Fall by the Water: Your 2026 Guide to The Lakes and Eastern North Carolina
By admin September 16, 2026 Fall looks a little different on the North Carolina coast.
Instead of racing toward the season’s first changing leaves, autumn here arrives gradually: cooler evenings around the campfire, seafood festivals along the waterfront, fishing weather, quiet walks by the lake, and eventually the reds and golds of the Coastal Plain.
That makes The Lakes RV & Cabin Resort in Maysville an appealing place to experience the season. You can spend a morning fishing or paddling at the resort, head out for an afternoon festival in one of Eastern North Carolina’s waterfront towns, and still make it back in time to watch the sun settle over the lake.
And in fall 2026, there is plenty happening both at The Lakes and beyond.
Start With Life at the Lake
The Lakes is more than a place to park the RV. Guests can choose from full-hookup RV sites, two-bedroom lakefront cabins, or primitive tent sites, with fishing, trails, a sandy swimming beach, playground, dog park, watercraft rentals, fire rings, and boat access all part of the resort experience.
October visitors may even squeeze a little more summer into their fall getaway. The resort’s pool and beach are scheduled to remain open through October 31, weather permitting. When the evening cools down, every campsite has a fire ring — exactly where you want to be when sweatshirt weather finally settles over Eastern North Carolina.
Fishing doesn’t disappear with summer, either. Misty Morning and Cypress lakes are private catch-and-release waters where guests don’t need a fishing license, while White Oak Lake connects with the White Oak River and follows North Carolina licensing and harvest rules. See our full list of amenities and on-site activities to plan your visit.
October Begins With Seafood, Music, and Waterfront Festivals
The first weekend of October offers two very different ways to kick off the month.
Jacksonville Riverwalk Oktoberfest takes place October 2–3 at Riverwalk Crossing Park, bringing live music, food, family activities, and classic Oktoberfest contests to the New River waterfront.
Travel toward the coast instead and the 40th annual North Carolina Seafood Festival fills downtown Morehead City October 2–4. It’s a celebration of the state’s commercial fishing and seafood heritage, with fresh seafood, entertainment, rides, and some wonderfully coastal competitions — including oyster shucking and the “flounder fling.”
That combination is part of what makes a fall stay in Maysville interesting: one day can be spent beside a peaceful lake, and the next in the middle of one of Eastern North Carolina’s biggest waterfront celebrations.
Fall Festival Weekend Comes to The Lakes
October 9–12 brings the season directly to the resort.
Fall Festival Weekend at The Lakes includes sunset wagon rides, fall crafts, a cornhole tournament, and a Friday night outdoor movie by the campfire. Saturday evening adds live music from the Joe Baes Acoustic Show, while apple cider and cool lakeside evenings supply the unmistakable autumn atmosphere.
This also happens to be one of the busiest festival weekends in the region.
Just down the road, Swansboro hosts the 72nd annual Mullet Festival October 10–11. The tradition traces its roots to the completion of the White Oak River bridge in the 1950s, and today’s festival includes a parade, more than 160 craft and food vendors, live entertainment, and its famous mullet fish fry.
In the other direction, downtown New Bern hosts MumFest on the same weekend. The free waterfront festival features live music, amusement rides, food, and local artists and vendors throughout the historic downtown.
You don’t have to try to do everything. That’s the advantage. Spend the entire weekend enjoying the resort’s activities, or choose one neighboring festival for a half-day adventure before returning to the lake.
Trade the Hayride for a Kite in Late October
Fall on the coast isn’t only about pumpkins and cider.
On October 24–25, the 39th annual Carolina Kite Festival fills the sky over Fort Macon State Park in Atlantic Beach. Hundreds of colorful kites, including stunt and large display kites, turn the oceanfront into one of the region’s most photogenic autumn events.
Fort Macon also makes the trip worthwhile beyond the festival. Visitors can explore the historic fort, walk coastal trails, and take in beach and inlet views, making it an easy way to combine history, outdoor recreation, and the ocean in one fall outing. See more things to do near Maysville.
Halloween Belongs Back at the Lake
October ends with Halloween Weekend at The Lakes, October 30 through November 1.
Kids can trick-or-treat through the resort, compete in a costume contest, and ride the family-friendly haunted trail wagon. There are Halloween crafts throughout the weekend, an outdoor movie on Friday, and a Monster Mash dance with a DJ on Saturday.
It also lands right at the end of the resort’s scheduled pool and beach season, so depending on the weather, families may get the rare combination of Halloween costumes, campfires, and one last trip to the water.
November Is When Coastal Fall Really Settles In
Travelers often associate North Carolina leaf season with October, but the coast runs on a later schedule. NC State’s 2026 foliage outlook expects peak color to reach the Coastal Plain in early to mid-November, although weather conditions could make colors more variable this year.
That makes November especially interesting at The Lakes.
Beaufort’s Shuckapalooza runs November 5–7, celebrating North Carolina oysters and coastal food with wine dinners, local beverages, live music, and an oyster roast.
Then comes one of the most packed weekends of the season.
On November 14, The Lakes hosts its own Oyster Roast Weekend, with free steamed oysters, crafts, outdoor games, and a casual potluck-style atmosphere for campers and cabin guests.
That same evening, historic downtown Swansboro glows during Swansboro by Candlelight, with luminaries, entertainment, seasonal treats, and its annual Christmas-tree lighting.
And over in Beaufort, the Pirate Invasion takes place November 14–15, filling the waterfront with costumed reenactors, cannon demonstrations, maritime history, performers, and family activities.
Stay by the fire all afternoon, wander a candlelit waterfront after sunset, or spend the day with pirates on the Crystal Coast. There really isn’t a wrong way to build that weekend.
Finish the Season Grateful by the Water
Fall closes on a quieter note at The Lakes with Thanksgiving Weekend, November 26–29.
Instead of rushing through the holiday, guests can make gratitude crafts, gather for Campfire Cocoa Night, enjoy lakeside walks, and settle in for a Saturday family movie. RV sites and cabins give families a chance to make Thanksgiving feel more like an escape and less like another item on the calendar.
And perhaps that is the best way to describe fall at The Lakes.
It isn’t only a festival weekend or a trip to the beach. It’s the freedom to spend one day surrounded by food, music, and people and the next with a fishing rod, a quiet trail, and a fire glowing beside the lake.
This fall, come for the events — but leave some room in the schedule to simply enjoy where you are.
Plan Your Fall Stay at The Lakes
Fall weekends fill up faster than people expect. Book your RV site, cabin, park model, or tent site now to lock in the weekend you want. Have questions? Reach out to us here.
The Lakes RV & Cabin Resort
100 Lakes Blvd, Maysville, NC 28555
(910) 595-4112
thelakesrvcabinresort.com
Because Life’s Better at The Lakes!
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