How to Make Miami Feel Like Fall

Ever since I moved to Miami four years ago for college I knew pretty much right away that this is where I belong and where I would stay. I love everything about the 305: the weather, the culture, the COFFEE. Okay, maybe not the traffic, but you get the point. One thing that I do miss about New York is the month of October. My favorite holiday is Halloween and I love how much the month of October would get me in the spooky mood. The crisp weather, the orange leaves that crunch underneath my feet, the hay rides and pumpkin patches and haunted houses. Also, my mom always kills the decorating game.

I definitely don’t get as in the mood for Halloween being in Miami (still need a Halloween costume if anyone has any suggestions). It’s still in the 80s and 90s every day, so my pumpkin spiced latte is always ICED. BUT there definitely are ways to still get in the monster mood, despite cranking the AC instead of sitting by the fire.

Pumpkin Patches

You don’t have to be in the northern U.S. to go to a pumpkin patch. Yesterday I went to the Coconut Grove Pumpkin Patch Festival, which had a pumpkin patch, carnival rides and games, a pumpkin food court and, of course, hard cider. If you missed the patch in the Grove, don’t worry! There is another pumpkin patch coming to Miami next Saturday, Oct. 20 in Coral Gables complete with music, food and face painting. Sadly, if you want to dress the part and wear a flannel, you’ll have to put that bad boy around your waist because it is H-O-T!

Decorations

Bring a piece of Halloween into your home with festive decorations. Bring home some pumpkins from the pumpkin patch, set them on a bale of hay or carve them into a Jack-O-Lantern. There are so many different ways to decorate your home – both inside and out – from making your front yard into a graveyard to friendly ghost wall decorations. This time of year they can be found anywhere from Party City to Publix. You can even make your home smell like fall with candles. Yankee Candle has an entire fall collection with scents like apple cider, cinnamon stick and pumpkin.

Haunted Houses

When it comes to Halloween, I’m a walking contradiction. It’s my favorite holiday, yet I have a deadly fear of spiders. I hate scary movies because nothing scares me more than something popping out at you, yet I love scream parks and haunted houses. Every year, the House of Horror Haunted Carnival takes place at the Miami International Mall. Packed with amusement rides, carnival games and plenty of haunted house options from the supernatural Area 13 to the deserted house on Blossom Lane, it’s everything you need to satisfy your Halloween needs.

In Coral Gables, there is an actual haunted house, the Deering Estate. The property was once inhabited by the Deering family in the 1900s, and it still is today. Year-round, the Deering Estate offers ghost tours of the grounds. You begin in the wine cellar, where the spirits of two Deering employees have stuck around. Each room you go into is more haunted than the one before, including both Mr. and Mrs. Deering’s bedrooms. The tour is led by a professional “ghost hunter,” who has plenty of equipment to pick up on supernatural activities. If you weren’t a believer before the tour, you definitely will be after.

We may not get the fall weather to get us ready for tricks and treats, but in Miami, we’re only four hours away from Orlando and Halloween Horror Nights at Universal. Universal takes Halloween to the next level with its haunted houses and “purge” areas where the ghosts and ghouls can follow, chase, sneak up on you – whatever they feel like.

Movies

Nothing says Halloween like a good scary movie. I can’t watch scary movies if I want to sleep for the next week, but there are other options. The Nightmare Before Christmas is definitely one of my favorite Halloween movies, and Netflix has an entire Halloween movies and shows section for the month. Take a break from binge watching The Office, because there are more than enough movies to fill the entire month of October. If your favorite fall flicks aren’t on any streaming devices, there are local theaters that have showings throughout the month. Movies like The Nightmare Before Christmas and Beetlejuice will be playing at theaters across Miami the weekend before the holiday. So get your cider, your candy corn and get ready for the most wonderful time of the year.