THE SOUND OF FALL
Redwood Coast Music Festival
From Sept. 29-Oct. 2, 2022, Eureka is rockin’ with more than 35 bands performing in a wide range of genres including jazz, swing, blues, zydeco, Western Swing and more. Featured performers are Curtis Salgado, Michael Duocét and Duke Robillard.
City Sounds
San Francisco is alive with the sounds of music this fall. Free outdoor concerts in the city’s parks and neighborhoods include Yerba Buena Gardens Festival (YBGF) and the Golden Gate Park Bandshell Concerts which both run weekly until the end of October and Strictly Hardly Bluegrass on Sept. 30, Oct. 1 and Oct. 2.
Monterey Jazz Festival
The Monterey Jazz Festival from Sept. 23-25 is the largest continuously running jazz festival in the world. Held in late September, this year’s event boasts an extensive lineup of performers, including Las Cafeteras, Gregory Porter, Veronica Swift and more.
Aloha Beach Festival
Head to Ventura County in early September for a taste of the tropics that includes two days of live music, Hawaiian dancers, surfing, a paddleboard competition and more. The two-day Aloha Beach Festival on Sept. 3 and 4 always benefits a charitable cause, with the 2022 beneficiary being the Merito Foundation.
Wonderfront Festival
It doesn’t get much bigger than San Diego’s Wonderfront Festival from Nov. 18-20. The three-day music extravaganza features more than 95 bands on over seven different stages. The festival also serves up a culinary and arts festival, yacht parties, a craft beer village and plenty of local flavors. The music lineup features A-listers like Gwen Stefani, Zac Brown Band, Kings of Leon and more.
FALL FESTIVALS
Oktoberfest
Raise a stein to Turtle Bay’s Oktoberfest on Oct.15. The German festival features live music, food and of course, beer. Grab your lederhosen and dirndl for a chance to win the best-dressed contest. All funds raise support Turtle Bay Exploration Park.
Yappy Times
The 2nd annual Benicia Dog Festival on Oct. 15 brings Fido and his parents together at First Street Waterfront Park to celebrate all things canine in the Bay Area. From costume and look-alike contests to dog demos and vendor booths, the event boasts something for everyone on two or four legs.
Harvest Festivals
Tuolumne County celebrates the bounty of fall with several harvest festivals. Columbia State Historic Park hosts a harvest fest from Oct.8-9 featuring 50 vendors serving up baked goods and handcrafted items. Throughout October the Indigeny Reserve hosts several harvest festivals with traditional pumpkin patches, pumpkin weigh-in contests and cider tastings.
Grape Festival
As the world's fourth largest wine producer, it’s no surprise that California celebrates the grape harvest. In Lodi, they’ve put on the Lodi Grape Festival (Sept.15-18) for over 80 years. The four-day event in September is filled with food, entertainment, a carnival and, of course, wine tasting.
Choreography Festival
Since 1998 the Palm Desert Choreography Festival (Nov. 12-13) has danced its way into the heart of the community. The festival includes a choreography competition, outreach projects, workshops, residencies and a Lifetime Achievement Award presentation. The festival has presented 704 original pieces since its founding.
FAMILY FUN
Mandarin Orchards
The heart of California citrus lives in Oroville where you can see the Mother Orange Tree – the oldest living orange tree in Northern California, dating back to 1856. Today its Satsuma mandarins that dominate the area. Try this small, sweet treat at local growers Mt. Ida Mandarin Ranch, Tri-L Mandarin Ranch and Doering’s Mandarins.
Farm Tours
During fall, Mariposa County – near Yosemite National Park – hosts a farm and ranch tour on Oct. 15 designed to showcase how local products are grown. The tour goes to several area farms with food and artisan vendors at each.
Orchard Days
Settle into a redwood chair and sip a cider while soaking up stunning fall foliage and listening to live music, or take a self-guided orchard tour to learn about the over 500 fruit trees that make up San Mateo’s Filoli Orchards. During fall, the historic Gentleman’s Orchard opens to visitors to see its apple, pear, plum, apricot, walnut, fig and quince trees.
Apple Picking
Slow down in SLO CAL and enjoy some of the sweetest tasting apples on the central coast with an afternoon spent apple picking with the family. SLO Creek Farms, Creekside Apple Farm, See Canyon Fruit Ranch and Avila Valley Barn/Gopher Glen Apple Farm offer you-pick-it orchards and fresh apple cider to enjoy after.
Corn Maze
Nothing beats an old-fashioned corn maze in fall, and Temecula’s Big Horse Corn Maze is the largest one in Southern California at over 11 acres. In addition to the maze, there is a pumpkin patch, hayride, pumpkin bowling and a pie-eating contest. If you’re in Northern California, you can also check out one of the largest corn mazes in the world – Cool Patch Pumpkins in Dixon. Cool Patch also offers a pumpkin patch, hayrides and mini maze for the little ones.
HALLOWEEN FUN
Scarecrow Days
The town of Cambria comes alive in October with an annual Scarecrow Festival (Oct.1-31), the likes of which is unrivaled anywhere. The community handcrafts over 500 scarecrows, ranging from cute to creepy, which line the streets of Cambria’s East and West Villages. The number of scarecrows nearly matches the number of town residents!
Halloween Horror
It’s hard to top Los Angeles’ iconic Universal Studios’ Halloween Horror Nights (select nights Sept. 8-Oct. 31) for freaky fun. The Halloween extravaganza features scare zones, live shows, the Terror Tram and eight haunted houses immersing guests in their favorite horror films. This year’s event will feature mazes themed around Halloween, Freaky, The Black Phone and classic monsters like the Wolf Man, Dracula and the Mummy.
Howl-O-Ween
Santa Monica’s main drag is always the center of town, and during autumn it’s transformed by the annual Howl-O-Ween event into a two-block pedestrian-only party. The event features a pumpkin patch, a costume contest for pets, outdoor classic Halloween movies, live music, a beer garden and free fitness classes.
Knotts Scary Farm
The iconic Knott’s Berry Farm in Orange County becomes Knott’s Scary Farm on select nights from Sept. 22 through Oct. 31, with Southern California’s largest immersive haunt experience with a multitude of mazes and scare zones designed to rattle your bones. The park also features a pumpkin patch, a haunted house, special food and crafts, and trick or treating.