These 11 Fall Festivals in Houston Have Swept Us Off Our Feet
- Day of the Dead at Magnolia Park
- 2. Bayou City Art Festival
- Korean Festival Houston at Discovery Green
- Fall Festival at Dewberry Farm
- Oktoberfest at Saint Arnold Brewing Company
- Tejano Music Festival at Kemah Boardwalk
- 7. Night Market by Asia Society
- The Original Greek Festival
- Houston Pumpkin Festival
- Katy Rice Festival
- Texas Renaissance Festival
Fall has always been my favorite season—well, at least in theory. In Houston, “fall” usually just means slightly less unbearable heat and the annual struggle of deciding whether to dress for the weather (shorts) or the vibe (sweater and boots).
Every year, I fully commit to the Pinterest autumn aesthetic, only to end up sweating in my flannel, and regretting my obligatory pumpkin spice latte.
But despite the lack of actual fall foliage, Houston knows how to celebrate the season! From pumpkin patches and hayrides to Oktoberfest beers and other cultural events, our city goes all out when it comes to fall festivals.
So, dress for fall (and bring a fan), and let’s explore the best fall festivals in Houston!
1. Day of the Dead at Magnolia Park
Media Credit: magnoliaparkddlm
Website: https://magnoliaparkdiadelosmuertos.com/
Address: P.O. Box 230677, Houston, TX
Contact Details: [email protected]
Magnolia Park’s Día de los Muertos isn’t just a festival–it’s a heartwarming, food-filled, music-blasting, community-loving celebration of life! And the best part? It’s free! That means you can spend all your money on food instead, just like we did!
What started as a small block party in 2014 has turned into a massive event with thousands of people showing up–but don’t worry, it hasn’t lost its neighborhood charm! Local volunteers still run the show, making sure everything stays true to tradition.
You can expect live music, dance performances, and beautiful ofrendas (altars) decorated in honor of loved ones. Mine would just be candles and flowers, but the ones here are works of art (or heart). There’s also face painting for kids (and adults who want to go all in on the celebration) and the chance to make your very own altar.
| Pro Tip: All that dancing and altar-admiring can make you hungry—good thing the tamales (corn dough filled with meats or cheese) and pan de muerto (“bread of the dead”) are amazing! Grab a bite, find a seat, and enjoy the festival. |
2. Bayou City Art Festival
Website: http://www.bayoucityartfestival.com/
Address: 7026 Old Katy Rd Suite 281, Houston, TX
Contact Details: +1 713-521-0133
Houston gets a little extra colorful every fall with the Bayou City Art Festival, a massive outdoor event that’s been bringing together art, music, and really good food for over 50 years.
With more than 300 artists that set up shop, you’ll find everything from paintings and sculptures to photography and handmade treasures. But let’s be real–a lot of us are also here for the food! The festival is a food truck paradise serving up everything you could think of.
(If you’re like us and you accidentally spent more time in the taco line than at art booths…no judgement.)
And if you really need a reason to splurge, here’s a good one: Proceeds support six local nonprofits, so every ticket purchase helps the community (and you can justify your shopping spree as “giving back”).
| Pro Tip: Tickets are online only, so be sure to get yours ahead of time! It’s quick, easy, and saves you from last-minute hassle—unless you enjoy the thrill of frantic clicking and yelling at your Wi-Fi. |
3. Korean Festival Houston at Discovery Green
Media Credit: kfesthtx
Website: https://www.kfesthouston.com/
Address: 1500 McKinney St, Houston, TX
Contact Details: +1 713-400-7336
If you love delicious food, K-POP, and a free festival where the only real challenge is deciding what to eat first, let me introduce you to your new happy place–Houston’s Korean Festival!
Since kicking off in 2009, the festival has grown into one of Houston’s biggest cultural celebrations, drawing over 35,000 people each year. That’s a lot of people who clearly have excellent taste!
We kicked things off with some Korean BBQ (because saying no to grilled meat would be a crime), then came the spicy tteokbokki, those spicy rice cakes that are so chewy they bite back. We finished the food trip with a crispy hotteok (sweet pancakes that taste like happiness), and boba tea!
The entertainment lineup is next-level too! We watched elegant Korean dancers in hanbok (traditional clothing in Korea) , while the K-pop cover groups made us want to consider taking dance lessons. Finally, the Taekwondo demo was exciting but we really felt bad for boards that broken.
| Pro Tip: Don’t miss the cultural exhibits! Try on a hanbok, learn some Korean calligraphy, and shop for trendy Korean beauty products—who doesn’t want that flawless K-drama glow? |
4. Fall Festival at Dewberry Farm
Media Credit: dewberryfarmtexas
Website: https://www.dewberryfarm.com/
Address: 7705 FM 362, Brookshire, TX
Contact Details: +1 281-934-3276
If you’re looking for a fall festival that checks all the boxes—pumpkins, hayrides, farm animals, and just the right amount of chaos—the Dewberry Farm has it all!
