Fall is my favorite season. And although we don’t get to start wearing warm scarves or watching the leaves change colors for a while here in DFW, we have no shortage of fun fall festivals and events across the metroplex.
One of the biggest reasons I look forward to this season so much is that it seems like every weekend is filled to the brim with celebration. This year I wanted to compile a round up list of all the fall festivities right here on the blog. Below I’ve listed local festivals and events throughout the rest of September and October, Halloween weekend festivities spanning eight different towns, and patches perfect for picking a pumpkin.
Here are 25+ DFW fall festivals and fun events. Read on and let the fall season begin!
DFW Fall Festivals and Events
Here are all of the exciting upcoming festivals and events in DFW between this weekend and the end of October 2019.
Rockwall Rubber Duck Regatta
September 20 – 21
The Rockwall Harbor
Watch from the shore as Lake Ray Hubbard turns into the world’s largest bathtub! Every year the Rockwall Rubber Duck Regatta fundraises for the local Boys & Girls Club branch by selling hundreds of rubber ducks for $5. The ducks are numbered, then dumped into the Harbor fountain. The owner of the duckies who cross the finish line first wins a variety of prizes. This year the grand prize is a 7-day stay in a Florida condo and four tickets to Disney World.
The event also includes a “Shake Your Tail Feathers” 5k, a kids zone with inflatables, a petting zoo, live music, and more. Admission is free.
(Update: Check out our blog post about this event here!)
Plano Balloon Festival
September 20 – 22
Oak Point Park and Nature Preserve
Beautiful balloons will sail across the wide Texas sky and land in Plano’s Oak Point Park this fall. The Plano Balloon Festival is celebrating its 40th anniversary in 2019. There will be hot air balloon fly-in competitions, tethered balloon rides, a nighttime balloon glow, parachute performances, a 5k, live music, and fireworks.
Weekend tickets valid all three days of the festival are $20, and one-day tickets are $10. You can purchase yours here.
Autumn at the Arboretum
September 21 – October 31
Dallas Arboretum and Botanical Garden
Each year the Arboretum transforms its gardens into an elaborate pumpkin village with a whimsical theme. This year 90,000 pumpkins will be used to create “It’s the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown,” complete with topiary versions of Linus, Sally, Snoopy, Woodstock, Lucy, Peppermint Patty, and Charlie Brown himself.
Tickets to Autumn at the Arboretum are $17. You can purchase them at the entrance.
The State Fair of Texas
September 27 – October 20
Fair Park
Fall in Dallas would never be complete without the great State Fair of Texas. Attractions include midway rides, rodeo shows, petting zoo animals, a butterfly garden, beautiful trained bird performances, a car show, a museum exhibit, free live concerts, a nightly parade, an evening dance and pyrotechnics performance, and so much MORE!
One of the most important aspects of the State Fair is the enormous selection of fried foods. Check out this year’s winners of the Big Tex Choice Awards food contest here.
If you have never visited the State Fair before and you aren’t sure where to begin, check out our top tips from last year. Stay tuned for an updated guide for the 2019 State Fair of Texas.
McKinney Oktoberfest
September 27 – 29
Celebrate German culture in downtown McKinney this fall! The 12th annual McKinney Oktoberfest will include authentic German music, food and drink, traditional costumes, dancing, and kids activities. Admission is free.
Plano Food & Wine Festival
The Shops at Willow Bend
October 5
Sample over 100 wines and food from 20 scrumptious local restaurants at the Plano Food & Wine Festival. There will be live music, culinary demos, grape stomp competitions, and a kids zone welcoming guests to the beautiful Willow Bend shopping center.
Admission is free, and wine tasting passes range from $20-$60. A portion of the proceeds benefit the National Breast Cancer Foundation.
Dallas Observer Tacolandia
Dallas Farmers Market
October 5
Nothing screams “Texas” louder than a festival dedicated to tacos. At Tacolandia you can chow down on UNLIMITED taco samples from 30+ taco vendors and sip your way through the “Margarita Mile.” The food tasting extravaganza will take place at the Dallas Farmer’s Market.
General Admission tickets are $35, and you can purchase them here. For a full list of this year’s taco vendors, look here.
Pumpkin Nights
October 10 – November 3
Howell Farms
Pumpkin Nights is a feast for the eyes, bursting with light and color. This traveling artistic display is comprised of 3,000 hand-carved and artificial pumpkin lanterns. Visitors will travel through a half-mile walking path and discover eight elaborate displays: Pumpkin Passage, Pumpkin Pirate Cove, Enchanted Pumpkin Forrest, Pumpkin Reef, Forbidden Pumpkin City, Monster Mash, Maravilla Lane, and Great Pumpkin Hall.
