50 Fun Fall Family Activities List (Free Printable List)

Inside: Fun fall family activities with a free printable list so you can cross things off as you do them this fall.

Each year there are so many fun fall activities that I want to do, that it can be hard to fit them all in.

One of the best ways I have found to make sure we get in all of our favorite fall activities is to create a Fall Bucket list.

After we make our bucket list I take each item activity on our list and add it to my calendar. If we actually schedule the activities they are so much more likely to happen!

If you’re looking for some fun ways to make the most of the fall season check out these fall family activities that will be fun for the entire family.

50 Fun Fall Activities

There are so many fun family activities to do during the harvest season it would be hard to do them all. So pick your favorites (outdoor activities or indoor), schedule them, and have fun.

1. Pick Apples

Find a friend with an apple tree or a local farm with an apple orchard and plan a family apple-picking outing. If you haven’t ever been apple picking before here are some tips for taking your kid’s apple picking.

Don’t forget to check and see if they have some apple cider donuts while you’re there.

2. Make a Pie

One of my favorite things about fall is all of the baking. Right now we are loving this fast and easy cinnamon roll apple pie (it’s a great way to use those apples you pick!).

3. Take Family Photos

Fall is one of my favorite times to take our family photos, I just love the fall-themed family photo shoot.

The brightly colored leaves make a great backdrop and I love the look that boots and scarves add to the pictures. Plus it’s just in time to use those family pictures for Christmas cards.

4. Play in the Leaves

Fall is the perfect season for toddlers and young children. Playing in the crunchy leaves can provide hours of fun for the whole family. I don’t think I will ever be too old to enjoy crunching leaves.

If you don’t have a yard with trees head to a local park and make a pile of leaves to jump in and crunch.

5. Drink Hot Chocolate

Hot chocolate, it’s one of my favorite cold-weather drinks. I love homemade hot chocolate and hot cocoa of different flavors from a mix is always fun.

6. Go to a Pumpkin Patch

Visiting a pumpkin patch and searching for the perfect pumpkin and doing some pumpkin picking is a fun family outing.

Many pumpkin patches we have visited also have a fun fall festival with activities to make your visit extra special. Some even have fire pit rentals for fall bonfires in the evening.

Related Post: 24 of The Best Pumpkin Patches in Maryland

7. Watch a Football Game

Watch a football game or at least enjoy some game-day treats! With college football games, high school games, and NFL games there are plenty of football games to enjoy watching your favorite team.

Make it even more fun by playing football squares with this free printable.

8. Enjoy Apple Cider

Apple Cider is another fun fall weather drink. Make homemade cider from apples you picked (or picked up at the store). If you’re lazy like me pick up some apple cider from a local orchard, farmer’s market, or store you can heat and enjoy at home. 

9. Go Hiking

Get out and enjoy a hike in cooler temperatures. Hiking or taking a nature walk is one of my favorite ways to enjoy the beautiful fall foliage.

10. Visit a Corn Maze

Do a little research in your local area and you will probably be surprised to find some family-friendly Corn Mazes, as well as haunted corn mazes for more adventurous members of the family.

We have had a lot of fun doing some easier corn mazes with our kids. One of the pumpkin patches in our area has a maze with story pages you find throughout the maze.

11. Attend a Fall Festival

Fall festivals are such a fun place to feel the excitement in the air for fall and all the upcoming holidays. Usually, these festivals have fun things for all ages and treats in all our favorite fall flavors.

12. Read a book

Fall weather especially cold rainy days makes me want to cuddle up with a blanket and read a good book. Check out some of our favorite fall picture books we read each year.

13. Do a Fall Craft

There are so many fun fall crafts that you can do, I always have a hard time picking which ones to do. Here are a few of our favorites:

• Handprint Turkey
• Paper Bag Pumpkin
• Paper Plate Jack O’lantern
• Paper Pag Haunted House

14. Carve Pumpkins

Carving pumpkins is one of our favorite fall traditions. The kids love picking out what they want to be carved and “helping” with the carving. When we were expecting our first we used carved pumpkins to announce our pregnancy.