With over 40 rides and attractions, we had some serious decisions to make. We chose the Gold Rush Coaster, which gave us just enough thrill to continue trying more rides, like the Pumpkin Twister, and the CORNado (which may or may not launch unsuspecting riders into another dimension).
After all that fun, we needed to refuel–and the farm delivered. Since calories don’t count during festivals, we indulged in funnel cakes and fried oreos. The turkey legs were so huge they looked like medieval weapons, and the BBQ made us want to take a long nap after.
Luckily, there were plenty of outdoor seating areas where we got to sit, relax, and ask ourselves why we wore jeans to a festival.
| Pro Tip: Don’t skip the free parking—it’s more money in your pocket for extra pumpkins or (if we’re being honest) another batch of fried Oreos. |
5. Oktoberfest at Saint Arnold Brewing Company
Media Credit: saintarnoldbrewing
Website: https://www.saintarnold.com/
Address: 2000 Lyons Ave, Houston, TX
Contact Details: (713) 686-9494
If you’re looking for one of the best fall festivals in Houston (or just an excellent excuse to drink beer in broad daylight), Oktoberfest at Saint Arnold Brewing Company is where you need to be!
The moment we walked in, we knew this wasn’t just any festival–this was serious Oktoberfest business. It was packed with the essentials: lederhosen, steins of German brews, delicious food, and the kind of fun that only brave souls are willing to enjoy.
For beer lovers, this is the Super Bowl. The lineup had everything from Saint Arnold’s Oktobestfest brew, to their Hefeweizen and Schwarzbier. And yes, we tried them all–for research purposes, of course.
And no German celebration is complete without food! We dove into the Chicken Schnitzel and a Sausage Plate loaded with house-made bratwurst and kielbasa.
To amp up the merriment, there’s a stein-hoisting contest and even a pretzel-eating contest. Needless to say, we witnessed greatness that day.
| Pro Tip: Dress to impress in your best dirndl or lederhosen (traditional German attire) —the title of Oktoberfest King or Queen could be yours! |
6. Tejano Music Festival at Kemah Boardwalk
Media Credit: kemahboardwalk
Website: https://www.kemahboardwalk.com/
Address: 215 Kipp Ave, Kemah, TX
Contact Details: +1 281-535-8100
Tejano Music Super Fest is one of Houston’s most exciting fall festivals, and the fact that it takes place on the iconic Kemah Boardwalk makes it even better! With the bay as the background, this two-day celebration of Tejano music is packed with dancing and fun for all ages.
It’s completely free, so that means more money for tacos and maybe a souvenir you’ll forget about until next year!
This fiesta brings together some of the biggest Tejano artists—and let me tell you, when the first note hit, the crowd went from standing still to full-on dance mode in 0.2 seconds. Feet were moving, hips were shaking, and yes, someone’s tia absolutely stole the show.
Beyond the music, this festival is fun for the whole family! There are even free kids’ activities like crafts and games that will keep the little ones busy while parents sneak in a dance (or a much-needed break).
| Pro Tip: Those hips may not lie, but they can cramp! Make sure to do some basic stretches before you dance (unless you intend to bust a move like a robot, of course). |
7. Night Market by Asia Society
Media Credit: asiasociety
Website: https://asiasociety.org/
Address: 1370 Southmore Blvd, Houston, Texas
Contact Details: +1 713-496-9901
The Annual Night Market at Asia Society Texas is basically a passport-free trip to Asia—without ever leaving Houston! Entry is totally free, so your wallet can breathe easy–unless you start craving for boba tea and go on a shopping spree..
We enjoyed some takoyaki, pan fried dumplings, and Thai street food. We couldn’t resist a cup of Singaporean kopi so we ended up staying up until around 2 AM (no regrets with our Singapore Latte–it was worth it).
The entertainment was top-tier. K-pop, Bollywood, and hip-hop dancers kept the energy high, and Otaku Alley was basically a dream come true for anime and cosplay fans. (We couldn’t resist asking for selfies with our favorites!)
There was also an art exhibit and some carnival games for a small fee of $5. You can even enjoy the favorite pastime of every Asian grandparent, uncle, and aunt–mahjong!
| Pro Tip: Make sure to arrive with an appetite! Nothing’s worse than showing up to a night market on a full stomach (except maybe realizing too late that you should’ve worn stretchy pants). |
8. The Original Greek Festival
Media Credit: greekfestivalhouston
Website: https://www.greekfestival.org/
Address: 3511 Yoakum Blvd, Houston, TX
Contact Details: +1 713-526-5377
If you’ve ever wanted to eat way too much feta cheese, dance like you suddenly forgot how legs work, and yell “Opa!” without getting weird looks, then Houston’s Original Greek Festival is your kind of scene.
