30 Best Fall Activities: Fun Things to Do in Autumn 2023

Do you have plans for autumn 2023? Summer is almost over, and autumn/fall, a lot of people’s favorite season of the year, is just around the corner. What fun fall activities do you want to do?
If you are undecided on what to put on your fall bucket list, this post has got you covered. We shall provide a list of fun things to do in autumn 2023, outdoors and indoors alone or with your family and friends, at night or during the day.
There are good reasons why so many people love the fall season. The tree leaves change from green to beautiful vibrant fall colors, i.e., red, yellow, brown, and orange; the weather is perfect, i.e., not too cold or too hot; apples and pumpkins are in plenty; and best of all, Halloween and Thanksgiving, two of the most celebrated holidays happen in autumn.
These are just a few reasons why autumn is a favorite season for many. There are many more things to love about fall!
The fall season is perfect for fun indoor and outdoor activities. Whether you are alone or with friends and family and are looking for ideas of activities to add to your 2023 fall bucket list, read on to find out some of the fun things to do this autumn, both outside and at home, at night, or during the day.
30 Best Fall Activities – Fun Things to Do in Autumn 2023
- Do a wardrobe makeover

It is well known that fall is the best season for fashion; hence, one of the fun things to do this autumn is to refresh your wardrobe.
As summer comes to an end, you need to prepare your wardrobe for the cooler temperatures in autumn. You may also want to try the fall fashion trends for 2023 or to wear the outfits you already own that bring out fall vibes.
Knitted and faux fur sweaters and shirts, trench coats, skirts, or dresses in shades of red, brown, yellow, and orange are must-have pieces in your wardrobe in fall. Plaids and flannels, blue jeans, scarves, and boots are also great for autumn.
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- Watch fall-themed movies
Whether you like rom-coms or horror movies, one of the fun things to do this autumn is watching fall-themed movies.
Cinemas, Cable TV, as well as Netflix, Hallmark, Amazon Prime Video, and other streaming services often have a lineup of fall-themed movies and TV show episodes you can watch. Depending on whether you are alone or with friends and family, pick the appropriate films or TV series and binge-watch them.
If you don’t like scary movies or can’t find anything you like in the fall-themed movie lineup for 2023, you can also watch any other movies and TV shows you fancy.
- Get ready for Halloween

You can start preparing for Halloween as early as September.
Some of the fun fall activities to do alone or with your friends and family to get ready for Halloween include; decorating inside and outside your home, making or shopping for Halloween costumes, making crafts, and visiting a pumpkin patch for pumpkins to carve, place on the front porch, or paint.
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- Go apple picking
One of the fun things to do in autumn 2023 is visiting farms with orchards to pick apples. Washington, Michigan, Pennsylvania, California, and New York are some of the top apple-producing states in the US.
Apple picking as a hobby is among the favorite fall activities for many people because it not only makes them feel more connected with nature, but it is also a fun thing to do with friends and family in autumn for bonding.
- Make fall-themed foods and drinks
If you love cooking, making fall-themed foods and drinks is one of the best fall activities to do in autumn 2023. Recipes using apples, pumpkins, squash, sweet potatoes, and cinnamon are popular in the fall.
You could bake cookies; make candy apples, apple or pumpkin pie, carrot and sweet potato soup, pumpkin bread, sweet potato casserole, mulled apple cider cocktails, pumpkin spice lattes, and ginger-cranberry cocktails.
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- Have a picnic at the park
Whether you are alone or with friends and family, picnics are fun fall outdoor activities. The leaves have changed to vibrant colors, and there is no better way to enjoy the beauty of nature in autumn than having a picnic at the park or in your backyard. You will also breathe in the crisp scent unique to the fall air.
- Play with leaves

The falling of the leaves of deciduous trees in autumn is the reason why the season is known as fall. Since there are many leaves on the ground and more dropping, playing with them is one of the fun fall activities you can do.
Examples of fun things to do in autumn alone or with kids while playing with fall leaves include; arranging them in rows of varying shades of colors, raking and jumping on leaf piles, making fall leaf wreaths and crowns, lying on the leaves, matching leaves to the trees they fell from, burying each other under the leaves, and trying to catch leaves as they fall.
- Attend a fall festival
Would it even feel like autumn if you don’t attend a fall festival? Going to the many festivals and fairs happening during the fall season is one of the fun things you can do this autumn 2023.
For instance, you can attend the annual harvest festival in your local town, a Diwali party, the Great Jack O’Lantern Blaze, a Nuit Blanche celebration, or the Day of the Dead festival.
- Go on a scenic fall drive or ride
Though everyone has their own preference, many people consider autumn the most beautiful season of the year due to the changing colors of tree leaves to red, brown, orange, and yellow.
One of the fun things to do in fall 2023 is to go on a scenic drive, bike ride, or train ride through the countryside to enjoy the beautiful views.
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- Read

