10 of the Best Fall Staycation Ideas This Year
From apple picking to camping to painting pumpkins, these fun fall staycation ideas will help you celebrate the season close to home.
These fall staycation ideas highlight the best of the season — from orchards and pumpkin patches to fall foliage and the crisp autumn air.
We’ve included several staycations you can do at home and in your backyard, plus a few fun ideas for upgrading to a mini overnight vacation nearby. Fall is a great time to grab accommodation deals and discounts at popular tourist spots when the summer crowds leave.
Check out the autumn staycations below for inspiration and stack a few ideas together for the ultimate fall vacation at home.
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Apple Picking and Baking
Fall is apple picking season in much of the U.S., and heading to a local orchard has become a beloved tradition for many. You can stretch the experience into a weekend staycation by testing out some new fall apple recipes at home.
Start with a day out to pick apples and sample any treats at the farm. Then, bring your bounty home and start baking and cooking! You can go traditional with a crumble, simmer some cider, make apple jelly, or use them for a sweet kick in a savory dish (these recipes look amazing). Add a twist by seeing who can whip up the best pie or bake some extras to deliver to family and friends.
Fall Festival
Hayrides, corn mazes, warm apple cider — there’s so much to love about a fall festival.
These special seasonal events come in all shapes and sizes, some hosted by cities and towns and others on small, family-owned farms. You can probably find enough around you to fill a few weekends through October and November!
You can also set up a DIY version for a backyard fall festival with family and friends. Decorate with mini hay bales and a small picking “patch” of pumpkins, use a kiddie wagon or wheelbarrow layered with blankets for rides, set up a table full of pies and cider, and host fun games like a sack race and bean-bag toss.
Cozy Cabin Getaway
Staycations don’t have to be at home. Consider renting a cabin to hole up in for a few days of board games, roasting marshmallows, and cozy firelit evenings snuggling under a blanket.
Check out vacation rentals on nearby lakes or in the woods so you can add some pretty scenery and fall foliage to the mix. The best ones may even have features like hot tubs and fire pits, perfect for cool nights.
Holiday Craftathon
Before the holiday rush sets in, why not have a weekend staycation at home getting ahead on all those seasonal crafts and DIYs you’ve Pinned over the years.
You can make wreaths, sew stockings, paint ornaments or handcraft Christmas gifts for family and friends. Do it all while streaming holiday movies and tunes to get an early taste of yuletide.
Camping Trip
Crisp autumn weather is perfect for camping trips, whether you venture to a nearby park or pitch a tent in the backyard. Add in some hiking, picnics and stargazing for an extra special experience.
You’ll want to remember all the fall camping essentials like cozy sleeping bags and blankets, s’mores ingredients, and flashlights for telling spooky fireside stories.
Pumpkin Patch and Painting
Nothing says fall like pumpkins, so why not turn the seasonal favorite into an autumn staycation? Start with a visit to the local pumpkin farm or patch. Many of these have other fun activities like corn mazes and hayrides, so you can make a day of it.
For the next day of the staycation, carve up or paint your finds while binging all the Halloween movies and cartoons. You can hand out prizes for the scariest and most creative creations.
Hotel Staycation
Since the busy summer travel season has ended by mid-September in many vacation zones, hotels will often have special discounts come fall. You can either pick a lux spot in your own city to chill out for the weekend or take a mini road trip to a nearby tourist hot spot that’s too crowded in summer.
A hotel staycation is the perfect mini fall getaway. Pick one with amenities like an indoor pool or hot tub, on-site spa treatments, and room service to really get into vacation mode.
Travel-Themed Weekend
Host a world-travel weekend where you discover food and culture from another region. You can either pick a single country or hop around the world with this fall staycation idea.
Give it an educational spin by getting the family involved in reading about the country’s traditions, and then put them into practice. Try things like cooking up a full English breakfast, watching movies filmed in France, practicing a flamenco dance, and learning a few phrases of a new language for the next time you travel abroad.
Read Next: These are 10 of the Best Travel-Themed Staycation Ideas
Outdoorsy Adventure
Autumn is the perfect season to explore nearby state and national parks on a staycation or mini-vacation. Fall typically means fewer crowds at busy summer destinations and the perfect weather for hikes and bike rides.
Make it a beach or lake for some off-season chillaxing, a local forest for leaf-peeping, or a southern park that’s just too hot to explore in summer. National parks in some colder locales even have free campgrounds with reduced amenities in fall.
Movie Marathon and Making
Get caught up on this year’s best films before award season kicks in with a movie marathon at home. You can make it cozy with PJs and popcorn, glam it up movie premier style, or turn it into a film critic session with scorecards and winners at the end.
Or, get the whole crew involved in a movie making staycation this fall. Assign a film writer, director and camera person and cast your most dramatic family members or friends as the stars. If you stick with the fall theme, you can make a scary movie for Halloween!