If carving pumpkins sounds like too much work I know a lot of people with little kids that love to paint pumpkins instead of carving them.

15. Go on a Hayride

Fall is the perfect time of year to visit a local farm and enjoy a hayride (some places even have haunted hayrides). With that fresh air that’s not usually as hot as the summer, a hayride is a lot more fun.

16. Make Pumpkin Bread

Pumpkin sweet bread is one of my favorite pumpkin treats. I worked at Kneaders during college and I was always excited when we finally got the pumpkin bread. If you don’t like pumpkin bread you can always make a different fall treat.

17. Roast Pumpkin Seeds

I had to add this to the list because it’s a classic fall activity so it needed to be on this ultimate fall bucket list of ideas. But to be honest no one in my family loves pumpkin seeds. So we don’t make these ( growing up my family roasted pumpkin seeds though).

18. Take a Drive

Driving around and looking at the beautiful fall colors is one of my favorite things to do in the fall. This fall I can’t wait to go find some covered bridges once the leaves change colors.

If you’re not sure where to go to enjoy the fall colors do a search for the great places to see fall colors in “your town”. I’m sure you will find some great local places to explore.

19. Have Dinner in a Pumpkin

Dinner in a pumpkin is a fun holiday tradition to start, yes you really make dinner inside a pumpkin. There are several different types of dinners you can make, our favorite dinner in a pumpkin recipe is a rice and hamburger dinner.

20. Go on a Fall Scavenger Hunt

I think this fall senses scavenger hunt looks like it would be a lot of fun to do with kids of all ages.

21. Decorate for Halloween

Go all out or keep it simple with decorations for Halloween. At our house decorations usually consist of carved pumpkins and fall leaves. I have also started doing a fall/ Halloween mantel and I love it.

22. Make Potpourri

Making potpourri is a fun activity and it makes your house smell just like fall. 

23. Share What You’re Thankful For

This fun Gratitude ABC printable is a fun way to talk about what you are thankful for. You can even turn it into a game if you want.

Another fun way to share what you’re Thankful for is with a Thankful Tree.

24. Make a Wreath

Make a fall wreath to decorate your door. I made this Thanksgiving wreath with supplies from the dollar store and I love leaving it up for the whole fall season.

25. Enjoy Thanksgiving with Family and Friends

Spending time with those we love is always a nice way to celebrate Thanksgiving.

If you are hosting be sure to check out this recipe for the best turkey I have ever eaten and these fun free printable activities.

26. Eat a Fall Breakfast

Fall breakfasts have to be warm and either pumpkin or caramel apple-themed right? We have the mini pumpkin waffle maker and it’s so fun to use for breakfasts in the fall.

27. Dress up for Halloween

Dress up for Halloween in fun costumes or even family-themed costumes.

28. Bake Together

Try making one of these fun kid’s recipes together and not only make something yummy but also make memories together in the kitchen.

Last year we made caramel apples (I guess that isn’t really baking) and it was so much fun. Older kids will love helping dip and decorate the apples.

Related Post: Caramel Apple Cookies

29. Go to a Haunted House

Depending on the age of the kids in your family going to a haunted house could be a lot of fun. Older children and teens would probably really think a haunted house is a great place to go.

30. Have a Family Movie Night

“It’s the Great Pumpkin Charlie Brown” is a fun Halloween movie that our family really likes. My friend Justine has a whole list of family-friendly movies for fall if you need any ideas.

31. Make Candied Nuts

Candied nuts are a treat that always makes me feel like it’s fall. I personally love cinnamon almonds but there are a lot of good candied nut recipes out there.

32. Go on a Weekend Getaway

Fall is a fun time to go on a weekend getaway, we visited Stowe, VT in the fall and we loved it.

You could go somewhere to enjoy the crisp fall nights and see the colorful leaves or go somewhere warm if you’re already sick of the cooler weather.