Reading a good book is one of the best things to do in autumn alone or with kids. You can read your favorite genre of books, horror books, mystery novels, or ones about the history of Halloween or of the various characters people like to dress up as.
Make reading even more fun as a fall activity by reading outside alone, like in a park surrounded by the brightly-colored tree leaves and the crisp smell of autumn.
Remember to bring a sweater or a light jacket as it may get chilly.
- Visit a haunted house
If you want to get into a spooky mood for Halloween or just crave some adventure, add visiting a haunted house to your 2023 fall bucket list. It is a fun fall activity you can do at night or during the day, and you can go alone or with your family and friends who don’t mind spooky stuff.
Visiting a haunted house is one of the best ways to have a scary but fun time this autumn.
- Play indoor and outdoor games
Gather your friends or family and have great moments playing games this autumn.
Some fun indoor and outdoor games to play in the fall include; scavenger hunts, board games, apple toss, puzzles, pumpkin ring toss, and math games using leaves and acorns.
You can also play fall-themed video games on your phone, computer, or TV to get into the autumn spirit.
- Fill a gratitude jar
With Thanksgiving in autumn, this is the best time to practice gratitude. However, you don’t have to wait for Thanksgiving Day to do it; you can cultivate the habit of being grateful for all the little and big things you have as early as now.
Filling a gratitude jar with notes about things you are thankful for is one of the best fall activities to do alone or with family. You can make it a daily activity where you reflect on each day of autumn and find at least one thing to be grateful for, no matter how small it may be.
By the time Thanksgiving comes around, you will have a jar full of thankfulness. Making gratitude a daily habit will also change your outlook toward life as you will start to see the good even when things are bad.
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- Host or attend a Halloween or Thanksgiving party

Nearly everyone loves parties. So, whether you are with your friends or family, throwing and attending Thanksgiving or Halloween parties are other fun things to do in autumn 2023. You will have a great time spending time together and meeting new people!
- Go to a football game or watch one at home
Football is an autumn sport, both American football and soccer. If you love it and have a favorite team, going to a football game or watching it on TV from the comfort of your home is one of the best fall activities to do in 2023.
- Have a fall photoshoot

It is autumn, and you have everything you need for a photoshoot! You already have the trees in their vibrant colors and the right outfits for fall. What are you waiting for?
Having a fall photoshoot is one of the fun things you can do this autumn. It will help you capture and preserve your memories of these beautiful moments.
- Go to a drive-in movie theater
Still wondering what to do in fall for fun? Drive-in movie theaters are making a comeback, and going to one is among the fun things to do in autumn 2023. They are cheaper than the tickets at a regular indoor cinema.
When you go to a drive-in, you can also watch the movie you like from the comfort of your car, even while alone without feeling weird like you could sometimes feel at an indoor movie theater.
If you have never been to a drive-in movie, this is a life-changing experience you must include in your fall bucket list for 2023.
- Give back to the community
Autumn is the perfect time to give back to your community by helping the less fortunate and participating in events.
Some of the best fall activities to do as ways to give back include donating food, clothes, blankets, and money to charity, organizing your town’s harvest festival, trick-or-treating for a cause, participating in neighborhood cleanups, visiting the elderly or others who live alone, and volunteering at hospitals, nursing homes, or animal shelters.
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- Go hiking

Summer is over, and now the temperatures are great, there are fewer bugs, and trees have vibrant colors.
One of the fun things to do in autumn is to go on hikes to breathe in the fresh air, get some exercise, and enjoy the beauty of nature in the fall.
- Give out candy to trick-or-treaters
Unless you turn off your porch lights to indicate that you aren’t home, the little ‘monsters’ will come to your house for trick-or-treat. Handing out candy to the kids who come knocking at your door is one of the fun fall activities to do on Halloween.
- Visit a fall farmer’s market near you
There’s a good reason autumn is also known as the harvest season. Most fruit and vegetable crops are ready for harvest in the fall, which means there is a lot of produce in the farmer’s markets.
Why go to the farmer’s market when you can get the same foodstuffs at the supermarket? You may be wondering.
Well, not only will buying foods from farmer’s markets be a way to support local businesses, but it will also be a way to save some money and get fresh fruits and vegetables that taste better.
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- Go on a hayride

