Weekender: Best Family Events for Seattle, the Eastside and South Sound

Ah, the rain has come. Here's hoping for a sun break — fingers crossed it comes during your kid's soccer game, eh? We've got great options for weekend family time indoors and outdoors, too. Check out all our top picks here, pack your jackets and get out there and revel in fall fun.

Seattle area:

• Quick, snag your family tix to this sweet Halloween combo: a haunted chocolate factory tour (opening Thursday).
• Bring kids with and without intellectual disabilities (ages 2–7) to learn and play sports together, among other festivities, at the first annual Day of Inclusion (Saturday).
• Explore and celebrate the unique culture of the local Hmong community through arts, food, music, hands-on activities and games (Saturday).
• Reserve your free tix to an awesome family variety show with magic, comedy, a hoop artist and music (Saturday).
• Put on your helmet, grab your pick and watch for creepers at the opening weekend of this world premiere Minecraft exhibition (Saturday–Sunday).

Eastside and environs:

• Sign up for all kinds of thrills, booking a zip through the darkened forest on Bellevue's Zip Scare Zip Tour (opening Friday).
• Enter the fantastical world of Dr. Seuss in the marvelous youth theater mashup “Seussical the Musical” (opening Friday).
• The joyful traditions of Diwali take over Bellevue Square with Indian dance, henna art and a lantern creation station; plus, check out more upcoming Diwali events (Saturday).
• Press apples into cider, tour the fish hatchery, snap a family photo and more at Issaquah's signature apple event (Saturday).

South Sound area:

• Celebrate Halloween among the animals with a fun and spooky wander (plus tram ride!) through this park in the dark (Friday–Saturday).
• Turn up for kid-sized thrills and chills during spooky story time in a conservatory (Saturday).
• Wear your robes and complete your outfit by building your own free wizarding wand; supplies provided (Saturday).
• Here's your family's chance to help out our endangered neighbor orcas — we all thank you (Saturday).
• Decorate a mini flower pot and admire the fall colors at two neighboring free fall foliage festivals for families (Saturday–Sunday).

More ideas for weekend fun:

• Check out the inner workings of this phenomenal, family-friendly new museum.
• Explore local indigenous cultures at this kids' museum; then put all these great kids' museums on your list.
• Even if it's drizzly, you gotta go and pluck your pumpkin from the patch and pick apples in the orchard.
• Find the just-right level of fright for your fam in our guide to scary and unscary haunted attractions.
• All aboard for kid-sized train adventures around town — and book now if you fancy a family holiday train outing to see Santa in a couple of months.
• Bookmark our family fun calendar for great activities happening every day of the week.