Big events in Wichita happening in October

October offers plenty of things to do in the Heart of the Country, from concerts featuring artists such as Beth Leavel and Dropkick Murphys to fall festivals including the 21st annual Tallgrass Film Festival, ICT Bloktoberfest and the 42nd annual Wichita Asian Festival.

If it’s spooky fun you’re out to find, you’ll find plenty of family-friendly pumpkin patches and Halloween events as well as adult Halloween experiences good for a scare. Plus, Wichita’s affordable and diverse museums have many excellent exhibitions this month as well as a variety of special events.

Take a look at this assortment of lively activities and events happening in October in Wichita.

Festivals & Special Events

• Sept. 30-Oct. 1 – Great Plains Renaissance & Scottish Festival at Sedgwick County Park
• Oct. 1 – Wichita Toy Train Show at Wichita Toy Train Museum
• Oct. 5-8 –  21st annual Tallgrass Film Festival at various venues
• Oct. 5-7 – Prost's Oktoberfest at Revolutsia
• Oct. 7 – B-29 Doc & WSU Tech Pull a Plane 2023 at B-29 Doc Hangar, Education and Visitors Center (Rescheduled for March 2024)
• Oct. 8 – Prairie Fire Marathon, Half Marathon, 5K and Friendly 5K in downtown Wichita
• Oct. 11-Dec. 17 – Wild Lights at Sedgwick County Zoo
• Oct. 13-14 – ICT Bloktoberfest at Naftzger Park
• Oct. 28 –  42^nd annual Wichita Asian Festival at Century II
• Oct. 28 – Dia de los Muertos at Nomar International Market
• Oct. 28-29 – Air Capital Comic Con at Wichita Sports Forum

Halloween Festivities

• ongoing through Oct. 31 – 13 Sinister Souls Haunted House
• Sept. 16, 23 and Oct. 7, 14, 21, 28 and Nov. 4 – Wichita’s Spooky Party Bus Tour in downtown Wichita
• Sept. 29-Oct. 28 (Friday & Saturday): Wicked Island at O.J. Watson Park
• Oct. 5-7, 13-14 – Jack-o-lantern Spectacular at Botanica Wichita
• Oct. 6-31: Halloween Hall at Exploration Place
• Sept. 30, Oct. 7, 14, 21 & 28: Pumpkins at the Park at Tanganyika Wildlife Park
• Oct. 12 – Haunted Hops at Botanica Wichita
• Oct. 13-15 & 20-22: "Dracula: A Comic Thriller Starring Shirley Holmes and Jennie Watson" at Old Cowtown Museum
• Oct. 7, 14 & 28 – BooFest at Exploration Place
• Oct. 20 – Wicked Pairings at Exploration Place
• Oct. 21-22 – Hay, Hooves and Halloween at Old Cowtown Museum
• Oct. 27 – Halloween on the Farm at Eberly Farm
• Oct. 27 – “Rocky Horror Picture Show” film screening at Orpheum Theatre
• Oct. 27 – Spooky Night of Treasures fundraising event at Museum of World Treasures
• Oct. 29 – Halloween Spooktacular 2023 at Naftzger Park

Family Fun

• ongoing through Oct. 22 – “Pixel Palace” exhibition at Exploration Place
• Sept. 30-Oct. 1 – Wichita Brick Convention - LEGO Fan Expo at Century II
• Oct. 1, 8, 15, 22, 29 – Brunch & Bingo at Chicken N Pickle
• Oct. 3, 10, 17, 24, 31 – Singo at Chicken N Pickle
• Oct. 6 – First Fridays Under the Stars at Old Cowtown Museum
• Oct. 6, 13, 20, 27 – Little Aviators at Kansas Aviation Museum
• Oct. 7 – County Fair at Old Cowtown Museum
• Oct. 11-Dec. 17 – Wild Lights at Sedgwick County Zoo
• Oct. 14 – Steampunk Day at Old Cowtown Museum

Performing Arts

• ongoing through Oct. 8 – Forum Theatre presents "Sweeney Todd" at Wilke Center
• ongoing through Oct. 28 – “Nightmare on Mosley Street” at Mosley Street Melodrama
• ongoing through Nov. 4 – “Golden Girls, a Parody” at Roxy’s Downtown
• Oct. 1, 8, 15, 22 – Sunday Brunch Theatre at Mosley Street Melodrama
• Oct. 12 – Wichita Wurlitzer presents a screening of the silent flim “Phantom of the Opera” at Century II
• Oct. 13 – "Snow White" by Grand Kyiv Ballet at Orpheum Theatre
• Oct. 14 – Music Theatre Wichita hosts Broadway superstar Beth Leavel in concert at Century II
• Oct. 29 – Wichita Symphony Orchestra presents "Suite Tributes" at Century II

