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Categories: Farmers Market, Fruits & Veggies [Edit]
40 W Higgins Rd
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I've been going to this place since I was a child and have absolutely wonderful memories of their mountians of beautiful pumpkins. This is part of the fabric of growing up in the area and a much loved tradition among school children, Brownies, Cub Scouts and church groups.
Recently, I had the pleasure of going there with my friend and her brood of five and we had a wonderful day enjoying all the fall actviites including hayrides, ponie rides, a petting zoo and even a sassy camel. (He spit!)
The staff working here was outstanding and the animals were well cared for, beautifully groomed and relatively docile. I grew up in this beautiful horse country and can honestly say what they are doing here is a wonderful educational opportunity for the local kids to enjoy.
Another big plus? No subdivision or strip mall on top of my childhood memories! I wish them many generations of success!
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This is our favorrite pumpkin farm! It is not too far in the burbs and has parking. The petting zoo is the best ever! They have the coolest animals. Corn maze, camel rides, pony rides...yummy apple cider and applie cider donuts! The kettle corn is the best! My 2 year old loved it!
This is a favorite place on our fall itinerary, and a great spot to pick pumpkins.
No general admission fee and fun activities, especially for kids. Pony rides, camel rides, wagon rides, a haystack maze, a haunted house (for ages 5 and up). My toddler loved the petting zoo with farm and exotic animals (tiger, giraffes, zebras, monkeys, etc.). A bank of hand-washing stations at the zoo entrance/exit was a nice touch! Tickets for each activity are $4 during the week; $6 on weekends.
Be sure to check out the market, which sells apples, potatoes, onions, along with seasonal goodies - apple cider, apple cider donuts, caramel apples, pies, bags of kettle corn and various bakery sweets. Those chocolate-covered pecan creations are sinful!
Goebbert's sits on a lot of acreage, so kids have plenty of space to run and play around (there are a few wooden play structures they can climb on, like a train and a fire engine). The grounds are well-kept; the Goebbert family has done a good job in the many years they've operated it.
To make it even better, I wish they had wagons to rent. Young 'uns get tired, so bring a stroller. And no changing stations - surprising given that so many visitors bring babies and toddlers. Port-a-potties are reasonably clean, though.
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My brother lives near Goebbert's so he's the one that first turned me on to the place. And I'm so glad he did! I loved it right away.
What's not to love? They have a mini zoo filled with wonderful furry (and feathered) creatures, hay rides, great apple cider donuts and hot drinks. My favorite time of the year to go is in the fall. They have a huge pumpkin patch (is Linus here??), and these cool Halloween decorations everywhere, even a haunted house.
You can buy fresh eggs and produce right off the farm, as well as homemade pies and preserves. It's a great place to take the whole family. (Note: They have seasonal days/hours so check their website for more info) A special trivia bit for all Bears' fans: Just STEPS AWAY from Goebbert's, you can find the gorgeous home of the late, great Walter Payton and family.
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Ummm....I have 2 boxes filled with every shape and type of pumpkin and no clue what I'm going to do with them, but I'm so happy I made the trip to Goebbert's. It's simply the most clean, beautiful and fun pumpkin patch that I have ever gone to and seen.
The variety of pumpkins is just AMAZINGand the prices are sooooooo reasonable.
Ok, let's see we took the wagon ride which was really nice, we went into the haunted house and no I was not scared and we also ate some roasted corn which was freaking AWESOME!!!
I plan to make it a family tradition with my son's and come back at least once a year. We haven't had this much wholesome fun in a while. It's 10pm and we're still so excited bout it. We just finished drawing faces on a bunch of mini pumpkin to display around the house!!
This really is a great place to spend a day with your family! I truly hope you have as much fun as I did!!
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We just visited Goebberts Farm this past Saturday.
We has hoped that the crowds would have died down in the late afternoon, but we were sadly mistaken..the place was super packed!
I would highly recommend avoiding the crowds and visiting during the weekday. If you have kids, I would also highly recommend allotting at minimum 3 hours to play, eat, and explore.
They've added many new attractions this year. They have even more cutouts, and have added an additional train, besides their existing train, fire truck, farm equipment ride ons. The indoor store seems to have expanded as well, and now include a huge selection of stencils and pumpkin carving tools as well as Halloween toys.
I would like to stress that the animals at this farm are very well taken care of. In my personal opinion, the areas that they are kept in are very well maintained and cleaned hourly, the pony and camel ride areas are cleaned after each session, and none of the animals looked neglected or showed any signs of stress or malnutrition.
My son decided to visit the haunted house this year. He is 3. I am not a fan of horror, so I stayed behind and had him go with his father. I was in shock that he wanted to go, and I was mortified that allowing him to go might scar him for life and that he would have nightmares for the next few months. My fears worsened when an 8 year old emerged screaming and crying. I was sure that my husband and I had just nominated ourselves for the worst parents of the year award. Luckily, my son has balls of steel. He didn't care for it and said that he didn't want to do it again, but he wasn't too scared and could name everything that he saw without flinching. The only thing that got him was when he stepped on a trigger plate and a gust of wind took him by surprise. A wise friend of mine once told me that it is your fears, your doubts that shape your child's. They know not of fear and limitations until you place them before them.
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I have been going to Goebbert's Farm on and off for over 3 decades.
I even remember shopping at…
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It's fall! It's time for pumpkins, apple cider, roasted corn, hay rides and haunted houses!
Every year a group of us go, parents and non-parents alike, to scope out Goebberts. I LOVE their roasted corn (mmmm ooey-gooy alternative butter product). Also try their apple cider donuts...mmmmdonuts.
There's a great area for seasonal crafts, you can ride camels and go through animal land. There's a great spot in the middle of the farm area where you can take some great holiday pictures with pumpkins and a great tree backdrop. Don't forget to check out the market. So much good stuff to try. Yum!
