It’s that time of year again…..Time for the Jack O’Lantern Spectacular at Roger Williams Park Zoo that is. The Jack O’Lantern Spectacular is a nighttime display of 5,000 illuminated jack-o-lanterns all along the zoo’s beautiful Wetlands Trail. There’s something magical about so many illuminated Jack O’Lanterns on display as you walk along the trail and it is running from October 5th through November 5th this year.
The Jack-O-Lantern Spectacular, presented by Citizens Bank has been delighting audiences of all ages for years and each year has a fun theme. This year you will travel through time and visit with dinosaurs, explore the ice age, and peek into the ancient civilizations of Egypt and Rome. Wander the Feinstein Junior Scholar Wetlands Trail and delight in the history of the Middle Ages, discover the New World, and be fascinated by major inventions like cars, planes, space travel, and the computer. Infused throughout will be the art and music associated with each era. Imagine our planet’s history reflected on more than 5,000 intricately carved pumpkins.
Jack O’Lantern Spectacular Event Information:
Value Nights (Monday -Thursday): $15 adults; $12 children (ages 2-12) – Sold at Zoo Admissions and Online. Enter any time between 6 -10:30 pm, but the last ticket of the night is sold at 10 pm.
Prime Nights (Friday, Saturday and Sunday): $18 adults; $15 children (ages 2-12) – Sold Online Only. The trail is open from 6-11 pm and the last ticket of the night is sold at 10:30 pm.
Note: Weekend timed-entry tickets are only sold online! It’s part of an effort to improve the visitor experience on weekends and if you’e ever been there on a weekend, you’re really going to appreciate this change! Timed Entry tickets are non-refundable, and cannot be rescheduled.
Please be aware that, while entry to the Zoo begins at 5:30pm, the pumpkin trail will not open until dusk to allow for optimal viewing of the jack-o-lanterns.
Please note: The Jack-O-Lantern Spectacular is open rain or shine, however, in cases of severe weather or weather-related technical difficulties they might close the event or end admission early. Please check their website, Facebook and Twitter pages for frequent updates. Don’t worry, they will offer you admission on another night (a value night) if that happens.
Parking at the zoo is free, but they are offering OPTIONAL premium parking for $10 per car nightly in the lot next to the show entrance and exit gates. This is available on a first-come, first-serve basis.
Guests may use strollers, wheelchairs, and wagons on the exhibit trail. The trail is fully accessible.
New in 2017: The Soaring Eagle Zip Ride!
Experience the Soaring Eagle Zip Ride and see the Jack-O-Lantern Spectacular from 115 feet above the earth. Riders will see out over Providence and into Narragansett Bay in comfortable side-by-side seats. The Soaring Eagle Zip Ride is open every night during the Jack-O-Lantern Spectacular. Even though the Soaring Eagle Zip Ride is open all seven nights of the week, it is weather permitting and will not open in heavy rain and/or high winds. Tickets are $15 per rider | $13 for current RWP Zoo members and they are sold on a first come/first serve basis. Between 6 -10:30 pm, only 40 tickets are being sold per hour for this exciting new ride.
To take part in the evening Soaring Eagle Zip Ride experience, all riders must also purchase a same-night Jack-O-Lantern ticket. Tickets for the Soaring Eagle are ONLY available at the admissions gate. If Jack-O-Lantern Spectacular tickets were purchased online – the ticket must be shown at admissions window in order to purchase Soaring Eagle tickets. Guests enter the ride at the end of the pumpkin trail.
Note: There is a minimum height of 42 inches (3.5 feet) and a maximum combined weight of 450 lbs to ride. RWP Zoo strongly recommends that anyone with a heart condition, prosthetics, neck or back injuries or pregnant NOT ride the Soaring Eagle.
Just for fun, the carvers go through about 20,000 pumpkins during the course of the 32-night run of the Jack O’Lantern Spectacular. They are out back carving every day to make sure the pumpkins on display amaze everyone who comes to see them. The Jack O’Lantern Spectacular is a great way for families to kick off the Halloween season and if you’ve never been before – what are you waiting for?
I remember this event from last year! I want to do that jack o’lantern display! I wonder if Bob can carve over 50 for me?
This looks like so much fun! I would love to attend this! I love Halloween and all the family fun activities and things to see.
Those pumpkins were so well done. It is nice that the bank sponsors such a fun event. If I am up that way I would love to see it.
That sounds like so much fun! Jack-O-Lanterns have always been one of my favorite parts of the season. I think they’re the coolest.
That looks pretty awesome. We love Jack-O-Lanterns. We even try our hands at the fancy carving every year. It never works, but we try. LOL
Whoa! This is a lot scarier than I was expecting! What a fun way to celebrate Halloween!
My kids are huge fans of Halloween even though celebrating it is not a big deal here in our country, Philippines. Wish we could go there!
I don’t have the patience or artistic ability to really go crazy with a pumpkin carving so I am so impressed when others can make them actually look like something amazing.
I’d love to see all the carved pumpkins! I’ always impressed with how creative and talented people are. What a fun Halloween event!
