Pumpkinville at Leesburg Animal Park

Halloween is only a week away, but I finally got out to the pumpkin patch. Generally I find myself going out of town when it's pumpkin time, but this year I decided to stay local and take my three-year-old son to Pumpkinville.

, at , is much more than just pumpkins; it's an entire fall festival, right off of Route 15. Hay slides, a corn maze, a zip line, inflatables and hay rides are just some of the activities you and your family can enjoy at Pumpkinville. That's to say nothing of the actual animal park itself.

The camel is of course a large draw, but other adorable animals abound. Families all crowded around the donkeys, the deer and the goats, feeding, petting them and taking photos. Babies are also at the animal park; a large group of baby chicks had just hatched, and children were seen marvelling over piglets and a nursing baby alpaca.

Pumpkinville isn't exactly a cheap proposition: while children under two are free, it's $13/person for everyone else on the weekends. If you can get a break during the week, you can save some money; tickets go down to $8.50. Add food and pumpkins from the farm market, and you're definitely spending some cash.

However, you get a good value at Pumpkinville. There's so much to do that even though we were there for over three hours, there are still things we didn't get to. We caught some of the live juggling show, but definitely missed some slides, in addition to the face painting.

Admission also includes more than just access to the property; it includes a small pumpkin or gourd for each person, admission to the animal park and all-you-can-eat and drink apples and apple cider.

Even though you only have one more week until Halloween, Pumpkinville goes for two more weeks, so you can enjoy the fall festivities for a few more weeks. Open from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m., you have plenty of time to stop by and show your kids a great time.