9 Fun Ways To Celebrate National Pumpkin Day With Your Team

Fall hits, the calendar fills with deadlines, and suddenly you’re staring down spooky season wondering how to keep your team energized without a big budget or a day off the clock. National Pumpkin Day is one of my favorite low-lift ways to do exactly that.

It lands on October 26th every year, and it’s the perfect excuse to carve pumpkins with your team, sip something warm, and ease everyone into the Halloween season.

In this article, I’ll walk you through nine of my favorite Pumpkin Day activities to host and join, so you can pick the perfect way to celebrate this fun holiday with your team.

What is National Pumpkin Day?

National Pumpkin Day, also known as National Pumpkin Carving Day, is an annual celebration of one of the world’s most versatile gourds. It’s also a fantastic excuse to get into the fall spirit with your team.

This unofficial holiday was created to recognize this delicious fruit, and yes, gourds are fruits.

Pumpkins are impressively healthy since they’re packed with vitamins, minerals, and antioxidants, and there are also tons of ways to have fun with them. (More on that soon.)

When is National Pumpkin Day 2026?

Pumpkin Day falls on October 26th every year, just five days before it’s time for Halloween treats. National Pumpkin Day 2026 lands on a Monday, which works nicely in your favor.

Here’s how I’d handle the timing:

• Monday, October 26th: Banish the Monday blues with an upbeat celebration and set a festive tone for the rest of the week.
• Friday, October 30th: End the week and the month with a party, and maybe even let your team head home an hour or two early.

If those dates don’t work for you, I recommend celebrating any time after pumpkins are harvested and local shops start selling them.

And while we’re on the subject, you might also be wondering when is National Pumpkin Pie Day. That one falls on December 25th, so if you miss the October festivities, you get a second chance to celebrate pumpkin in dessert form right around the holidays.

Top 9 National Pumpkin Day activities for 2026

I didn’t just wake up one day and decide that I love Pumpkin Day. Instead, I found my love for this little holiday with each Pumpkin Day activity I had the pleasure of hosting.

Now, I want to share that enjoyment with you. Here are my nine favorite activities for celebrating Pumpkin Day with your team.

1. The Great Team Building Pumpkin Race

Never mind the Indy 500 or Kentucky Derby; race like a pro with the widely celebrated Pumpkin Race. We started this one after seeing all the quirky Pumpkin Derby ideas and how popular they are worldwide.

I’m so glad we did, too. I’ve never met a team that didn’t love it. The rules are simple:

• Each team must create, name, and brand their street-legal Pumpkin Racer.
• Each Pumpkin Racer must be made from a pumpkin and two independent axles with wheels attached.

Yeah, that’s it. We’ll bring the hand-crafted race kits with everything you need to run a Pumpkin Derby. All you need to do is get the pumpkins.

We’ll provide tips for building the pumpkins, help with decoration, and (my favorite part) referee the final race. We’ll also put on the awards ceremony to celebrate:

• Teamwork: Best Pit Crew
• Design: Best Pumpkin Racer
• Performance: Winning Pumpkin Racer

As a bonus, this event is socially conscious since all kits are assembled and packed by a neurodiverse workforce of young adults enrolled in transition programs across America.

Teamwork in action

When I ran this one last fall, one team got really into perfecting their pumpkin, which led everyone else to do the same. I thought it might turn super competitive, but instead the teams started working together and cheering each other on at the race.

It was an amazing experience, and a great example of teamwork in action.

2. Pumpkin wine

If your team loves wine and fall-themed events, this is the one for you. It’s very simple to set up, sort of like carving a Jack-o’-lantern, except you skip carving in the face and add wine instead.

Here’s how it’s done:

• Buy a box or bag of your favorite wine and a pumpkin large enough to hold it.
• Cut the top off of your pumpkin and clean out the seeds and mushy insides.
• Carve a hole that’s big enough for the wine spout, put the bag inside, and push the spout through before opening it.

Et voila, you now have pumpkin wine. It’s so simple that I’ve even done it at home to embrace the Halloween spirit with friends and family. Your team will love it.

If you’re feeling especially creative, paint the pumpkin with some indication of what’s inside to make it extra fun for your team to enjoy their hallo-wine.

3. Bobbing for mini pumpkins

This one’s pretty self-explanatory. It’s like bobbing for apples, but you use mini pumpkins instead.

Here’s how you do it:

• Fill a tub (or a cauldron, if you’re feeling especially witchy) with water.
• Wash one mini pumpkin for each team member and add them to the tub.
• Set a timer for each player and have them hold their hands behind their backs while they bob for pumpkins.
• The player who gets a pumpkin the fastest wins.

I like to mix this one up, too. Sometimes we’ll write a number on each pumpkin that correlates to a prize (gift cards are my go-to) for each team member to win when they grab their pumpkin.

