New England Fall Events celebrates the unique fall culture, seasonal activities, orchard events, outdoor fun, family farms, local food, and harvest festivals that make our region a special place to live and play.
We are your go-to guide for apple picking, pumpkins, food festivals, corn mazes, hayrides, and fall events!
Kids and adults alike are entranced by the magic of fairies! The New England Fall Events writers are equally captivated by the tiny winged creatures and their pure wonder!
To give you a sneak peek at what kind of delight there is to be had at festivals like these watch our video from the Portsmouth Fairy House Tour.
Our lovely region has a number of very special fall events that are worth your attention and those of your little (human) ones. Circle the dates for these upcoming festivities!
The 12th Annual Portsmouth Fairy House Tour Saturday and Sunday, September 24th and 25th, 2016
Portsmouth, NH
With 200+ fairy houses on display this is a must-see for kids and adults alike! With fairy ballets, fairy plays, book-signings by Tracy Kane, and an opportunity to make your own fairy house, this is the standard bearer for fairy houses fun!
Saturday and Sunday, September 24th and 25th, 2016
Grafton, VT
The Fairy House Festival includes a self-guided tour through the over 35 handcrafted fairy homes nestled in the Nature Museum's woods. These homes are created with care from natural materials by the fairy house festival's builders. Visitors return to The Nature Museum to create their own fairy dwellings in the gardens.
Over two dozen faerie-scaled castles, towers, and palaces on the Griswold Museum’s campus celebrate fiction’s greatest princes and princesses in a new and imaginative way.
Farmington, CT The “6th Annual Nature’s Open House Tour” and see 100+ custom built fairy & gnome dwellings set along a half mile stroll through wooded trails during fall foliage season plus a meet and greet award winning authors, Tracy Kane and Kelly Sanders! This event aims to inspire children and adults to experience the joy of reading and to interact with nature through building these unique habitats for fairies, gnomes and nature’s friends. Click for event details.
Prince and Princess Promenade at King Richard's Faire
Saturday, October 1st, 2016 (Rain date: Sunday, Oct. 2nd)
Carver, MA
All children 11 years and younger, are welcome to participate in this royal extravaganza! Each child will be majestically escorted onto the stage and presented to their royal majesties and the crowd followed by an opportunity to take a photo with the King and Queen. No pre-registration required, event is limited to the first 50 children in line. Eligible children can line up at the front of the stage just prior to the start of the event.
Children's Fairies and Pirates Parade at King Richard's Faire
Saturday, October 15th, 2016 (Rain date: Sunday, October 16th)
Carver, MA
With some of the Fantasy creatures and Pirates of the realm in attendance; each child will parade onto the stage, be presented to the audience, and have the opportunity to take a personal photo with the characters assembled.
Children 11 years and younger will be instructed in King Richard’s Pirate code and the delicate art of blowing Fairy dust. Each participating child will receive a special memento from the event. Click for event details.
Fairy and Hobbit House Festival Fundraiser
Saturday through Monday, October 8-10th, 2016
Lee, NH
The Fairy & Hobbit House Trail will include both pre-built and make-your-own structures. Some will be designed by featured artists, school aged children, gardeners, community businesses and friends.There will be a separate Fairy & Hobbit House Trail with designer-built fairy houses, a guest appearance by a renowned fairy house expert, supplies to build your own house (bring your own supplies), and special items, such as books, for sale in their shop.
One of the most anticipated events of the fall season is the
whimsical and enchanting Portsmouth Fairy House Tour. No one has to twist our
arm to one of our favorite seacoast cities and we were very curious to see this
weekend festival first-hand.
With a decade under its belt, the Fairy House
Tour manages to strike the perfect balance of smooth organization and a
decidedly under-commercialized feel—we hope it always stays this way!
Mother and daughter enjoying the magic
We arrived around 10:40am--20 minutes before the event
opened because we weren’t sure what we’d encounter with the parking situation. At that hour, we had no trouble finding a spot at the Hanover and High Street Garage which,
being downtown, is not adjacent to the festival grounds yet it remains affordable ($1/hr, cash/check only) and was just a short 7 minute walk from our
starting point. (Parking here made it a snap to head back to the highway as
well).
You can also take advantage of free parking on Peirce Island, near Prescott Park.
A lovely sample of a tour fairy house
We checked in at the Governor Langdon House on Pleasant Street
where for us the tour began. With an easy to follow Fairy House Tour map in
hand, we followed the path across the Langdon House lawn. Almost immediately we
encountered the first series of houses displayed on the lawn.
Our map marked
the ten “artist invitational” displays with numbered butterflies and there were
four of the invitational houses for us to enjoy on the first section of our
walk. Not solely restricted to artists, many of the fairy houses on display—over
200!—were contributed by local school children, gardening clubs, and non-profit
groups.
