The Great American Outdoor Show is a nine-day event in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania that celebrates hunting, fishing, and outdoor traditions treasured by millions of Americans and their families. It’s the world’s largest outdoor show, held in the beginning of February annually!
Quite honestly it wasn’t on my to do list, but my husband was captivated by the idea of this experience—and I’ll admit that after we visited, I really was glad he had the desire to go. We took our entire family, including our kids ages 6, 8 and 10, and now we want to give you a glimpse of what you will find at the show and if it is a right fit for your family.
Everyone who loves any aspects of the outdoors should consider attending and enjoying the Great American Outdoor Show, and here’s why!
You will meet hundreds of exhibitors for archery, fishing, boats, taxidermy and hunting. There are more than 400 outfitters and boat captains from around the world, and nine halls of archery, fishing tackle, tree stands, boats, RV’s and more.
The show features over 1,100 exhibitors, covering 650,000 square feet of exhibit hall space.
For outdoor enthusiasts there are seminars and events for all outdoorsmen and women, including the opportunity to meet outdoor celebrities.
You will be inspired by innovative designs for technology whether it’s in equipment for hunting, tracking, fishing or even camping, like this pick-up truck camping photo.
You will be challenged in your skills through 3D archery and various fishing and hunting booths and hands on experiences. These can be enjoyed by kids and adults alike, depending on the event. Adults will love the 3D Bowhunter challenge, and ‘try before you buy’ shooting lanes.
You can also try your hand at several different hands-on range and computer-generated experiences. We visited on a weekend and the lines weren’t too long. I would imagine families attending on a week day would enjoy a considerably shorter wait.
(Just to give you an idea, we spent about 5 hours at the show, visited every hall, and each of us tried each of the FREE hands-on experiences.)
You can enjoy FREE food samples—beef jerky, meat seasonings, cracker flavorings, and more!
You will be entertained by dog jumping with @dockdogs in some ‘big air’ jumping competitions, while you rest and relax enjoying some great food (like farm show milkshakes and Amish pretzel sandwiches).
The HAWG Tank is also a really unique entertainment opportunity featuring live fishing demonstrations. The tank can be viewed from both sides, so everyone in attendance will get to see the fish swimming after the bait. Kids really love this!
Kids will enjoy the Eddie Eagle kids zone where they will earn prizes and a chance to win an additional prize by visiting stands throughout the show. (But they really truly will also love walking through and seeing so many unique exhibitors.) There is also a chance for them to enjoy rock climbing (extra fee), archery, simulated hunting, fishing and rock mining (extra fee).
At the Eddie Eagle Kids Zone, kids also have the opportunity to pick up a scavenger hunt form. They complete this scavenger hunt form throughout the exhibit halls by getting signatures at various stands. After they have all the signatures completed, they can head to the NRA booth in the range hall to collect their prize.
Just an FYI, the people at the booth were very friendly and generous. We did not find one of the answers, and they still blessed our kids with the prize—which they absolutely loved!
If you are a homeschool family I think this would be an excellent field trip especially for outdoor loving students. On the weekdays I don’t think the show will be nearly as packed as on the weekends.
If younger kids get tired, they can always take a break and enjoy the can ams, John Deere and pickup trucks and golf carts like we did at the end of the show (while Daddy continued looking at what he wanted to). 🙂
You can also find unique gift ideas—like these hand-crafted wooden pens. There are plenty of other options too, like mink scarves, crocodile heads, turkey fans, fishing gear, archery equipment, accessories, duck calls and clothing.
Concerns with Kids at the Show
We wanted to note that if you are a family visiting the show, and are hesitant about the rifle room, plan on entering at the Cameron Street entrance.
By entering at this entrance, you begin in the taxidermy room and it allows you to completely bypass any hunting equipment which are located only in the hall on the other side of the complex. You will still be able to visit every exhibit, without entering or passing through the rifle room.
How much does it cost?
Tickets for the show are $7 for kids (children under 5 are FREE) and $15 for adults. NRA members receive FREE admission. There is a 2 Day admission pass option, as well as discounted prices for seniors and groups of 10 or more.
Admission after 3pm on weekdays is reduced to $8 per person. Their bounce back promotion allows any attendee to hold on to their original ticket and use it for free re-entry to the show on Sunday, February 9th, the last day of the show.
If you are on a really tight budget, you might want to consider the volunteer opportunities, which will allow you to help with the show and get an inside look, playing a vital role in bringing the show together. I would assume that volunteers are able to then walk around the show for FREE, but I don’t know this for sure.
Parking in the main lot, and side lots, is $10. There is FREE shuttle service available from the Harrisburg Mall (where Bass Pro Shops is), 3501 Paxton Street, Harrisburg, PA. Learn more about the FREE shuttle service on the GAOS site.
Planning Your Trip to the Great American Outdoor Show
The GAOS website (as well as their app) is very helpful in understanding what the show has to offer, when the times of the competitions are, as well as lists of the seminars and things like the kids casting contest.
We highly recommend viewing the site and the floor map the night before you visit, so you can appropriately plan your trip, especially if you will be attending on the weekend when the show has higher foot traffic.
Families will find these pages particularly helpful:
The Great American Outdoor Show is held at the PA Farmshow Complex in Harrisburg, 2300 North Cameron Street.
I didn’t want to fill the first part of the post with too many photos, but I did want to make sure I showed you the incredible taxidermy examples we saw at the show. Check out these photos!!!
View our full family experience on our YouTube channel. Subscribe here.