Live Music & Comedy

• Oct. 1 – An Evening with Joanne Shaw Taylor at The Cotillion
• Oct. 4 – Dropkick Murphys at WAVE
• Oct. 5 – Creed Fisher at The Cotillion
• Oct. 5 – Jason Eady at WAVE
• Oct. 5 – Penn & Teller presents The Foolers at Orpheum Theatre
• Oct. 6, 7, 13, 14, 20, 21, 27, 28 – Live Jazz at The 1906 Bar & Lounge at Hotel at Old Town
• Oct. 7 – Leanne Morgan: Just Getting Started Tour 2023 at Century II
• Oct. 8 – The Last Ten Seconds of Life at TempleLive
• Oct. 11 – Mac Sabbath at TempleLive
• Oct. 12 – Charlie Berens at Orpheum Theatre
• Oct. 13 – Mickey Avalon at WAVE
• Oct. 13 – Teddy Swims Live In Concert at TempleLive
• Oct. 13 – Fool House: The Ultimate 90s Dance Party at The Cotillion
• Oct. 14 – Texas Hippie Coalition at The Cotillion
• Oct. 14 – Amy Grant at Orpheum Theatre
• Oct. 14 – 80s Rock Invasion at Kansas Star Casino
• Oct. 17 – Rumours of Fleetwood Mac at The Cotillion
• Oct. 17 – Eli Lev at Kirby’s Beer Store
• Oct. 19 – The Ozzy Osbourne Experience with Mr. Crowley at The Cotillion
• Oct. 19 – The Bored Teachers Comedy Tour at TempleLive Oct. 20 – Kevin Gates: Only the Generals Tour at The Cotillion
• Oct. 19 – Nate Bargatze: The Be Funny Tour at Hartman Arena
• Oct. 19 – Matt Rife: ProbleMATTic World Tour at Century II
• Oct. 20 – Back to the ’80s Party at WAVE
• Oct. 20 – The Black Jacket Symphony Presents Eagles' Hotel California at Orpheum Theatre
• Oct. 21 – Dawn of The Dub: ATLiens at The Cotillion
• Oct. 22 – Tracy Byrd at Wichita Union Stockyards
• Oct. 25 – Vince Herman at WAVE
• Oct. 25 – Youth Fountain at TempleLive
• Oct. 26 – Cradle of Filth & Devil Driver Live In Concert at TempleLive
• Oct. 27 – The Taylor Party - Taylor Swift Tribute Night at TempleLive
• Oct. 27 – 6th Annual Halloween Bar Crawl at Peerless
• Oct. 27 – 2^nd annual Monster Mash at WAVE
• Oct. 28 – Pop Evil Flesh & Bone Tour at TempleLive
• Oct 28 – Tyler Halverson at WAVE
• Oct. 28 – Michael Jackson Tribute Concert at The Cotillion
• Oct. 31 – St. Paul & The Broken Bones with Maggie Rose Halloween Party at WAVE

Arts & Culture

• ongoing through October – “Why We Collect What We Collect” at Wichita-Sedgwick County Historical Museum
• ongoing through Oct. 27 – "Hands On" featuring Lily Dickson at the Envision Arts Gallery
• ongoing through Dec. 2 – “Lesley Dill, Wilderness: Light Sizzles Around Me” at Ulrich Museum of Art
• ongoing through Dec. 7 – “Where We Belong: Refugee Stories from Wichita” at Ulrich Museum of Art
• ongoing through Dec. 9 – “Zahy Tentehar: The Civilized” at Ulrich Museum of Art
• Oct. 6 – First Friday Gallery Crawl at various locations
• Oct. 6-27 – "Colors of the Wind" by George Mendoza at the Envision Arts Gallery

Sports & Recreation

• Oct. 8 – Prairie Fire Marathon, Half Marathon, 5K and Friendly 5K in downtown Wichita Oct. 20 – Wichita Thunder hockey versus Kansas City at INTRUST Bank Arena
• Oct. 21 – Pumpkin Run at Wichita State University
• Oct. 27 – Wichita Thunder hockey versus Cincinnati at INTRUST Bank Arena
• Oct. 28-29 – Wichita Thunder hockey versus Iowa at INTRUST Bank Arena
• Oct. 28 – Monster Dash 5k at Strataca

Film Screenings

• ongoing – Dome Theater shows at Exploration Place
• ongoing – "Kansas: An Immersive Dome Experience" in the Dome Theater at Exploration Place
• ongoing through March 28, 2024 – The Dark Side of the Moon - Official Planetarium Show at Exploration Place 
• Throughout October – various films available through Tallgrass Film Center
• Oct. 19 – “Beetlejuice” film screening at Orpheum Theatre
• Oct. 27 – “Rocky Horror Picture Show” film screening at Orpheum Theatre

Markets and More

• Oct. 6 – First Fridays Pop Up by Haute Handmade Markets at Revolutsia
• Oct. 7, 14, 21, 28 – Kansas Grown! Farmers Market at Sedgwick County Extension Office
• Oct. 7, 14, 21, 28 – Kansas Grown! Derby Farmers Market at Madison Avenue Central Park in Derby
• Oct. 7, 14, 21, 28 – Old Town Farm & Art Market at Farm & Art Plaza
• Oct. 14 – 2nd Saturday at various locations
• Oct. 14 – 2nd Saturday at The Workroom
• Oct. 14 – Outdoor Vintage Flea Market at Paramount East Antique Mall
• Oct. 14 – Second Saturday SALE-A-BRATION at Generations Antiques and Artisans
• Oct. 15 – Shop & Grub at Exploration Place Festival Plaza
• Oct. 21 – Outdoor Vintage Flea Market at Paramount Antique Mall
• Oct. 28 – Outdoor Vintage Market at Paramount Marketplace Antiques, Vintage & New
• Oct. 27 – Final Friday Food Truck Rally at Wichita Boathouse

For the latest list of events and experiences, check out the Visit Wichita calendar of events.