Seasonal Activities For The Fall
Stay at The Benjamin this fall and explore New York City. Enjoy fun events and happenings with family and friends while exploring seasonal farms, museums, parades and more…
Fishkill Farms
If you’re looking to escape the city for the day, enjoy apple and pumpkin picking at Fishkill Farms. The farm is about an hour and a half north of NYC in East Fishkill, NY. Spend the whole day at this environmentally, family-friendly farm which on weekends, (September through mid-October) enjoy free hayrides, delicious food, and live music. Don’t miss out on the delicious homemade donuts and cider straight from the orchard trees! Visit their website for more information! (https://www.fishkillfarms.com/).
Melick’s Town Farm Cider Mill
An hour outside of NYC located in Oldwick, New Jersey is Melick’s Town Farm Cider Mill. Children can pick their own apples from the easy to reach branches of Melick’s own dwarf tree’s, choosing from honey crisp, macoun and mackintosh. Kids can enjoy their apple pickings while taking a hayride around the Cider Mill or enjoy a cup of cider from the farm stand. Besides apples, roasted corn and freshly hot baked donuts are also not to be missed as every bite is sweeter than the next! https://www.melickstownfarm.com
Amazing Maize Maze: Queens County Farm Museum
Ready to get lost in a labyrinth in NYC? Well look no further then Amazing Maize Maze, located at the Queens County Farm Museum. This cool and exciting maze which stretches just over two miles is perfect for those who love a challenge. Every year The American Maze Company puts together a labyrinth depicting a theme, in the past it has included a farm scape, a riverboat and a violin. Perfect for those warm fall days to enjoy with family and friends. There will also be a Maze by Moonlight on October 12th & 19th, for those who want to try to find their way out in the dark! https://americanmaze.com/
Bronx Zoo: Boo at the Zoo
Bronx Zoo: Boo at the Zoo, is great for every age with spooky hayrides to pumpkin carvings, Bootoberfest for the adults (which includes sampling beers), and costume parades. The event runs every weekend from September 28th through November 3rd, so make sure you head on over to their website to purchase tickets as you and your family will not be disappointed. (https://bronxzoo.com/boo-at-the-zoo).
Fink’s Country Farm
Enjoy a day out with the kids on Eastern Long Island an hour and half outside of NYC, for an exciting full day of fall activities. On the weekends at Fink’s Country Farm, kids can pick their own pumpkins, enjoy hayrides and pony rides. Children can also get their face painted as well as get lost in the corn maze. There is a playground and kiddie train ride for those looking for more activities for their children to enjoy! Make sure to check out the farm stand and take home some treats and fresh produce! https://finksfarm.com/
The Great Jack-O-Lantern Blaze
If you want to do an activity with the family at night, head on over to The Great Jack-O-Lantern Blaze at Van Cortland Manor just outside of NYC on the Hudson. Tickets sell out fast to see this over the top event which takes place at an historic 18th century manor. 7,000 Jack-O-Lanterns are carved and decked out to the extreme, created by professional artists. The carvings are on display throughout the entire property all synchronized to lights and music. This event runs from September through November and one that is certainly not to miss! (https://hudsonvalley.org/events/blaze/).
Spooky Pumpkin Garden at the NY Botanical Garden
Walk along the spooky garden trail at the New York Botanical Garden, with scary pumpkins and ghostly scarecrows. This attraction is fun for all ages to get their scare on and provides a great educational experience for kids and adults to learn about bats. There is also a spooky puppet show in the gardens and on weekends pumpkin carving demonstrations to get your imagination flowing when carving your own pumpkin. On October 26th and 27th, enjoy the Giant Pumpkin Weekend, where impressive large pumpkins are on display.
Halloween Celebration at the American Museum of Natural History
On October 26that the American Museum of Natural History, have your kids come dressed in their Halloween costumes and meet their favorite characters while roaming the exhibit halls. Trick-or-treating, arts and crafts and live performances will be going on throughout the day. So come join in on the Halloween Fun! https://www.amnh.org/calendar/halloween-celebration
Halloween Pumpkin Flotilla at Central Park
Nothing better than celebrating a fall night in central park. Have the family carve out spooky pumpkins the night before and drop them off the next day at the designated drop off area, for them be featured floating down the Harlem Meer, lit up at night. Space is limited as only 50 pumpkins get chosen to float down the pond on first come, first served bases. This is New York’s largest pumpkin flotilla and this magical event is certainty not one to miss. Before the launch starts, make sure to get there early to enjoy Halloween crafts, costume parade, and spooky stories. Please check out the website for further instructions detailing the Halloween Pumpkin Flotilla requirements. https://www.centralparknyc.org/articles/the-hair-raising-history-of-the-halloween-pumpkin-flotilla
New York City’s 46th Annual: Village Halloween Parade
If you’re looking to do something with both family and friends on Halloween, join and march in New York City’s 46th Annual: Village Halloween Parade. This is a fantastic event with music, dancers and all sorts of fun activities throughout the night. If you just want to watch and not participate, the parade starts at 7pm on 6th Ave, at Canal Street. (https://halloween-nyc.com/). New York for sure will not disappoint or leave you being bored with the endless amounts of fall activities to enjoy with family and friends!
Open House New York
*Open House New York weekend invites all inside hundreds of building across the five boroughs to experience the architecture and urban design that makes New York the greatest city in the world. From historic farmhouses built in the city’s earliest days to new buildings at the cutting edge of design and technology, hundreds of sites across the five boroughs are open to visit, with tours, talks, and other special events over the course of the October 19-20th weekend. Visit OHNY.org for more information about all sites. Use the “My Itinerary” feature on their website to create a custom itinerary and share with friends. Festival information hub at 1133 Broadway at 26th Street, located at the base of NoMad’s St. James Building in Rizzoli Bookstore.
New York Wine and Food Festival
The annual New York City Wine And Food Festival will be taking place from 10/10-10/13. Join Food Network personality, cookbook author and restaurateur Geoffrey Zakarian, and his closest NYC chef friends, for a walk-around tasting full of local ingredients and fall flavors. Spend the morning savoring autumnal brunch fare from some of NYC’s most prominent restaurants (selected by Chef Zakarian himself!), inspired by best-of-the-best seasonal ingredients straight from regional farms. Chat with farmers first-hand about their seasonal products and welcome fall by filling up on bountiful bites, beer, wine and spirits at this returning Festival favorite. The National Bar & Dining Rooms will be participating in the Farmer’s Market Brunch on 10/12 at The Standard Biergarten.