Lillingstone and Peterley pumpkin patches open on 3 October, a free town centre Halloween day follows on the 29th and Buckingham's fireworks on the 31st.

Pumpkin season near Aylesbury starts this weekend. Lillingstone Pick Your Own, north of Buckingham, and Peterley Manor Farm, near Great Missenden, both open their pumpkin patches on Saturday 3 October 2026. Half term then brings a free Halloween day in the town centre on Thursday 29 October, and Halloween night itself falls on a Saturday, the same evening as Buckingham’s free fireworks.

The quick answer

  • Pumpkin picking: Lillingstone (booked tickets, weekends from 3 October and all of half term) and Peterley Manor Farm (free entry, no booking, weekends from 3 October and daily 27 to 31 October).
  • Free in town: Aylesbury Town Council’s Halloween Fun, Thursday 29 October, 11am to 3pm. Free, but every session has to be booked.
  • After dark for families: Twilight Tricks at the Roald Dahl Museum on 29 October (£12) and Chiltern Open Air Museum’s Halloween Spectacular on 30 October (£16.50).
  • On Halloween itself: Gruffalo Granny storytime at Wendover Woods (free, no booking) by day, then Buckingham’s free bonfire and fireworks at Bourton Park, fireworks at 7pm.

Everything below comes from each organiser’s own website, checked on 3 October 2026. Bucks schools are off from Monday 26 to Friday 30 October; our October half term page has the school-by-school dates and the full day-by-day list.

Pumpkin patches

Lillingstone, north of Buckingham

Lillingstone Pick Your Own at Lillingstone Dayrell (MK18 5AF), off the A413, is the pumpkin farm closest to the north of the vale. The farm says it grows more than 50 varieties of pumpkins and gourds.

  • Daytime, 10am to 4.30pm: 3 and 4, 10 and 11, 17 and 18, 24 and 25 October, then every day of half term, 26 to 31 October.
  • Included: pumpkin patch with wheelbarrows, tractor trailer rides, a spooky trail, play area and zip wire, marshmallow toasting. Some activities cost extra.
  • Extras on set days: a Pumpkin Circus on 10 and 11 October, stilt walkers and Halloween characters on 17 and 24 October, roaming characters on 18, 25 and 30 October, and a Spooky Science Show on 28 and 29 October.
  • SEND morning: Monday 26 October, 10am to noon.
  • Twilight Nights, 6pm to 10pm: torchlit picking with live music and fire shows on 17 and 24 October, and guest characters on 25 and 30 October, with a licensed bar and wood-fired pizza.

Booking is essential and the price depends on the date, because the event days cost more. The farm shows the price only when you pick a date on its booking page. Parking, toilets and a cafe are on site.

Peterley Manor Farm, near Great Missenden

Peterley Manor Farm at Prestwood (HP16 0HH) is the no-booking option. Its patch is open every weekend in October from 3 October, then daily from 27 to 31 October. Entry and parking are free and it is first come, first served. The farm says it has about 15,000 home-grown pumpkins, and dogs on leads are welcome.

Face painting costs extra and food vans pop up at the patch. The farm’s Little Farmers sessions in the Dutch Barn during half term are ticketed and must be booked ahead, and it recommends booking its Barn Kitchen if you want to eat there.

Mead Open Farm, Billington

Over the Bedfordshire border near Leighton Buzzard (LU7 9JH), Mead Open Farm runs Freaky Fun Fest from 24 to 31 October, 10am to 5pm. A ticket is £19.95 a person and covers a circus show in the big top, two undercover haunts (“Horrid High” and “Scary Tales”), a new trick or treat trail and one free pumpkin from the patch for each paying child. The farm says booking online saves 20%, and annual members get in without booking.

In Aylesbury town

  • Halloween Fun, Thursday 29 October, 11am to 3pm. Aylesbury Town Council is running free Casper screenings at Fusion at 11am and 1pm, spooky crafts at Esquires and Halloween junk modelling at Darlington’s, both at 11am, noon, 1pm and 2pm. It is all free, but places are limited and every session must be booked through the council’s Ticket Tailor link.
  • Discover Bucks Museum, Church Street, all week. Halloween craft drop-ins from 10am to 3pm on 26, 27 and 28 October (spiders and webs, ghouls and ghosts, clay monsters) at £4 a child with one adult free; a taught Spooky Science workshop on 29 and 30 October at £7.50; and a torchlit Creepy Doll Hunt on Saturday 31 October between 6.30pm and 8.30pm, £5 each and not for under-10s. All on the museum’s booking page.
  • The Witch Who Couldn’t Sleep, Friday 30 October, 2.30pm. A Halloween play for children in the Norman Bragg Studio at the Waterside, seats from £14 plus booking fee (ATG Tickets).

After dark for families

  • Twilight Tricks, Roald Dahl Museum, Great Missenden, Thursday 29 October, 5.30pm to 8pm. Candlelit crafts, a glowing juggler, Miss Trunchbull in the galleries, storytellers performing The Witches and a trick or treat trail out into the village. £12 for adults and children aged 3 and over, aimed at ages 5 and up (Roald Dahl Museum).
  • Halloween Spectacular, Chiltern Open Air Museum, Chalfont St Giles, Friday 30 October, 5pm to 9pm. Fire performances, a bonfire with marshmallows, trick or treating in the historic cottages, live music and crafts. The scary woodland walk is for over-12s and there is a gentler one for everyone else. £16.50, or £8.50 for museum members, with entry at 5pm or 6pm (COAM).
  • Lillingstone’s Twilight Nights, above, on 17, 24, 25 and 30 October.

For teenagers and adults

The Hellfire Caves at West Wycombe run Fright Nights with live actors on 24 October and 28 to 31 October, gates from 6pm and last entry 8.45pm (9.45pm on Halloween). They are for ages 16 and over, tickets are from £20 and they are non-refundable. The caves are closed from 12 to 17 October while they are decorated, then open daily for ordinary visits from 18 October to 1 November, 10am to 4pm.

On Halloween itself

Saturday 31 October has something at each end of the day:

  • Gruffalo Granny storytime, Wendover Woods, 10am to 4pm. Forestry England has storytelling at 10.30am, 12.30pm, 2pm and 3pm and Gruffalo meet-and-greets on the hour from 11am to 3pm. It is free and there is no booking, but car park charges apply to non-members (Forestry England).
  • Buckingham Bonfire and Fireworks, Bourton Park, from 6pm. Free, with food stalls and the fireworks at 7pm (Buckingham Town Council). Aylesbury has no bonfire night display of its own; the full picture is on our fireworks page.

Getting there and parking

Lillingstone has on-site parking and Peterley’s parking is free. The Hellfire Caves’ car park is at HP14 3AP, and Wendover Woods charges for its car park unless you are a Forestry England member. For the town centre day on 29 October, the council car parks closest to the three venues and their charges are on our parking in Aylesbury page. Check our Aylesbury roadworks page before driving out to the A413 farms.

This page will be updated as organisers add dates. If you run a Halloween event in Aylesbury Vale that is missing, tell us.