Quintessentially Fall Experiences
Join the Harvest
Kansas City has several great farms where you can pick fall favorites like apples and pumpkins. Places like Carolyn’s Country Cousins (Liberty, MO) and Johnson Farms (Belton, MO), and other local patches in our guide to Kansas City's Best Pumpkin Patches - all offering a pick-your-own pumpkin patch and plenty of fun fall activities for the whole family, like hayrides, petting zoos, and corn mazes.
You can also pick your own apples at Cider Hill Family Orchard (Kansas City, KS) or Weston Vineyard and Orchard (Weston, MO). Both farms offer pick-your-own or pre-picked produce, as well as seasonal snacks like cider donuts, kettle corn, apple slushes and more! Weston Vineyard and Orchard also offers you-pick peaches and berries in season.
You can celebrate all things apple at Louisburg Cider Mill’s annual Ciderfest. Watch them press apples into cider, shop in their country store, enjoy live music and craft vendors and visit the petting zoo. They also have a pumpkin patch with pick-your-own pumpkins and a 10-acre corn maze for a $10 admission fee. Parking and admission to the other activities are free!
Each year Grinter’s Sunflower Farm (Lawrence, KS) opens their picture-perfect sunflower fields for the public to enjoy. They allow professional photographers, which makes this an ideal place for fall photos. They also have a country store up the street offering refreshments, baked goods, and souvenirs. To keep up to date on sunflower bloom dates, follow their Facebook page.
Local Haunts
If you’re looking for Halloween-themed fall fun, you’ll find a variety of attractions for kids and adults in KC. The West Bottoms is home to several haunted houses, including the Edge of Hell (Kansas City’s oldest haunted house). If you’re in the mood for local ghost lore, you can head west to the popular Atchison Haunted Trolley Tour. Atchison claims the title of “Most Haunted Town in Kansas,” and the trolley tours have been running since 1995. The McInteer Villa (pictured above) is one of the favorite sites on the tour.
You can also ghost hunt at the 1859 Jail & Marshal’s Home (Independence, MO) or head north to the Elms Hotel and Spa. The Elms, featured on an episode of SyFy’s Ghost Hunters in July 2013, embraces their haunted history by offering a paranormal package where guests can go on a ghost tour and stay in luxury accommodations for two.
The Glore Psychiatric Museum (St. Joseph, MO), named as “one of the 50 most unusual museums in the country,” lives up to its reputation with fascinating exhibits about the history of mental health treatment. You’ll be able to see surgical tools, equipment, restored rooms and works of art from former patients. The museum also hosts paranormal tours and overnight experiences for those looking for a more in-depth experience.
Festival Fun
Something fun is always going on in Kansas City, and fall is no exception! The legendary American Royal Horse Show and Rodeo, which dates back to 1899, kicks off in September. It has a variety of events for the whole family to enjoy, like steer wrestling, roping, and bull riding. Another annual favorite is the Kansas City Renaissance Festival, a 16-acre medieval-style village where you can watch live jousting, shop for unique crafts and try an array of food like turkey legs, apple dumplings and everything in between.
To get away from the hustle and bustle of the city, head out to the Kaw Valley Fall Farm Tour, which takes place Oct. 5–6 this year. The tour, now in its 15th year, supports local farmers and gives visitors the opportunity to have interactive experiences, shop for local products and see a variety of Kansas farms. Many farms sell their own products, so you can take home a piece of Kansas agriculture. Tour booklets are $10 each and are good for a full carload!
About an hour and a half north of the metro is Chillicothe, MO, the home of sliced bread and the annual Chillicothe Chautauqua in the Park. It’s two-day, family-friendly art, crafts, and music festival held in the town square. The festival requires that all items sold be “quality, original handcrafted and/or creatively enhanced by the seller,” which means shoppers can find a lot of treasures at the vendor booths!
You’ll find plenty of things to do during the Powell Gardens Fall Fling (running September through October). Scavenger hunts, nature games, hikes and nearly 800 pumpkins throughout the gardens make for a lot of fall fun.
Andrea Plunkett Ishmael, a Midwestern native, loves adventure in the great outdoors.