33. Shop on Black Friday

Growing up shopping on Black Friday was a highlight of Thanksgiving weekend. Now I do most of my shopping online.

Related Post: Does Black Friday Shopping really saves you any money?

34. Enjoy a Pumpkin Spice Steamer

I know a pumpkin spice latte is a really popular drink during the fall but I don’t drink coffee (I don’t even like the smell!).

During the fall you can often get a fall-flavored steamer if you’re not into coffee drinks. A steamer is steamed milk with flavorings no espresso. If you want to try making one at home try this recipe.

35. Make Pumpkin Cookies

Pumpkin cookies are a treat we make all year long at our house. We love pumpkin cake mix cookies, made from scratch pumpkin chocolate chip cookies, and of course pumpkin cookies with cream cheese frosting.

36. Go Trick-or-Treating or Trunk-or-Treating

Many communities and churches have trunk-or-treating events for kids to trick or treat in a safe environment. If you’re looking for a fun and easy trick-or-treating alternative this is a great option.

If you live in a more rural location trunk or treating is much easier than driving between houses.

37. Play Football

Grab a football and have some fun playing around, take the game as seriously (or not) as you would like.

38. Eat Soup in a Bread Bowl

Soup in a bread bowl is one of my favorite fall and winter dinners. My favorite soups to eat in a bread bowl are homemade chicken noodle soup or broccoli cheese.

39. Visit a Petting Zoo

Petting zoos are such a fun way for kids to enjoy animals. We have noticed a lot of fall festivals in our area also have a petting zoo.

40. Make Caramel Popcorn

Caramel popcorn is a fun and sweet alternative to buttered popcorn. My kids always love helping to make caramel popcorn and then eat it as fast as they possibly can.

41. Make a Scarecrow

Making a scarecrow is a fun family activity and a fun way to decorate for fall. You can do a fun paper scarecrow craft or make a real scarecrow it’s up to you!

42. Listen to the Rain

I love sitting inside with a cozy blanket and listening to the rain (usually while reading a fall book). It’s also really fun to be able to sit outside on a covered porch listening to the rain too.

42. Snuggle up with a soft blanket

Our favorite blankets to cuddle up with are our big king-sized fleece blankets. They are so soft and a great size if you want to share them with someone.

43. Play Don’t Eat Jack

Don’t Eat Jack is a fun fall twist on the classic Don’t Eat Pete Game. This game is great for family fun, as long as the kids don’t cry while playing. I know growing up we often made kids cry when we yelled “don’t eat Pete”.

44. Go on a Bike Ride

Any trail surrounded by trees will be a beautiful area to ride a bike and enjoy the beautiful foliage. If you’re in Maryland the C&O canal is one of our favorite places to go biking.

45. Visit a Museum

A rainy fall day is a great time to enjoy a museum. There are so many different types of museums many of them with hands-on activities for kids. Do some research and find the best museums for your family in your local area.

46. Play at the Park

Cooler days are perfect for spending more time outside and of course at the park. My kids love exploring new parks and visiting old favorites. If you’re trying to find new parks near you check out these tips.

47. ‘Boo’ Neighbors

‘Boo’ing neighbors is a fun family activity that gives another family a fun surprise. Simply bake a treat and attach this adorable printable, then leave it for your neighbors to enjoy.

48. Make Leaf Rubbings

Leaf rubbings are a favorite fall activity, they are fun, easy, and inexpensive to do as a family. Just grab the paper and some broken crayons and head outside for some fun.

49. Join a Library Reading Program

Check with your local library and see if they have any reading programs during the school year. Our libraries often have storytimes and different activities that we have really enjoyed.

50. Have a Picnic

Enjoy a picnic in the cooler weather before it gets too cold. If it’s already a little cooler turn your picnic into a bonfire.

Roast marshmallows, enjoy smores, and have a good time enjoying outside time in your own backyard.

Free Printable Fall Activities List

Get a copy of our printable list of fall activities below. Please keep it for personal use and refer friends to this blog post to get their own printable. 

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The post was originally published in 2016.