Summer in Minnesota can be a tough act to follow, especially with kids going back to school and the lull before the holidays officially start. But fall in Minnesota is not only fun, tasty and beautiful, it is truly magical. Whether you are two or 92, there’s a festival, orchard, costume or beer stein with your name on it. The toughest part will be deciding what to do first. Here, we’ve highlighted just some of our fall favorites.
There are tons of ways to celebrate the beautiful fall season around town, even if it means just jumping in your car and driving along one of the “Rainbow Routes” to see all the incredible colors in the trees. If you’re looking for something closer to home and more action packed, these festivals offer something for everyone.
The Ferguson family purchased Minnesota Harvest Orchard in 2022, and it has since undergone several renovations, namely adding a bevy of additional attractions and activities. There’s still a large orchard for picking apples, along with wagon rides, farm animals, a jumping pad, hay bales, a cow train, a corn pit, pedal tractors and a wide variety of games. For an additional cost, the fest also has apple cannons, gem mining and a large country store featuring pastries, jams, gifts, apple treats and even a cider bar. Last year during the holiday season, visitors celebrated Ferguson’s Country Christmas with a North Pole Play Village, a scenic wagon ride and an exclusive visit with Santa.
When it comes to fall festivals with all the bells and whistles for family-friendly fall fun, Sever’s Fall Festival has been a favorite since its inception in 1997. The price of admission includes access to the area’s largest corn maze, petting zoo, an extreme corn pit, jumping pillows, zip lines, pig races and much more. There’s also a wide variety of entertainment, from wildlife shows and comedians to magicians and live music. For an additional price, visitors can partake in pony rides, a giant slide, pumpkin blasters, hayrides, an artisan market, food and beverages, and even pump-kins to bring home. It is truly your one-stop fall shop. Also, from November through January, stop back for the drive-thru Holiday Lights, featuring more than2.5 million lit displays timed to music.
Held the second weekend in October, Stillwater Harvest Fest is an annual favorite with a uniquely fun spin on the fall season in charming downtown Stillwater. The event features all things pumpkin, including a giant pumpkin weigh off, a pumpkin regatta (where competitors paddle inside of giant pumpkins down the St. Croix River), and the grand finale: the giant pumpkin drop from a 100-foot crane. As one of the largest festivals of its kind in the Midwest, it has been the No. 1 giant pumpkin weigh off in the world several times, including a world-record pumpkin in 2010. There’s also a vendor market, beer and wine garden, chili cookoff, live music, kids’ activities and a kids’ costume parade. And if nothing else, you have the stunning bluffs and quaint downtown shops of Stillwater to take in, as you stroll along the river to check out the beautiful fall colors.
The Twin Cities Harvest Festival and Corn Maze is known for having the largest corn maze in the Twin Cities and features a unique Minnesota-based theme every year. Last year, the theme was a Minnesota United FC design with a large soccer ball that incorporated team trivia questions throughout the maze (and was incredibly impressive to look at from an aerial view). In addition to the maze, the festival also has a farm market and pumpkin patch, food trucks, yard games, live music, magic shows and more—all for free. For an additional fee, visitors can take advantage of giant inflatables, a petting zoo, pony rides, a pumpkins linger, corn pits, multiple mazes, a hayride and more. As an added bonus, in the last 10 years, the festival’s owners have raised over $200,000 for local charities.
The Minnesota Landscape Arboretum is a beautiful place to visit year-round, but in the fall, it puts on an extra-special show. AppleJAM is an annual fall festival featuring music and apple-themed food, plus other concessions. Also at the Arboretum, Scarecrows in the Garden is an outdoor fall exhibit featuring a pumpkin house, dozens of festive gourd displays (including a tree made of gourds),and ornately decorated and themed scarecrows designed by Arboretum staff and the experts at Bachman’s Garden Center. Some of last year’s favorites included Bud the Gardenosaur, Maribel and Harry Pot-ter. There’s also the Apple House (home of the Honeycrisp apple!), located less than a mile from the Arboretum grounds. It sells a wide range of apple varieties (including some yet-to-be-named) from the Arboretum’s University of Minnesota research orchards, along with apples pies, cider, pumpkins, squash, gifts and more.
Fall is the perfect (and ripe!) season to go apple and pumpkin picking. There are many orchards and pumpkin patches in the area that offer an excellent variety to choose from. The crisp autumn air and colorful leaves will make for a picturesque backdrop as you wander through the fields, picking the perfect produce.
If you prefer to celebrate fall by eating your way through bags of delicious apples, you’re int he right state. As the home of the Honeycrisp and countless other varieties, Minnesota has some of the best orchards and options for apple tasting, whether you prefer to drink them, pick your own, have them dipped in caramel or prepicked for you. (And we’d be remiss not to mention apple doughnuts.) But go early! Some of the tastiest varieties peak in late August and early September. These are some our favorite orchards:
As we move into October, and the air gets a little cooler and crisper, things start to feel spookier, and while most of the fall festivals are still happening, there’s a definitive shift toward Halloween. Before trick-or-treating, you need to start by getting your pumpkins and decorative (or edible) gourds. Here are a few of our favorite pumpkin patches around the Twin Cities:
Fall celebrations in Minnesota are a beloved tradition for many locals and visitors alike. Whether you’re stuck on sauerkraut or a fan of frights, these fall events in Minnesota will deliver.
If fall has you feeling nostalgic for your German roots (or simply feeling appreciation for all things German) or dreaming of bratwurst, lederhosen, schnitzel and beer steins, you’re sure to find an Oktoberfest in the Twin Cities for you. Here are a few of our favorites:
And last but not least, we can’t forget Halloween! For those of you who immediately think of all things spooky the minute the air gets cooler, there are myriad places and ways to celebrate around the area. Some are family friendly, while others require signing a waiver (enter at your own risk!):
Looking for alternatives? There are plenty of other ways to celebrate fall around town, including the Renaissance Festival, Minneapolis Monarch Festival, Fiesta Latina, Open Streets, Fall into the Arts Festival in Edina or apple cidering at your local nature center.
This list is not exhaustive—there are many more ways and places to celebrate fall, apples, Halloween, pumpkins and more.
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