Free things to do in Livermore, CA
Free events and places in Livermore, CA, from library classes to festivals: 26 listed, checked by a local editor.
Everything in Livermore →Saturday, October 24
The Great Elephant Migration: outdoor art downtownThrough Sun Dec 6 · Downtown Livermore (Bankhead Plaza, Stockmen's Park) · FreeA free outdoor art exhibit you can walk around in downtown Livermore, at Bankhead Plaza and Stockmen's Park. Presented by Livermore Valley Arts and Three Thirty-Three Arts.
Pick of the Patch: pumpkins and a bounce-house playgroundThrough Nov 1; weekdays 4–9pm, weekends 10am–9pm · Pick of the Patch Pumpkins (ABC Tree Farms) · Free entry; bounce wristbands $22–35Pick a pumpkin, then let the kids loose in a big inflatable playground. Entry and parking are free; bounce wristbands for ages 2–12 cost $22–35.
Scarecrow contest at Alden Lane NurseryThrough Oct 31, during nursery hours · Alden Lane Nursery · FreeStroll past a garden full of homemade scarecrows and vote for your favorite, with pumpkins and gourds for sale around the nursery.
Haunted Mansion Halloween: a family-friendly yard graveyardEvenings through Halloween; hours not posted · Haunted Mansion Halloween · FreeA haunted-mansion and graveyard scene set up in a front yard. Gentle enough for families. A private home listed on FrightMaps; please be polite and stay on the sidewalk.
Livermore Monsters: a free Halloween yard displayEvenings through Halloween; hours not posted · Livermore Monsters · FreeA front yard full of Halloween monsters to stop by and look at. A private home listed on FrightMaps; please be polite and stay on the sidewalk.- Joan's Farm pumpkin patchThrough Oct 31, Tue–Sun 10am–6pm · Joan's Farm · Free entry, $5 parking; activities $5 or $25 wristbandA family pumpkin patch out on Mines Road with a maze, pumpkin bowling, a little train, farm animals and a pretend Western town. Activities are $5 each or $25 for a wristband; cash or check only.
Kidz Town Halloween Hay Day: downtown trick-or-treating10:00 AM – 1:00 PM · Downtown Livermore; Carnegie Park · FreeKids in costume go shop to shop around downtown Livermore collecting candy, plus music, games and a costume contest at Carnegie Park. For kids in 5th grade and under; the first 1,500 kids get a treat bag.
Livermore Library storytimes, incl. Spanish Música y Movimiento10:15 AM · Civic Center / Rincon / Springtown branches + parks · FreeFree storytimes and early-learning sessions for babies and young kids at the Civic Center, Rincon and Springtown branches and local parks: baby sing-alongs, music and movement, yoga storytime and crafts. There is a Spanish music-and-movement session, Música y Movimiento (Wednesdays 10:30am at Rincon), and an ASL (American Sign Language) stories-and-songs session on Sat Oct 17. Civic Center is closed Wed Oct 21.
Halloween campfire at Del Valle park4:00 – 7:00 PM · Del Valle Regional Park – Visitor Center · Free ($5 parking)An outdoor dusk program by the East Bay Regional Park District at Del Valle Regional Park: singing around a campfire, roasting s'mores (toasted marshmallow and chocolate between graham crackers) and a close look at 'creepy' animals. For all ages, costumes encouraged; kids need an adult, and parking is $5.- Twisted Reality: a free home haunted maze6:45 – 11:00 PM · Twisted Reality · FreeA walk-through haunted maze built at a private home. Very scary; not for little kids. A private home listed on FrightMaps; please be polite and stay on the sidewalk.
Frightmare: a free home haunted house with live actors7:00 – 10:00 PM · Frightmare Home Haunt · Free (donations welcome)One of the Bay Area's best-known home haunts, with live actors and jump scares; recommended for ages 10 and up. Younger kids can come to the lights-on walk-throughs (Oct 27–29 4–6pm, Oct 31 1–3pm). Free; donations welcome.
Horror Carnival: a horror-villain yard display7:00 PM · Horror Carnival · FreeA yard turned into a carnival of horror-movie villains, with moving props. A little scary. A private home listed on FrightMaps; please be polite and stay on the sidewalk.- Mom's Haunted House: a not-scary night and a scary one7:00 PM · Mom's Haunted House · FreeA home haunt with two nights: a gentle, not-scary one for little kids on Oct 24 from 7pm, and the scary version on Halloween from 6pm. A private home listed on FrightMaps; please be polite and stay on the sidewalk.
Sunday, October 25
- The Great Elephant Migration: outdoor art downtownThrough Sun Dec 6 · Downtown Livermore (Bankhead Plaza, Stockmen's Park) · FreeA free outdoor art exhibit you can walk around in downtown Livermore, at Bankhead Plaza and Stockmen's Park. Presented by Livermore Valley Arts and Three Thirty-Three Arts.
- Pick of the Patch: pumpkins and a bounce-house playgroundThrough Nov 1; weekdays 4–9pm, weekends 10am–9pm · Pick of the Patch Pumpkins (ABC Tree Farms) · Free entry; bounce wristbands $22–35Pick a pumpkin, then let the kids loose in a big inflatable playground. Entry and parking are free; bounce wristbands for ages 2–12 cost $22–35.
