6016 US-401, Fuquay-Varina, NC 27526
Naylor Family Farm is an awesome spot to visit during the Fall season. It’s a bit of a drive from our home in North Raleigh, but it was definitely worth it! The farm doesn’t look like much when you first arrive, but once you round the corner of the barn you will be amazed at the giant pirate ship and farm tower fort where you can spend hours in imaginative play!
Giant Pirate Ship
When we say giant pirate ship, we mean it! This thing is MASSIVE! Definitely not the miniature pirate ship that you’ll find at Marbles Kids Museum. This is a life-size, 100 foot long ship that you can climb up and stand on the top deck. For a second I felt like I was standing on the Wilmington battleship!
There’s one stairway going up to the top and from there you can slide down to the ground. My 2 year old was too scared to go down the slide since it was so high, so we came back down and played in the sandy beach around the bottom of the ship. He enjoyed sitting in the boat, and there’s a photo op there as well.
Farm Tower Fort
The farm tower fort caught my eye from the moment we arrived at Naylor Family Farm. It’s a giant structure made from 4 silos suspended about 15 feet above the ground. Hill Ridge Farms has a similar fort structure, but not as big as this one!
Once you’re up in the fort, there’s a McDonald’s Playplace-style tube and slide. My 4 year old loved climbing in the tube and hiding from me!
My boy loved the foam ball shooter the most. It was just like the one he played with for an hour at BounceU in Apex, so he was already a pro! Just load the foam balls in the cannon, press the button, and it will shoot the ball across the fort. There’s a shooter on each side so you can battle with friends! Just make sure you don’t shoot all of the balls into the corn maze because you’ll have to go retrieve them if you want to shoot more!
On one side of the fort you will find another popular attraction – the helicopter! This is a real life helicopter that you can sit in and push the buttons as much as you want! My little guy loved sitting in this thing and didn’t want to leave! We had seen a helicopter at Jordan Lake Educational State Forest this summer, but he wasn’t able to actually sit in it. Last year he sat in the one at the fair, but you aren’t able to push the buttons in that one. If you have a vehicle-loving kid on your hands, they will love this attraction!
Hayride and Pumpkin Patch
The hayride at Naylor Family farms was the most exciting ride we have experienced at any other farm. You aren’t just riding through the woods to a pumpkin patch. They had spooky scenes setup along the route, and booby traps to make you jump out of your seat. On our ride we saw flying witches, giant spiders, crash landed UFOs, and a bigfoot sighting.
There were warnings on the ride ahead of time that it was spooky, but it was nothing too scary. My 2 and 4 year old weren’t bothered by it all, but a 3 year old boy next to us on the ride was a bit wide-eyed and holding on to his mommy. Some of the guests on our ride were pretty loud screamers when unexpected things happened, so that might have added to the scare. It was very similar to the spooky scenes we saw at the Track or Treat train ride, which is all geared towards kids. Overall I thought the spooky factor was a fun touch, and I was amazed at some of the great ideas they had to rig the ride!
At the end of the ride I was also amazed at the size of their pumpkin patch. Most of the other farms we visited in mid-October were picked over or almost out of pumpkins altogether. This farm had so many awesome, big pumpkins, and they also added some fun green-striped pumpkins as well. This is definitely the place to get pumpkins if that’s what you’re looking for, and every person goes home with a pumpkin as a part of admission! 🎃
Inflatables
A new attraction that we hadn’t seen at any of the other farms this year was an assortment of inflatables located in the barn shelter. There was an inflatable pirate ship (so on theme!), ninja obstacle course, and giant bouncing pillow. I liked this bouncing pillow so much more than the ones built into the ground, since it doesn’t have the steep incline to get up to the top. Unfortunately, adults are not allowed on any of the inflatables.