After strolling through the pumpkins and instagramming to your heart’s content, you can continue the celebration in Pumpkin Central with live entertainment, movie screenings, food, and games. Tickets are $20, and you can buy them here.
Museum Murder Mystery
October 11
Dallas Museum of Art
The DMA is hosting another live action game of clue! Wander around the museum interviewing suspects and determine the location, the weapon, and the culprit of a “murder” at this Museum Murder Mystery. You’ll be armed with a pencil and paper for taking notes. The suspects are pieces of artwork who have come to life. For an inside peek at this event, check out our blog about the murder mystery event hosted by the DMA this May! (Don’t worry, it’s a new mystery this time around, so we didn’t give away the solution.)
Dallas Farmers Market Pumpkin Festival
Dallas Farmers Market
October 12
Kick off harvest season at the market with pumpkin-themed festivities. The Dallas Farmers Market will have 25 varieties of pumpkins for sale, plus circus performances, cooking demos, and kids activities. Admission is free.
Pumpkin Hollow
October 17 – 19
Johnny Broyles Trail
For a mixture of happy harvest and haunted fun, heads to Little Elm for Pumpkin Hollow. There will be an old fashioned carnival, a hayride, a light up pumpkin trail, and a haunted trail for thrill seekers. Admission is free, but entrance to the haunted trail is $10.
A Stranger Halloween
October 18
Free Play Richardson
Richardson’s Free Play barcade is hosting the ultimate Stranger Things party, and we’re all invited! There will be a costume contest, a themed food and drink menu, arcade challenges based on the show, and “an immersive, interactive Hawkins, Indiana experience.” We can’t wait to find out what the last part means. Early admission tickets are $16, and they are transferable but nonrefundable.
Mesquite PumpkinFest
Valley Creek Park
October 19
If you eat, live, and breathe pumpkin spice, this could be the festival for you. The 19th annual Mesquite PumpkinFest will feature a live jousting competition, a falconry bird show, an archery show, a puppet show, a maze, carnival games, food vendors, trick-or-treating, a costume contest, and a pumpkin pie eating contest. Kids are encouraged to dress up in their Halloween costumes for the festival.
Admission to this fall fest is free, although some activities within do charge a fee.
DFW Halloween Weekend Events
Here are a few spooky DFW Halloween weekend events for guests of all ages.
Boo on Ballard
Downtown Wylie
Watch as the streets of downtown Wylie are transformed into Halloweentown for Boo on Ballard! Local businesses will be giving away free candy all night at this trick-or-treating extravaganza. After you have loaded up your bag with plenty of candy, you can enjoy live music and carnival games. The whole event is free.
Denton’s Day of the Dead Festival
October 26
Downtown Denton
Denton’s Day of the Dead Festival is a multi-cultural event that encompasses harvest, Halloween, and Dia de los Muertos. It is jam packed with activities that last all day long, including coffin races, live performances, a pumpkin patch, a costume contest, and a twilight lantern parade.
Admission is free, and costumes are encouraged.
Witches Brew Train
Grapevine Vintage Railroad
October 26
The Grapevine Vintage Railroad invites visitors aboard a haunted train ride to remember. Guests who board the Witches Brew Train will be treated to catered food and specialty beverages while live performers sing, dance, and spook.
Passengers must be 21+. Tickets are $39 and include food and two glasses of Texas craft brew in a souvenir glass. You can purchase your train fare here.
Dia De Muertos Parade
October 26
Dallas City Hall
For the first year ever, Dallas will host its own Dia De Muertos Parade & Festival. According to D Magazine, it will be the largest parade in Texas, and possibly in the whole country. The expected attendance is a whopping 30,00 people. The festival will include live music, food vendors, arts and crafts, and fireworks. Admission is free.
Halloween in the Park
October 26
Farmers Branch Historical Park
Residents of Farmers Branch won’t want to miss the Halloween in the Park festivities. Brave the haunted hedge, play midway games ranging from 25¢ – $1, enjoy bounce houses, live entertainment, food vendors, and a petting zoo. The first 1,000 kids who donated two canned goods at the festival will receive a special treat bag. Admission is free for Farmers Branch citizens, and $5 for everyone else.
