Fender's Farm — Attraction in Erwin

We are locals who have enjoyed Fender's Farm's daytime activities for several years. However, this year, it is clear that their reach has exceeded their grasp - they have added several activities, but are now stretched too thin. Here's what happened today: I took two 13-year-olds and an 11-year-old on a Sunday, around 1:15pm. They open at 1pm. We stayed until about 5pm. Admission, plus two "adventure passes" = $72. Please check your receipt if you get adventure passes. The lady at the counter only gave us one pass, when we had purchased two. When this was pointed out, she actually argued with us until she saw the fine print on the receipt. We had to go back through the line to straighten this out. Counting food and water ($2 a bottle), this afternoon cost us nearly $100. That would be okay for an afternoon's entertainment, except: The footballs and basketballs at the sports activity were all flat, and there was no one manning the activity. One bathroom in the back of the farm was out of order, but with no sign, just a locked door. I waited for 10 minutes, thinking someone was in there. The other bathroom had no toilet paper, no paper towels, and no soap. The mechanical bull broke after the kids stood in line 30min to ride it. The musical pipes that you can hit to play notes were filled with trash/dirt. The clues and "corny" pictures for the corn maze have not been changed in several years. About half of the activities designated for the "adventure pass," for $10 extra, were not working.

We are nearby neighbors of this small business, and we want it to succeed. Given how much they are now charging, they need to make sure that bathrooms are stocked, prices are accurate, and activities are available and in good working order. We feel disappointed and gypped. We usually go more than once a season, but we will not be back.

Advice: Before you pay extra for an "adventure pass," check to make sure those activities are available and working, and check your receipt carefully. Try to get a group discount. Pack your own toilet paper,...

I went tonight to the corn maze with my husband and two friends. We have gone to Fender’s several times and always had a great time. Each time before, the maze took a significant amount of time and was fun. It was actually difficult and satisfying to finish.

Today when we arrived, it almost looked closed. There were no obvious employees anywhere, and no real signage showing you where to go. You just had to sort of wander up to people that seemed like they might work there to figure out where to go. However, there was an adorable bulldog, which is why I’m leaving two stars and not one

The biggest issue was the maze, which was in a different location than when we were there last. It was also incredibly small. We were done in under 20 minutes and none of us are exactly Magellan. It never felt like you were in a maze. There were barely any actual intersections where you had to make a choice. It just felt like taking a really short hike through some thin corn. About halfway through we started to realize we weren’t doing well, it was really that easy. It took longer to get parked, figure out where to buy tickets and walk to the entrance than it did to do the actual maze. When we finished, I actually asked if we maybe went into a kid’s maze or something because there was no way that was it. Sadly, it was.

We paid over $70 for this. I am still stunned; I feel straight up robbed. It was the entirety of our dinner conversation, which, by the way, was cheaper than the maze. I’m not mad, I’m just disappointed. So one star for the dog, one star for just existing as a place where you most...

Very disappointing. I have been here multiple times in the past, but not in a couple years due to hurricane helene and life in general. Was very excited to go this year because their day time activities were great (for children and families) and it seemed they had added a lot of stuff, so unfortunately I assumed they had done the same to haunted night activities. If anything, they took things away rather than added. I am perfectly content with waiting in a long line (as we probably waited 1 1/2 hours to 2 to get in to the first haunted attraction, mind you there is only 2) but only if it’s going to be worth waiting for you know? Several “actors” were dressed in everyday clothing with some Walmart grade makeup on, and 80% of the others gave away their location before we even made it to them. To make matters even worse, there was little to no space in between groups of people, so any sliver of a jump scare was out the window at that point. I definitely recommend the haunted farm in Hendersonville, NC. While it is a long wait, it is 100000% better and is definitely worth the $40. As for fenders, the only way I’d return for their haunted attractions is if it was free and was no wait, and even then I’d feel like it was a waste of time. 0/10 do not recommend. Poor quality.

Edit: I also want to add that ADULTS attending the haunted farm were dressing up as Michael Myers’s and other popular horror characters. Not only does this pose as a potential safety threat, but it also spoiled the fun because they would take their masks off, look like other scare...