At 10:15 on Halloween morning, the first group of visitors will walk into a Boerne cemetery and meet people who settled this town generations ago. Ten local community members will play those pioneers. The tour is free, it runs again at 10:45 and 11:15, and the Genealogical Society of Kendall County and Boerne Parks and Recreation present it as part of Family History Month.
That event says a lot about how Boerne does October. The city's 2026 roundup of Halloween happenings is mostly built on Boerne itself. It lists a cemetery of pioneers, an 1885 house, a historic hospital building on Main Street and legends tied to downtown addresses. This year the calendar also helps. October 31 falls on a Saturday, so the morning history program, the afternoon trick-or-treating and the evening events all land on one free day within a few blocks of each other.
October 31, Hour by Hour
Here is how the day lines up, using the times organizers have published:
- 10:15, 10:45 or 11:15 a.m. Gone But Not Forgotten: A Boerne Cemetery Tour. It's free and features 10 actors playing Boerne pioneers.
- All day during business hours. Boerne's Trick-or-Treat Trail on the Hill Country Mile. Participating shops and businesses hand out candy, and adults in costume are welcome too.
- Noon, 1, 2, 3 or 4 p.m. Boerne Ghost Stories inside the historic Kuhlmann-King House, a home built in 1885. Seats are limited, reservations opened October 1, and proceeds go to the Boerne Area Historical Preservation Society. Organizers say it isn't recommended for very young children.
- 6 to 10 p.m. Haunted at the Hospital, Camp Bar and Feed's pop-up bar with spooky cocktails inside the historic hospital building on the Hill Country Mile. Halloween is the last night of its run.
- Saturday evening. Boerne Ghost Tours, hosted by DeVino Cellars and presented by The Boerne Life, run every Saturday evening from October 3 through November 14, and Halloween is one of those Saturdays. The walk lasts about 90 minutes and starts and ends at DeVino Cellars.
The city's own roundup points out that you can pair the cemetery tour or the ghost stories with the trick-or-treat trail and "you've got a full Halloween day without ever having to venture far from downtown." Laid out by the hour, that's easy to see. Most of these events are short, they start at set times, and they're spaced so one ends before the next begins.
Why So Much of It Runs Through Old Buildings
Look at who is putting these events on. A genealogical society runs the cemetery tour. A historical preservation society gets the proceeds from the Kuhlmann-King House performances. The bar pop-up was designed around a building with a hospital past. The DeVino walking tour shares local legends and paranormal stories tied to "some of Boerne's historic locations."
The common thread is the downtown building stock. Several of the season's biggest draws are basically the Hill Country Mile's older addresses with a story added. So the day becomes a walk between stops, and the shops and restaurants along the way are part of the outing.
That also makes reservations matter more than usual. The Kuhlmann-King House has a handful of seatings in a single historic home. The ghost walk is ticketed through Eventbrite. The cemetery tour has three set start times. Small venues fill up, and Halloween on a Saturday will bring more people downtown than a weekday would.
The Two Weeks Before Fill the Same Blocks
The rest of October follows the same idea. Most of these events are evening or weekend outings, each in a specific venue, and several sit right on the Mile.
October 15 through 31, Thursday to Saturday. Haunted at the Hospital opens at Camp Bar and Feed, 6 to 10 p.m. each night it runs.
Sundays in October. DeVino Cellars runs Sundays & Sips, with spooky movies, popcorn and mimosas. It's the daytime partner to the Saturday ghost walks.
October 20, 7 to 9 p.m. Wonderland Factory hosts a Halloween girls' night with optional rounds of BOO-nco. The hosts explain the game, so no experience or set group is needed.
October 25. Boo! Breakfast is back at Tapatio Springs, with costumes, sweets and seasonal decorations. Admission is listed at $21 per adult and $12 per child.
October 28. Richter Tavern hosts a Halloween Dinner. Each course is paired with your choice of cocktails or wine, and the city's roundup recommends reserving.
