Plan at least half a day to enjoy the slow farm vibes.
• Expect a real corn maze that’s customized for kids.
• Pick up a fall-themed drink before going into the farmyard.
• Check out Friday nights line dancing with drinks and food in a family-friendly environment until Nov 20. Kids under 10 enter for free.

Good to know

• Food options: Farm-made food with seasonal treats
• Restrooms: Porta-potties
• Reservations:  None required; you can purchase tickets onsite
• Farm Facility rentals: Rustic Wedding and party venues. Perfect for fall weddings, baby showers, birthdays, and special occasions
• How much time to allow: Two to three hours

Plan your visit

• Where: 13817 Short School Rd, Snohomish, WA 98290
• Website: cravenfarm.com

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Swans Trail Farms

• Location: Snohomish, WA
• Best for: Half day fun for kids

What it’s like

Swans Trail Farms is known for its seasonal U-pick apples and its magical pumpkin garden during the fall harvest festival. It was exciting to step into the pumpkin Garden. It’a truly photogenic set up. We visited on a weekday afternoon, so the kids’ activity zone had a smaller crowd.

What families can do

You can spend half a day here with general admission to the Fall Festival and enjoy all the included kids’ activities, or do U-pick Apples/Pumpkins with your crew.

The kids’ activity area in the farmyard and barnyard has all elements for a great time, including a ropes course play area, zip lines, wall-climbing structures, bubble barn, cow train, hay pyramid, and trikes track. My child loved the indoor barn slides and the giant jumping pillows, as well as visiting the animals in the barn. The animals were actually resting, and some were fast asleep.

If you have more time, do the corn maze. This year, it’s shaped like the Washington state map across 12 acres, with historical facts about Washington cities and roads—fun and education for school-aged kids.

Don’t miss: Terrific apple cider donut and apple cider. Don’t miss the wagon ride, children’s play area, and, of course, the photogenic pumpkin patch.

Vizhi’s tips

• Plan to visit on a weekday afternoon to avoid crowds.
• Plan to stay for The Great Harvest Glow, a separately ticketed event, with a 0.5-mile walk through glowing lights in the dark. It’s family-friendly and makes for a perfect magical photo backdrop.

Good to know

• Food options: Farm-fresh food, with classic Fall treats
• Restrooms: Portable restroom trailers, alongside multi-stall portable toilets, with handwash stations next to them
• Reservations: No reservations required. Purchase tickets either online or in person, with no difference in price.
• How much time to allow: Three hours if choosing Harvest Festival

Plan your visit

• Where: 7301 Rivershore Rd. Snohomish, WA 98290
• Website: swanstrailfarms.com/attractions.aspx?c=2920

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Maris Farms

• Location: Snohomish
• Best for: Full-day experience

What it’s like

Visiting Maris Farms feels like stepping into a massive children’s playground, with a mega slide, long zip lines, a ropes course, and 40+ farm attractions. Every season, the farm changes its theme. Tulip fields and baby animal encounters during Spring, Summerfest, Fall Fest, and the nighttime haunted experience are some of the farm’s largest annual events. This farm also gets extra attention for its Mount Rainier views on clear days.

What families can do

One of the best times to visit Maris Farms is in the fall, when you should plan to spend a full day of playing on the farm in chilly weather with hot cider and farm-made mini donuts to warm you up. It is a huge farm with many acres of sunflower fields, corn, and pumpkin patches. Some activities, like apple blaster, paint ball, and gem mining, require separate tickets, while most attractions are included with the general admission ticket.

We visited Maris Farms during their Summerfest, and spent a whole day taking in major attractions like the Cow Trains, Mega Slide, zip lines, ropes course, cuddling chickens in their barn, relishing farm-made ice cream, and checking out the makers market. We got our best sunflower-backdrop family portraits here.

Don’t miss: Cute pigs and duck races, Zack the Tractor (singing, dancing tractor in the children’s play area), feeding the goat via a pulley system, riding a monster truck, and the butterfly garden during Summerfest. Milk House ice cream is worth a taste as is other farm-made food.

Vizhi’s tips

• Reserve your tickets online for a lower price.
• Plan for a full day of playtime on the farm.

Good to know

• Food options: Farm-made food on-site, with ice cream and snack menu
• Restrooms: Porta-potties around the farmyard
• Reservations:  Yes. Online reservations guarantee a lower price than the gate price.
• Farm Facility rentals: Available from May through October
• How much time to allow: Five-plus hours

Plan your visit

• Where: 25001 Sumner Buckley Hwy, Buckley, WA 98321
• Website: marisfarms.com/tickets/fall-at-maris-farms/

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Which farm is right for your family?

All five farms host Harvest festivals that offer unique experiences for families. For festival dates, pumpkin patches, and more seasonal events, visit Seattle’s Child’s complete Fall Festivals Around Seattle guide.

• For younger kids: Remlinger Farms, Stocker Farms, Maris Farms
• For rides and attractions: Remlinger Farms, Maris Farms, Stocker Farms
• For U-pick: All 5
• For animals: Remlinger Farms, Maris Farms, Swans Trail Farms, Craven Farms
• For a full-day outing: Remlinger Farms, Stocker Farms, Maris Farms

Common info for Farm Visits:

• Parking: Free parking
• Stroller friendliness: Wagons/strollers with sturdy wheels are best
• Outfit: Layer up for the PNW weather. Don’t assume the weather will stay the same all day.
• Footwear: Wear high-rise shoes/boots to navigate muddy corn mazes and pumpkin patches