Pittsburgh Offers Festivals and Fun for Families This Fall
With fall well underway, there are several fun activities for children and their caregivers in the Pittsburgh region over the next few months.
Fall Festivals
For youngsters who don’t frighten easily, Kennywood’s new Phantom Fall Fest runs on select dates through Oct. 27. The event includes food, seven haunted houses, four scare zones, and other thematic activities.
Mars Applefest, which takes place on Oct. 4, offers a variety of food, fun, shopping, games, crafts, entertainment, and more than 150 vendors.
The Confluence PumpkinFest in Laurel Highlands runs from Oct. 4 to 6. The festival features a PumpkinFest Queen Pageant, a 5K run/walk, an antique and classic auto show, a parade, and a large pumpkin contest.
Phipps Conservatory & Botanical Gardens’ Fall Flower Show, which runs from Oct. 5 to 27, features a theme this year of Rhythm and Blooms. Every room at Phipps is inspired by a different musical genre and is accompanied by chrysanthemums in all shapes, sizes, and colors.
Seven Springs Mountain Resort’s Autumnfest, which runs from Oct. 5 to 20, is a great locale for fall foliage. Visitors can ride the chairlift for an aerial view as well as shop from local artisans and crafters and listen to live music.
Zelienople’s Annual Country Fall Festival, which runs from Oct. 12 to 13, features two days of musical entertainment, three towers of paranormal ghost walks, pumpkin and costume contests, chainsaw carving, a petting zoo, free horse-drawn wagon rides, and historic encampments and demonstrations.
CitiParks’ Track and Treat for Kids will encourage attendees to bring a bike or borrow one for this event at the Bud Harris Cycling Track. The event will include refreshments, food trucks, and more.
The Bit Bridge Halloween Showcase enables local developers to demonstrate their games in Pittsburgh. Costumes are encouraged for the event, which runs from 4 p.m. to 6 p.m. on Oct. 20.
The Pittsburgh Monster Pumpkin Festival, which takes place on Oct. 19 and 20, will include a “Costume Caper” 5K run/walk, a pumpkin regatta, a pumpkin pie eating contest, and giant pumpkin sculptures. This year’s event will take place in the Strip District, at 3 Crossings Campus along 28th and 29th streets.
Buzzword will explore its latest word, GLIDE, during a bug-themed family-friendly event. Children and their caregivers will take part in interactive activities from the Carnegie Science Center.
More events can be found on Allegheny County’s website.
Local Farms and Fall-Time Produce
There are a number of opportunities to take part in fun activities or pick autumn produce at local farms.
Soergels Orchards is hosting its annual fall festivals from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Saturday and Sunday through Oct. 27. Apple picking is among the activities offered at the farm.
Trax Farms is hosting a pumpkin carving contest and will host its annual fall festival activities from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Saturday and Sunday through Oct. 27. Hayrides are also available for visitors to the farm.
Bedner’s Farm and Greenhouse is offering a pumpkin decorating station every Saturday and Sunday from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Children can also enjoy the farm’s Storytime events on Thursdays at 10 a.m.
Triple B Farms’ Acres of Family Fun will run from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Saturdays and Sundays. The farm’s apple orchards and flower fields are open from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. on Monday through Thursday and 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Friday through Sunday. Attendees can also pick pumpkins.
Other Activities
But there are numerous other activities for children and their caregivers to take part in this fall. There are numerous ways to view the beautiful fall foliage, from bike rides to guided train rides.
Hayrides and corn mazes are available during many fall festival events or at local farms.
As Halloween approaches, children can create their own Halloween costumes with the help of an adult. Other crafts that could be fun for both children and their caregivers include decorating acorns or creating fall decorations with crafts as well as taking fall photography.
Visit Pittsburgh is a great resource for finding fall activities in the city and region.