October 29. Witch's Night Out, the annual shopping-and-sipping evening at La Te Da & The Christmas Shoppe.
Dinners, bars and shop nights fill the weekdays, and the big community day comes on the Saturday.
The One Listing to Confirm First
Boerne Boo! is the one event that looks like a classic fall festival, and its status is the least clear. The Patrick Heath Public Library and Boerne Parks and Recreation have it scheduled for Saturday, October 24, as a free event with arts and crafts, bounce houses, carnival games, food trucks and costume contests for kids, adults and pets.
The signals point in different directions. The event link in the city's Halloween roundup is labeled "canceled-boerne-boo." The city's Parks Calendar still lists Boerne BOO! for Saturday, October 24, and The Boerne Life's October events roundup, published September 30, includes it as well. None of the sources reviewed for this post explains the canceled label or names a replacement. If the 24th is part of your plans, check with the library or Parks and Recreation before you go.
The October 31 lineup doesn't depend on that answer. The cemetery tour, the house performances, the trick-or-treat trail, the pop-up bar and the ghost walk are all separate events with their own hosts.
Oktoberfest Still Has a Dated Event and a Month-Long Tap
Most of Boerne's brewery Oktoberfests happened in late September and early October. That includes 28 Songs Brewhouse + Kitchen on September 26, Tusculum Brewing Co. on October 3, and Cibolo Creek Brewing Co. and Free Roam Brewing Co. on October 10 and 11. A few are still to come.
- Joshua Creek Ranch, October 17. Chef Robert Kennon and his team are cooking a full German menu with German-inspired bar specials, and guests get a complimentary Joshua Creek Ranch beer stein with a bar purchase while supplies last. Reservations are required.
- The Dodging Duck Brewhaus, all October. This is the 25th year of Ducktoberfest Lager, along with sausage plate specials. The Sonic Waves play October 17, and two jazz bands play every Sunday.
- Richter Tavern and Richter Cork & Keg, all October. There's no formal event, but both are offering German selections through the month.
The Dodging Duck's Sunday jazz runs alongside DeVino's Sundays & Sips, so late-October Sundays downtown have a set rhythm of their own between the two Saturdays that bracket the stretch.
November Picks Up Where the 31st Leaves Off
The ghost walks don't end with Halloween. They keep going every Saturday through November 14, which is also the Saturday of November Boerne Market Days at Main Plaza, 100 N. Main St. Saturday hours are listed as 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., and the regular Sunday schedule runs 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. That makes November 14 the last chance this season to pair a daytime market with the evening ghost walk.
Two weeks later, the Mile switches to the holidays. Travel Texas lists Dickens on Main for November 27 and 28, Thanksgiving weekend.
A few downtown additions may be ready by then. These are targets that had been reported as of mid-September, not confirmed openings. According to The Boerne Life's September 15 business update:
Business | Location | Reported status as of Sept. 15, 2026 |
|---|---|---|
Cypress Grille bar | Space next to Cypress Grille, downtown | Brand-new full bar, expected the first weekend of October |
Hill & Bach Cellars | 265 N. Main St. | Described as a "new wine destination," aiming for about late October |
LE STEAK by Tardif | Former Creek Restaurant property | Under construction with signage up, no opening date announced |
If Hill & Bach Cellars opens on schedule, it would join the Main Street lineup during the busiest stretch of the downtown calendar. Further out, Boerne Heritage Volkspark was nearly 50% complete in August. It's planned to open in spring 2027 with a splashpad, an all-abilities playground, pickleball courts, a dog park and a paved ADA trail, according to My Boerne News.
Here in Boerne, I keep track of what's opening on Main Street and which weekends fill the Mile, because it shapes everything from showing schedules to the best week to put a home on the market. If you're thinking about a move within Boerne, or just want a local take on how the season affects your plans, Lira Realty Group is happy to talk it through. Schedule a consultation.
