Fall Event Guide 2025

Fall Event Guide 2025
By Tim Spitzack | Editor | October 2025

Fall has arrived and it’s time to soak in the colorful foliage of the landscape, delightful flavors of harvesttime, and some frightful yet family-friendly events. Throw on a sweater and enjoy the fun.

Dodge Nature Center
Immerse yourself in the great outdoors at Dodge Nature Center. Many events and guided activities are offered at the 110-acre property at 365 Marie Ave. W., West St. Paul. You’ll also find several miles of hiking trails through prairies, woodlands and wetlands, and a working farm with animals, raptor mews (birdhouse) and bee apiary. Trails are free to explore daily, sunrise to sunset. Visit dodgenaturecenter.org for the full schedule of events, and for more information on the following activities held at Dodge’s Shepard Farm property at 8946 70th St. S., Cottage Grove.

Halloween Extravaganza, noon-4 p.m., Saturday, Oct. 25. Trick-or-treat through the woods, ride on the hay wagon to look for ghosts and goblins and meet slithery creatures. Try your luck at field games to win extra treats, then settle in for some silly science skits that will educate and entertain. Food will be available for purchase. $8 online before noon, October 25. $10 at the gate. Ages 2 and under are free.

Locally Grown Theatre will present “Dracula” Oct. 10-12. When young Jonathan Harker travels to Transylvania, he unknowingly unleashes Count Dracula’s insatiable thirst upon London. As Dracula preys on the innocent, Professor Van Helsing and a brave group of allies must fight to stop him before it’s too late. Free.

Make pumpkin pie from scratch, 9:30 a.m.-noon, Saturday, Oct. 18. $60, covers two people. Each will bake their own personal-sized pumpkin pie and receive a pie plate to take home. 

To view the leaves from a different vantage point, book passage on one of the Padleford Riverboats’ fall sightseeing tours. The narrated public excursions depart from Harriet Island in St. Paul and pass by St. Paul High Bridge, Pig’s Eye Cave, the Minnesota river mouth and Pike Island. Tickets are $21 for adults and $10.50 for ages 3-7. For more information, visit riverrides.com or call 651-369-6184.

Fresh produce
Nothing exemplifies autumn more than a fresh, juicy apple, and you don’t have to go far to find one. Several varieties grown on site are available 11 a.m.-5 p.m. Thursday to Sunday at Orchard Hill, 131 Wentworth Ave., West St. Paul. Apples are picked and bagged for purchase.

Fall bounty is in. Visit your local farmers market for the freshest and tastiest locally grown produce, and other foods and crafts.

• The St. Paul Farmers Market in Lowertown is open 7 a.m.-1 p.m. on Saturdays and 8 a.m.-1 p.m. on Sundays at 290 5th St. E.
• The South St. Paul market is held 2-6 p.m. Wednesdays at the Wakota Federal Credit Union parking lot, 1151 Southview Blvd.
• The West St. Paul market is open 8 a.m.-noon on Fridays at Signal Hills shopping center,1225 S. Robert St.
  The West Side Farmers Market is open 9 a.m.-noon on Saturdays at 63 George St. W. You’ll find arts, music, locally produced food and much more.

On the Road Again festival, 9 a.m.-6 p.m., Oct. 4, at Southview Blvd. in South St. Paul. Booyah, live music, chalk art competition, beer garden and more. See full details here!

St. Paul Fall Art Crawl, Oct. 10-12. See full details here!

Spooky fun
Gangster Ghost Tour, 6-9 p.m., Wed., Oct. 29 at Landmark Center, 75 5th St. W., St. Paul. One night a year, the rumors of Landmark Center’s haunting come alive. Immerse yourself in the gritty world of bootlegging, gambling and bank heists in St. Paul. Encounter the infamous Barker gang, known for their daring bank robberies and kidnappings; Tim Filbin, the notorious slot machine ‘czar;’ and the infamous Molls, including Evelyn Frechette, John Dillinger’s partner. Ages 12 and older. Hour-long tours begin at 6 p.m. and depart every 15 minutes. The last tour is at 8:30 p.m. $10. Tickets go on sale October 1 and must be purchased in advance at landmarkcenter.org or by calling 651-292-3063.

CynCity Tours offers several ways to explore St. Paul’s dark side. Tours include Union Depot Ghost Tour, Ghosts and Gables Haunted Summit Avenue and Haunted Gangsterland. For dates and tickets, visit cyncitytours.com or call 651-357-4053.
Shadows & Spirits of the State Capitol, October 16-15, 23-25. A guide will take you through the historic building’s shadowy rotunda, hallways and historic chambers, where history lingers around every corner. Tours are one-hour and leave every half-hour, beginning at 6:30 p.m. The last tour leaves at 8 p.m. $16 for adults, with discounts for seniors and children.

Boonion Depot, 10 a.m.-2 p.m., Sunday, Oct. 26 at Union Depot, 214 4th St. E., St. Paul. This free event features crafts, a DJ and dance zone with prizes, Halloween-themed entertainment, face painting, a balloon artist, hero and Disney characters and more. Halloween costumes encouraged.

Children’s Museum Halloween Party, 6-9 p.m., Oct. 24-25. The event features a dance party with DJ, trick-or-treating, games and crafts. Costumes encouraged. $25. For more information, visit mcm.org/halloween-party.

Park After Dark, 5:30-9:30 p.m., Friday, Oct. 2. The National Park Service is hosting free activities to explore Crosby Farm Regional Park at night. Drop-in activities: Insect Finding with an Entomologist; Dakota Moon Journaling with Blue Hummingbird Woman (Tara Perron); Indigenous Tea Tasting with Flores De Miel Indigenous Tea Co.; beach bonfire and s’mores. Scheduled activities: Junior Ranger Campfire, 6-6:45 p.m. and 7:15-8 p.m.; Twilight Walk, 5:30-6:15 p.m. and 6:45-7:30 p.m.; Dakota Moon Talk with Blue Hummingbird Woman (Tara Perron), 6:15-6:30 p.m. and 7:30-7:45 p.m.; and Scope Viewing and Full Moon Talk, 8:30-9:30 p.m.

Trick-or-Teeing, 4-6 p.m., Saturday, Oct. 18 at Par 3 golf course, 1695 Dodd Rd., Mendota Heights. Come in costume to this free trick-or-treating event featuring 6 holes of mini-golf, snacks, hot apple cider and more. Free.

Halloween at Harmon Park, 5:30-7 p.m., Friday, Oct. 31 at Harmon Park, 230 Bernard St. W., West St. Paul. Stop by for a treat, photos with a themed backdrop, and a bonfire. Restrooms open.

Great Pumpkin Halloween celebration, 1-3 p.m., Sunday, Oct. 26 at Landmark Center, 75 5th St. W., St. Paul. Enjoy crafts, treats, a costume parade and other Halloween festivities. Free.

The Great Halloween Get Together, 5-7 p.m., Friday, Oct. 31 on Marie Avenue between 4th and 7th avenues in South St. Paul. There will be music, fun activities and lots of treats provided by local businesses and organizations.

• Facebook
• ShareCopied to clipboard

<<< Back to Home