Pumpkins in the Park at Royal Victoria Country Park

A giant pumpkin weigh off, live chainsaw woodcarving and a pumpkin catapult are not the usual furniture of a pick-your-own field, and this is not one. It is a two-day festival in the grounds of Royal Victoria Country Park at Netley Abbey, run by Twenty Eleven Events at the Hampshire County Council country park.

The programme is broad. There is a Scarecrow Village to walk round, live music, pumpkin painting and a children's funfair, alongside the weigh off and the woodcarving. A timetable of activities is published by the organisers ahead of the event, which is worth a look if there is something the children particularly want to catch.

Food is on site rather than brought with you, with street food and bars offering vegetarian, vegan, gluten free and dairy free options. Free parking at the country park is available to all ticket holders, there is disabled parking, and the organisers say the site will be accessible to all. Well behaved dogs are welcome as long as they stay on a lead at all times.

Tickets have to be booked in advance online, and the organisers cannot guarantee entry on the day, so this is not an event to drift into on a Sunday afternoon. Children's tickets are sold at discounted rates compared with adult tickets, and an early bird discount is available for a limited time.

With a funfair, live music and a full timetable running across the day, most families will find this fills a morning or an afternoon rather than an hour, and three to four hours is a fair plan.