Autumn at Oz

Ever since we moved to North Carolina and I found out about it, I have wanted to visit Land of Oz. It is a Wizard of Oz theme park located in the mountains near the North Carolina/Tennessee border. It’s only open to the public for a couple of weekends during fall for a festival called “Autumn at Oz”. Living on the coast hours away from the mountains and park made it harder to plan a time to go. But this year we finally crossed that bucket list item off in September!

The Wizard of Oz has always been one of my favorite movies. My hubby has a connection to it being from Kansas. My daughter’s first Halloween we all dressed up as Wizard of Oz characters and she even had a Wizard of Oz themed 4th birthday party (her choice). So you could say our family love of the classic film runs deep. I don’t know who was the most excited to visit the park out of all of us.

Land of Oz is located at 2669 Beech Mountain Pkwy, Beech Mountain, NC 28604. You can learn more about the Autumn at Oz, info, events, etc. at their website here.

Quick facts:

• The Land of Oz was a fully functioning theme park that operated from 1970-1980.
• In 1975 a fire was set to Emerald City that destroyed a portion of the park. It was rebuilt and opened again from 1976-1980.
• Between 1985-1988 parts of the park were demolished due to vandalism and decay, including the original Emerald City and balloon ride.
• Funds from the Autumn at Oz Festival and other events go back into restoring and maintaining the park.
• The Autumn at Oz Festival is the largest Oz festival in the world.
• There is also a Wizard of Oz display in town located at the Beech Mountain History Museum.

We went to the park for the Autumn at Oz opening weekend on September 9, 2022. Parking is located at the Beech Mountain Ski Resort. There is a check in point with some shopping, food, and restrooms located at the resort. Depending on your festival tickets you could either take a shuttle up the mountain to Land of Oz or ride the ski lift for a scenic route. Both options leave from the ski resort. We opted for the shuttle bus since we have young kids.

Note:

Plan ahead to purchase tickets for the Land of Oz Festival as they do sell out and you have to pick an entrance time in advance. You can enter and take the shuttle anytime after your selected entrance time.

Once on top of the mountain there are guides to direct you were to begin your Oz journey. When we arrived it was chilly, windy, and cloudy. We couldn’t see the pretty mountain views due to the haze and clouds.

There were a couple of vendors set up at the Land of Oz entrance along with a fountain, banners, and a map of the park. Upon entrance we got a ticket for our family to enter Dorothy’s house and began our walk along the path to Kansas.

Note

You will need to use the restroom prior to starting your journey through Oz because the only bathrooms are located at the entrance and at the exit in the Emerald City. The only bathrooms on site are porta potty’s.

At the top of the path is The Judy Garland Memorial Overlook gazebo. Due to the clouds and haze we didn’t get a good look out over the mountain views but it was still neat.

We continued our walk along the path stopping to read the banners with interesting facts and information about the park and the Wizard of Oz film history.

Upon entering the Kansas section you’ll find Professor Marvels buggy and camp site, a gift shop, Dorothy’s house, and the farm. For the festival they had character greetings/sightings and performance shows every 30 minutes or so. The characters would sing, dance, and act out parts of the movie. The shows were so cool and the park really went all out for the festival.

After the seeing the shows and sights, we entered Dorothy’s house for a tour. You could walk through the house and see some of the living areas, Dorothy’s room, and we met Aunt Em in the kitchen. You then walk down some ramps and stairs which take you through the tornado exhibit. When you continue through the house you see the damage of the same rooms from the tornado…including the house being on a slant. It was so crazy and trippy walking through the house on an angle!

After exiting the house, we encountered the Wicked Witch and entered Oz with the Good Witch and yellow brick road. From there we followed along the yellow brick road path just like in the movie! It was so magical walking along Munchkin Land, corn fields, apple trees, to the Witch’s castle, along a blue lake, through the forest of talking trees, and to the Emerald City gate.

There were character meet and greets, photo ops, and more shows along the way. It was so much fun! Walking on the yellow brick road was so magical and the whole festival made you feel like you stepped into the movie. A dream come true for us Oz lovers!

The final step was entering the Emerald City gate. There were vendors, crafts, food, and a big gift shop inside Emerald City. You can take pictures in the hot air balloon, pet the horse of a different color, and see the final Oz show inside a small theater.

Note:

Due to the park being built on a mountain and in the 1970s, it is not wheelchair or stroller friendly. The paths are narrow and there are stairs throughout.

Being in the area we made sure to check out the Beech Mountain History Museum as well. It is located at 503 Beech Mountain Pkwy, Beech Mountain, NC 28604. You can learn more about the museum at their website here.

The History Museum is in a small house and they have limited hours so we had to stop by the day after we visited the festival. They have a history of the mountain and area, as well as a Wizard of Oz and Land of Oz history and items.

It is a must-see if you are in the area and wanting to learn more about the history of the park and area. They even have a model of the theme park which is really cool.

Our trip to the mountains and Land of Oz was so much fun and definitely worth the trip! If you are a fan of The Wizard of Oz and/or ever in the area, you should check it out. It’s one for the memory books for sure!