Bay Area Fall Bucket List
EAST BAY
Oakland Zoo Boo at the Zoo (all of October)- Scavenger Hunt and Hay Maze. Wear your costumes to show off to the animals! Reservations and tickets required.
Hayward Fearless Path: Trunk or Treat (October 14)- Free event. Trunk or Treat, games, activities, candy and more. *Special needs and Autism friendly event
Ardenwood Historic Farm: Haunted Train (October 20-22 & 27-29)- Twenty minute round trip open air halloween themed train ride. Buy tickets in advance.
Alameda Landing: Chalk Fest and Halloween Spooktacular (October 22)- Life sized murals, face painting, goodie bag and more.
Prancing Princess Pony Halloween Event (October 22)- Trick or treating, pumpking picking, Mickey, Minnie and Mandalorian visitors, horse ride and more. $100 for family (1-6 people)
City of Berkley Floating Pumpkin Patch (October 22)- Swim time in the pool, leave with a pumpkin of your own. Register in advance $10/12
Oakland Museum of California: Dia de los Muertos Community Celebration (October 22)- Come celebrate the Day of the Dead at OMCA for their 29th year bringing it to Oakland.
Lindsay Wildlife Museum: Howl-ooo-ween (October 26)- Trick or treating, games, experiments with a Mad Scientist and more. $15/member or $20/non-member
Walnut Creek Rec: Boo Bash (October 27)- Trick or treating downtown, trunk or treating at Civic Park, games, activities and more
Lafayette: Trick or Treat Street (October 27)- Trick or treat on Mt. Diablo Blvd. Free and recommended for children 9 and under.
Lafayette Gymboree: Gymboween (October 28)- Two different Halloween play parties. Baby party (kids under 1) and another for children 1-5 years old. Trick or treating, halloween themed class and art projects. Free to the public.
Downtown Martinez: Trick or Treat Spooktacular (October 28)- Trick or treat, games, and crafts. Free to the public.
Lawrence Hall of Science: Creepy, Happy Halloween (October 29)- Wear a costume and get a free ticket to the planetarium shows. Meet creepy critters, do science experiments and more. Admission tickets required.
SOUTH BAY
Visit The Spina Farms Pumpkin Patch (Morgan Hill)
Green Halloween at Happy Hollow Park & Zoo (San Jose) on October 29th from 11am-4pm
Do the Unhinged tour at the Winchester Mystery House (For teens and adults)
Roaring Camp Thomas & Percy's Halloween Party in Felton (multiple weekends)
Visit CA Great America (Santa Clara) Tricks & Treats now through October 28th
Take a fall baking class at Cultivate in San Jose on October 28th (suited for ages 7-14)
NORTH BAY
Visit Cool Pumpkin Patch Pumpkins and find your way through the World’s largest corn Maze
Visit Six Flags Discovery Kingdom BOOfest for little kids or FRIGHT fest for the older kids/adults!
Go apple picking at Pine-O-Mine Ranch and enjoy apple flavored treats, games and a pumpkin patch!
Check out the fall foliage in either hiking or bike riding with Napa Valley Bike Tours or visiting family friendly wineries!
Grab some fall florals at Park Winters Flower Farm or try one of their seasonal brunches from their farm menu
PENINSULA
Go to Half Moon Bay’s Art and Pumpkin Festival Oct 14th
Spend the day at Lemos Farms Pumpkin Patch. Kids will have a blast on the train ride, petting zoo, pony rides, gem mining and more!
See Zoppes Italian Circus in Redwood. Here throughout October and November. It’s the best for kids!
Boo’s on B Street in Downtown San Mateo Saturday, October 28th from 2pm-5pm. There will be carnival games, crafts, photo booth, pumpkin decorating and live DJ music!
Come jaunt through the jack-o-lantern display on Friday, October 27 from 6:30-8:30 p.m. at Lytton Plaza. Be sure to cast your vote to tell them which jack-o-lantern is the scariest, cutest, and most creative.
Orchard Days at Filoli
SAN FRANCISCO
Photo Cred: @sarahmontoya
Drive around to see all the Halloween decorations - Pac Heights has tons to see
Visit the Westin St Francis lobby for a decked out fall
CLANCY’S Pumpkin Patch
Randal Museum Family Halloween Day. 10 am – 2 pm, Saturday, October 21, 2023
Castro Halloween is back!
Mitchell’s pumpkin ice cream
Go see a Giants game
Super Natural Event at Cal Academy. Trick or treating, crafts, face painting and more! Friday, October 27, 2023 6:30-9 pm. Buy tickets in advance.
After Dark: Thrills and Chills at the Exploratorium. Observe human heart cells beat on their own, discover how many blood cells you have, and watch your body turn transparent—skeleton, organs, and all! Thu, October 26th, 6-10pm. Buy tickets in advance.
Free Outdoor Halloween Movie Night “Ghostbusters” (McLaren Park). October 20th at sundown
“Halloween Hoopla” Kids Festival in the Park + Costume Parade. The Hoopla grand finale is the popular Halloween Costume Parade with live music – all kids are welcome to join in their best Halloween looks. Saturday, Oct 28th, Noon-3pm. (Yerba Buenca Gardens)
Sandcastle Classic Event: Halloween Haunts. Saturday, October 28, 2023 - 11:00 am
“Thrill-O-Ween” Festival w/ Costume Contest & Outdoor Movie (Thrive City). Thrive City will be filled with themed activities for all ages including a special screening of Elemental. Stay alert because you never know who or what may pop out! Don’t forget, best dressed wins the costume contest! RSVP while supplies last. Saturday, October 28, 2023 - 1:00 pm to 6:00 pm
Trick-Or-Treat On The Beach At The Great HauntWay On October 30
Go trick-or-treating at the Ferry Building Oct. 29 (11am-1pm) – A family event with trick-or-treating at the Ferry Building’s many merchants, a spooky scavenger hunt, and a live pumpkin carving demo.