5 Fun Washington, DC Activities for Fall

The Fall season is just a couple days away and a beautiful time in and around Washington, DC. 

The leaves on the trees are changing, the summer heat and humidity is gone and the lack of summer tourists makes getting into museums, exhibits, events and other vacation hot spots significantly easier. 

So here’s five fun ideas for Fall; many of which I’ll have multiple posts on The DC Traveler in the near future with all the details.

Enjoy the Beautiful Fall Colors –  From Skyline Drive in the Blue Ridge Mountains to the changing colors of the famous cherry trees around the Tidal Basin, the second week of October is generally when the colors start to change. 

Attend a Fall Wine Festival or Winery Event –  There’s dozens of wine related events in and around the region, some in the District or suburbs, some that include a pleasant drive through the county.  A couple of the nearby events include the Lorton Art, Wine and all that Jazz and the Fredericksburg Area Wine Festival both the weekend of October 3 & 4, 2009.

Tour One of the Many Washington, DC Area Museums – The summer tourists are gone so weekend crowds at the museums are generally lighter.  Sundays, especially when the Washington Redskins are playing, is a great time if you prefer smaller crowds. 

Celebrate Oktoberfest — There are several fun Fall Beer Festivals and family-friendly Oktoberfests throughout the month of October.  Enjoy live Oompaa bands, German food, and a stein of great beer.  A few area Oktoberfests include the Fort Belvor Oktoberfest (Oct. 1-4), the Vienna Oktoberfest (Oct. 3) and Oktoberfest Reston (Oct. 9 & 10).

Get Scared During Halloween – Besides the famous debauchery of Georgetown on Halloween night, the Washington, DC area offers the Pumpkin Cannon, Boo at the Zoo, a few scary haunted trails and farms, and countless corn mazes for the kids to enjoy and get lost in. 

Images – Flickr – Halloween face,  Stomping Grapes, Skyline Drive trees