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Hispanic Heritage Month Mercado
Join the Oak Park-River Forest Chamber of Commerce in celebrating Hispanic Heritage Month and Hispanic-owned businesses with a special mercado at the Coffee Shop in Oak Park. Whether you're interested in apparel, services or delicious coffee, there will be something for everyone.
Location: Oak Park
La Grange Area Witches Ride
Summon your broomsticks, bewitch your bicycles and don your most spellbinding attire for the Second Annual La Grange Area Witches Ride. Ride through beautiful La Grange with your coven of witches or watch as the enchantresses pedal through the town. You're sure to have a magical time!
Location: La Grange
Autumnfest on the Prairie Path
The Village of Hillside and the Village of Berkeley are excited to invite you to the annual Autumnfest on the Prairie Path! Expect lots of activities, including kiddie rides, wagon rides, street performers, balloon artists, live entertainment, food and more!
Location: Hillside
Boo! at the Zoo
Gather your ghoulfriends and head to the Brookfield Zoo Chicago for this fun-filled family event. Check out the creatures, creepy crawlers and more at the Halloween-themed event. All ages are in for a fang-tastic time, and the kids will leave with a sweet treat. Costumes are encouraged.
Location: Brookfield
Maywood Hispanic Heritage Month Celebration
Honor the contributions to our society made by the Hispanic and Latinx communities at the Maywood Hispanic Heritage Month Celebration, where there will be food, live entertainment, kids activities and more.
Location: Maywood
Tour de Proviso
Ride with community pride at the annual Tour de Proviso bicycle race. Whether you're a seasoned cyclist or someone who hasn't dusted off their bike in years, this family-friendly and fun-filled day is your ticket to a memorable experience.
Location: Bellwood
46th Annual Eddie Biondo Fall Fest Parade
Gather your friends, family and neighbors to see floats, marching bands, local schools and more showcasing the heart of Franklin Park. The parade marches from the intersection of Grand Avenue and Scott Street, heads east on Grand, then north on 25th Avenue (Rose Street) and ends at Addison and Scott Street (North Park). Be sure to keep the fun going after the parade at the annual Pumpkin Fest at North Park.
Location: Franklin Park
Franklin Park Pumpkin Fest
The fun isn’t over after the Eddie Biondo Fall Fest Parade. Continue celebrating at North Park with Franklin Park's Pumpkin Fest! Olson's ACE is providing plenty of pumpkins for kids to paint and take home and the afternoon will be full of family-fun music, games, activities and food!
Location: Franklin Park
"There Goes the Neighborhood" Gangster Tour
Book your tickets now for a tour so fun, it should be criminal! Those on the tour will go through Oak Park and River Forest, visiting 15 houses, all of which were once occupied by major mobsters. Led by mob historian John Binder, you'll learn about the criminal careers of the former home owners, unique features of each building and rare information about the times spent inside.
Location: Oak Park, River Forest
Art and Politics in a Presidential Campaign
The Historical Society of Oak Park and River Forest invite you to hear the insights and stories from award-winning political cartoonist and artist Joe Fournier. Just weeks before the presidential election, Fournier will share examples of his work and his creative process that spans 30 years as an award-winning political cartoonist with the Chicago Tribune.
Location: Oak Park
Wonder Wheels Festival
Wonder Works Children’s Museum will host the second annual Wonder Wheels Outdoor Festival to celebrate all things on wheels! For just two days, children and their families will be able to explore wheels by sitting behind the wheel of real trucks, doing laps around the tiny tots vehicle race track, eating from food trucks and more! Grab tickets now.
Location: Oak Park
Pumpkin Patch Parade
The Maywood Fine Arts Association's annual Pumpkin Patch Parade fundraiser is a full-day of fun fall activities, including live performances from dancers and tumblers, face panting, obstacle courses, a pumpkin bounce house, games, treats and interactive experiences!
