What began as a dream to pursue my passion for agriculture, share it with others and create a fulfilling way of life for my family, has become so much more. Not only has this helped to preserve the heritage of the small family farm, but it's also brought millions of visitors back to the farms we love.
Brett Herbst - MAiZE Founder & Cornbelly's Owner
The Beginning
From the beginning, our goal has been to provide an enjoyable and educational source of good farmin' fun to the community. When Brett Herbst (a Brigham Young University agribusiness graduate who grew up on an Idaho farm) launched his first corn maze in 1996, he drew most of his knowledge and motivation from his roots. The idea sparked by a similar venture he had read about in a farming magazine, Brett's original labyrinth in American Fork, Utah was the largest corn maze created in the western United States. A labor of love that first year for Brett and a group of BYU college friends, it didn't take long for news of the "corny" attraction to spread and after drawing 18,000 people in only three weeks during the fall of '96, The MAiZE was born.
Around The World
Now 29+ years later, The MAiZE Inc.(www.themaize.com) has grown into the world's largest corn maze agritourism company. More than 5,300 mazes, a Guinness record and seven countries later — we've seen millions of people around the world get lost in our corny creations. Though we spend much of the year working with the 300+ current MAiZE locations around the world, our original location here in Utah is where you'll find us each fall. Cornbelly's Corn Maze & Pumpkin Fest is truly a labor of love for Brett and Nicole Herbst, family and friends.
Quarter Century
A lot has changed since our early days, as each year we travel the country looking for new ideas and ways to improve. Each fall guests visit us for a spectacular and long-standing fall experience. Each seem to come for a different reason. Some love the smiles on their kids faces as they ride the cow train and pick their favorite pumpkin. Others visit year after year for the challenge of a new corn maze design. This season marks our 29th and a few of you have explored the paths of each and every maze we've created here in Utah County since 1996. Regardless of what initially drew you to us, in the end we hope it's the memories and traditions that keep you coming back. We take great pride in the role we play as a wholesome family entertainment destination, and we hope to continue growing and improving year after year.
Double The Fun
As our a-maze-ing adventure continues to grow, we are excited to have added a second Cornbelly's location right here in Spanish Fork in 2020. Along with our long-standing location at Thanksgiving Point, each fall Utahns are invited to double the fun by visiting Herbst's home pumpkin farm in Spanish Fork. Offering an escape to the countryside, the Spanish Fork farm includes a beautiful u-pick pumpkin patch and sunflower field, along with a locomotive train, corn maze, the state's largest ropes course, hayrides, Jumbo Jumper air pillows, and much more of the signature Cornbelly's fun Utahns have come to love since 1996.
"In 2004 we bought Gordon Dairy Farm, where we longed to raise our kids and teach them how to work and love the land. We were able to buy the farm through a handful of miracles and thanks to the Gordon family trusting a young married couple. Our dream has always been wanting to bring families to our farm and share some of the blessings we get to experience each day. In 2020 this dream became a reality. One of our greatest joys here is having school kids come learn how important agriculture is in everyone's lives today."
A Family Affair
As we celebrate 29 seasons of farmtastic fall fun and memories, we and our 7 children are so incredibly grateful for those who’ve been a part of our family's journey - our amazing staff, supervisors, community partners and, of course, all of you! We thank you for letting us be a part of creating your memories over the years and wish you and your family the very best.
- Brett & Nicole Herbst
Our Mission
As a team, we strive to use resources entrusted to us by God to cultivate happiness and lasting memories for all guests, by providing uniquely-fun experiences rooted in agriculture.