Wow! I’m sure kids would have a great time there! Look at those Jack O’Lanterns. Such creativity.
This looks like so much fun! I love seeing all of the carved pumpkins everywhere this time of the year. Like I would love the town to look like Nightmare Before Christmas all year long though lol
This would be a blast! I’ve always enjoyed checking out carved pumpkins so events like this thrill me.
Wow that’s a lot of creativity with the pumpkin carvings. Looks like tons of fun!
Our local zoo host a similar event and now that the kids are older, they’re able to volunteer and they always have a blast.
That looks like so much fun and not too far from where I live…I love jack o lanterns
This would be so cool! I don’t think they have anything like this by me but I think it was an awesome idea. It’s fun for me and the kids to check out without having to worry about being scared. People are so creative when it comes to jack-o’-lanterns.
Halloween activities are getting more and more creative. I would love an activity like this over here in Delaware. Thanks for sharing this.
Oh my gosh, that is super cool! Our family would love that so much! We love Halloween, and this would just be the perfect family outing.
We love Halloween too. It is one of our favorite holidays to celebrate as a family.
What a fun place to go during the Halloween season. Great idea and wish we lived close to visit.
This looks like so much fun. It would be so cool to fly through the Jack-o-lanterns on a zip line. I wish they had something like this where I live.
This looks like such a fun event. I bet it is so cool to see.
What a fun event for the entire family. I bet the Soaring Eagle Zip Ride is pretty awesome!
Wow, those are some great designs! I love the huge pumpkin, that is a giant!
This is just so amazing to me!!! I would love to visit with my family!
This looks like such an incredible event. I bet my family would love it.
I love all these Jack O Lanterns! The whole setup is creepy and yet also cool, and the zip ride sounds particularly fantastic. What a cool event.
What a neat event. Can you imagine the time spent carving some of those? So cool.
This looks like my kind of event!! What fun! I love the Autumn and all the events around us too! I can’t wait to go to a few this weekend!
What a fantastic fall event to attend! I especially appreciate that they offer value nights to make the experience more affordable for families.
This is just so impressive. You have to how creative they were with placement of the pumpkins and the lanterns themselves are very cute!
This looks like so much fun, I have never seen something like this. I Hope many will go to enjoy it. What a fun family event.
This looks so much fun!! I am sure my kids will love it here! Thanks for this guide!
We always love going to the zoo, especially when they have fun holiday events like this. The timed entry tickets sound like they will be really helpful for crowd control.
That is a pretty cool event. I know my kids would have a blast exploring that place. If this were in our area, we would definitely visit!
I really wish there was something like this close the my house. I am a huge Halloween lover and would really get into this event!
Our local zoo has a boo at the zoo ,but it ain’t got nothing on this. The zip liner sounds like a great addition .
That’s really going to be so much fun especially for the kids! I would love to take them here, if we lived a little nearer. Awesome guide!
This looks like so much fun! My son would love to go and see all of these jack o’ lanterns. I would like to try the zip line too. What a great family event for Halloween.
Those pumpkins are AMAZING! We have an event similar to this in Chicago and it is so fun. I love seeing how artistic the pumpkin carvers are.
Oh wow, that has to take a long time to setup. I think that would be amazing to see in person.
hat a neat place! My little ones would love a trip there.
ohh spooky. we cant wait to carve pumpkins. AlreaDdy been keeping my eyes for that perfect pumpkins.
This is extremely fun! I would love to experience this to get festive.
This is cool! We have similar one near Tarry Town and Sleepy Hollow! Went there last year and love it!
What a fun thing to do. These kinds of things are awesome for the kiddos!!
I’m sure a lot of families will enjoy this especially since it’s the perfect season to go outdoors and enjoy what the zoo has to offer. Love that there are different things lined up for them too.
I must admit, I am obsessed with Jack-O-Lanterns. I love to see the different patterns people come up with.
I just love Halloween activities like this! This place looks like so much fun and cool!
Wow! This is absolutely amazing. My family would love checking this out so much!
A kids dream…and some adults as well. I have never been to something like this, but would love to experience it with my kiddos at least once. There is something similar in my area, and you have convinced me with this post that I should try it this year. Thank you for sharing.
Thrifting Diva
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That looks like so much fun! I bet our kids would have a blast at this! I know I would.
Wow, these are all amazing! I would love to see this if it was closer to me. We love to do a ton of fall activities and I know my kids (and I) would love to see this!
I’d love to see all the carved pumpkins. This looks like a fun place to visit especially this time of the year. Pumpkin carving is an art. I like to admire them!
I don’t think we have anything like this close to us. What a fun October event for the entire family!
Oh wow, these are all looks amazi g and I’m sure you had a blast there and I also want to see the carved pumpkins too.
You can never attend too many fall events, and this one looks like it was a blast! So many fabulous pumpkins.
A pumpkin trail I am sold. This looks like a fun activity for the family this fall season.
This looks like a really cool event. I would have loved it as a kid. I wish we had something like this close by 🙁