Europe’s largest pumpkin festival opens new Pumpkin Valley in West Sussex

Europe’s largest pumpkin festival has opened for the fall in West Sussex, with a major new landscaped valley among the additions for 2026.

Tulleys Pumpkin Festival, near Crawley, opened on Saturday, September 19, with more than 1.5 million pumpkins and gourds across the site.

The biggest change visitors will notice this year is Pumpkin Valley, a new area featuring streams, ponds, wooden bridges and giant pumpkin sculptures.

Months of work have gone into creating the valley, which also includes a Pumpkin Farm House and Hobbit House surrounded by pumpkins and fall planting.

Tulleys says it is the largest single addition made to the Pumpkin Festival since the event began.

Stuart Beare, owner of Tulleys Farm, said: “Seeing the Pumpkin Valley full of visitors for the first time over opening weekend was a really proud moment for everyone here.

“This is the biggest addition we have ever made to the Pumpkin Festival. We wanted to create a completely new part of the event rather than simply adding another display.

“A huge amount of work has gone into the landscaping, buildings, bridges, water and planting. It has been months in the making, so finally seeing families walking through it and enjoying the space has been brilliant.

“The Pumpkin Festival has changed enormously over the years. People still come to pick their pumpkins, but for many families it has become a full day out and an annual fall tradition.”

More than 1.5 million pumpkins

The Pumpkin Festival now covers more than 100 acres of West Sussex countryside, with more than 1.5 million pumpkins and gourds and over 100 different varieties.

Pumpkin picking remains at the heart of the event, with visitors able to head into the Pick Your Own fields as well as explore Pumpkin Village.

Other features across the site include more than 30 photo installations, roaming musicians, street theatre and a 33-metre Observation Wheel overlooking the fields and surrounding countryside.

The festival has grown considerably from its pumpkin-picking roots and now attracts visitors from across the UK and further afield.

Tulleys Pumpkin Festival runs on selected dates until October 31.

Pumpkin Nights to return after dark

The farm will also open for its separate Pumpkin Nights event on selected evenings from September 26.

The evening event sees parts of the site illuminated after dark, alongside pumpkin picking, woodland walks, two undercover live music stages and seasonal food and drink.

For the first time, Pumpkin Valley will also be open during Pumpkin Nights.

The daytime Pumpkin Festival and Pumpkin Nights are separately ticketed events.

Tulleys Farm is on Turners Hill Road, near Crawley, West Sussex.