Updated October 9, 2026. Every date and price below was checked against the organizer’s own website today.
Here is the thing about fall festivals in Colorado that nobody tells you until it is too late: the harvest festivals are already over.
Cider Days ended October 4. Elk Fest in Estes Park ended October 4. Oktoberfest season wrapped in September. Most of Colorado’s classic fall festivals cluster into a two-week window from about September 20 through the first weekend of October, which means by the time the weather turns crisp enough to make you think about them, you have missed them.
But you have not missed everything. Pumpkin patches, corn mazes and haunts run straight through November 1, and a handful of the best events of the season are still ahead of you. Here is what is actually open, what it costs, and what already closed.
Still open this weekend
Pumpkin Festival at Chatfield Farms, Littleton
October 9, 10 and 11 only. This is the one to move on, because the pumpkin patch at Chatfield is open these three days and no others all season.
- 9 a.m. to 4 p.m., last entry 4 p.m.
- Adults $22, seniors 65+ $20, children 3 to 15 $14, under 2 free
- Buy online. General admission is not sold during the festival and daily attendance is capped. Membership does not guarantee a ticket.
- Free parking. Children under 16 need an adult.
Boo at the Zoo, Denver Zoo
Running October 9 to 11, 16 to 18, 23 to 25, and 30, 4:30 to 9 p.m., with a sensory-friendly night on October 31.
This weekend is a Value Night, which is the cheapest way in: adults and seniors $25.95, youth $18.95, under 2 free. Regular nights later in the month run $27.95 and $20.95.
The zoo says its most popular dates sell out quickly, so book ahead. Costume rules are strict: no masks covering the eyes for anyone, no full masks for ages 12 and up, nothing resembling a weapon.
Ghosts in the Gardens, Denver
Tonight and tomorrow, October 9 and 10, then October 20, 28, 29, 30 and 31. $34, or $29 for members.
A 90-minute self-guided walk through the Denver Botanic Gardens after dark. Age 12 and up only, and costumes and Halloween masks are not allowed, which tells you it is aimed at adults rather than trick-or-treaters.
Still ahead of you
Emma Crawford Coffin Races, Manitou Springs
Saturday, October 24, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Manitou Avenue.
The best fall event in Colorado and it is not close. Teams build coffins, dress as Emma Crawford, and race them down the main street of a Victorian mountain town. Free to watch, family friendly, costumes encouraged, after-party at Soda Springs Park.
This is the 32nd running. Note that the event was publicly in doubt earlier this year over security costs before the city resolved it, so confirm with the Manitou Springs Chamber before you drive. Manitou parking is genuinely terrible on a normal day and far worse for this, so plan on a park-and-ride.
Glow at the Gardens, Denver
October 15 to 18 and 21 to 24, 5:30 to 9 p.m. Adults $37, seniors $35, children 3 to 15 $29.
Tickets must be bought in advance. None are sold at the door and it regularly sells out weeks ahead. Spooky rather than scary, so it works for families who want atmosphere without a scare. No full-face masks for anyone over 17.
Day of the Dead, Longmont Museum
Two events, and this is the one most Colorado roundups miss.
- Day of the Dead Family Celebration, Saturday October 24, 11 a.m. to 3 p.m., including a procession. This is the 26th year of the longest-running public Day of the Dead celebration in Colorado.
- Noche de Museo, Friday October 30, 7 to 9 p.m. in the Stewart Auditorium, with Aztecan dance from Grupo Azteca Tlahuitzcalli and rock from iZCALLi.
The museum also reopens October 17 after an expansion, with a free grand reopening celebration that day. Check the museum’s event pages for pricing, which is not published in advance.
ZooBoo, Pueblo Zoo
Saturday, October 17 only, noon to 3 p.m., last admission 2 p.m. Adults $15.25, all children $5, under 2 free. Members get a 9 a.m. preview.
A three-hour window on a single afternoon, so it is easy to miss. Costume parades and trick-or-treating at sponsor booths.
Boo at the Zoo, Cheyenne Mountain Zoo
October 16, 17, 23, 24, 25, 30 and 31, 4 to 8:30 p.m.
Advance timed tickets are required for everyone, members included. The zoo prices by date, so check its ticket calendar rather than assuming a flat rate. And remember you are at 6,800 feet on the side of a mountain after dark in late October. Dress for it.
Harvest Hoot, Children’s Museum of Denver
October 23 to 25. Standard museum admission: $19.75 for ages 2 to 59, $17.75 for age 1 and for 60+, members free.
