October 2026 in Prince William County: Fall Festivals, Family Fun, and Halloween Celebrations

October is when Prince William County is at its autumn best: the Historic Manassas Fall Jubilee fills Old Town with live music and 100-plus craft and community booths, Manassas Park hosts its annual Falloween celebration, and the month closes with trunk-or-treat and the Fall-O-Ween costume parades on Halloween. In this guide I have gathered the dates and details I can verify from the published community calendars, from Oktoberfest this weekend through Halloween weekend, along with a quick market check-in for anyone weighing a move this fall. I treat my clients like family, and that starts with making sure you feel connected to the community you call home.

Oktoberfest Arrives This Weekend: September 18-20

The season kicks off before the calendar turns. Oktoberfest at 2 Silos Brewing Company runs Friday, September 18 through Sunday, September 20 at 9925 Discovery Boulevard in Manassas, billed as Northern Virginia's biggest Oktoberfest. Hours are 4 to 9 PM Friday, 11 AM to 9 PM Saturday, and 11 AM to 5 PM Sunday, with German food, craft beer, live music, family activities, and vendors. It is a three-day celebration that draws people from across the region, and a great excuse to spend a fall weekend close to home.

The First Weekend of October: Fall Jubilee and the Waterford Fair

The centerpiece of the month is the 43rd annual Historic Manassas Fall Jubilee on Saturday, October 3, 10 AM to 5 PM in Historic Downtown Manassas. Organized by Historic Manassas Inc., the festival is free and packs Center Street with more than 100 craft and community booths, live music and entertainment, food vendors, and kids' activities. It is one of those events where you run into neighbors, old friends, and the whole community in one afternoon.

Farther north, the Waterford Fair runs October 2-4 in the historic village of Waterford, Virginia, a short drive into Loudoun County and a favorite fall tradition for families across the region. If you are willing to range a little farther, the City of Fairfax Fall Festival lands on October 10, and the Loudoun Fall Festival takes over the Dulles Town Center area October 10-11.

Also on Saturday, October 3, the Prince William County Fire-Rescue 3rd Annual Expo & Fall Festival brings fire truck tours, rescue demonstrations, games, and kids' activities to Pfitzner Stadium in Woodbridge, noon to 5 PM, admission free. One planning note for downtown: after a September 4 incident at a packed First Friday event, the City of Manassas and Historic Manassas Inc. paused the October First Friday "Pumpkin Palooza" while they review downtown event safety, so check with organizers before planning around it.

Mid-October: Falloween in Manassas Park and a New Woodbridge Festival

On Saturday, October 17, the City of Manassas Park hosts Falloween, 11 AM to 3 PM at Park Central Plaza, its official family celebration of the season with games and activities for kids. The Park Central Farmers Market also runs Saturdays through the month, from 9 AM to 1 PM at Park Central Plaza on October 3, 10, and 17, and neighbors can join the city's Halloween House Decorating Competition all month long.

The same month brings a new tradition to the county: the 1st Annual Celebra Prince William Fest on Sunday, October 18 at 12 PM at the County Complex Court in Woodbridge, a celebration of the community's diversity with food, music, and family fun. New festivals like this are a sign of a growing, connected county, and I love seeing what the community builds together.

The Rest of October: Farmers Markets, Haunted Nights, and Street Festivals

The season's rhythm continues through the end of the month. The City of Manassas Farmers Market runs every Thursday, 8 AM to 1 PM at the Harris Pavilion through October 29 (October 15, 22, and 29), with the Historic Manassas Saturday market continuing through November, so there is still time to stock up on local produce and cider before the season closes. The Factory of Fear haunted experience returns to the ARTfactory in Historic Downtown Manassas on October 15-17 and 22-24, a theatrical scare for older kids and adults. On Saturday, October 24, Haunted Happenings brings trick-or-treating and family activities to Old Town Manassas merchants, and the Air & Scare Day at the Smithsonian's Udvar-Hazy Center in Chantilly pairs Halloween fun with aviation for a day trip worth the drive. The NVA Thai Street Food & Culture Festival follows on Sunday, October 25 on the Manassas Museum grounds. Events are subject to change, so check the county and city calendars before you head out.

