COLUMBUS, Ohio — Franklin Park Conservatory and Botanical Gardens lights its last Pumpkins Aglow night of the season on Sunday, November 1, closing a fall run that began October 7 — and Sunday doubles as the Conservatory’s monthly Community Day, when Columbus and Franklin County residents get in free during the day before the building resets for the final glowing evening.
According to Franklin Park Conservatory, Pumpkins Aglow is its signature fall experience: after-dark displays built around pirates, spooky pumpkins, under-the-sea mermaids and performing skeletons, staged across the gardens at 1777 East Broad Street. The Conservatory’s published schedule ran the event in blocks — October 7–11, 14–18 and 21–25, then October 28 through November 1 — with hours of 5 to 9 p.m. on Wednesdays, Thursdays and Sundays and extended hours of 5 to 10 p.m. on Fridays and Saturdays, which makes tonight, Halloween night, one of the long evenings before Sunday’s finale.
The Columbus Navigator’s weekend guide adds the scenes families will find on the final nights: a pumpkin house and a singing pumpkin patch among the displays, with the Amazing Giants’ sway-pole witch and spider stilt walker performing at the Pergola from 6 to 8 p.m., and food from Liberty Kettle Corn, Taquitos and Red Head Chef. The Navigator lists all-in ticket prices of $28.35 for ages 13 to 59, $24.15 for seniors and $17.33 for children ages 3 to 12, and notes the Conservatory says many dates sell out — a warning worth heeding for the last night…