Every October, this festival takes over the Annunciation Greek Orthodox Cathedral for a weekend of all things Greek–food, music, dances, and more!
Let’s talk about the food—because that’s really why we’re here! There’s souvlaki fresh off the grill, flaky spanakopita that somehow disappears way too fast, and pastitsio (basically Greek lasagna) that’ll make you wonder why you’ve been wasting your time with regular lasagna.
And the desserts are life-changing. We had the crunchy perfection that was the baklava, and the loukoumades (Greek doughnuts) were deep-fried balls of happiness.
Live Greek music and traditional dances had us clapping along before we realized it, and the market was perfect for grabbing souvenirs to remember that epic Greek weekend.
| Pro Tip: Be sure to take a cathedral tour! It’s a great way to enjoy the beauty and history of the place—while secretly hoping your stomach makes room for more baklava. |
9. Houston Pumpkin Festival
Media Credit: discoverygreen
Website: https://www.discoverygreen.com/
Address: 1500 McKinney St, Houston, TX
Contact Details: +1 713-400-7336
If you want to dive headfirst into pumpkin season (without actually face-planting into a pumpkin), the Houston Pumpkin Festival is the ultimate fall destination!
This fun festival is the best way to enjoy the (slightly) cooler fall weather, bask in the autumn vibes, and be completely surrounded by pumpkins (seriously, they’re everywhere).
Discovery Green transforms into a pumpkin paradise, with more pumpkins than you thought humanly possible (we lost count somewhere after 500). There’s even a Pumpkin Church—a place to confess our undying love for pumpkin spice lattes (we’re kidding–but we do love PSL).
Kids loved the corn pit but our favorite spot was the Pink Tree of Life–we loved taking pictures and (literally) hanging out! Another great photo op spot–Cinderella’s Carriage! Just don’t leave a shoe behind unless you want someone to track you down with it.
| Pro Tip: Saturdays are chaos—expect stroller traffic jams, long food lines, and an accidental photobomb by someone’s overly excited toddler. If weekends are your only option, go early or late in the day. |
10. Katy Rice Festival
Media Credit: katyriceharvestfestival/
Website: https://www.katyriceharvestfestival.com/
Address: 901 Avenue C, Katy, Texas
Contact Details: +1 281-391-8653; [email protected]
The Katy Rice Harvest Festival is a big fall celebration with food, music, and enough craft booths to make our wallets nervous. This festival celebrates Katy’s rice-farming history—because if we’re gonna honor something, it might as well be carbs!
Live bands kept the energy high all weekend, food trucks served up BBQ, funnel cakes, and other delicious regrets. Kids ran wild in the play zones (burning off all that sugar, thankfully), while we got to enjoy craft beer, shop for unique finds, and quietly question their choices after one too many fried oreos.
There’s a free shuttle provided to help the traffic chaos. Grown-ups pay $10 to get in, but kids aged 12 and below can enter for free—meaning more money for snacks and totally unnecessary but irresistible purchases!
| Pro Tip: Don’t forget to bring plenty of wet wipes—once that delicious, smoky BBQ sauce gets on your fingers, face, and maybe even your shirt, it’s not letting go without a fight! |
11. Texas Renaissance Festival
Media Credit: texrenfest
Website: https://www.texrenfest.com/
Address: 21778 FM 1774 Todd Mission, Texas
Contact Details: +1 281-356-2178; [email protected]
A trip to the Texas Renaissance Festival is like stepping into a time machine—except with better food and fewer plagues. Held in the countryside of Todd Mission, less than an hour from Houston, this festival is the largest Renaissance-themed event in the country!
The moment we stepped through the gates, the modern world faded—except for the knight awkwardly taking a selfie. Pirates swagger like they just left band practice, and we found way too many elves and fairies twirling and sprinkling glitter.
Shopping here is anything but ordinary. If you need a custom-forged sword, a battle axe, or handcrafted leather pouch for your “gold”, the artisans here have you covered! And the food? We knew we had to have a turkey leg (it should be illegal to not have it here).
There’s also steak-on-a-stick, roasted nuts, and enough fried delights to send our doctor into panic mode. Finally, don’t forget the mead—because nothing says “historical fantasy” better than sharing a toast with a dwarf wearing a fake beard.
| Pro Tip: Costumes aren’t required, but they do increase your chances of getting called “m’lord” or “m’lady” by at least 300%! Just be warned: wearing full plate armor in Texas heat may turn you into a walking baked potato. |
