DARKER nights and chilly days are on the way, but that doesn’t mean it’s time to hibernate – there’s still plenty to do.
From Halloween events with family-friendly discos to terrifying scare mazes and tropical indoor waterparks – we’ve found some of the best days out this autumn that will entertain the whole family.
Alton Towers
Along with its high thrills rides, Alton Towers is getting a spooky makeover this autumn.
During the day, the park is still family-friendly just with a little spookiness thrown in during the lead-up to Halloween.
Trick O’Treat Town is open for business and at the CBeebies Land Monster Ball, kids can dance their socks off.
During Dia de los Muertos, the interactive day of the dead celebrations, kids can stroll through the colourful festival and meet some mysterious characters along the way.
For teens and adults looking for adrenaline-pumping thrills, then book Scarefest when the theme park will be open when the sun goes down.
Take on signature rides like The Smiler, Nemesis Reborn and Wicker Man under the cloak of darkness.
Visitors can also put their bravery to the test in the Edge of the Forest, a live action scare maze – then see if they can find a way out of Compound – a terrifying escape room.
Day tickets start from £37pp and Scarefest Halloween Breaks start from £100pp.
Chessington World of Adventures Resort
With over 40 rides and attractions, a zoo and aquarium, Chessington World of Adventures Resort is a great choice for a family day out – and from October 3, it will have a Halloween twist too.
Returning for 2026 is the Stone Watchers: Vampire’s Lair – try to sneak through the maze without disturbing the terrifying gargoyles.
At the Enchanted Hollow: Trick or Treat, there will be underground burrows full of whimsical characters, with treasures and sweet treat surprises.
Other activities include dancing your heart out at Dr Frankenfun’s Haunted House Party and Barnyard Boogie.
The theme park stays open a little later on selected dates, so you can hop on its rides at dusk too for more thrills than usual.
Howl’o’ween Day Tickets start from £34 and short breaks from £74pp.
Thorpe Park
Thorpe Park are bringing back Fright Nights – or as they’ve named it for 2026, ’25 Years of Fear’.
For those who REALLY want to have their hearts racing, head to the all new Tenement – a fully immersive, pitch-black scare maze.
Set in an abandoned building where the power has failed and the tenants have vanished – anyone who enters will have to find their way out in the dark.
The other four existing scare mazes are all returning too; DeadBeat, Stitches, Survival Games and Trailers.
Other activities for 2026 include Creature Campus: Reunion Reckoning, a terrifying live scare show, and The Conjuring 4D Experience which brings the story to life at the Sunset Cinema.
Purgatory Town will be back with new characters and Rebel Ball has music, dance and fire performances.
Make sure to take on the rollercoasters in the dark, including Hyperia, which is the fastest rollercoaster in the UK, and SAW – The Ride that’s the world’s first horror movie–themed rollercoaster.
Day tickets including Fright Nights start from £39 and overnight stays start from £109pp.
Drayton Manor
Drayton Manor isn’t missing out when it comes to Halloween – on selected dates from October 10 to November 11 it is holding frightfully fun family events.
This year, the theme park is introducing its Blazing Halloween which include an all-new Trick or Treat Trail where little monsters can collect sweet treats and take selfies with mischievous Halloween characters along the way.
Hop onboard the Revenge of the Haunted Express on a ghostly journey through the darkest corners of the theme park (this experience costs an extra £5pp).
Make sure to stay until the evening for the End of the Day Lake Show with waterjets, bursts of fire and flashing lights.
It will all come to an end with two spectacular fireworks nights held on October 31 and November 1.
Day tickets start from £24.90pp (when booked in advanced), overnight stays vary in price depending on the time and day of booking.
Paultons Park
Families will have a great time at Paultons Park, which was crowned UK’s best theme park at last year’s UK Theme Park Awards, this spooky season.
Its Halloween Spooktacular will begin on October 9 and continue up until November 2.
Families can check out Ghostly Manor which is an interactive dark ride open throughout the event, and The Little Monsters Ball dance-party held on the main show stage.
Speaking of shows, there will be two this year; The Great Halloween Mystery and the Spirit Squad Ghoul School.
Even Peppa Pig World will be decorated for Halloween – make sure to meet Peppa and George in their pumpkin and witch costumes.
But if you want to forget the Halloween scaries, head to The Fairy Garden – the majestic secret garden will be decorated with webs and pumpkins.
On selected dates there will be late-night openings until 7.30pm.
