Where We Spent a Wake Window: Pumpkins After Dark
Location & Parking:
Parking & Transit Hack: There is free parking, but it's limited, and the traffic trying to turn into the event area to park was a nightmare (I guess fitting for a Halloween event). If possible, take public transit.
Set your GPS to: Swangard Stadium 6100 Boundary Rd, Burnaby, BC V5S 3R2.
Official info: https://burnaby.pumpkinsafterdark.com/
The Damage Report ($):
Varies depending on the date and time booked. Kids under 3 are Free! Adults were $18.95.
Extra Cost: The 3D Monster Maze is an additional $5 each. (I wouldn't recommend this for a 2 year old- see Mum musing section)
Wheely Friendly?
Yes! The path is great for pushing the stroller the whole way. It's also a perfect, contained path to let Yuyu roam ahead a bit and be excited by the upcoming installations.
Yuyu was amazed by all the pumpkins.
The Snack Situation:
There were food stands (hot dogs, fries, popcorn, coffee, etc.) available near the start of the path. Warning: If I wasn’t starving, I wouldn't have waited in the long line-up for fries - the wait was substantial. We should have eaten dinner before coming or brought along something to eat as we walked.
Potty Proximity:
There is a family-friendly bathroom with a change table at the Swangard Stadium entrance. Use the bathroom before you enter the event, as the pumpkin path is one-way.
Mum Musings:
*Update - I’ve learnt that while this event will continue on in other cities in Canada, unfortunately it will not he hosted in Vancouver in 2026.
For anyone who has ever tried to carve a pumpkin, you’ll appreciate just how amazing the 10,000 intricately carved pumpkins truly are. They have every character and movie scene you can think of.
I went back and forth on whether we'd come to this event because it only started at 6:30 PM at the earliest, which is basically Yuyu's 7 PM bedtime. Ultimately, I decided to roll the dice and see how she'd do, bracing for a challenging later bedtime. I'm so glad I did - she loved it and very easily fell asleep in the car as soon as we started heading back home.
This was both Yuyu’s and my parents' first real time participating in any Halloween experience (we didn’t grow up celebrating it in Ethiopia/Zimbabwe). It was a fun intro for our family of "Halloween inducees."
Event Hacks & Tips for Toddlers
Pacing: The route around the pumpkins is one-way and self-paced, which was nice not to feel rushed when Yuyu wanted to hang out a bit. The only thing that kept us moving was my dear dad who was freezing (anything below 20 degrees is too cold for my parents who were visiting).
The 3D Maze Fail: I got a little overzealous and got the additional 3D Monster Maze tickets. In hindsight, I wouldn't do that again. Yuyu wouldn't keep the 3D glasses on, and it wasn’t thrilling for adults.
Dress Strategy (The Pyjama Hack): Yuyu fell asleep on the way home. I should have dressed her in pajamas under her coat so that I could have easily transferred her to bed when we got home.
Photo Ops: Between the roaming entertainment in costume, fun themed photo backgrounds, live pumpkin carvings, and little kids in costume, we had fun taking pictures that we’ll look back on fondly.
Toddler Tolerance Level:
The actual pumpkin walk is only about 1 km long, so you can take as long or as short as you want. We were there for approximately 1 hour 30 mins total.
Nap Roulette Options?
With the event being in the evening, we went straight home.
Author
I’m Mimi, the writer behind Mi & Yu. This blog was born out of a year spent exploring Vancouver with my toddler Yuyu and newborn son Gabe while my husband Jamie worked through a demanding fellowship.
What started as a way to survive the newborn phase turned into a collection of tried-and-tested family adventures, real reviews, tested logistics, and the occasional toddler meltdown included. Now back home in Newfoundland, I’m sharing those adventures so other parents can skip the decision fatigue and get straight to the fun part.
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