Alternatively, give each person several pumpkins and have them compete to grab the most, not the fastest. Then you can give out first, second, and third-place prizes.

4. Catapult to Success

This one is so much fun. I get excited every time I get to facilitate this event, and I always look forward to Pumpkin Day, hoping it’ll pop up. After all, who wouldn’t have fun flinging and smashing pumpkins?

Here’s how it goes:

• Your team will be divided into smaller groups, each of which will work together to build pumpkin catapults.
• When the catapults are completed, each team will use their build to launch mini-pumpkins, competing for distance and accuracy.

This challenge combines mental agility with collaboration, hands-on construction, and commercial prowess.

Of course, the catapults are always the central feature, but we customize them based on your specific objectives. Some clients want the big takeaway to be “continuous improvement” or “fine-tuning team dynamics.”

Whatever the focus, the team with the best distance and accuracy score wins. And everyone gets to blow off some steam in the process.

5. Pumpkin spice jello shots

Okay, so you either love or hate the Starbucks classic, but when you combine a Pumpkin Spiced Latte with alcohol and turn it into a jello shot, it’s my experience that almost everyone loves it. I sure do.

Seriously, you really can’t go wrong with this one. Check out this recipe from Cooking with Janica for step-by-step directions on how to make these crowd-pleasing treats to celebrate Halloween at the office.

If jello shots aren’t your team’s thing, consider getting some pumpkin spice-flavored Irish cream and setting up a coffee bar for the day. I’ve done it this way a few times, and it’s a nice way to spice up a holiday party or just treat your team on a busy day.

6. Host a potluck with pumpkin treats

Consider hosting a National Pumpkin Day potluck and inviting everyone to bring in their favorite pumpkin treat.

You’ll probably get a lot of fall staples like pumpkin pie and pumpkin bread, and you could even hold a contest for each category and let the team vote on the tastiest “entries.”

Want to level it up? Borrow a few themes from our office potluck ideas guide.

Our Halloween-season potluck spin works beautifully for Pumpkin Day: think a “pumpkin everything” spread, clearly labeled allergens so everyone can dig in safely, and a quick story swap where people share why they picked their dish.

You could also brainstorm different recipes with the team (Pinterest has endless ideas) to improve creativity, teamwork, and communication ahead of time. Or just check out these 35 easy pumpkin recipes for quick inspiration.

Regardless of how you approach it, this is always a nice way to spice up your fall party or keep the week leading up to Halloween festive.

7. Pumpkin carving contest

What better way to celebrate National Pumpkin Carving Day than hosting a pumpkin carving contest?

People love to tap into their artistic sides regardless of age. So get together with your team and show off your skills, after a quick reminder about knife safety, of course.

After the contest, your team can take home their pumpkins as an easy Halloween decoration for home, or they can leave their pumpkins in the office to decorate for spooky season.

I always encourage people to take their pumpkins home, but I secretly love seeing the ones they leave at the office. It’s a nice reminder of the teamwork and creativity.

And if you ask us to organize the event, you’ll have a master pumpkin carver on hand to give everyone tips and help them create masterpieces to be proud of.

8. Take a team trip to a local pumpkin patch

Sometimes the best celebration happens outside the office. A group trip to a nearby pumpkin patch gets everyone out from behind their screens and into the crisp fall air together.

Let people pick their own pumpkins for carving or decorating later, wander a corn maze, and grab cider and donuts along the way. It’s relaxed, seasonal and gives quieter team members a low-pressure way to connect.

If you want to build a bigger day around it, pair the outing with one of our outdoor team building activities or fold it into a larger fall event. Either way, everyone heads back with a pumpkin and a few good memories.

9. Host a virtual pumpkin celebration

Remote and hybrid teams deserve to celebrate Pumpkin Day too, and you don’t need everyone in the same room to have fun with a gourd.

Ship each person a small pumpkin and a no-carve decorating kit ahead of time, then hop on a call for a live decorating contest. Set a timer, vote on winners by category, and mail small prizes to the champions.

If you’d rather someone else handle the logistics, our virtual team building events can bring the whole celebration to your team’s screens. It’s a simple way to make sure your distributed folks feel just as included in the fall festivities.

Ready for National Pumpkin Day?

Each of these ideas will make for an exciting National Pumpkin Day, but they can also make any fall party or event more exciting. Think office party, Friendsgiving, or just a small get-together. There’s no need to limit yourself to one day, after all.

If you need more ideas for celebrating Pumpkin Day or treating your friends and team this fall season, check out our Halloween activities and fall team building activities.

Want the TeamBonding crew to handle the planning for you? Contact us today to discuss how we can make this Pumpkin Day something your team will be talking about for years to come.