20 Fall Bucket List Ideas for Families
Fall into fun with our cozy autumn bucket list filled with 20 family-friendly activities to enjoy the season!
Fall Bucket List Ideas
Fall is my favorite season of all! The perfect weather, the beautiful trees changing colors, the football, the food…I could go on and on!
If you’re looking for fun ideas to do together as a family this fall, I’ve put together an autumn bucket list with lots of activities to enjoy this special season.
What Is A Bucket List?
A bucket list is a collection of goals, dreams, or experiences that you aspire to achieve or accomplish. It can be a general roadmap for your life, filled with adventures you want to embark on, skills you want to learn, or places you want to visit. It can also be a themed list, like this autumn bucket list, essentially a “to-do” list of exciting and meaningful experiences surrounding a certain theme.
Bucket lists can be as big or as small as you like, and they’re a fantastic way to set goals, stay motivated, and live your life to the fullest. I hope this fall bucket list inspires you to get out there and really enjoy this wonderful season!
Printable Fall Bucket List
I also created a PDF version of this fall bucket list printable that you can access free here!
Here are some more tips about each idea:
1. Have a Bonfire
Warm up on those cool fall nights with a bonfire! You’ll never forget these times that you spend with family and friends, eating, drinking, and story-telling. Your kids won’t forget it either! These are the memories that will last a lifetime!
Related: Check out these Halloween S’mores Kits to take to your bonfire!
2. Sip Pumpkin Lattes
Fall and pumpkin spice lattes go hand in hand. Well, a PSL is pretty much always in my hands during this time of year! If you want to make a healthier version, try my keto pumpkin spice latte recipe!
3. Go On A Hay Ride
A hayride is such a fun activity for the whole family and a common thing to do at local fall festivals or pumpkin patches. I loved them as a kid!
4. Play In The Leaves
Growing up, I loved nothing more than helping my dad rake up a huge pile of leaves…so we kids could then jump in the pile and make a big mess of it! Even if the yard doesn’t get tidy, playing in the leaves is great exercise for the whole family.
5. Go Apple Picking
If you live in an area that has apple orchards, you may have an opportunity to go apple picking in the fall! Enjoy the scenery and grab a bunch of apples for all of you fall baking!
6. Watch Football
I grew up watching football with my dad and my family, so this is one of my most treasured traditions. We wear our blue and gold, make yummy game day food, and cheer on the Mountaineers! I just hope that my kids will grow to love football as much as I do, but at least they will humor me and wear WVU gear on game day!
Related: Check out this list of 100 game day recipes here!
7. Wear Fuzzy Socks
My youngest daughter calls her fuzzy socks “movie socks” because she likes to wear them when we have cozy movie nights at home. I love when that cooler weather hits and I can finally break out my warm and fuzzy socks for everyday wear!
8. Go For A Scenic Drive
When the leaves start to turn vibrant hues of gold, bronze, and red, why not take a drive on the weekend to take in the sights and enjoy them? Create a fall road trip playlist, pack some snacks, and enjoy the afternoon together as a family.
9. Decorate Pumpkins
One of my favorite fall traditions is to go to a pumpkin patch and pick out several pumpkins for our porch, and of course, one to carve into a jack-o-lantern. Nothing says fall more than fresh pumpkins!
Related: Learn how to preserve decorative pumpkins without bleach, so they’ll last for months!
10. Light Fall Candles
My husband knows that when fall rolls around, it’s time to get out all of my fall candles! When my middle daughter was a toddler, one of her favorite things to do was go to the candle section at Target and smell them all. I love to have a fall candle burning in the kitchen so even if it’s still hot outside in Texas, inside our home feels a little like fall!
11. Have A Picnic
Fall weather is the best picnic weather, so why not get outside and enjoy an al fresco meal together as a family! Here are some fun food ideas that travel well for a picnic:
12. Bake Cozy Treats
One of my favorite things about fall is baking! Nothing smells better than a batch of cookies or pie baking in the oven! I have lots and lots of fall baking recipes on the blog, but here are a few of my favorite collections:
- 20 Fall Cake Recipes
- 50 Best Pumpkin Recipes
- 25 Gluten-Free Pumpkin Recipes
- 40 Best Christmas Cookie Recipes
13. Take a Nature Hike
Hiking is a wonderful way to get moving as a family! And there is hardly a better time for it than during the fall when the forest is ablaze in color. Even if you don’t live near any trails, you can still take a walk together around the neighborhood and have just as delightful an experience.
Related: Make it interesting with this printable insect scavenger hunt for kids!
14. Start A Gratitude Journal
With Thanksgiving on the way, fall is the perfect time to reflect on all the things in our lives for which we are thankful. Whether it’s journaling or creating a gratitude pumpkin (like this one from fellow blogger Coffee & Carpool), this is an activity that helps remind us all what really matters!
15. Explore A Corn Maze
I got to experience my first corn maze in high school and it was such an adventure! This was actually a haunted corn maze and it terrified all of my friends! There are also family-friendly corn mazes that you can explore, without the frights.
A corn maze is made when the plants are tall enough that you can’t see over the tops, and a walking path is cut through the field. Of course, there are usually plenty of dead-ends and twists and turns to keep it exciting and keep you thinking! If you’ve ever done an escape room as a family, a corn maze is a fun outdoor escape activity too, where you have to work together to find the exit.
16. Snuggle Up With A Good Book
When the weather gets colder, nothing is cozier than reading a book on the couch with a fluffy blanket. Bonus points if there is a fire in the fireplace!
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17. Get Out Your Cozy Blankets
Anyone who knows me knows that I am obsessed with blankets. I may or may not collect blankets for every season. At least when fall is here, I can justify needing these warm and cozy blankets!
My favorite blankets are from Minky Couture! They are the softest, silkiest, fluffiest, coziest blankets I’ve ever had in my life. Follow this link to shop Minky Couture and use my code ESTACEYDOS45 to save 45% on your order! (This code was valid as of publication time, but is subject to change without notice).
18. Make Fall Crafts
Get inspired with these kid-friendly autumn crafts:
- Broccoli Fall Tree Stamping
- Clay Pot Acorns
- Fall Playdough (3 Scented Recipes)
- Falling Leaves Sensory Jar (Fall Snow Globe)
- Pumpkin Pop-Up Card
- Toilet Paper Roll Pumpkins (No Sew Craft)
- Mickey & Minnie Mouse Pumpkins
- Handprint Turkey Craft
19. Plant A Fall Garden
Fall is the time where I clean up my garden after summer and get it ready for the next year. However, there are also certain plants that grown best in cooler weather, so I do plant a small fall garden. Kale and turnips are two of my favorite veggies to plant when the hot weather of summer finally starts to fade away.
Related: Learn what plants go best in a fall garden here.
20. Go To A Fall Festival
Support local small businesses and check your local newspaper or online groups for upcoming fall festivals, pumpkins patches, and other outdoor family activities. This is a great way to get to know your neighbors and support your community!
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