Tulle was hung between the trees
to keep us on our path--so clever!
Each fairy house should be constructed with organic
materials—fallen leaves, pine cones, twigs, shells, pebbles, pods, gourds, sand—whatever
you can forage from Mother Nature. Any adhesives, fasteners or platforms must
be obscured with leaves and other natural items. There are no restrictions to
size or theme leaving the sky as the limit to a fairy house builder’s
imagination.
Signs hung from the tulle festooned around the trees gently reminded
us “Shhh, Fairies Sleeping – Do Not Disturb!” and the colorful boughs steered us
along the tour path. One moment we’d be in a small forest observing the houses
blended into the earth and the next we stumble into a stunning English garden
with fairy houses tenderly situated between the fall blooms.
Watch New England Fall Events' video (above) from our Portsmouth Fairy House visit for even more photos from the festival!
This house featured exquisite detail.
We saw fairy houses roofed with pillows of moss, feather-adorned teepees, multi-floored fairy homes, miniature music halls, fairy beach resorts, and many others. Some houses featured delicate terraces, hidden waterfalls, and clam shell spiral staircases. Others fashioned walls of honeycomb or were wrapped in birch bark. Diminutive fairy furniture bedecked the rooms—acorn-capped stools, ceiling swings, flower petal carpets, and walnut shell beds.
It’s hard to overstate how earnest and magical these houses
are. Boys and girls, men and women, grandparents, aunties, you name it—everyone
was equally enthralled and entranced by the displays before us. Not just an
event for children, many adults without kiddos were in attendance to witness the
charm of the festival.
Upon discovering a new house nestled in a tree nook or
hidden in a woodsy corner, we crouched down low to peer inside and smile at the
tiny world crafted from nature. Adults and children alike seemed to
instinctively speak in hushed whispers (lest we wake the fairies!) and the most
frequently heard sounds were ooohs, ahhs, and “look here at this!!!”
The bubble machine tower was a hit!
With helpful guidance from the easy-to-spot festival
volunteers (in fairy wings, naturally), we made our way from the Langdon House
lawn and adjacent woods towards the multiple separate gardens dotting the
Strawberry Banke Museum property.
More fairy houses were on display within the Banke’s
historical gardens including the herb garden and the children’s garden. In every
corner a new house peeked out from the leaves.
A beautiful (human-size) fairy house was even created with pine branches, flowers, leaves, and tree stumps for children to sit inside and feel what is like to be a tiny fairy inside a house built from natural materials.
The Banke Museum’s expansive central lawn was a stunning and
peaceful setting for kids to run around or to leap at giant bubbles streaming
from the bubble tower. Here you could snap a few pictures with the luminous
fairy/lady greeting the children or set up your picnic lunch.
At the far corner of the lawn, Tracy Kane the author and
illustrator of The Fairy House Series® graciously greeted her fans and signed
her books for the young and the young-at-heart. There was an exhibit of seasonal
fairy wreaths crafted by local florists and even a fairy face painting booth
(nominal fee).
Performances of Fairy Houses - The
Ballet took place throughout the day.
If you forgot your fairy wings or feel inspired to don your
first pair there is a small kiosk where you could purchase a pair for as little
as $5! Fairy house charm aside, the sheer fact that you can purchase a pair of
fairy wings for your kid (or stave off a meltdown) for less than a Frappucino
is enough of a reason to love the folks who produce this festival, am I right?
Heading towards the river, we crossed Macy Street with the
help of the fairy-winged traffic cops to arrive at Prescott Park. The stage
inside the park featured performances of “Fairy Houses – The Ballet” throughout
the day from the Southern NH Dance Theater where the children were invited up
on the stage to dance with the performers!
Fairies love to relax by the beach too.
The tour wrapped up across the bridge on Peirce Island with
a park area dedicated to—wait for it—building your OWN fairy house!!! After a
day of peering into precious little pixie villages, everyone felt inspired to
create their own.
As the build-your-own fairy house activity was included in the ticket price, there was
nothing to stand in the way of coming up with your own creation. The activity large
booth provided plenty of branches, leaves, and other natural fragments you
could choose for building your house but you are also encouraged to forage
through the park to add to your materials.
Families can pre-register to display
their own fairy house creation too.
Across the shady park small troops of festival goers hunched
over their creations building houses from the ground up or building a nest in the
elbow of a tree. From what we could see,
most built their fairy houses and then left them where they stood to attract the
fairies to their sweet new dwellings. It was lovely to discover the little
homes scattered across the park but equally a joy to observe the various
families working together as they created their own.
