Grand Rapids Fall Activities

Family Fun

Grand Rapids is filled with opportunities for kids and families to play their way. Visit John Ball Zoo to get up close with 2,000+ animals and encounter 20+ larger-than-life animatronic pollinators. Explore the Children’s Garden and Farm Garden at Frederik Meijer Gardens & Sculpture Park. See the fascinating new exhibit Tyrannosaurs: Meet the Family at Grand Rapids Public Museum. Check out learning-through-play opportunities at the Grand Rapids Children’s Museum. Cheer on the Grand Rapids Griffins hockey team and Grand Rapids Gold basketball team. Hike or bike hundreds of miles of trails through parks, forests, meadows and sand dunes. Celebrate fall with hayrides, corn mazes, petting zoos, pumpkin picking and more at family farms and orchards.

Fall Festivals

Grand Rapids celebrates the season in all sorts of crowd-pleasing ways: Visit Meijer Gardens every Tuesday evening in October for Autumn Nights, featuring an illuminated Pumpkin Walk, lawn games and live entertainment. Experience Oddities on Ottawa (Oct. 25), a street festival filled with curiosities, unique and bizarre collectibles, live entertainment, and food and drink. Attend the Cultural Heritage Festival at the Grand Rapids Public Museum on Nov. 8 to enjoy diverse presentations, music, art, food and more. Honor military veterans at the Celebration of Service (Nov. 7-8), featuring a 500 patriotic drone light show over the Grand River, and our annual Veterans Day Parade in downtown GR (Nov. 11). Join in the fun of Grand Rapids Comic-Con, Nov. 14-16. Get a jump-start on the holiday season at downtown GR’s annual Santa Parade and Tree Lighting Ceremony (Nov. 22).

Fall Foliage Color Tours

Take a self-guided fall color tour or scenic drive that showcases the region’s lush forest canopy, abundant apple orchards and charming covered bridges. Visit local parks for a late-season picnic beneath an umbrella of red, yellow and orange leaves. Wander the trails at Blandford Nature Center, Calvin College Ecosystem Preserve and Wittenbach/Wege Agriscience & Environmental Education Center to see fall’s effect on all manner of native plants.  See Mums at Meijer Gardens, Michigan’s largest and most colorful chrysanthemum display, through Oct. 31.

U-picks, Farms & Wineries

Grand Rapids is the apple capital of Michigan, America’s #2 apple-producing state, and our apple harvest runs from late August through November. You can pick your own apples at family orchards or shop for dozens of varieties at family farm markets, many of which also offer fresh-pressed apple cider  and fresh-baked goodies. Visit Robinette’s Apple Haus & Winery, Ed Dunneback & Girls Farm and Fruit Ridge Markets for apples and much more – from kid-friendly attractions to crafted-on-the-farm wine and beer. The fall grape harvest is also a great time of year for guided tours of area wineries.

Halloween Events & Attractions

Whether you’re all about a family-friendly Halloween or you want to be scared out of your socks – or both – Grand Rapids is the place to be in October. Enjoy a month full of kid-approved corn mazes, zoo events , a pumpkin train, community trunk-or-treats, and more. After the sun goes down, venture into terrifying haunted attractions and nighttime mazes, take a tour of the city’s ghostly history and join in the fun of adult costume parties at local bars and restaurants. Come for Halloween on Friday, stay for a Halloweekend full of Grand Rapids treats!

Food, Drink & Restaurant Week

Savor the flavors of fall at local restaurants and craft beverage destinations. Get the Flights of Flavor digital pass to find the city’s best food & drink pairings – and earn prizes for trying them. Treat your taste buds to fall’s fuller-bodied beers – including pumpkin-infused brews –  at 40+ local breweries. (Don’t forget to download the Beer City Brewsader® app first, you can earn a FREE t-shirt when you use it.) Taste the city with Restaurant Week GR (Nov. 7-15) with special meals and surprises. Attend the International Wine, Beer & Food Festival (Nov. 21-22) for a taste of 1,200 wines, beers, ciders and spirits from around the world, as well as the best food from local restaurants.

Fall Entertainment

See Tate McRae (Oct. 22), Riley Green (Nov. 6), Katt Williams (Nov. 8), Matt Rife (Nov. 9) and Bert Kreischer (Nov. 20) at Van Andel Arena. Head to DeVos Performance Hall for MANIA: The ABBA Tribute (Oct. 26), The Vampire Circus (Oct. 27), Broadway Grand Rapids presents The Book of Mormon (Nov. 4-9), Gabby’s Dollhouse (Nov. 10) and Anne Wilson (Nov. 16). Grand Rapids Ballet kicks off its 2025-26 season with Sherlock (Oct. 24-26), FROZEN: The Broadway Musical blows into Grand Rapids Civic Theatre from Nov. 14-Dec. 14, and the Grand Rapids Symphony presents 15+ performances this fall – including Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring in Concert (Oct. 31-Nov. 1) and The Polar Express in Concert (Nov. 21-22).

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