Corn Pit
If you’re looking for a corn crib this year, Naylor Family Farms is the only place we’ve found one that’s open! My kids were thrilled to roll around in the corn and make “corn angels”! This corn pit is fully enclosed and contains extra toys to play with. The kids enjoyed dumping the corn down the ramp on the wall and using the dump trucks to haul and scoop. There’s a bench right outside so parents can take a break while the kids play, but you can still peer in through the screens to keep an eye on them. With only one way in and out the kids can’t escape, so this is the spot to take a well-deserved parent break on the bench!
Giant Tube Slides
As with most of the other farms we have visited this season, Naylor Family Farm had the giant tube slides that everyone loves! The only difference I noticed here is that there is a posted weight limit of 150lbs on all of the slides. This might be an issue for some of the adults to slide with their kids, so FYI.
Barrel Train
My kids always love a good barrel train, and Naylor Family Farms did not disappoint. These train cars have steering wheels as well, so the kids can feel like they’re driving. The only bad thing about that is that the steering wheel pretty much makes it impossible for an adult to ride in one of the cars. I had ridden the train at Lazy Hound, Vollmer, and Phillips Farm, but there was no way I was squeezing my butt in this train! Luckily they have added a bus seat at the front of the train so adults can ride too. But beware, there’s no seat belts on that seat so hang on! The barrels also don’t have seat belts, but luckily the kids sit pretty far down in the barrel so I wasn’t worried about them falling out.
Duck Racing
The duck racing wasn’t quite as popular here as what we saw at Phillips Farm. I think it’s because there wasn’t a giant tub of water to play in! 😄 The ducks here actually turn the corner and race back to you, so you don’t have to go get it at the other end. The only bad part was that the water had leaked out on the ground and made a big mud puddle right in front of the water pumps. I really didn’t want to deal with muddy kids in the car, so we weren’t able to full enjoy the ducks this time.
Corn Maze
The corn maze here isn’t as large and difficult as the Crossroads Corn Maze, so you can take the little ones without much trouble! There’s a bell tower located close to the entrance and exit, so we just headed straight for that! We didn’t venture any further into the maze, so I can’t speak too much on it! The kids enjoyed ringing the bell though, and I enjoyed that it was easy to get to!
Farm Animals
There are a lot of farm animals at Naylor Family Farm, probably the most we’ve seen at any other fall farm. We saw a horse, cow, goats, turkeys, and chickens. You can purchase bags of feed for $1 if you are interested in feeding the animals, but otherwise you can just get close and pet them. There’s a nifty goat feeding ramp where you can place the feed and crank the arm to send it up to the goats. When we first got there all of the goats were excitedly waiting on food at the top of the ramp, but after they filled their bellies they just took a long nap in the shade.
Gem Mining
Gem Mining is the one activity that is not included in your admission. You can purchase gem bags in the main barn for an additional $7/bag. I liked this gem mining setup a lot better than what we experienced at Vollmer Farms. They have a water trough setup just like Blue Diamond Gemstone Panning. You can pour your bag into the sifter and find real gems as the dirt washes away. We didn’t pay for a bag, but my kids enjoyed sifting through some rocks that were left behind.
Pricing and Admission
You can get the most up to date pricing on the website. We paid $18/person and kids 2 and under are free. Everything is included except the gem mining, feed bags, and pedal carts. We didn’t see anyone doing pedal carts while we were there so I’m not sure if the attraction was actually open. Admission includes a pumpkin, and there’s farm store where you can purchase snacks and drinks. There’s a great picnic shelter so you can pack a lunch if you plan to stay the day.
The farm is open on weekdays from 10am to 4pm, so you can avoid the busy weekends. They are also open from early September through the first week in November, so they have a longer season that most farms in the area.
Naylor Family Farm might have taken the spot for best fall farm in my opinion. I wish it was closer to us, but I think we will still make the drive each year! The extra attractions like the pirate ship, helicopter, inflatables, and interactive hayride give it a step up above all other competition. So if you’re looking for an awesome fall farm in Raleigh, give it a go!