Location: Maywood
Fright at Night
Fright at Night at the Oak Park Conservatory is back! The Bootanical Conservatory promises to put you in the Halloween spirit. See what poisonous plants grow in the shadows of the Conservatory. Admission to Fright at Night is every half hour and registration is required in advance. All ages welcome. Don't forget your costume!
Location: Oak Park
Zoo After Dark: Boos and Brews
Dress up in your favorite costume and have a ghoulishly fun time at Brookfield Zoo Chicago’s new 21-and-over after-hours Zoo After Dark: Boos & Brews. Enjoy magical music, eerie animal experiences, themed costume contests, chilling food and drinks, and more! Grab your friends or trick or treat yourself to a night you won’t want to miss.
Location: Brookfield
Casket Races
Get ready for the spookiest, quirkiest, and most exhilarating race of the year - the 13th Annual Forest Park Casket Races! Watch as costumed teams race their carts, decorated to look like caskets and carrying a helmet-clad "ghost," along hair-raising course through downtown Forest Park.
Location: Forest Park
Riverside Ghost Tours
On the Frederick Law Olmsted Society's special spooky walking tours, you'll learn a bit about Riverside history with a special helping of eerie occurrences, spooky stories and local lore.
Location: Riverside
Frank Lloyd Wright Races
The Parks Foundation of Oak Park is proud to present to the 48th annual Frank Lloyd Wright Race! This popular annual event is one of the longest running racing events in Illinois with individuals, friends and families participating in a 5k, 10k or the youth mile for kids ages 7-14.
Enjoy a run, jog, or walk through the tree-lined streets of Oak Park and take in the remarkable architecture of Frank Lloyd Wright as you make your way through the course. All participants receive a long-sleeved shirt.
Location: Oak Park
"Tale of the Tombstones" Cemetery Tour
The Oak Park-River Forest Historical Society's beloved "Tale of the Tombstones" cemetery tour returns Oct. 20. Learn all about the amazing stories of the people buried on the north side of the cemetery portrayed by actors decked out in period-appropriate costumes. Such tales told on the tour include those of the Odd Fellows and Druids fraternal groups in the U.S, well as a charismatic labor leader, an immigrant who became a record-setting U.S. congressman and a Chicago Bears superstar.
Location: Forest Park
Riverside Witches Ride
Who said witches only ride broomsticks? In Riverside, the witches ride bicycles! See them pedal throughout the town or grab your pointy hat and join them for an enchanting experience!
Location: Riverside
Harvest on Harrison
Gather your family and friends and enjoy a day of spooky fun including an artist vendor fair, DJ, costume contest, face painting, along with trick-or-treating and special events at the businesses along Harrison Street!
Location: Oak Park
Scary Skate
Get into the spirit of Halloween with a spooktacular time on the ice! Wear your scariest or most creative costume and get half off admission to public session at the Franklin Park Ice Arena's Spooky Skate event. The Park District of Franklin Park will award prizes for the best costumes. Don’t miss out on the fun! With safety in mind, masks are discouraged.
Location: Franklin Park
Westchester Halloween Party & Canine Costume Contest
The Westchester Halloween Party has everything needed for a great fall festival: pony rides, petting zoo, mini pumpkin patch, hay ride and more. You can even bring your dog and enter it into the canine costume contest! It'll be a howling good time.
Location: Westchester
Riverside Ghost Tours
On the Frederick Law Olmsted Society's special spooky walking tours, you'll learn a bit about Riverside history with a special helping of eerie occurrences, spooky stories and local lore.
Location: Riverside
Wonderween
See Wonder Works Children's Museum all decked out for Halloween and enjoy spooky season-themed activities, including a special scavenger hunt, costume parades, spooky story times and more.
Come dressed up with costumes from home or borrow one of the museum's many costumes. Parents are encouraged to wear their costumes as well!
Location: Oak Park
Invasion of the Scarecrows Bike Ride
It's a tradition in Forest Park to decorate and display scarecrows during the month of October. Join the Forest Park Historical Society on a scarecrow scouting bicycle ride throughout the village.
Location: Forest Park