Ever the fall-experience experts, Eckert’s has unveiled a new seasonal attraction: Jack’s Lighted Trail, which will be open from September 13–November 1.
With a hard-surfaced path accessed by wagon ride, it will include a half mile of “larger-than-life” pumpkin sculptures, festive photo opportunities, and thematic surprises, including a mid-trail Spook-Easy pop-up bar.
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President Chris Eckert says it’s unlike anything Eckert’s has tackled before. “We’re always trying to evolve, innovate, and do something new to keep our guests excited and rewarded for coming out to visit us,” he says. “Last fall, a couple members of our management team went to Chicago and saw Jack’s Pumpkin Patch, which is a lighted attraction in downtown Chicago. We came back inspired to do something that was a totally different take on a Halloween experience—one that was not totally geared toward little kids, but that’s open to all ages and especially relevant to young adults.” An industry trade show and a few essential connections with experiential architects later, and Jack’s Lighted Trail was carved into being.
The new attraction is designed for all ages but aims to bring older kids, teens, and young adults to the farm. The demographic is one that’s appealing to Eckert’s, which has already cornered the young-kids fall market with its Millstadt Fun Farm. Eckert notes that the new experience also highly complements its Cider Shed offerings and evening events, which spike in popularity during autumn.
Eckert says Jack’s Lighted Trail offers visitors—young adults, with or without kids, in particular—an idyllic way to celebrate Halloween season on the farm: Start with the trail, stop at the Spook-Easy for concessions and activities along the way, and then visit the Cider Shed for a drink and live music to cap it off.
Although the libations are geared toward adults, Eckert’s aimed to keep the attraction family-friendly. The trail is stroller- and wheelchair-accessible, it’s an easy walk without steep terrain, and it offers a midway exit point for those who want to leave early. “The trail is a display trail; people won’t be hiding around the corner, jumping out to scare you or anything like that,” Eckert says. “It’s really more of a photo-op experience and a neat escape on a fall evening out into a farm in the woods. The scene selection was done with that in mind, of who the audience was going to be.”
Along those lines, Eckert’s hopes to create new experiences that audiences are seeking. “There’s a lot of Christmas-season light experiences all around the country,” Eckert adds, “but bringing that concept into Halloween is the new thing. It also helps to stretch our business into evening hours. [With our] Millstadt haunted hay rides, we see there’s a big demand for nighttime October experiences on the farm.”
Rolling with the modern developments of the holiday experience industry is one that’s been ingrained in Eckert’s culture from the beginning, so this evolution is nothing new, Eckert adds. “We’ve been here for 100 years, but we are always changing things each year,” he says. “Pick-your-own apples was innovative when we started that back in the 1960s. Upgrading to a specialty food store was innovative when we launched that in the 2000s. There’s a spirit of entrepreneurship in the family. We get to see our customers every day, so we have a pretty good feel for what they like and respond to, and we want to keep giving more of that and do a bigger and better job of that.”
Eckert recommends purchasing tickets in advance, as it’s expected to sell out. A flash starts September 8.
Hear more about Jack’s Lighted Trail on the Arch Eats podcast, featuring guest Chris Eckert.
