5 festive SD spots and activities

NYLA HARRIS / ASST. A&C EDITOR

Fall is here and San Diego has a lot to offer to  USD students to celebrate the autumn season. Here’s a quick guide to five festive spots and events that you can  enjoy around the city with friends and loved ones this season.  

Fall Fest at Belmont Park: 

Belmont Park’s Fall Festival is back at Mission Bay from Sept. 9 to Oct. 31.  This celebration offers activities for many ages including amusement park rides, live music, seasonal beer-on-tap for those over age 21 and specialty fall treats across the park. This one month long festival has a wide variety of fall events to attend. Tickets to the event are free entry and can range from $20-$45 for all inclusive bands depending on the experience desired. Seasonal savings are presented by Ralphs and other neighboring grocery stores in the area. Keep an eye out for deals to plan a day of rides and treats at Belmont Park.  

Spirit Halloween:

Spirit Halloween is one of the most popular forms of “pop up” Halloween stores. Every October, Spirit Halloween stores open around San Diego and sell Halloween costumes, decorations, movies and more for those wanting to purchase Halloween ‘must-haves.’ Halloween is still a couple weeks away, but many students associate the season of fall with all things Halloween. 

USD senior Angelina Franco considers herself to be a “Halloween baby,” as her birthday lands on Oct. 31. She expressed her love and excitement for fall as intertwined with her love for Halloween. 

“I love decorating our house and getting little Halloween decorations. When I have my own house, I am going to ball out on decorations, but for now a little decorating here and there is what I do,” Franco said. “Halloween is my favorite holiday. Getting to dress up is one of my favorite things to do. Whether it’s just to go out with friends and explore, when you put on a costume you get to wear things that you wouldn’t normally wear, and it’s just fun to dress outside of the norm, dress outside of yourself.” 

Spirit Halloween is one place to shop to decorate students’ dorms, apartments or homes, as well as to get a Halloween costume in preparation for the season.  

Cozy Night In: 

As the days get chiller, it gives the perfect opportunity to cozy up and spend time watching fall movies and TV series with loved ones.  With streaming services at the tip of our fingers and media updating the masses on the best new shows, many students have acquired TV fall favorites.   

USD junior Grace Elian expressed adoration toward a fall TV show favorite, “Gilmore Girls,” a necessary fall activity to do with her loved ones.

“My favorite thing about fall is coming back to school, cuddling up with some tea and watching TV with my boyfriend and friends. My go-to show for the fall is always ‘Gilmore Girls,’” Elian said. “I’ve watched it several times and I’ll watch it again. It’s set in a small town in Connecticut and always makes me feel cozy inside.”

“Gilmore Girls” is only one of the many movies and shows available to watch on TV and other streaming series for this fall season. There are many cozy nights ahead, so be sure to grab snacks, friends and/or partners to bond over the Gilmore Girls and other fall must-watches this season.  

Pumpkin Spice Season: 

Cafes and coffee shops all around San Diego have picked up on the Pumpkin Spice and fall flavored drink craze.  Starbucks, which is an American multinational chain of coffeehouses and roastery services, comes out with fall-flavored drinks every year to mark the unofficial start of fall for many customers. Many cafes around San Diego feature a similar theme, and release fall themed flavors and recepies. 

Starting Aug. 24, the Starbucks fall menu returned and includes customer favorites like the Pumpkin Cream Cold Brew, Apple Crisp Oat Milk Macchiato,the Owl Cake Pop and others. The fall menu also features two new seasonal beverages, Iced Apple Crisp Oat Milk Shaken Espresso and Iced Pumpkin Cream Chai Latte, and the new Baked Apple Croissant. There are many locations all around San Diego, including one right down the hill from USD’s campus. For another favored option, USD’s on campus cafe, Aromas, offers fall flavored drinks and treats as well. Options vary from pumpkin spiced lattes, pumpkin spiced chai, to a pumpkin muffin.  For a quick coffee and snack before class, a fall favorite drink is a popular option to get in the autumn spirit.  

Pumpkin Patches: 

Photos in a pumpkin patch are a hallmark of the fall season. For friends, couples and loved ones, many patches around San Diego prepared giant pumpkins meant for the occasion. Pumpkin patches, such as the “Pumpkin and Polar Palooza” or the “Carlsbad Strawberry Company Pumpkin Patch” will be open from late September to early November, and it will include options of games, food, animal farms, tractor rides, corn mazes and all things pumpkin.  

USD senior Sofia Hart expressed pumpkin patch experiences as a staple for fall. 

“There is a pumpkin patch where I live that’s really cute and tiny and then there is the really big one that Strawberry Company does.  They do Hayrides and activities that I used to do all the time when I was little.  Now I love to go with my baby cousins, they have goats and jumpers and it’s just really fun,” Hart said. “Even though I don’t really like the change in weather and the darkness that comes with it, my favorite part of fall is how it’s starting to bring everyone together.” 

The leaves may not be falling in San Diego yet, but Autumn has officially arrived.  As the days get shorter (and maybe a little colder), fall is one of the best seasons for group activities and making memories. No matter the weather, San Diego is filled with many festivals, Halloween stores, coffee shops and pumpkin patches to feel the spirit of the season. This guide is only a sneak peek into all the places to go, things to see and treats to try with loved ones throughout the semester this fall.