Upper Canada Village’s Pumpkinferno attendance drops

MORRISBURG – The annual Pumpkinferno event at Upper Canada Village saw fewer people through the ticket gate in 2023.nnThe 12th annual running of the popular fall tourist event had an attendance of 35,000 people. That is an 18.6 per cent decrease (8,000 fewer) than in 2021, despite adding an additional night to the event schedule in 2023. The SLPC added Thanksgiving Monday (October 9) to the month-long schedule.nnUCP operator St. Lawrence Parks Commission did not publicly release its 2022 attendance figures. This year, it released a combined attendance figure for its three Fall-themed events: Fort Fright at Fort Henry in Kingston; Pumpkinferno at the former Kingston Penitentiary; and Pumpkinferno at UCV. The combined attendance of the three events was stated by the SLPC as 75,000.nn“The positive impact of these three fall events is estimated at nearly $9M, according to the Tourism Regional Economic Impact Model,” said SLPC spokesperson Katie Forrester in a release.nnOn follow up, Forrester released separate figure for Pumpkinferno at UCP as 35,000 and the TREIM economic impact as “just over $5M.”nnEvent attendance peaked in 2017 with nearly 75,000 people visiting UCV.nnAt that time, tickets were sold at the village box office. This prompted vehicle lineups several kilometres long to get into the parking lots.nnA scheduled entry system and online-only ticket purchases eliminated the traffic chaos on neighbouring roads.nn

nn“Pumpkinferno is a must-see attraction bringing guests from all  across Eastern Ontario & Western Quebec regions,” said Stormont-Dundas-South Glengarry member of provincial Parliament Nolan Quinn.  “The Parks of the St. Lawrence have done a tremendous job in developing  and growing the exhibits, including new pumpkin carvings every season.  My family always look forward to attending Upper Canada Village every  fall to take in the thousands of carved pumpkins.”nnSLPC chair Bob Runciman said he was pleased to have contributed towards the Eastern Ontario economy in a time of year that is normally slow.nn“By offering guests different  experience options as well as their favourite annual fall tradition in  two distinct locations, we were able to appeal to the market and make  these experiences accessible to them,” he said in a release.nn“These kinds of guest-focused  program enhancements are how we will continue to drive economic  prosperity in the region while also providing memorable cultural and  recreational experiences for visitors.”nnPumpkinferno this year featured over 7,000 carved foam lighted pumpkin sculptures, and was open on select days from September 29 to October 29.nn