Downtown fall calendar: Fall Festival set for Oct. 24

Downtown Saratoga Springs has a full fall calendar ahead now that the racing season is over. The Downtown Business Association’s Fall Festival is scheduled for Saturday, October 24, 2026, according to the association, and it anchors a stretch of events that includes the Saratoga Giant PumpkinFest this Saturday, September 26, weekly historic walking tours through October 25 and the Frances Steloff Lecture at Skidmore College on October 22.

Here is what is confirmed so far, what is still being planned, and how to make the most of a fall weekend in Saratoga Springs.

The fall calendar at a glance

These are the dates we have confirmed with organizers’ published announcements or local news coverage:

• Saturday, September 26: the 11th annual Saratoga Giant PumpkinFest weigh-off, 11 a.m. to 2 p.m., at the Saratoga Springs City Center parking garage, free.
• Sundays through October 25: the Saratoga Springs Preservation Foundation’s Autumn Sunday Strolls, 10:30 a.m., $15 for members and $20 for nonmembers.
• Saturdays through October: the outdoor Saratoga Farmers Market at High Rock Park, 9 a.m. to 1 p.m., plus Wednesdays from 3 to 6 p.m.
• Thursday, October 22: the 56th Frances Steloff Lecture with novelist Garth Greenwell at Skidmore College, 8 p.m.
• Saturday, October 24: the Downtown Business Association’s Fall Festival.
• Thursday, December 3: the 40th Victorian Streetwalk on Broadway, 6 to 9 p.m.

The Fall Festival on October 24

The association lists the 2026 Fall Festival for Saturday, October 24, on its website, but it had not published this year’s full schedule when we checked. Based on how the festival has run in recent years, here is what to expect, with the caveat that details can change.

• Trick-or-treating at participating downtown businesses for children in costume. In 2025, it ran from noon to 3 p.m., according to Saratoga.com.
• The pumpkin roll down Caroline Street, a longtime festival tradition.
• Live music. In 2024 and 2025, the band Road Soda Pop played on the Salt & Char patio, according to Saratoga TODAY and Saratoga.com.
• Face painting, balloon twisting and a juggler roaming Broadway. In 2025, face painting was set up at G. Willikers and Spa City Motor Lodge, the Saratoga Dispatch reported.
• A downtown pumpkin scavenger hunt through store windows.

In 2025, Upset, the miniature horse known around town, made an appearance at Dark Horse Mercantile, according to the Saratoga Dispatch. Past pumpkin-roll prizes have included coupons from Ben & Jerry’s of Saratoga and Saratoga Strike Zone, Saratoga TODAY reported. We will update this story when the association releases the 2026 lineup.

PumpkinFest kicks off the season

The fall season starts this Saturday with the giant pumpkin weigh-off, presented by the Saratoga County Chamber of Commerce with the City Center and the farmers market. Growers from across the Northeast bring pumpkins that can top 1,000 pounds, and last year’s winner weighed more than 2,200 pounds, according to WGNA. Admission is free, and the farmers market runs next door at High Rock Park the same morning.

History on foot, every Sunday

The Preservation Foundation’s Sunday Strolls continue through October 25. This Sunday’s tour, “Find Me in Congress Park!,” is led by author Patrice Mastrianni and runs from the Katrina Trask Memorial Staircase to the Congress Park Carousel. The foundation said it would announce four October tours in the coming weeks. Tours are capped at 30 people and must be booked ahead through the foundation.

A major writer at Skidmore

On October 22, Garth Greenwell, whose novel “Small Rain” won the 2025 PEN/Faulkner Award for Fiction, will deliver the 56th Steloff Lecture at Skidmore College, The Daily Gazette reported. The lecture series was endowed in 1967 by Saratoga Springs native Frances Steloff, founder of New York’s Gotham Book Mart.

New places to eat this fall

Two noodle restaurants are joining the city’s dining scene this fall. Tang Dumplings was scheduled to open September 16 at 46 Marion Avenue, NEWS10 reported, and Capital Region ramen chain Kuma Ani is preparing to open at 23-25 Division Street downtown, with an opening expected in October, according to Saratoga.com. Neither was in our directory when we checked; we will add them once they are open.

When the market moves indoors

The outdoor farmers market at High Rock Park wraps up at the end of October. From November through April, the Saturday market moves indoors to the Lincoln Baths at 65 South Broadway in Saratoga Spa State Park, from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m., according to the market’s listings.

Looking ahead to the holidays

The fall season hands off to the holidays with the 40th Victorian Streetwalk on Thursday, December 3, from 6 to 9 p.m. on Broadway, according to Saratoga.com. A Santa parade is scheduled for 5:50 p.m., followed by the city tree lighting at 6 p.m. in front of Putnam Market. The Festival of Trees, a Catholic Charities fundraiser with more than 250 decorated trees and wreaths, has run at the City Center during the Streetwalk in past years.

Parking this fall

The city’s seasonal paid-parking program ended on Labor Day, so downtown city garages are free with posted time limits. Two things to know:

• On busy event days, arrive before 11 a.m. or park at the Woodlawn Avenue or Walton Street garages and walk.
• Starting November 1, the Putnam Street garage has banned overnight parking from 11 p.m. to 6 a.m. through April 1 in past years.

Still to be announced

A few fall events had not posted 2026 details when we checked. We are watching for:

• The full Fall Festival schedule and participating businesses.
• The foundation’s four October Sunday Stroll topics.
• The Saratoga Book Festival, a weekend of author talks and readings downtown in past years.
• The fall tour of new homes that runs over two October weekends and has raised more than $1.5 million for local charities, according to Saratoga.com.

Organizing a downtown event this fall? Send us the details for our calendar and news coverage.