- Scarecrow contest at Alden Lane NurseryThrough Oct 31, during nursery hours · Alden Lane Nursery · FreeStroll past a garden full of homemade scarecrows and vote for your favorite, with pumpkins and gourds for sale around the nursery.
- Haunted Mansion Halloween: a family-friendly yard graveyardEvenings through Halloween; hours not posted · Haunted Mansion Halloween · FreeA haunted-mansion and graveyard scene set up in a front yard. Gentle enough for families. A private home listed on FrightMaps; please be polite and stay on the sidewalk.
- Livermore Monsters: a free Halloween yard displayEvenings through Halloween; hours not posted · Livermore Monsters · FreeA front yard full of Halloween monsters to stop by and look at. A private home listed on FrightMaps; please be polite and stay on the sidewalk.
- Joan's Farm pumpkin patchThrough Oct 31, Tue–Sun 10am–6pm · Joan's Farm · Free entry, $5 parking; activities $5 or $25 wristbandA family pumpkin patch out on Mines Road with a maze, pumpkin bowling, a little train, farm animals and a pretend Western town. Activities are $5 each or $25 for a wristband; cash or check only.
Livermore Sunday Farmers' Market9:00 AM – 1:00 PM · Downtown Livermore · FreeA weekly open-air farmers' market where local farmers and vendors sell fresh produce and food from stalls, on Second St in downtown Livermore between S. L St and S. J St. Free to browse; it runs year-round, rain or shine.
Halloween hayrides at historic Hagemann Ranch1:00 – 5:00 PM · Hagemann Ranch · FreeThe Livermore Heritage Guild opens its 1870s ranch for hayrides, crafts, games and pumpkin decorating.- Frightmare: a free home haunted house with live actors7:00 – 9:00 PM · Frightmare Home Haunt · Free (donations welcome)One of the Bay Area's best-known home haunts, with live actors and jump scares; recommended for ages 10 and up. Younger kids can come to the lights-on walk-throughs (Oct 27–29 4–6pm, Oct 31 1–3pm). Free; donations welcome.
- Horror Carnival: a horror-villain yard display7:00 PM · Horror Carnival · FreeA yard turned into a carnival of horror-movie villains, with moving props. A little scary. A private home listed on FrightMaps; please be polite and stay on the sidewalk.
Coming up
- Trunk or Treat with Livermore PoliceWed Oct 21, 5–8pm · Livermore Police Department · FreePolice cars and fire trucks are decorated and handing out candy around the Livermore police station. Kids under 12 need an adult. Trunk-or-treat means kids in costume collect candy from decorated car trunks in a parking lot.
- Halloween critters: creepy or cool?Sat Oct 31, 10:30am · Del Valle Regional Park · Free (park parking fee)A park naturalist introduces the spiders, bats, snakes and other animals people find spooky, at Del Valle. Free; regular park parking fee.
Back in the Day After Dark: '80s and '90s Halloween partySat Oct 31, 7pm–midnight · The Hangar · Free entryThree DJs playing '80s and '90s hits and more than 40 self-serve beers at The Hangar. Free entry.
Haunted Winery Crawl: Halloween wine hop in LivermoreFri–Sat, Oct 30–31 · FreeA Halloween-weekend "trick-or-treat" for adults: go from winery to winery with a decorated wine glass and get a free small pour (a splash) at each one. Participating wineries are Charles R, Fenestra, JMC, McGrail, Omega Road and Sakura.
Tuesdays on the Terrace at McGrail winery: free entryTuesdays 4–7pm · McGrail Vineyards and Winery · Free (ticket required)A weekly Tuesday late-afternoon event on the terrace of McGrail Vineyards and Winery in Livermore, with free entry. It is ticketed, so reserve a free ticket before you go.- JMC Cellars Harvest Recap: talk with the winemakerSun Oct 25, 12–1:30pm · JMC Cellars · FreeA free sit-down at the JMC Cellars winery on Greenville Road where the vintner (the winemaker) looks back on this year's grape harvest. Reserve a ticket ahead.
- Free live music Saturdays at Retzlaff VineyardsSaturdays 12–4:30pm · Retzlaff Organic Vineyards · Free entryRetzlaff Organic Vineyards, a winery, has free entry on Saturday afternoons when a band plays live music on the grounds. Wine club members (who sign up to buy wine regularly) also get free tastings and picnic tables; picnic groups need to meet a minimum wine purchase.
- Fun Fridays: free live music at Wood Family VineyardsFridays 5–8pm · Wood Family Vineyards · Free entryFun Fridays is a weekly evening of live music at Wood Family Vineyards, a Livermore winery, with free entry. You reserve with a credit card, and there is a $10 fee if you book and don't show up.
- Livermore Valley Wine Country Free MapOpen year-round · FreeA downloadable, printable map of the wineries in Livermore Valley wine country.
- Joan's Farm & Pumpkin PatchSeptember–October · Joan's Farm & Pumpkin Patch · Free admissionA pumpkin patch and farm play area on Mines Rd, with free admission.
- Livermore Heritage Guild: free historic sites and Ravenswood toursHistory Center Thu & Sat 11:30am–4pm; select Sundays · FreeThe Livermore Heritage Guild, a local history group, opens Livermore's historic buildings to visitors for free. The History Center is open Thursdays and Saturdays; this month Duarte Garage opens Oct 18 (10am–2pm), Hagemann Ranch Oct 25 (1–4pm), and the Ravenswood estate offers tours Oct 25 (12–4pm).