There’s something about fall that gets me every year. The mornings turn crisp, everything smells like cinnamon and woodsmoke, and suddenly every weekend feels like it’s made for getting outside. The problem isn’t a lack of things to do around Los Angeles. It’s that the season moves fast, and if you’re not paying attention, half of it slips by before you’ve made it to a single one.

So, here’s what I’ve got lined up. A few old favorites, a couple I’m excited to try myself. Take your pick.

Los Angeles Haunted Hayride

📍 Los Angeles Haunted Hayride, 4730 Crystal Springs Dr, Los Angeles, CA 90027, inside Griffith Park.

🗓️ September 18 through November 1, 2026, open select nights – check the calendar for exact dates before you plan around it.

🕛 Gates run in the evening, roughly 7 to 10 PM on the nights it’s open, though times can shift a bit depending on the night.

🎫 See the event page for current pricing. Pre-paid parking is available right at the lots, or you can park free at the LA Zoo lot and take the shuttle over.

The Los Angeles Haunted Hayride calls itself Los Angeles’ Ultimate Halloween Event, and it earns that with a full haunted village called Midnight Falls. You’ve got the hayride itself winding through the foothills under the Witch of the Woods, plus mazes like Elvira’s Trick or Treat Mayhem and Hellbilly Halloween, and a new one this year called Fallen Angel about a rock band whose last rehearsal ended in flames. There’s a carnival ride called the Scary-Go-Round, a live show called The Curse of Monte Revolta, and a seance act with Madame Aurora. If you get hungry, Midnight Falls Cider Company sells fresh apple cider and warm cider donuts, and I always end up grabbing one on my way out.

They flag this one as too intense for kids 12 and under, so I wouldn’t bring little ones. If you want to skip the pre-paid lots, park free at the LA Zoo and hop the shuttle over, just don’t miss the last one back. It’s a full night out, not a quick stop, and worth it if you want more than one maze.

Gilchrist Farm

📍 Gilchrist Farm, 30116 Bouquet Canyon Road, Santa Clarita, CA 91390.

🗓️ The Harvest Festival runs through October 2026, with the farm regularly open to visitors on Saturdays and Sundays.

🕛 Saturdays and Sundays, 9 AM to 2 PM.

🎫 Weekday wristbands run $25 from 2 to 6 PM and cover pony rides, the petting zoo, the maze, archery, the slide, and wagon and train rides. Weekend admission pricing wasn’t posted, so check before you go.

Gilchrist Farm is a working ranch out in Santa Clarita, and during harvest season they turn it into a full pumpkin patch setup with a straw bale maze, a straw slide, wagon rides, and both pony and horse rides. There’s a petting zoo, free goat milking demonstrations, pig races, and something called chicken splat bingo that’s exactly what it sounds like. On Fridays they add live music, and there are caramel apples and roasted corn on the cob if you get hungry while you’re there. This is the same farm that runs horseback lessons and summer camp the rest of the year, so the animals are cared for daily, not just trucked in for the season.

This one leans toward little kids, honestly, between the pony rides, petting zoo, and goat milking demos. The staff here are genuinely good with the animals and with families, which is why people keep coming back year after year. If you’ve got young kids who love animals more than mazes and thrill rides, this is your spot over the bigger festivals.

Underwood Family Farms Fall Harvest Festival

📍 Underwood Family Farms, 3370 Sunset Valley Road, Moorpark, CA 93021.

🗓️ September 27 through October 31, 2026, daily.

🕛 9 AM to 6 PM every day.

🎫 Weekday admission at the gate is $16. Weekends run higher, generally $30 to $34 depending on the date, with a $25 presale for opening weekend. Kids under 2 and parking are free.

This is the 29th year Underwood Family Farms has put on their Fall Harvest Festival, and it’s genuinely more than a pumpkin patch. You’ve got a gigantic pumpkin patch you can pick your own from, a corn maze, tractor-drawn wagon rides, Farmer Craig’s Chicken Show, and an Animal Center you can visit daily. Five themed weekends run through the month, including a Wild West Weekend and an All About Pumpkins Weekend, each with its own live entertainment and animal demonstrations. On festival weekends the food booths turn out tri-tip sandwiches, roasted corn, kettle corn, and pumpkin pie, which is what I always end up in line for.

Weekend tickets are online only and walk-ins aren’t guaranteed entry, so buy ahead if you’re going on a Saturday or Sunday. Weekday afternoons are the move if you want to skip the crowds since mornings tend to fill up with school tours. No dogs allowed on the farm, and bring a wagon if you’re planning to pick your own pumpkins because it adds up fast.

Cal Poly Pomona Pumpkin Festival

📍 Pumpkin Festival at AGRIscapes, 4102 S. University Drive, Pomona, CA 91768.

🗓️ October 10 through 31, 2026, weekends only, with a Preview Night on October 8.

🕛 Thursdays and Fridays, 3 to 7:30 PM; Saturdays and Sundays, 10 AM to 7:30 PM.

🎫 See the event page for current pricing.

Cal Poly Pomona’s PumpkinFest is heading into its 33rd year, run out of the university’s Huntley College of Agriculture at AGRIscapes. It’s got a real pumpkin patch, a petting farm, a corn maze, hay rides, and a farm store where you can pick up produce grown right there. There are craft vendor booths with handmade goods too, so it’s not just pumpkins and rides. It’s a working teaching farm behind the scenes, which is part of why the animals and grounds feel so well kept.

You end up walking a fair amount from the parking area to the actual festival grounds, so wear shoes you don’t mind being on your feet in, and bring a wagon or cart for hauling pumpkins back. It’s a good one for families with kids of any age since there’s a mix of the corn maze, the petting farm, and food and craft vendors. Going toward the end of the run tends to be a little less packed than opening weekend.

Fairplex Oktoberfest

📍 See the event page for the exact address.

🗓️ October 2 through 17, 2026, on Fridays and Saturdays.

🕛 6 to 11 PM.

🎫 See the event page for current pricing.

Fairplex Oktoberfest turns the fairgrounds into a Bavarian setup for a few weekends every fall, with cold beer, Bavarian food, and live entertainment running all night. It’s a straightforward beer garden setup, not a big carnival, so it’s more about the food and the band than rides or mazes. This one is 21 and up only, valid ID required at the door, which sets it apart from every other fall event on this list.

Since it’s 21 and up, this is the one on the list to book for a grown-up night out rather than a family outing. Bring your ID no matter what, they check at the door. If you want an actual beer garden feel instead of another pumpkin patch, this is the one that delivers it.

That’s the list I’d hand a friend if they asked what’s worth doing this fall around Los Angeles. Some of these you’ve probably driven past a hundred times without stopping. This is the year you stop.

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