Halloween Week: Trunk-or-Treat and Old Town Fall-O-Ween

Halloween week is packed for families. The Manassas Park Community Center at 99 Adams Street hosts a Trunk or Treat on Saturday, October 24, noon to 2 PM, a safe, fun way for little ones to trick-or-treat close to home. Then on Saturday, October 31, Historic Manassas closes the month with Old Town Manassas Fall-O-Ween, 10 AM to 3 PM on the Manassas Museum Lawn, with Halloween treats, arts and crafts, and kids' games, plus a Kids Halloween Costume Parade at 1 PM and a Pets Costume Parade at 2:30 PM. Admission is free, and it is the sweetest way to spend Halloween morning before the evening candy run. For an extra stop before the big night, the Kena Shriners host a Trunk or Treat on Friday, October 30 at 6 PM, and Prince William County Parks and Recreation runs its Halloween lineup, including a free trunk-or-treat and haunted mini golf at Locust Shade Park, through October 31 with registration required.

A Quick Market Check-In for the Fall Ahead

While the calendar is full of community reasons to love this area, the market is settling into a balanced fall rhythm. The Northern Virginia Association of Realtors released its August 2026 statistics on September 14: region-wide closed sales of 1,324, down 8.0% year-over-year, and a median sold price of $765,000, up 2.0%. County-level August numbers paint the same picture: Loudoun County saw 432 closed sales, down 16.9% from a year ago, with its median at $771,250; Fairfax County reported 757 closed sales and a median of $752,250, down 0.4%. Prince William County remains the region's value story, with a July median of approximately $593,500, up 8% year-over-year, homes averaging about 25 days on market, and inventory up more than 30%. And the rate picture has moved twice since this guide was first published: the Federal Reserve raised its benchmark rate 25 basis points to 3.75% to 4.00% on September 16, its first hike since 2023, and Freddie Mac's survey for the week ending September 17 put the 30-year fixed at 6.95%, up from 6.76% the prior week, with the 15-year fixed at 6.26%. I have updated this guide with the week's fresh news: in its survey for the week ending September 24, Freddie Mac averaged 7.03% for the 30-year fixed, its first reading above 7% since January 2025, as the 10-year Treasury yield pushed to its highest level in almost two decades near 5.2% (an intraday high near 5.27% on September 28). Rates have kept climbing since this guide was last updated: Freddie Mac's survey for the week ending October 8 put the 30-year fixed at 7.40%, up from 7.28% the prior week and 6.30% a year earlier, with the 15-year at 6.73%, and the 10-year Treasury closed at 5.24% on October 9, its highest level since April 2002. The September CPI report lands October 14, and the FOMC meets October 27-28 with a hold priced near 80% to 84% after the soft September jobs report. For buyers, locking in when you have found the right home continues to protect you; for sellers, pricing from today's data remains the winning play in the fall window.

What does that mean for you? More inventory and more time to choose, with prices holding firm, make October a genuinely attractive window to view homes, especially in Prince William County. If you are thinking about a move this fall, let us talk through what you are looking for over coffee, no pressure and no obligation. I keep the details of the full regional data on my market report page, which I update as new releases arrive, so you can always see where things stand.

Why the Fall Calendar Matters for Buyers and Sellers

These events are not just fun, they are how you test whether a neighborhood really feels like home. A Saturday at the Fall Jubilee, a trunk-or-treat in Manassas Park, a farmers market at Park Central Plaza: if you are relocating from out of state, or just exploring a new part of the county, put a couple of these on your calendar and go walk the streets where you might buy. Nothing tells you more about a community than seeing it fill a sidewalk. For sellers, this is also the season when buyers are out touring homes between festivals, and a well-staged, well-priced listing stands out against the quieter fall market rhythm.

Whatever your reason for reading this month, I hope these weekends give you reasons to be out and about in our corner of Virginia. And if your autumn includes a move, I would love to be the one looking out for your best interests every step of the way, like family.