Ghost Town
Downtown Carrollton
October 26
If you live in the North area of the metroplex and you’re looking for a spooky, kid-friendly event, check out Ghost Town in Carrollton. Load up on candy, go for a ghost scavenger hunt, paint a pumpkin, snack on carnival food, win big on the midway, or enter the costume contest. Finish off the evening with a sunset showing of Halloweentown. Admission is free.
Scare on the Square & Harbor Halloween Extravaganza
Downtown Rockwall & The Rockwall Harbor
October 26
If you and your kids live in the East area of the metroplex, Rockwall is your one stop shop for tricks and treats this year. Celebrate back-to back at Scare on the Square in downtown Rockwall and the Harbor Halloween Extravaganza. Enjoy trick or treating, pumpkin decorating, fortune telling, scary hair, carnival eats, a Thriller dance class, a hay maze, and pet costume parade in the town square. After dark, watch tots walk down the runway in their most elaborate Halloween costumes, snack on concessions, bounce in inflatables, and play lawn games beside beautiful Lake Ray Hubbard at the Rockwall Harbor. Admission to both events is free.
Hall-O-Ween
October 31
Legacy Food Hall
If you’re too old to trick but you still want some treats, spend your Halloween evening at Legacy Food Hall-O-Ween. Enjoy special food and cocktails, live music, a photo booth, and a costume contest. Admission is free, but food is not.
McKinney Scare on the Square
Downtown McKinney
October 31
If you’re looking for family-friendly fun on Halloween eve, stroll through the streets of downtown McKinney at Scare on the Square. The roads will be closed for trick or treating, hayrides, and other safe and spooky fun in the town square. Admission is free.
DFW Pumpkin Patches
Last but not least, here are a few spots for farm fun and pumpkin picking open throughout the fall season. Don’t miss these DFW pumpkin patches.
Hall’s Pumpkin Farm
September 27 – October 31
Hall’s Pumpkin Farm and Corn Maze
Perhaps the largest and most elaborate fall farm and pumpkin patch location in the metroplex is Hall’s Pumpkin Farm in Grapevine. Home to an enormous corn maze, cute farm animals, hayrides through the countryside, and fields of pumpkins, every Dallasite should add it to her fall bucket list.
Admission is $5, cash only. Some activities (like the hayrides, corn maze, and pumpkin purchases) have additional charges, so make sure you have plenty of extra cash on hand.
Blase Family Farm
September 28 – October 31
Blase Farm
Our all-time favorite pumpkin patch is at the Blase Family Farm in Rockwall. Tucked away like a rural sanctuary in the suburbs, Blase Farm is home to sheep, goats, cows, hayrides, photo props, and of course an assortment of pumpkins. The concessions stand includes homemade pumpkin fudge and pumpkin popsicles so delicious they will blow your mind. Read more about the Blase Family Farm in our blog from last year.
Admission is $8 and includes a hayride and food for the petting zoo. Admission includes one miniature pumpkin on Monday-Friday and one hotdog at the concession stand on Saturday-Sunday.
NorthPark Pumpkin Patch
September 30 – October 31
NorthPark Center
Each year the NorthPark Pumpkin Patch pops up in the mall’s 1.4-acre CenterPark Garden. Admission is free, and the patch makes the perfect backdrop for fall family photos.
Flower Mound Pumpkin Patch
Double Oak Ranch
October 1 – 31
The Flower Mound Pumpkin Patch might be a little bit of a drive outside of Dallas, but the great price and unforgettable experiences makes it worth the miles. At this patch you’ll find hay bale mazes, bounce houses, photo ops, hayrides, pumpkin picking, and more. All of the activities are FREE, but parking is $5 Monday-Friday and $10 Saturday-Sunday.
The Patch at Willow Bend
October 6 – 31
The Shops at Willow Bend
Finally, you can check out the posh pumpkins at The Patch at Willow Bend in Plano this year. In addition to the pumpkins and gourds, there will be spiced drinks, hot chocolate, bales of hay, and holiday decorations for sale. Admission to the patch is free, but entry to the hay bale maze is $5.
What’s on your calendar for fall in DFW?
While it might be impossible to visit all of the fall festivals and events in Dallas/Fort Worth, there are plenty of great options for all ages all month long. My fall bucket list definitely includes lots of these local festivals, several trips to the State Fair, and plenty of pumpkin patches. Which DFW fall festivals will you be attending this year? Did I miss any in my master list? Let me know in the comments below, or reach out on Facebook or Instagram.
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