Fall brings cooler weather, colorful leaves, cozy traditions, and so many opportunities for family fun. After long summer days, many families look forward to slower weekends filled with pumpkin patches, apple picking, bonfires, and seasonal activities together.
Whether your family loves outdoor adventures, festive crafts, fall festivals, or simple moments at home, there are plenty of ways to make the most of the season with kids of all ages.
From toddlers to elementary-age kids, this list is filled with fun fall activities to help your family make the most of the season together.
25 Fall Activities for Families
Fall is one of the best seasons for slowing down, getting outside, and creating simple family traditions together.
1. Go for a walk at a nature preserve. Be sure to enjoy the sights and sounds of the season along the way.
2. Take a hike and pack a picnic to refuel.
3. Go apple picking at an orchard. Apple picking is a classic fall tradition for many families.
4. Visit a pumpkin patch and pick pumpkins. Pumpkin patch visits are a classic fall tradition for many families.
5. Visit a farm. Besides adorable animals, many offer hayrides, kids’ rides, and even bounce houses for added fun.
6. Test your navigational skills (or luck) in a corn maze.
7. Stock up on the week’s produce at a local farmers’ market.
8. Take a bike ride through a village you haven’t explored.
9. Head to the beach to build sand castles, or even sand pumpkins for a fun fall twist. Even cooler beach days can still make for fun family outings.
10. Go camping. Whether you pitch a tent, rent a cabin, or anything in between, this one is adaptable to your family’s comfort level.
Many fall activities become family traditions that kids look forward to year after year.
11. Attend a college football game.
12. Attend a fall festival.
13. Have a backyard bonfire.
14. Make s’mores over a bonfire and make some baked apples!
15. Stay up late to stargaze.
16. Bake an apple pie.
17. Bake a pumpkin pie.
18. Try making homemade doughnuts.
19. Go thrifting for family Halloween costumes.
20. Organize a neighborhood costume parade.
Fall activities don’t need to be elaborate to create memorable family moments together.
21. Host a costume contest with friends and family.
22. Take a scenic train ride.
23. Participate in a trunk-or-treat in your community.
24. Practice giving back to others by volunteering in a soup kitchen.
25. Keep a running family “gratitude list” on your refrigerator, front door, or frequently-viewed spot.
Related: Fall Family Photo Ideas
10 Fall Activities for Toddlers
Toddlers are often fascinated by the sights, textures, smells, and colors that come with the fall season.
1. Visit a petting zoo.
2. Rake a pile of leaves – and get jumping.
3. Stack pumpkins to build a pumpkin tower.
4. Collect leaves for leaf pressing.
5. Grab some finger paint, halve a few apples, and have fun with apple stamping.
Simple sensory activities are often some of the most exciting experiences for toddlers during the fall season.
6. Taste test different types of apples.
7. Practice transferring cinnamon sticks from one jar to another.
8. Practice washing apples in a small bin with warm water, sponges, and washcloths.
9. Give pumpkins a “bath;” toss them in the tub with water, soap, and a few cleaning brushes.
10. Make a corn pit by filling a mini pool, ball pit, or (empty) sandbox with corn kernels.
10 Fall Crafts for Preschoolers
Fall crafts are a fun way for preschoolers to get creative while exploring fall colors, textures, and creative materials.
1. Make a leaf crown.
2. Design a leaf wreath.
3. Watercolor paint an apple tree. Make apples with thumbprints!
4. Create a three-dimensional fall scene using a poster board or a shoe box and items found in nature.
5. Fill in an apple outline with red (and green, yellow, and brown) tissue paper and glue.
Fall crafts are also a great way to encourage creativity while helping preschoolers explore different textures and colors.
6. Make a paper plate scarecrow using construction paper, crayons or markers, googly eyes, etc.
7. Finger paint pumpkins. Add stickers, googly eyes, and other items of choice as desired.
8. Form pumpkins using playdough, pumpkin seeds, and leaves from your backyard.
9. Make a suncatcher using a leaf-shaped cutout, fall-colored tissue paper, and glue.
10. Make a hanging “autumn mobile” using sticks, acorns, leaves, and other fall items.
Related: 50 Fun Halloween Crafts for Kids
10 Fall Activities for Kindergarteners
Kindergarteners are often eager to explore, create, and participate in hands-on seasonal activities during the fall months.
1. Play “I Spy” – the fall edition.
2. Go on a bug hunt and see how many types of tiny creatures you can find.
3. Make a scarecrow. Or a whole family of scarecrows.
4. Have a candy apple-making party.
5. Visit a cider mill.
Many kindergarteners especially enjoy activities that combine time outside, creativity, and active play.
6. Go on a nature scavenger hunt. Look for red leaves, orange leaves, acorns, mums, and other signs of fall along the way.
7. Attend a touch-a-truck event in your community. (October is Fire Prevention Month.)
8. Take a pony ride.
9. Clean out pumpkins for carving.
10. Engage in a sensory bin with corn kernels, red and green pom pom “apples,” mini pumpkins, and other seasonal items.
Related: Family Adventures and Activities for Every Letter of the Alphabet
More Fun Fall Activities for Kids and Families
If you’re still looking for a few more fall bucket list ideas, these family-friendly activities are a fun way to round out the season.
1. Visit the zoo. Seek out information about how animals’ daily routines change with the seasons.
2. Visit your library and check out books about apples, pumpkins, and all things fall.
3. Host a “Friendsgiving” dinner celebration.
4. Decorate fall-themed cookies.
5. Have a not-so-spooky Halloween movie and family game night.
Fall has a way of slowing things down and creating opportunities for simple moments together as a family. Whether it’s visiting a pumpkin patch, jumping in leaves, baking together, or spending more time outside, these little traditions often become the memories kids carry with them for years.
Whether your family tries a few of these fall activities or works through the entire list, we hope this season brings plenty of cozy moments, fresh air, laughter, and more time together.