Day tickets start from £46.75pp with short breaks in October from £269pp.
Legoland Windsor Resort
Legoland is starting its seasonal event, Brick or Treat, on October 10 – and they’ve teased that it will be the biggest party yet.
There are TWO house parties this year, first up, the Haunted House Monster Party, and the Lord Vampyre’s House Party will also return.
There’s also a Monster Jam show, character meet and greets and dressing up is also highly encouraged.
The dragon rollercoaster will get a disco makeover with sparkly lights.
Don’t miss all the other rides that remain open as usual, like Flight of the Sky Lion, LEGO City Deep Sea Adventure and Driving School.
Day tickets start from £37pp with short breaks including an overnight hotel stay and breakfast starting from £123.
Coral Reef Waterworld, Bracknell
When the weather turns and outdoor pools just aren’t a possibility anymore, it’s time to hit the indoor waterparks.
If you want to go big then head to Coral Reef Waterworld in Bracknell which is one biggest in England – lots of it is interactive too with flashing lights and sounds.
It’s tropical with temperatures of 30C and has an erupting water volcano, rapid river, bubble pool and children’s splash zone
The pirate-themed splash area is centered around a ship called The Coralina which comes with water cannons and interactive water features.
The biggest waterslide is The Cannon, which launches riders down a 67 metre-long chute like a cannonball.
Poseidon’s Peril is another popular ride – it’s for two people who are attached to an inflatable raft as it rotates and swirls through a tunnel with colour-changing lights.
If you’re after relaxation, then head to the Coral Spa which has heated loungers, three saunas, a cool pool and a Japanese steam room.
Adult tickets cost £20.55, children 5-16 cost £14.55 those aged children between 0-4 cost £1.95.
The Wave, Coventry
The Wave in Coventry is a not only an enormous indoor waterpark, but it has the largest wave pool in England too which churns out more than 20 million litres of water per day.
There are six waterslides including The Riptide which is a half-pipe slide that blasts riders in a rubber ring down a near-90-degree drop.
The Cyclone spins swimmers around a giant open bowl, and The Rapids, which is a ‘water-coaster’, hurl riders uphill before dropping them down through tight corners and tunnels.
The Reef is its splash pad which is suited for younger children with miniature slides, tipping buckets, jets and water fountains.
When you want to relax, bob along the lazy river then pop into the Mana Spa which has a spa pool, aromatherapy room, sauna and steam room.
Tickets cost £15 per adult, £13 for children 11 and under and under ones go free.
Waterworld, Stoke-on-Trent
Waterworld has over 30 rides and attractions with wave pools and rapids.
It has the Thunderbolt ride, which is the UK’s first trap door drop waterslide and riders travel at 25mph.
Another speedy ride is Hurricane which descends at 17mph and has lightning effects inside the tunnels.
There are also dedicated water attractions for younger children like the interactive Jungle House and Toddler Boat slide.
Waterworld also has a mini adventure golf course as well as a restaurant and cafe serving up pizza, burgers, salads, drink and there’s a new dessert bar with 22 different flavours of ice cream.
Tickets for adults and children start from £17.70, children under three-years-old start from £6.10.
Blenheim Place, Oxfordshire
Of course, you can visit Blenheim Palace year-round but there are lots of events coming to it this autumn.
Halloween at Blenheim Palace runs from October 22 to November 1.
Kids will love its after-dark trail, light displays, immersive entertainment and spooky surprises – you might stumble upon the Spider’s lair or the Pirate’s Wreck.
Haunted half-term will return between October 24 and Sunday 1 to the Walled Garden – here there will be a circus workshop, witchy storytelling sessions and are even giant wizards will wander about.
There will be a chance to get up close and personal with animals like snakes, tarantulas, giant snails and frogs with ZooLab.
As for its other exhibitions, Dinosaurs Are Forever runs until November 1 – and it has five full-scale Megalosaurus sculptures.
Tickets for Halloween at Blenheim palace start from £23 for adults and £32 for children (between 3-16).
Tickets for Haunted Half-Term are included in general day tickets starting from £31 for adults and £15 for children.
Cumbria Dark Skies Festival
While most Brits won’t be looking forward to the darker evenings, but for stargazing, they’re perfect – where better to see them than at a dark sky festival?
From October 23 to November 20 the Cumbria Dark Skies Festival will be taking place across the county.
