EUROPE’S LARGEST PUMPKIN FESTIVAL LIGHTS UP THE NIGHT SKY AS 1.5 MILLION PUMPKINS TRANSFORM AFTER DARK

Europe’s Largest Pumpkin Festival has transformed after dark, with more than 1.5 million pumpkins and gourds forming the backdrop to a huge illuminated autumn experience.

Images - tulleysfarm.com/image-library

Tulleys Farm in West Sussex has opened its Pumpkin Nights for 2026, transforming more than 100 acres of countryside with illuminated pumpkin displays, a glowing woodland walk, live music, street theatre, food, bars and dozens of installations designed to be experienced after sunset.

The opening comes just a week after the farm welcomed record crowds for the start of its daytime Pumpkin Festival.

Now, as darkness falls, the site undergoes a second transformation.

More than 1.5 million pumpkins and gourds feature across the festival, with more than 100 varieties grown for the season after approximately 600,000 seeds were planted across the farm.
Thousands of lights illuminate the site at night, with visitors able to wander through glowing pumpkin displays and an immersive Woodland Walk featuring lighting installations, holograms and water effects.

At the centre of this year’s experience is the newly created Pumpkin Valley, the biggest single expansion in the history of Tulleys Pumpkin Festival.

The landscaped valley features streams, ponds, wooden bridges, winding pathways, giant pumpkin sculptures and a Pumpkin Farm House.
Having opened to visitors for the first time during the day earlier this month, the entire area has now been illuminated for its first season of Pumpkin Nights.

Stuart Beare, owner of Tulleys Farm, said:
“When darkness falls, you almost feel as though you are opening a completely different event.
“You can spend months seeing these areas being built and planted during daylight, but there is a moment when all the lights come on and suddenly the entire farm changes.

“This is the first year we for the Pumpkin Valley at night and seeing it illuminated for the first time was quite a moment for us.

“When we started growing pumpkins, families came to the farm to choose one to take home. We could never have imagined that years later we would be lighting more than 100 acres and welcoming people who want to spend their entire evening here.”

FROM PUMPKIN PATCH TO NIGHT OUT

The growth of Pumpkin Nights reflects how the traditional trip to a pumpkin patch has changed in Britain.

While pumpkin picking remains part of the experience, Tulleys says increasing numbers of visitors now arrive to spend several hours at the farm, with the evening event attracting families, couples and groups of friends.

Two undercover stages host live music throughout the evening, while seasonal street food, bars and coffee houses are spread across the site.
Visitors can also ride a new Vintage Carousel, explore Pumpkin Village and see the illuminated farm from a 33-metre Observation Wheel.
More than 30 dedicated photo installations have been created across the festival.

Mr Beare said:

“Pumpkin picking will always be at the heart of what we do, but the way people celebrate the season has completely changed.
“For a lot of our visitors, it has become a tradition. They aren't necessarily coming just to pick a pumpkin. They are meeting friends, having dinner, listening to live music, taking photographs and spending the evening together.

“We have watched that change happen over the years and Pumpkin Nights has grown with it.
“The challenge for us now is creating something that feels just as spectacular after dark as it does during the day.”

FOUR GENERATIONS OF FARMING

Tulleys is a fourth-generation family farm operated by the Beare family in West Sussex.
Its Pumpkin Festival has grown from traditional pumpkin picking into Europe’s Largest Pumpkin Festival, with visitors travelling from across Britain and overseas during the fall season.
Approximately 600,000 pumpkin seeds are planted across 100 acres to produce the crop, with more than 100 varieties grown.

The farm welcomed its highest-ever opening-day attendance when the daytime festival opened on September 19.

Pumpkin Nights opened on September 26 and runs on selected evenings throughout October.

The daytime Tulleys Pumpkin Festival and Pumpkin Nights are separately ticketed experiences.

Tulleys Pumpkin Festival runs until October 31.
Pumpkin Nights runs on selected evenings throughout the season.

Further information is available at PumpkinNights.co.uk.


NOTES TO EDITORS

Pumpkin Nights 2026
Tulleys Farm, Turners Hill Road, West Sussex, RH10 4PD
• Part of Europe’s Largest Pumpkin Festival
• More than 1.5 million pumpkins and gourds
• More than 100 pumpkin varieties
• More than 100 acres
• NEW for 2026: Pumpkin Valley after dark
• Illuminated Woodland Walk
• Two undercover live music stages
• NEW Vintage Carousel
• More than 30 photo opportunities
• Pumpkin Village
• 33-metre Observation Wheel
• Seasonal street food
• Bars and coffee
• Free parking
• Dogs welcome

Photography and filming

A full selection of high-resolution daytime and night-time photography is available for editorial use.

Broadcast-quality video, interviews with Tulleys Farm owner Stuart Beare and media visits can also be arranged.

About Tulleys Farm

Tulleys Farm is a fourth-generation family farm owned and operated by the Beare family in West Sussex.

The farm has diversified into major seasonal visitor experiences including Tulleys Tulip Festivals, Tulleys Christmas Experience, Tulleys Christmas Light Festival, Tulleys Escape and Shocktober Fest.

Media enquiries
Ed Hopkins PR
tulleys@edhopkinspr.co.uk
+44 (0)7538 061448