I was provided with complimentary tickets to Cherry Crest Adventure Farm in Lancaster PA in exchange sharing this review with our readers. You can read my full disclosure policy here.
There are so many fun family attractions in Lancaster County, PA and Cherry Crest Adventure Farm was definitely on our list of places to check out this fall. We love a good corn maze! Though I know a few friends that love the place and have a had a great time there, unfortunately we didn’t have the best experience. Maybe it was just not our day because it does seem like a great place for kids.
On the day we decided to go to Cherry Crest Farm I looked at their hours online and then we piled into the car and headed out on a 40 minute drive to find…they were closed to a private party. And there we were with 2 very disappointed kids. Fortunately we found some other things to do in the area but I was bummed out that Cherry Crest didn’t take the time to update their website and let everyone know that they weren’t open to the public that day.
We went back a couple of weeks later and they were open, extremely crowded, but open! Despite there being several open parking spots close to the entrance we were directed to an overflow lot which was a good 10 minute walk away. Glad we didn’t have Grandma along that day!
When we finally got inside we started to have a little more fun. Cherry Crest has a huge, 5-acre corn maze and every year they design it with a different theme. This year it was a pirate ship. We had a good time checking out all the photos of previous maze designs while we waited to be let into the corn maze.
There are three levels of difficulty in the corn maze so it’s fun if you go with little kids and just want to keep it simple, or if you’re hardcore with a group of friends and really like a challenge!
The problem with the 3 mazes is that everyone has to go through a maze orientation. That means you have to wait to be let into this area above with a large group of people who are also waiting to go through the maze. Then you have to listen to how to play the maze challenge on a game board, etc. Honestly, I tuned it all out because I was trying to keep my kids from rolling around on the dirt floor while they lost their patience waiting to go through the maze. I would suggest to Cherry Crest that they separate the families with small kids that want to do the quick 15-minute-no-orientation-needed maze from the visitors that need instructions.
The maze itself was really fun. There are a bunch of little discoveries waiting inside (including a food stand!). My kids enjoyed getting silly with this mermaid and swinging on the playground we found.
There are over 50 other attractions for kids to enjoy, too. There are two jumping pillows for kids to bounce on. While a lot of kids had a great time on this mine really didn’t. They had to be separated because they’re not the same size. I was glad my husband and I were both there or we’d have had to pass on this altogether because one person can’t watch two kids on two different bouncers. My daughter was overcrowded on the ‘big kid’ bouncer, getting pushed around by a bunch of other wild flying arms. She came off after just a few minutes in tears. 🙁
We tried out a neat hay bale set up the kids could climb through and on and that didn’t end well either. Both of my kids got stuck inside of it where no one could see them and one of the older kids on top of the maze started shouting, “Get everyone out! Get everyone out!” I started to panic a little not being able to see my kids and there was no staff person in sight. Finally the kids came out and I breathed a sigh of relief.
We did have a great funnel cake and there were some cool petting zoo and other farm activities there too. Unfortunately we had a series of frustrating experiences and just decided to call it a day. There were plenty of other families having a good time. Sadly ours wasn’t one of them. Have you ever been to Cherry Crest Adventure Farm? How did your family like it?
You can learn more about Cherry Crest Adventure Farm including their hours of operation, admission prices, and directions on their website.
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