After an eight-year hiatus, Gonzales County’s Halloween-season night in the swamp is back, and it’s bringing archery, jack-o’-lantern carving, and a hike through the dark to celebrate.
Palmetto State Park, Gonzales, TX — Saturday, October 24, 2026, 3-9 p.m.
Some traditions take a break, and some come back better than ever. After eight years away, Swampfest is returning to Palmetto State Park, giving families a genuinely unique way to spend a Halloween-season evening surrounded by the state park’s namesake swamp and centuries-old cypress trees.
The event runs from 3 to 9 p.m. at the park’s CCC Pavilion, built by the Civilian Conservation Corps back in the 1930s and still standing as one of the park’s most striking architectural features. Once you’re there, the evening unfolds as a full mix of daytime activities and after-dark adventure. Live music sets the tone early on, while archery stations give kids and adults alike a chance to test their aim. A jack-o’-lantern carving contest invites visitors to bring their creative side, and interactive stations scattered throughout the grounds are designed to keep guests of every age engaged.
As the sun starts to set, the event shifts into its more adventurous half. A Scat Hunt trail hike turns wildlife tracking into a game for curious kids, while the classic Halloween staple, Trunk-or-Treat, gives younger visitors a safe, easy way to fill up on candy. Once it’s fully dark, a spooky night hike takes braver guests out onto the park’s trails for a completely different perspective on the swamp after hours, before everyone winds down back at the pavilion with s’mores around the fire.
Palmetto State Park itself makes the perfect backdrop for an event like this. Established in 1936 and spanning just over 270 acres in Gonzales County, between Luling and Gonzales, the park is named for the dwarf palmetto that grows abundantly throughout its grounds, creating a genuinely unusual landscape for Central Texas. The San Marcos River runs directly through the park, alongside a spring-fed oxbow lake, and the area is considered a hot spot on the Great Texas Coastal Birding Trail. Much of the park’s original architecture, including its water tower and current headquarters building, dates back to Civilian Conservation Corps construction crews working between 1934 and 1937, giving the whole setting a genuine sense of history alongside its natural beauty. The park welcomed more than 95,000 visitors in 2025 alone, a testament to how much this small but memorable park has to offer.
Whether you’re coming for the archery, the trunk-or-treating, or the chance to walk a swamp trail after dark with your family, Swampfest’s long-awaited return gives Central Texas one more reason to make the trip out to Gonzales County this October.
Address: Palmetto State Park, Gonzales, TX
Website: tpwd.texas.gov/state-parks/palmetto
Social media: facebook.com/PalmettoStatePark
