October is here already. Pick out your costumes, grab your pumpkin carving tools, and choose from a wonderful array of fun things to do with the kids in Chicago this October!
From scarecrows to pow wows to apples and music and pets on parade, there’s tons of family-friendly stuff going on this month in Chicago:
1. Jack’s Pumpkin Nights
October 4 – November 3, 2018
If you don’t want to venture far out of town for your fall experience, head to this two-acre lot located near Goose Island for your family’s autumn fun. This new Halloween-themed pop-up seasonal experience has everything you need – pumpkin carving, carnival games, live nightly performances, and even a corn maze. For the adults, there are seasonal beers and cider available at the bar, too.
2. Scarecrow festival
October 5 – 7, 2018
The free Scarecrow Festival in St. Charles is always a favorite, where you can vote on which of the handmade scarecrows is your favorite, partake in some arts and crafts with the family, eat way too much delicious food, enjoy live entertainment, and take the kids around to see the vintage cars, and then the animals at the petting zoo! Truly uniquely-themed fun for the whole family.
3. Indian pow wow
October 6 – 7, 2018
It’s fun to find ways to diversify your child’s experience and understanding of the world around him or her, and the pow wow hosted by the American Indian Center of Chicago at DePaul College Prep High School is a wonderful way to do so this October. Take your little one to learn more about culture through native foods, arts and crafts, drumming, dancing, and songs of the native people of this land we all share.
4. Lincoln Square Apple Fest
October 6 – 7, 2018
Head to Lincoln Square for your fall dose of all the apple cider and apple pie your stomach can handle. Enjoy listening to live local music while your little ones play in the kids’ zone. The Lincoln Square Apple Fest is located on Lincoln Avenue from Lawrence to Eastwood.
5. Halloween parade for dogs
October 20, 2018
Don’t miss the annual Fido favorite, the one day a year when, for 2 hours, dogs are allowed into the Chicago Botanic Garden for the Spooky Pooch Parade and costume contest! Come see and cheer on all the little furry faces donning their best. They probably plan their costumes all year!
6. Spooky Zoo – Halloween at Lincoln Park Zoo
October 27, 2018
Head to this free, favorite event at the Lincoln Park Zoo for a fun-filled alternative to traditional trick-or-treating. The kids can wear costumes and trick-or-treat, make crafts, go on a Ferris wheel ride, explore a corn maze, see the handiwork of a pumpkin carver, visit a haunted house, and listen to music at the popular annual Spooky Zoo event.
7. The University of Chicago Halloween Concert
October 27, 2018
The University of Chicago’s Symphony Orchestra and the Hyde Park School of Dance team up in Mandel Hall at the University of Chicago to put on a family-friendly, one-hour concert full of storytelling, costumes, and special effects. Have a fun family Halloween experience and support the arts and students at the same time!
Happy October!
