10 things to do at Severs Corn Maze in Shakopee
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The Severs Corn Maze in Shakopee is the way I love starting out the Fall season. The maze outgrew the location at Canterbury Park and moved down the road off of 169.
I wanted to check out what they did with their new space. All I can say is wow. They took their new space and added in more attractions, with room to grow next year.
Severs Fall Festival provided me with tickets in exchange for reviewing their new location. This in no way affects my opinions.
The Severs Corn Maze Legacy
The Severs family held its first Corn Maze in 1997 at their location in Eden Prairie. It was in the shape of a T-Rex. The Severs wanted to build a maze that was reminiscent of the hedge mazes in Europe.
They were the second people to do this in the United States and the first to do it anywhere in the Midwest. Now it’s become synonymous with Midwestern Fall Traditions. I actually attended their first Corn Maze with my Dad. It was amazing.
The Top 10 Free Things To Do at Severs Corn Maze
They have a lot to do there for every age group, from the huge pit of corn to a zip line, to an exotic animal petting zoo. The nice thing about Severs Corn Maze is that almost everything is included in the cost of admission.
They do charge for a few things, like pony rides, pumpkin chucking, the giant slide, and hayrides. Even then, it’s a small fee. But you won’t find many instances of telling your kids ‘no’ to costly add ons.
The Corn Pit
If you were to tell me that the best part about a corn maze was jumping into a giant pit of corn, I would have said you are crazy.
This has become a must-visit destination at any festival. At the Severs Fall Festival, they have two different corn pits designed for both younger and older kids.
The younger kids have a corn pit, with a smaller slide in it. This is the perfect place to do some fall family pictures, and bury yourself up to your neck in corn.
The extreme corn pit is where those go that have a little more energy. Complete with rope swings, and jungle gym equipment you can really let loose. I had so much fun watching the kids, I had to give it a try myself.
While I couldn’t stop laughing the whole time, there is a time in everyone’s life when they realize that they may be a little too old for this. The rope swing was my moment.
Pro Tips for the corn pit
When entering a corn pit, wear tight clothing. Ladies, if you can put a tank top on that will hug you tightly all the way over your bottom, you’ll be in a full-body suit with no place for corn to creep in.
Remove all rings, money, keys, and everything else you wish to keep safe. Every time we go, there is always someone saying, “OMG I lost my…”
Also, corn is dusty, especially earlier in the season. If you want to have fun, sometimes you got to get a little dirty.
The Corn Maze
To pay tribute to their first maze, the theme this year was Dinosaurs. The maze was a giant T-Rex with supporting dinosaurs around the outside. The markers A-Z are had fun with dinosaur facts.
If you collect them all, you can go online and answer a trivia question for a chance to win a $500 prize.
This was the first year with the kids we decided to do the maze as intended and found marker A-Z. It was a lot of fun. We took pictures of every single marker to help us out with the trivia at the end.
Pro Tips for the maze
The maze was a lot of fun and easy to navigate with the right amount of challenge. But if you do get lost, don’t worry, there are attendants throughout to help you navigate out. There are also a water station and bathrooms at the opposite end.
If you go with kids I highly recommend taking a picture of them at each marker. Then when you are done, put them all together. It was hilarious. The level of enthusiasm goes down with each and at one point I started to get the evil glare.
If you’re going into the Maze after 7 pm, they recommend that you bring a flashlight. I’d also consider bringing bug spray or long sleeves early in the season. As far as mosquitos go, I only ran into a few.
If you are navigationally challenged or want to teach your child all about navigation, bring a compass and let them read the map. With modern phones, this is a really good life lesson to teach them.
The Straw Bale Maze
The straw bale maze is a lot of fun for younger kids. Just tall enough for a 5-year-old to see over but safe enough to let your toddler run through without worry about losing them in there.
The maze has tandem entrances and exits. We used this as the perfect opportunity for us to race through the maze.
Unfortunately, one got stuck in a mud pile halfway through and had to escape by climbing on top of the straw. But it was all laughs with no harm done.
Jumping Pillows
The Severs Corn Maze does an excellent job of making sure all of their guests have a fun and safe time at all their attractions. It’s one thing I’ve always loved about them.
The Jumping Pillows is no exception. With the additional space of their new location, they’ve been able to add in additional pillows. They’ve designated one pillow for younger kids, and one for older kids.
Obstacle Course
One of the new additions to the fall festival is the obstacle course. Using some basic things like balance beams and walls, this was a popular attraction. Kids could climb up vertical walls, angled walls, and push themselves to the limits.
