Key Biscayne has stacked its whole fall season into one weekend. From Friday, Oct. 23 through Sunday, Oct. 25, the island gets a free 80s tribute concert in Paradise Park, a Haunted Hike in the shadow of the Cape Florida Lighthouse, and the Village's 7th annual Fall Festival on the Civic Center grounds. Two of the three are free, and both daytime events open with a quiet hour set aside for families of children with disabilities.

Friday: cornhole, then a mixtape night in Paradise Park

The weekend starts early on Friday, Oct. 23. The Key Biscayne Community Center is setting up cornhole games in Paradise Park from 5 to 6:30 p.m., free and open to anyone who wants to grab a partner and see who has the steadiest toss on the island.

Stay put, because the main event follows at 7 p.m. The Village's concert series, now in its 16th year, brings in Mad World Orchestra, a tribute band that plays nothing but 80s hits. Expect the songs you heard on the radio, taped off the radio, and still know every word to. The show is free. Seating is limited and first come, first served, so the Village suggests bringing your own chairs, blankets and snacks. On a clear October night with a breeze off the water, it is one of the nicer places in Miami-Dade to hear live music without crossing the causeway.

Saturday: the Haunted Hike at Bill Baggs

On Saturday, Oct. 24, the Friends of Cape Florida turn Bill Baggs Cape Florida State Park at 1200 S. Crandon Blvd. into a Halloween night out. The Haunted Hike runs 6 to 10 p.m., with doors opening at 5:45 p.m., and the event poster puts the lighthouse itself front and center behind a full moon.

There are two ways in. A carnival ticket covers unlimited rides and the event's attractions, but not the hike. A Haunted Hike ticket books a timed slot for one walk through the trail and also includes the carnival rides, performances, face painting and a pumpkin patch. Spooky tram rides and food trucks round out the night; food is paid separately. Tickets are sold only through the organizer's Eventbrite page, which does not list prices up front, so check there before you go. Parking is free, the event goes on rain or shine, and money raised supports the park.

Know your crew before you book. The organizers describe the hike as genuinely scary and recommend it for ages 8 and up, and children 8 and under need a parent or guardian with them, each holding a ticket. For younger or more sensitive kids, the evening opens with a Superhero Hour from 5 to 6 p.m., a sensory-friendly session before the main crowd arrives. It still requires a ticket.

Florida State Parks, the Key Biscayne Community Foundation and the Village of Key Biscayne all appear as partners on the event poster, which is part of what makes it feel like an island-wide tradition rather than a commercial haunted house.

Sunday: the Village's free Fall Festival

The weekend wraps up Sunday, Oct. 25, when the Village of Key Biscayne hosts its 7th annual Fall Festival at the Key Biscayne Civic Center, 530 Crandon Blvd. It runs noon to 5 p.m. and is free and open to the public.

The lineup is built for families: bounce houses, a petting zoo, food trucks, live performances, jewelry making, face painting and pumpkin decorating. A few of those activities run on limited supplies and limited hours, and pumpkins are capped at one per child, so families with pumpkin-minded kids should not count on arriving at 4:30.

As at the Haunted Hike, the first hour is reserved. From noon to 1 p.m., the festival holds its own Superhero Hour, an exclusive window for families of children with disabilities to enjoy the rides and activities before the gates open to everyone at 1 p.m. It is a small scheduling choice that says a lot about how the island approaches community events.

Why this weekend is worth clearing

Plenty of South Florida towns throw a fall festival. What sets Key Biscayne's apart is the setting and the sequence: three nights in a row, all within a few minutes of each other on Crandon Boulevard, with the lighthouse, the parks and the Village Green doing the heavy lifting. You can do the whole thing without getting back on the Rickenbacker, and two of the three evenings cost nothing.

If you only pick one, make it the one that fits your household. Teens and adults who like a scare should grab a hike slot early on Saturday. Families with toddlers will get the most out of Sunday's festival, especially that first hour if it applies to them. And anyone who still owns a cassette, or wishes they did, belongs in Paradise Park on Friday night with a blanket and a cooler.

Questions about the Friday and Sunday events go to the Key Biscayne Community Center at 305-365-8900, and the full schedule lives on the Village's events calendar.