Hayloft Candles

I am not really into candles, but some of my family is and they have some really nice ones here. They also have some really good ice cream, so be sure to try some. Also they have a free petting zoo on the side of the building. Just need quarters if you want to buy feed for the animals. Across the street is an Amish run roadside stand, Be sure to check them out and see what they have, It varies by the season. Only problem is the bathrooms could be cleaner. This is not an Amish shop, but Mennonite run.

Not sure I would stop back at Hayloft Candles and Petting zoo. The Petting zoo side although in a pretty setting is pretty sad as far as animal conditions are concerned. They have some interesting animals at the petting zoo, but living on concrete floors are not the way that nature intended these animals to be living. Most of the animals appeared to be pretty sad, and the only twinkle in their eyes came from a human hand out of corn from a machine. I think this place could be nice, but as for now they need to clean up their act a bit. I’m not an animal rights activist by and means, but I do feel for any animal placed on concrete floors for human enjoyment. There are plenty of other Amish shops/​farms that have petting zoo’s with beautiful conditions. This is not one of them. Find another, and leave this place behind.

Love this place!!! What is there not to like? Petting zoo! Fantastic ice cream! Great shopping area. My favorite was the petting zoo. I especially liked the donkeys! This was a great drive into Lancaster County and it’s inexpensive so it’s a great thing to do on a Saturday when you don’t want to spend a lot.

Cute petting zoo. Kids loved seeing all the animals and feeding them. Animals seem to all be happy and well maintained. Store was okay… didnt see anything that I havent seen else where but if you dont get out much you may enjoy it.

We go to this place every time we vacation in the area. About twice a year. It is a fun place to visit. I don’t know why the bad reviews, where else can you spend a few hours for free, and just pay a few quarters if you want to feed the animals. The home made ice cream is very good. Sure there aren’t a ton of flavors but there is like 10 or so.

I am posting this review mainly as a warning to any animal lovers out there. Please stay away from this place. Do not patronize it. The animals & birds here live in squalid conditions & when I visited on 7-​22-​2013, it looked like their cages hadn’t been cleaned in years.
It’s pretty well-​known that the Amish & Mennonite communities are not known for treating animals well. I did not know what to expect from this place since I was visiting Lancaster County for the first time & I happened to come across this in a local brochure (I love petting zoos).
The store that is next to the petting zoo contains more candles than you can shake a stick at but they are nothing special. I didn’t try the ice cream & the only thing I bought were a few postcards that I couldn’t find anywhere else.

A place like Hayloft is the epitome of what you would think of when you hear the words «tourist attraction». What else could you call a place that is part petting zoo, part homemade ice cream stand, part candle maker, and part country junk trinket store.
First off the place is located in the metropolis of Leola. So unless you are incorporating this with a trip to Shady Maple or some other place there really is nothing else around.
But that said clearly something right is going on here because when we came last week there was a very steady stream of cars and patronage for a Thursday.
The petting zoo has various goats, sheep, ducks, and geese to feed with multiple food dispensers and they do have a change machine on site for the necessary quarters.
We did try their homemade ice cream and while it was alright the two main drawbacks were that they only had six flavors and quite honestly it didn’t have a ton of flavor.
Smooth and creamy? Yes
Big or bold flavors? Not even close
I didn’t pay much attention to a lot of what was inside the barn building as I could care less about the candles and various arrays of country/​christian/​amish «stuff».
So if you’ve got an hour to kill this place is definitely unique and is worth a stop if you are in the area. Just don’t go out of your way for it.

Great petting zoo if your in the area! the store as the name says sells all sorts of candles. But its all about the petting area. Bring Quarters to feed the various animals. don’t forget Lucy she likes food dropped into her mouth on her tongue! This place is very close to shady maple.