The only indoor option on this list, which matters more than it sounds. Colorado’s first real snow often lands in late October. Tickets are not sold online, no adults without a child, no children without an adult.
The pumpkin patches, ranked by what you want
All of these run through October 31 or November 1.
| Farm | Where | Through | Admission | Best for |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Miller Farms | Platteville | Mid-November | Free entry. Hayride $18 adult, harvest ride $28 | Best value anywhere. You pay for the ride and the produce, not the gate |
| Cottonwood Farms | Lafayette | Oct 31 | $10.50 timed, $12.50 anytime. Kids 5 and under and seniors 65+ free | Cheapest real patch on the Front Range, steam engine on October weekends |
| Chatfield Farms Corn Maze | Littleton | Nov 1 | $22 adult, $14 child | Runs latest of the Front Range mazes. Online only, no onsite sales |
| Fritzler Farm Park | LaSalle | Nov 1 | $28.95 online, $33.95 at full price | Pumpkin cannon, Orbeez gallery. Date-specific online tickets only |
| Anderson Farms | Erie | Oct 31 | $18 to $32 timed, up to $50 at the door | The big one. Book ahead or pay nearly double |
One practical note on Anderson Farms, because the price spread is extreme: a peak Saturday is $32 with a timed online ticket and $50 at the gate. Advance booking is not just a reservation there, it is an 18-dollar discount.
And a correction worth knowing: Anderson Farms’ homepage currently carries a leftover line saying the farm is not open to the public. Its own pricing page contradicts it. The farm is open.
If you want to be scared
Terror in the Corn at Anderson Farms, select nights through October 31. General admission $43 Thursday, $50 Friday and Saturday, $48 Sunday. Quick passes run $63 to $70. All sales final, and your ticket includes the daytime Fall Festival.
Fright Fest at Elitch Gardens, through November 1. Park admission $57.99, Haunt Pass $40 on top for three haunted houses. The haunts are recommended for ages 12 and up, and there is a $5 “No Boo Necklace” for anyone who wants to walk through without being jumped at, which is a genuinely good idea.
Scream Acres at Fritzler in LaSalle sells separately from the day farm.
What you already missed
Not to rub it in, but because this is the part that actually helps you next year.
| Event | 2026 dates | Note |
|---|---|---|
| Cider Days | Oct 3 and 4 | In Lakewood, at Heritage Lakewood. Adult $17, child $10. Buy only through the city’s own box office; there are fake ticket sites |
| Elk Fest, Estes Park | Oct 3 and 4 | Free. Bugling contests, raptor demos, Rut Run 5K. 2027 dates are already posted: October 2 and 3 |
| Denver Kickers Oktoberfest | September | 2027 is already announced: September 17 and 18 |
| Breckenridge Oktoberfest | September | Colorado’s Oktoberfests are September events, not October ones |
The pattern is the lesson. Colorado’s harvest festivals, Oktoberfests, apple and potato days and elk festivals run from roughly September 20 through the first weekend of October, because that is when the aspens turn and the harvest actually comes in. If you want to go to one, put it in your calendar in August. By mid-October, what is left is pumpkins and haunts.
For the rest of the seasonal calendar, our guide to the best time to visit Colorado covers how each month actually plays out.
Planning around it
Most of these cluster in the Denver metro and the northern Front Range, which makes a two-stop day realistic. Chatfield and Elitch are both in the metro. Anderson Farms in Erie, Cottonwood in Lafayette and the Longmont Museum are within twenty minutes of each other, so Longmont makes a sensible base for a northern loop.
Down south, Manitou Springs is the obvious anchor for coffin race weekend, and Cheyenne Mountain Zoo is fifteen minutes away.
If the weather turns, and in late October it will, the Children’s Museum is the only indoor pick here. Our roundup of the most beautiful places in Colorado is a better bet for a drive than a muddy corn maze.
Quick answers
What is still open right now? Chatfield’s pumpkin festival through Sunday, Boo at the Zoo, Ghosts in the Gardens, and every pumpkin patch on the list.
What is the single best thing left this fall? The Emma Crawford Coffin Races on October 24, and it is free.
What is free? The coffin races, Miller Farms entry, and the Longmont Museum grand reopening on October 17.
What if it snows? Harvest Hoot at the Children’s Museum, October 23 to 25.
When should I plan for next year? Late September. Elk Fest is already set for October 2 and 3, 2027, and Denver’s Oktoberfest for September 17 and 18, 2027.
