Top Fall Things to Do with Kids in the Great Lakes Bay
If leaf piles are for jumping in, puddles are for playing, and your people still get caramel apples all over their little faces, then this guide to fall family fun is for you!
With pumpkin patches & corn mazes ready — and fresh apple cider & donuts waiting at orchards & farms — discover what to do this season to make family memories that'll last a lifetime when you Go Great Lakes Bay in Pure Michigan!
Johnson's Pumpkin Farm
Midland
Rediscover the magic of childhood wonder at Dow Gardens! Roam through gardens bursting with fall color and catch bird’s-eye views along a canopy walk that stretches as high as four stories through the forest!
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Frankenmuth
The colorful treetops await your family at Frankenmuth Aerial Park. Challenge each other on an obstacle ropes course that combines climbing & ziplines!
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Midland
Explore 19 miles of trails together at Chippewa Nature Center — and hands-on exhibits at the Homestead Farm and Ecosystem Gallery.
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Saginaw
Meet more than 150 animals at the Saginaw Children’s Zoo! Pass through beautiful gardens and find peacock feathers before riding the carousel and miniature train.
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Birch Run
Explore a Reptile Sanctuary and Rainforest Experience at Wilderness Trails Zoo, home to 200+ animals and 50 different species.
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Bay City
Discover the changing season together along the Saginaw Bay shoreline at Bay City State Park. Walk through a lagoon full of wildlife, and climb observation towers in the scenic Tobico Marsh.
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Downtown Frankenmuth
Fantasy Carriage Company + Frankenmuth Carriage Company
Take the fam and cruise into fall on a horse-drawn carriage ride through streets of Little Bavaria with Fantasy Carriage Company or Frankenmuth Carriage Company.
Frankenmuth
Snap fam photos in the pumpkin patch, and lose yourself (but not your kids) in the corn maze at Grandpa Tiny’s Heritage Farm! Take a tractor-pulled hayride, enjoy cider & donuts, and pet mini-horses & more!
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Freeland
Sip on cider slushies at Leaman’s Green Applebarn! Have a hayride, or pet & feed baby animals. Enjoy fresh donuts, pick a peck of apples, and take a ride on the Apple Barrel Express!
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Saginaw
Pet farm animals, pick gigantic pumpkins, and taste treats of the season at Johnson’s Pumpkin Farm! Cider & donuts await at the end of the corn maze, along with a kiddie train ride and horse rides.
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Midland
A visit to Grandma’s Pumpkin Patch is a seasonal must for cider & donuts — and the Kidland Play Yard! Filled with a cow train to hayrides, pick jack-o-lanterns, pet farm animals, and explore the corn maze.
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Freeland
See a cider press in action at Bayne’s Apple Valley Farm, and savor the results! Kids of all ages will love gigantic, gourmet caramel apples and delicious cider donuts.
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Frankenmuth
With observation bridges and interactive game stations, have fun getting lost inside the Frankenmuth Corn Maze! Play yard games, enjoy a petting zoo, and hop onto a weekend hayride.
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Frankenmuth
Make a splash at Michigan’s biggest indoor waterpark & family fun center — Bavarian Blast at Bavarian Inn Lodge! Experience 16 new waterslides and a rip-roaring wave pool. Tackle the ropes course, laser tag arena, rock climbing walls, and mini-bowling!
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Frankenmuth
There’s a chill outside, but your family will warm up in no time to 50,000 square feet of aquatic fun at Zehnder's Splash Village Hotel & Waterpark! Fall into fun on tube slides, brave the family raft ride, and relax poolside in your private cabana rental.
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Indoor Family Fun Zones
Grab a roll of quarters for retro gaming at Crazy Quarters Arcade. See who the pinball wizard really is on 70+ pinball machines, and enjoy arcade classics including Pac-Man and Galaga.
Step into Brinstar to play a blend of arcade games & pinball machines — and treat the fam to specialty burgers & fresh-cut fries!