Obviously, it's a great place for kids, but adults have fun there, too. It's easy enough to get to from the city and it's a good few hours playing with gourds. Who doesn't want that?
Happy Fall!
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I want to start by saying that my kids had a WONDERFUL time, and if it were just about them... I'd have given this 5 stars, without a thought... but it's not so I'm not.
Pumpkins are a GREAT bargin! Location is fantastic! Traffic getting in on a weekend in October SUCKS! Apple cider, warm, is SO good! Kettle corn is plentiful! Had the best roasted corn I think I've ever had!
Now, why did I knock off a star... first, the Indian corn, while beautiful, was not the best... kids could get to it far too easily (at least that which I saw) and so the bottoms of the bunches were missing many kernals. Then there's the hayride/wagon ride which by itself isn't too bad... but if felt more like I was there to view the new construction mansions that are right next door than to go on a ride through a corn field.
We had a good time, please don't get me wrong, but it wasn't what I was hoping for... I think had we gone last year or the year before, it would have been, but with the new construction in full view it's kind of BLAH as far as I'm concerned and while the place rocks for all the autumn loving reasons, I didn't get the full feel for it because I was looking at million dollar homes while I rode on the wagon ride. :(
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This is your usual farm set-up: selling fresh produce, autumn gourds (pumpkins, etc), and pony rides. It wasn't stand-out in any way, except for the sheer size of the market and organization and cleanliness of the grounds and market.
There were plenty of things for kids to do, from pony and camel rides to a kid-friendly haunted house.
Like many of these farms, they carry their own lines of apple butter, jams, cookie mixes, etc. I got a jar of their pumpkin butter, and it's absolutely delicious. They also had an upstairs shop with very cute Halloween decorations. The staff were friendly and professional.
They have another location in Hampshire where you can pick your own pumpkin. We'll probably go to that location the next time we're in the area.
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This working farm has lots to offer. Some things it does quite well, somethings it fails at miserably. So let's take it one at a time.
1) While they sell apple butter and such that they label as their own, I've no idea where it comes from. I didn't see apple orchards. I know they sell cider that says it comes from Michigan. So I was disappointed that there weren't fresh, local, and hot cider donuts -- only boxed bits from who knows where. I did get some pumpkin butter and it was fab. I probably should have sprung for the 2# bag of popcorn. Not bad, but overall I wanted more local, or assurances I was getting local.
2) They sell cornstalks, gourds, pumpkins, Indian corn, hay bales and the like. Good stuff, cheap enough prices. My yard now looks festive. Small selection of costumes and Halloween decorations.
3) They have a fantastic petting zoo that costs $4. I fell in love with the miniature zebu, piglets, and the goats. It's the typical pay $.25, get a hand full of food, and feed the llama or camel or giraffe through the wire fence, kinda set up. Not as depressing as some, though the monkeys really looked bored and sad. Same with some of the birds. For an extra fee you can get your photo taken with tiger cubs may be a big plus for you. They looked quite pet-able.
Hint: do the corn maze first, snag some corn, and feed it to the zebu when you come back through rather than buying the grain at a quarter a handful.
4) They have a corn maze. It stinks. Even in early October the corn stalks were sparse and falling down. At 5'9" I could see over the corn to know where I needed to go. There are wide fenced paths rather than tight corn shock corridors. It was a short maze, wicked easy, not decorated (I'm used to folksy scarecrows or witty signs at dead ends), and with only a little gate at the end that had us all asking, "Wait this can't be it." It was. So if you're coming here for the corn maze, don't. The corn maze is included in the $4 you pay for the petting zoo.
5) They also have pony and camel rides. $4 gets you a trip around the lawn on a camel, or a few times around a carousel on the ponies. My pals did the camel and enjoyed it. I thought it looked like a rip. There are lots of giant plywood, er, things, painted up for you to take your picture with. So if you want to toss your kids in Cinderella's pumpkin carriage for a photo op, do remember your instamatic.
In good traffic Goebbert's was only a 40 minute drive and a $1.20 toll from my Roscoe Village home. Not so bad. Obviously public transit is right out. But really, you want to show up in a truck anyway to haul away your booty. Parking in their grassy field is free.
The place was pretty empty on a Wednesday morning. A few school groups were there, but if you avoided them, and were where they weren't, it was nice. I hear the place is mobbed on weekends though.
In short I'd say if you're interested in a corn maze, look elsewhere. If you're wanting farm goods, this place isn't bad. If you want a petting zoo, this place is pretty keen.
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I went here last year in the fall with my mom, sister and brother-in-law. It was a fun day out in a pumpkin patch and we will definitely go back. They had pumpkins everywhere, obv...and also a camel riding station! How weird is that, to come to a pumpkin patch and ride a camel?! So weird...but it was cool to watch. They also have a little craftsy area that was a bit overpriced so I wasn't able to buy anything there. And then a little market with local jellies, baked goods, apples and a bunch of other fun little things. We will definitely go back, especially when we have kids, it is definitely a family fun kind of day.
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I grew up going to Goebbert's before it became a huge sprawling family fun park, and this isn't sour grapes, but when the bf and I went to pick our pumpkins out there we were a little shocked at the price - $16 for a large one... ouch. $5 for Indian corn, $12 for two people to go through the petting zoo... pricey. Sadly, the pumpkins we picked out only a week ago are now rotten on the bottoms and we can't carve them. Next year we're avoiding the crowds and cost, and just getting the pumpkins at the grocery store.
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If you are concerned about animal welfare whatsoever, you will want to steer clear of Goebbert's. They have exotic animals confined to tiny miserable cages. To anyone who has ever loved an animal, or who as enough imagination to empathize with a living creature: please don't give this place your money!
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