You can try out dark sky canoeing on Coniston Water or even try out a stargazing swim in Ullswater if you’re feeling brave enough.
There are also guided walks, and lantern-making at Nenthead Mines.
If you want to see more of the night skies, head to the new Grizedale Observatory and Planetarium which holds daily shows and stargazing events.
Make sure to check out the camping and glamping opportunities where you can see the night sky right from your bed – check out all the events and stays during the festival, here.
Tulleys Farm, West Sussex
Whether you’re after an autumnal day out pumpkin picking with the kids or want to be scared witless in a scare maze – Tulleys Farm has it all.
This year, the family-friendly Pumpkin Festival returns with Europe’s largest pumpkin patch (with 1.5million pumpkins), an observation wheel, live music, carousel, street food and marshmallow roasting.
A new land within it is The Pumpkin Valley which, as the name suggests, is filled with pumpkins scattered across winging paths and ponds.
If being scared is on your list then head to Shocktober Fest – Europe’s largest scream park.
It has scare mazes, escape rooms, even immersive zombie experiences as well as live music across three stages and rides too.
New for this year is an escape room called Relic which has a scare rating of eight out of 10.
Teams must enter to explore forgotten chambers, find clues and solve puzzles to escape the temple before the doors seal forever.
Tickets for the Pumpkin Festival start from £8.95pp, tickets to Shocktober Fest with an XScream pass start from £42.95.
The Enchanted Forest, Pitlochry
On the outskirts of the Scottish Highlands in Faskally Wood is The Enchanted Forest – a light and sound show – perfect for an autumnal evening.
This year, it celebrates its 25th anniversary with a new show called ‘Stop The Clock: The 25th Hour. ‘
When the sun goes down, The Enchanted Forest transforms the natural woodland into a glowing wonderland with synchronized laser lights, projections to the backdrop of music.
The event will run from October 8 to November 8.
It’s worth noting that all visitors are transported to Faskally Wood by bus and there are accessible sessions too.
Adult tickets start from £28.50, child tickets start from £15.50 – and family tickets start from £78.50.
Autumn Fest, Morden Park
If you love everything autumn has from the cosy pumpkin picking with a hot chocolate in hand to spooky experiences – consider Autumn Fest in Morden Park.
It has an Enchanted Light Trail, a carnival, roaming entertainers, flash mob performances and plenty of places for seasonal photos.
The park will have a spooky makeover too with spiders suspended from the trees and haunted lake instillations.
With add-on tickets, you can see inside The Freak Show where there will be entertainment from sword swallowers, fire breathers, aerial performers and theatre.
Friday Fright Night is the outdoor Halloween cinema experience with themed movie screenings – with family and adult screenings throughout the day and night.
Autumn Fest runs between October 22 – October 31.
Tickets to the Light Trail start from £18 for adults, £12.50 for children.
Additional ticketed experiences, workshops and performances vary in price and must be purchased as an add-on.
Heritage Open Days, UK
Across 10 days Brits can enjoy thousands of free events thanks to Heritage Opens Days.
From the races at Silverstone to codebreaking trails at Bletchley Park, there’s something for everyone.
If strolling about a country home filled with autumn trees tickles your fancy, head to the likes of Lyme Park in Cheshire, Wightwick Manor and Lyveden.
For any transport enthusiasts then you can check out vintage vehicles from trams to trains at the likes of Aldridge Transport Museum, Dover Transport Museum, East Anglia Transport Museum and the Museum of Transport in Manchester.
To get into the Halloween spirit, check out the ghost walks – some of which will be held at Ripon Market Place in North Yorkshire, Knutsford, and Chester.
The event runs from 11-20 September – for a full list of the events check out the website (for some you may need to pre-book a slot online).
The Eden Project, Cornwall
Thanks to its two heated biomes – The Eden Project is a great place to visit throughout the year, and it’s a great place to warm up in the colder months.
Make sure to wear layers so you can be comfortable in the world’s largest indoor rainforest which can be as hot as 35C.
Inside are beautiful waterfalls, a canopy walkway, wobbly bridges, free-roaming partridges and over 1,000 varieties of plants.
The Mediterranean Biome is slightly cooler but can still get up to 25C with pretty flowers and plants from the Mediterranean, California and even Western Australia.
There is an upcoming Celebration of Stories Weekend coming up where children’s authors will read stories – there will also be workshops and family activities.
General admission tickets for adults start from £35.50 and children (between 5-15) start from £12.50.