Slip into bowling shoes and try for a strike, play two-story laser tag, and hop into bumper cars at Stardust! With 50+ arcade games (and The Taproom, parents), treat your family to all kinds of fun!
Valley Lanes | @shineonsunfish
Choose your adventure inside Valley Lanes Family Entertainment Center. Whether it’s bowling, indoor mini-golf, bumper cars, or arcade games, enjoy the thrill of family fun.
Kids of all ages will fall for Fun Way Amusement Park! Battle in the arcade and enjoy games, giggles, pizza, pop, and plenty of high-fives.
Fly on wall-to-wall trampolines at Airborne Adventure Park! Defy gravity on more than a dozen attractions, and practice tricks & flips together.
When fall feels chilly, let the kiddos burn off energy at The Playground — a safe, indoor playscape where parents can kick back with a latte while kids have a ball.
Giggle at views of your crew in a maze of 1,000+ mirrors in the Ultimate Mirror Maze, then try The Vault Laser Beam Challenge to twist & duck your way through laser beams.
Test your skills in the River Place Game Room at Frankenmuth River Place Shops. Choose prizes in the redemption center, and find sweet rewards at nearby SugarHigh Bakery and SugarRush Sweets & Treats.
Be part of the excitement as up-and-coming NHL hopefuls defend, shoot, and score at a Saginaw Spirit OHL hockey game!
Antique Toy and Firehouse Museum | @frommichiganwithlove
Museums + More
See the largest collection of motorized fire trucks in the world — and shelves upon shelves of antique Tonka toys — at the Antique Toy and Firehouse Museum.
With hands-on, interactive galleries from “Insides Out” to “Water, Water Everywhere” and even a Tinker Track, find infinite fun this fall at the Mid-Michigan Children’s Museum.
Explore outer space without leaving your seat at Delta College Planetarium — and visit a gift shop that’s out of this world!
Arts + Entertainment
Spend quality time working on a piece together at Painterly Pottery! Choose from thousands of clay items, ready to be personalized, at the region's largest paint-your-own pottery studio.
Get creative together at The Glaze Bar inside Space Studios, with a wide selection of pottery to paint.
Brighten everyone’s fall by bringing the kids to The Dow Event Center to see Disney On Ice presents Into The Magic!
River Place Shops | @bfish2180
Kids’ Shopping
Make your way to Frankenmuth River Place Shops to hunt for souvenirs, then sample fudge to gourmet cupcakes before hitting the arcade.
Shop treats, trinkets, and nostalgic candies at Happy Go Lucky, browse kites to wooden toys at Toyberg, or wander into Joyful Tantrum to experience “a toy store, unplugged.”
Take your time exploring seven gift shops filled with toys, candy, and souvenirs at Bavarian Inn Castle Shops — and let the kiddos pick a treat from the bakery!
Discover 100+ stores and incredible discounts at Birch Run Premium Outlets, with Go! Games & Toys for kids to Pottery Barn Outlet for parents!
Bavarian Inn Cluck Truck
Kid-Friendly Fall Festivals
Enjoy street fare from 20+ food trucks during Funtown Chowdown Food Truck Festival, or soar into the season and launch the pumpkin catapult during Scarecrow Fest at Frankenmuth River Place Shops.
Things To Do
Enjoy a leisurely hayride, get lost in corn fields, find future jack-o-lanterns, and absolutely indulge in the quintessential combo of fall — cider & donuts! Grab a fleece, gather your flock, and enjoy a crisp autumn day when you Go Great Lakes Bay in Pure Michigan!
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Author
Jen W. O'Deay + Go Great Lakes Bay
By: Jen W. O'Deay | Updates: Go Great Lakes Bay | Jen is a Saginaw native and owner of Feel These Words, an independent copywriting studio & home to the free "5 Day Website MiniBoost". Jen specializes in writing that connects, delivered through website copy, branded content articles, and WingWoman writing services. You'll find Jen camping with her family, laughing, and at feelthesewords.com
