This is the time of year that Arizonans dream about during the hottest throes of summer. October days are pleasantly warm and sunny, while the nights dip down to temperatures that sometimes require – gasp – a light jacket. There are great deals to be had around the state in Tucson, Flagstaff, and Phoenix hotels, and plenty of fun Halloween activities to keep you busy.
Phoenix: Great Pumpkin Festival
The Phoenix Desert Botanical Garden, a worthy destination in its own right with its wide variety of fascinating desert flora, hosts the annual Great Pumpkin Festival this weekend. My family will be there when the garden opens at 9am to take a hayride to the pumpkin patch, where all kids under 12 receive a free pumpkin. We will also enjoy the petting zoo, the carnival games, and the low-key Amazing Hay Bale Maze. No doubt my daughter will cut a rug to live music by the Back Porch Bandits as well.
Tucson: Buckelew Farm Pumpkin Festival and Corn Maze
The Buckelew Farm has been hosting this Fall Festival for the last 21 years. Tractor-drawn wagons transport guests to the pumpkin patch, where pumpkins of all shapes and sizes sit waiting. After picking out a pumpkin, Tucson vacationers can enjoy the farm’s Arts & Crafts tent, 4-H petting zoo, festival games, and pedal cart race track.
The real draw here is the corn maze, which winds for four miles over eleven acres of twisting, turning, confusing fun. Check-points within the maze help keep you on the right track. Those in search of a scare can enjoy the Terror in the Corn, a section of maze set up as a haunted house in the evenings. Props and live actors work to scare the bejeezus out of you – so much so that parental discretion is advised for children under 12, who are not admitted without an adult.
Flagstaff: Celebraciones de la Gente
This festival at the Museum of Northern Arizona is not about Halloween, but rather Day of the Dead. According to pre-Hispanic tradition, Day of the Dead is a time to celebrate loved ones who have died, as their souls come back to visit during this time. While these celebrations often take place in graveyards in Latin America, the Museum becomes its own graveyard of sorts.
The museum courtyard is lined with altars observing Day of the Dead. As is traditional, marigolds and their petals decorate these altars, creating a scented pathway for the departed to follow. The altars are usually also adorned with the deceased’s favorite foods, possessions, and even alcohol. In addition to the altars, there will be a series of performances that include folkloric dancers, musicians, mask makers, and storytellers.
