12 Church Fall Festival Ideas

Aaahh, temperatures are cooling, leaves are turning… Fall is on its way!

For many people (myself included), Fall is their favorite time of the year.  The fall colors, the smells, the abundance of pumpkin and cinnamon treats…  They draw people out, and bring people together.

A church fall festival is a great outreach event idea! 

It’s a great way to connect with people in your community, help them to have a fun time together as a family, meet other people in the community, and introduce them to your church.  Here are some ideas for things you can include in your church Fall festival.

12 Church Fall Festival Ideas

1. Pumpkin Carving Contest: Give away prizes for different categories of pumpkin carvings and jack-o-lanterns: funniest, scariest, most creative. No solo carvers! Build community by encouraging teams of 2-3 to work together.

2. Trunk or Treat: Organize a safe and fun trunk-or-treat event in the church parking lot, where volunteers decorate their car trunks and hand out candy. Put up a big sign so that people who drive by know what’s going on and visitors feel welcome to stop in.

3. Harvest Dinner: Host a community potluck dinner featuring fall-themed dishes and desserts.  Consider partnering with a local food bank to invite the people they serve (with no obligation to bring a dish), and encourage the members of your church to make a little extra so everyone has enough to eat

4. Fall Craft Fair: Arrange a craft fair where local artisans can showcase their handmade fall and Halloween-themed crafts. Be intentional about building relationships with the vendors, and encourage your church members to do some of their holiday shopping at the craft fair.

5. Fall Bake Sale: Have a bake sale featuring autumnal treats like apple pies, pumpkin bread, and caramel apples.

6. Fall Food Drive: Coordinate a food drive to collect non-perishable items for a local food bank to help those in need during the season.  If your church doesn’t have its own food back or a partnership with local food bank, this would also be a great time to start serving at a local food bank.

7. Costume Contest: We get it – some churches don’t want to celebrate Halloween. That’s cool. But dressing up in appropriate, non-scary costumes can be fun for kids of all ages! Give out prizes for as many categories as you can think of. Take lots of photos! Show them during your next service!

8. Fall Movie Night: Screen family-friendly fall movies in the church hall or outdoors, complete with popcorn, candy apples and cider.  This is a great church outreach idea for Fall, because it’s such easy invite for kids and parents to invite their friends and neighbors to see a free movie with them.

9. Fall Photo Booth: No church fall festival would be complete without a photo booth with fall-themed props for families and friends to capture memories (and share on social media).

10. Fall-Themed Workshops: Offer workshops on fall-themed activities like wreath making, fall centerpiece making, apple cider pressing, etc.  Most communities have a newsletter, website or community calendar where events like this can be listed and promoted.

11. Community Service Day: Organize a day of service where church members can help with fall yard clean-up for elderly or disabled neighbors.  Often the best church outreach events are those where the church goes out into the community rather than waiting for the community to come to them.

12. Fall Weekend Retreat: Fall is a great time to get a group together to go away to a cabin or retreat center to spend time together and spend time with God. While some people may think a retreat is something only church members go on, you’d be surprised how many pre-Christians are open to a weekend away, making new friends, and letting God into their life a little more.

Sweater weather is better together. -Unknown

No matter which church Fall festival ideas your church uses for its outreach events, you’ll also want to promote those events online. Rather than share the same strategies at the bottom of every church outreach ideas article we write for every season and holiday, we’ll just point you to…

7 Ways to Promote Your Church Outreach Event Online

And if you’d like some help with a church website builder, church web design or church SEO so you can have your best Church Fall Festival ever, fill out the form below to schedule a call.

Comment and Discuss

• What Fall outreach events is your church planning?

Want more church outreach ideas?  Church Outreach Ideas & Events for Every Holiday and Season