Visiting the Parakeets
Severs Corn Maze has by far been one of the best Parakeet encounters I have ever been in. The room is free to enter and filled with some of the friendliest birds I’ve met.
They fly around in the open room asking for treats. They cost $2 a stick for seeds. In most cases, you just need to hold your hand out and remain still and have to have them come near you. No stick is necessary.
The staff running the Parakeet Landing wants you to have the best experience. If the birds are not hungry, they won’t sell you a stick.
Pro Tips
Be careful where you step. The birds like to gather food that has fallen off sticks in the grass. They have build-in camouflage and are hard to see. Be very careful.
If you want to get the birds on you, remain as still as possible and move slowly. You can also hold out a hand. This also works with food sticks. You can put the stick near the birds and soon they will hop on.
If having a bunch of birds flying by your head or on you makes you nervous, maybe skip this one. If they do land on you and you don’t want them there, remain calm. Have someone brush them off you.
Arrive earlier in the day if possible. The birds may have had their fill and be disinterested in you later on.
Exotic Animal Feeding
In addition to the parakeets, Severs Corn Maze also had an amazing Exotic Animal petting zoo brought to you from the Safari North Wildlife Park in Brainerd.
They have a large variety of animals you wouldn’t normally expect to see at a petting Zoo. They come from all over the world, including camels, kangaroos, mini ponies, mini donkeys, goats, alpacas, and more.
The animals were all excited to see us even though we didn’t have food. You can purchase a cup of food for $2. If they have a spoon in the enclosure, you should use that to feed them.
Cinnamon the Hyland Cow was my favorite of all of them. She was so sweet and lovable. She gave kisses that were rough like a kitty’s tongue but acted like a loveable puppy. You have to make sure and say Hi.
Zip Lining
Sever’s Corn Maze expanded its ziplines this year. It’s not like the traditional ziplines you think of with harnesses. These were seated to make them a little safer for everyone.
You can choose from a variety of different sizes to make you more comfortable. Run the rope the to platform where the staff is there to help you get situated and off you go. People of all ages were partaking.
If there was no line, you could go back and do it as many times as you like.
Play Areas
Playgrounds, Tires, and Trains. Severs knows what makes kids happy. If your kids still have energy after everything else they’ve done, they won’t by the time they are done.
They brought their train structure with them from their last location, which younger kids love playing on.
They also have a giant tire pile for kids to scale. It’s also where they’ll get a birds-eye view of some of the other great things to do like the playground structure and zip lining.
Free Shows
After spending so much time on your feet, it’s nice to sit down and watch some of the shows. Severs Corn Maze has pig races, Magic Shows, Wildlife Shows, and more running every hour. They also have live music playing from Blue Ox Jazz Babies that sets the tone for the whole day.
Tasty Treats
Severs Corn Maze has everything on-site including ATMs and food. They have all the favorites, including mini donuts and corn.
The only downside is all of the food is located at the entrance. Normally it’s not that big of a deal but with this size of the park, it felt out of the way.
Discount Tickets
Severs Corn Maze has a few ticketing options. The best discount is before the start of the season. Otherwise, I recommend buying online.
There is not a cost-savings, but you’ll skip the lines. Children 3 and under are free. Groups, Seniors, and the Military get $3 off.
Getting To Severs Corn Maze
One of the only downsides to Severs Corn Maze moving locations is that they now share an exit on 169 with the Renaissance Festival.
If you are familiar with getting there, you have to wait in an incredibly long line in the right lane of Highway 169. This backup can be upwards of 45 minutes. We didn’t realize they shared an exit until too late but found a great workaround.
If you are going to Severs Corn Maze there are a couple of ways around the traffic. First, come from Jordan on highway 169. If you are already coming from the Twin Cities, stay in the left lane, and make a U-turn at the first chance you get.
Alternatively, you can also take Old Brick Road, county road 69, exit on 169, and head south. Then turn west on W 150th St. It runs right into Severs Corn Maze. The Renaissance Festival wraps up the last week of August so it’s only a problem for a couple of weeks.
More Fall Fun
Most people spend anywhere from 2-3 hrs exploring everything. You could easily spend the day there. They stop selling tickets 1.5 hours before close. You are going on a farm.
While it is ADA and Stroller accessible, it can get muddy. As far as Corn Mazes go, this is one of the best ones in the city.
But if you’re up for a little drive, you should check out the Corn Maze at Crow River Winery | A Wine Lovers Dream! There are also 14 other Corn Mazes in the Twin Cities to Visit! While in the area, don’t forget to check out the other fun things to do in Shakopee MN.
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