The Portsmouth Fairy House Tour enters their 11th
year on Saturday and Sunday, September 26th and 27th, 2015. Click for details. Held rain or shine from 11:00am – 3:00pm each day, we can’t stress enough how
much you will love this event and encourage you to come for the full four hours—the
time will fill up quickly. If you plan to make your own fairy house at the end—and
we hope that you do—you’ll want to leave yourself enough time to create it.
Strawberry Banke Museum's property
was an ideal setting for the tour.
There
are two concession areas (which we didn’t notice) and well as numerous fantastic
restaurants in Portsmouth. However, the parks which host the festival are postcard
pretty so packing a picnic is our recommendation. A picnic will help you maximize
your time at the event and there is a lot to see and do in four hours.
Special kudos to the City of Portsmouth which appears to embrace this wonderfully fun and unique event—from the traffic cops sporting fairy wings to the impressive amount of space dedicated to hosting the festivities.
Advance tickets are the way to go. You’ll save money by
purchasing ahead of time (day-of ticket prices are higher) and you won’t need
to wait in line to buy them. Find advance ticket details here.
The event held the attention and wonder of every generation,
boys and girls, and although there are activities for children, it is not just
a family-focused event. We loved how
joyful this event was and how much it was appreciated by all. It was remarkable
that as magnetic as the fairy houses were to the children, all the kids we saw
were incredibly respectful and all appeared to resist the temptation to touch the
miniature fairy homes—impressive!
If you don’t live nearby, this is a festival completely worth a road trip to attend as you’ll spend a full day in the fresh air and are guaranteed a singular experience. This festival will surely become an annual family pilgrimage.
Fairy House Festival
Tips – for Everyone
Pack a picnic—you’ll be glad you maximized your time if you
do.
Wear smart shoes – A number of the houses are set in the woods
which, depending on the weather leading up to the festival could be mushy or
slippery.
Be ready to squat and crouch down...and often. Most fairy houses are displayed on ground level and the best way to appreciate the detail is to get down at fairy-level.
Pack a gardening kneeling pad if you have one for extra comfort!
Well-marked volunteers are there to
answer your questions or find your way
Apply sunscreen/bug spray – We didn’t notice the bugs but never a
bad idea to wear tick repellent in the woodsy area. Though many areas are
shaded, the gardens and much of the Banke lawn is in full sun so pack your
sunscreen.
Free up plenty of digital memory on your camera
because you won’t be able to resist taking a billion pictures of this special
day.
There are two ticket booths—one at the Governor Langdon
House entrance (which was closest to downtown) and the other off Macy Street,
near Prescott Park (which is closes to the Peirce Island parking).
The tour has plenty of fairy-winged crossing guards at the intersections surrounding the park grounds and easy-to-identify volunteers to help you find your way.
Fairy House Festival
Tips –Family Tips
Stroller-friendly – It might be a tight squeeze in some of
the gated historical gardens so in some cases, it might be easier to park the
stroller outside the garden and carry/walk your child in.
Fairy wings – Pack ‘em if you have ‘em but it is only $5 if
you need to buy them at the kiosk.
Show good manners - It’s a good idea to prepare your children for the exhibit—the
fairy houses are never to be touched and please use a quiet voice so as not to “wake
the fairies”.
Unless you pack a platform to transport your newly-built fairy
house home, you will want to prepare your kids for the idea of leaving their
fairy house behind at the park. If you pack a platform, the Peirce Island
parking is close to where the fairy house building takes place so it wouldn’t
be difficult to retrieve it from the car before you start the activity (but
definitely don’t try to carry it around while you are at the festival).
Be sure to check out the dance performances held four times
daily at the Prescott Park stage.
~ Special thanks to New England Fall Events blogger Shel Tscherne for her photo contributions ~
If you're curious what goes into the making of a Fairy House read about our delightful trip to the Discovery Museums' Fairyborough event.
The “6th Annual Nature’s Open House Tour” and see 100+ custom built fairy & gnome dwellings set along a half mile stroll through wooded trails during fall foliage season plus a meet and greet award winning authors, Tracy Kane and Kelly Sanders! This event aims to inspire children and adults to experience the joy of reading and to interact with nature through building these unique habitats for fairies, gnomes and nature’s friends.
The “6th Annual Nature’s Open House Tour” and see 100+ custom built fairy & gnome dwellings set along a half mile stroll through wooded trails during fall foliage season plus a meet and greet award winning authors, Tracy Kane and Kelly Sanders! This event aims to inspire children and adults to experience the joy of reading and to interact with nature through building these unique habitats for fairies, gnomes and nature’s friends.
Saturday, October 1st, 2016 (Rain date: Sunday, Oct. 2nd)
Children's Fairies and Pirates Parade at King Richard's Faire
Fairy and Hobbit House Festival Fundraiser