Hayrides are a beloved fall tradition; hence, going on one is among the fun things you should do in autumn 2023. You will have a lot of fun with your family and friends.
You can also just sit back and relax while taking in the spectacular views around you as the pickup truck or tractor makes its way along the countryside.
- Stargaze
Autumn is one of the best times for stargazing, and thus, you should include this nighttime activity in your 2023 fall bucket list. You can go to an open space outdoors or just head to the rooftop or balcony of your house to observe the night sky.
Since the nights are longer in autumn, you have ample time to sit or lie back and look at the stars, count them, or try to identify the different star constellations.
Also, gaze at the other things that can be seen in the sky, such as the moon, comets, asteroids, the Northern Lights, and the visible planets.
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- Visit a corn maze
Corn mazes are popular places to visit during autumn. They are similar to any other mazes, only that they are set in a cornfield.
Getting lost and trying to find your way through a corn maze with or without jump scares while doing scavenger hunts can be fun, exciting, and even scary, that is why this is one of the best fall activities for young adults and kids.
If you are daring, you can go to a haunted corn maze at night for an entirely different scary experience. But don’t go there alone. For your own safety and security, and to have more fun, bring friends or your romantic partner along when going to a corn maze after sundown.
- Have a bonfire night
You don’t have to spend the autumn nights indoors. One of the fun fall activities you can do at night is making a bonfire and sitting around it with your friends or family.
One bonfire night, you can put on some music and dance to it around the fire, light fireworks (safely), make s’mores, roast marshmallows, sip on mulled wine, play trivia games, and tell scary stories to spook each other. You could even camp out.
- Make your home cozy with fall colors and scents

Even if you don’t celebrate Halloween, you can still bring fall vibes to your home. Decorating your house, both inside and outside, with items containing fall colors and scents to create a cozy and relaxing atmosphere is one of the fun things to do in autumn 2023.
Get out the faux-fur pillow covers, cable knit fleece blankets, and plush rugs.
Other fun fall activities to do to decorate your home for the season include; arranging pumpkins on the front porch or on a perch or shelves indoors; putting maple leaves in vases and placing them strategically; putting together a leaf wreath for the door; hanging leaf wall art, and making pinecone garlands, among other autumn crafts.
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- Go to the zoo
Autumn is the best season to go to the zoo; hence you should include this activity in your fall bucket list for 2023.
The zoo animals are more active due to the cooler temperatures, the place is less crowded, and the not-too-cold, not-too-hot weather in autumn is conducive for you to spend an extended time outdoors.
- Go for a wine tasting
A wine-tasting adventure is one of the fun things to do in autumn alone or with friends and family members who are adults.
If you have to bring kids along when visiting wineries, ensure you have a way to keep them entertained so you can enjoy yourselves.
Before attending a wine tasting, ensure you make a reservation, then dress up elegantly and go. You will have a great time tasting different flavors and types of wines while also learning more about them.
- Attend or watch the Thanksgivings Day parade
The annual Macy’s Thanksgiving Day parade is another fun thing you can look forward to before the fall season ends.
The parade will be in New York City. So if you can, attend the celebration. You don’t need tickets to go to the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day parade.
If you are not local, join the millions of people who watch this grand event every year for its decorated floats, giant character balloons, live performances, and marching bands.
- Get a headstart on Christmas shopping
It is never too early to start shopping for Christmas stuff. In fact, you could save some money by shopping for things like Christmas gifts and decorations before their prices hike when the holidays begin.
You will also have more options and time to choose what you want instead of rushing at the last minute. For these reasons, Christmas shopping is one of the best fall activities.
READ ALSO: Top 15 Ideas to Get Your Family into the Christmas Spirit
Wrapping Up
There are so many things to love about the fall season! If you had no plans for fall, you now have ideas for what to do in autumn 2023 for fun indoors and outdoors, alone or with your friends and family, at night or during the day.
Of course, there are many more fun fall activities you can do, but these are some of the best 2023 autumn bucket list ideas. From decorating for Halloween, attending a harvest festival, and making autumn snacks to going on scenic drives and hosting or attending Thanksgiving and Halloween parties, there is no shortage of fun things to do this fall.
As summer comes to an end, you can look forward to having a great time this autumn with the above fun fall activities. Do these fun things in autumn 2023 to make the most of this season, enjoy yourself, strengthen your bonds with loved ones, meet new people, and pass the time in the not-too-hot or too-cold fall weather before winter starts.
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