Chicago has always known how to embrace the Halloween season with open arms and Jack's Pumpkin Pop-Up is the newest addition to a long line-up of fun. Covering about 2 acres of land near Goose Island Jack's Pumpkin Pop-Up offers a little something for everyone.
Once you enter Jack's there are multiple scenes set up, each one created to help achieve some cute photos - an old blue truck, oversized chair, a house made of pumpkins and hay bales everywhere. The kids had a blast just running around and climbing on the displays and even paused long enough for us to take a few pictures. It didn't take long though for the older kids to discover a row of carnival games and any hopes of capturing our perfect Instagram pictures were gone. There were also a few food options and a bar, but I didn't pause long enough from toddler chasing to see what snacks they were selling.
There were only a few games, which is good because there were only a couple of employees on hand to run them. Our baseball-loving kids were mostly interested in trying to break the plates and tossing softballs into an apple basket. At a dollar a try it was good they were all accurate and fairly quick in earning their prizes. Once the carnival money ran out it was on to the corn maze and bounce house. The maze was just big enough to feel like a challenge and once again there were cute photo scenes set up in the dead ends. The older kids had a great time running around and trying to get lost while the toddler had to pause and inspect every ear of corn and each photo spot. We wrapped up the adventure with a bounce in a small pumpkin shaped inflatable and a couple final photos before heading back home.
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I polled the older kids as we were leaving and on a scale of 1 to 10 they gave it an average score of 9, and since the ultimate goal was entertaining a group of kids ranging in age from 2 to 10 then it was a success. I would only recommend it as a family experience if looking for something that didn't require dealing with larger crowds, a lot of time or driving out of the city. During the day there is enough to entertain the kids for about an hour, but it is obvious that the area was designed more for adults who want to enjoy a night out with a fall flavor.
Jack's Pumpkin Pop-Up is in town through the end of October and tickets are required. If you are going with a larger group they recommend purchasing them in advance online so you can select your entry time. We went on Monday, October 8th at 12:00 pm with a group of 14 and there weren't many others there. Checking their website at the time of publication it appears that hours are now limited to 4:00 pm and later, even on weekends.
Jack's Pumpkin Pop-Up is located at 1467 N Elston Ave, Chicago, IL 60642 and easily accessible from the North/Clybourn Red Line station or CTA Bus 72.
