Whether your kids are sick, you’re busy traveling or just don’t feel like being out and about, I’ve got some ways you can celebrate Halloween without trick or treating.
Here is how my family will celebrate Halloween without trick or treating:
1. Thrift a Costume
Halloween is the second-largest commercial holiday in America (source). On average, Americans spend about $92 per person. If you’re looking to save some money and make a more sustainable choice, try thrifting a costume! Halloween costumes can be pricey and your child will only wear it for a few hours.
Thrifting for costumes is not only good for the environment, it is also an incredibly fun way to celebrate Halloween without trick or treating. Find a day to visit a few local thrift stores and see what you can find. Gather together pieces that would work for a costume.
Here are a few thrifted Halloween costumes from my family over the years!
My son as a pumpkin.
This thrifted onesie was perfect for my son who was 3 months at the time. This cost me less than $10.
My daughter wearing the same costume from my son, 2 years later.
My daughter then wore this same thrifted outfit 2 years later at 5 months old.
Me as a Starbucks Barista and My Daughter as A Skeleton.
I thrifted a green apron and it ended up being perfect for a DIY Starbucks barista Halloween costume! I found this hat online and grabbed a Starbucks drink, for the costume of course! Fun fact: I was about 10 weeks pregnant in this photo and felt absolutely miserable!
My daughter as a skeleton.
In the picture below you can also see my daughter wearing a thrifted glow-in-the-dark skeleton shirt. Here she’s wearing thrifted PJ pants, but this could be paired with black leggings and black shoes for a perfect, simple, Halloween costume with no waste.
2. Use Halloween Coloring Pages
I’ve created these 6 free coloring pages just for you! These are great activities for your kids and students to celebrate Halloween without trick or treating. These can be used in the classroom or at home.
3. Halloween Ghost Pumpkin Science Experiment
Ages 2+. Have some fun with baking soda and vinegar with this fun experiment. Even my two year old loves this one. This works best on a carved pumpkin. If you already have a carved pumpkin, this is even better because of wasting the pumpkin, you can use it for this activity.
- Add vinegar to an easy-to-pour cup and place to the side
- Add baking soda to the bottom of the pumpkin along with food coloring. The recipe at Little Bins and Little Hands says you can also add dish soap and glitter for a more dramatic effect.
- When the child is ready, pour the vinegar into the baking soda mixture.
Questions to ask your kids and students in relation to the Halloween Pumpkin Experiment:
- What is your hypothesis for what will happen when baking soda and vinegar are mixed?
- Can you describe the physical changes that occur when you mix baking soda and vinegar?
- What is the role of each substance (baking soda and vinegar) in the reaction?
- Can you identify any signs that a chemical reaction is taking place during the experiment?
- What gas is being produced during the reaction? How can you tell?
- How does the temperature of the mixture change during the reaction?
- Explain why the mixture fizzes and produces bubbles.
- What is the chemical equation for the reaction between baking soda and vinegar?
- If you change the quantities of baking soda and vinegar used, how might the reaction differ?
- What do you think would happen if you varied the temperature of the vinegar before mixing it with baking soda?
- Can you think of other substances that might produce similar reactions to baking soda and vinegar?
- How does the texture or consistency of the mixture change as the reaction progresses?
- What safety precautions should be taken while conducting this experiment?
- What could you do to slow down or speed up the reaction between baking soda and vinegar?
- How would you test the pH of the mixture before and after the reaction?
- What happens if you try this experiment with different types of vinegar (e.g., white vinegar, apple cider vinegar)?
- Can you think of real-world applications where the reaction between baking soda and vinegar is used?
- Why might scientists and engineers be interested in understanding this reaction?
- What might happen if you add other substances, such as food coloring or dish soap, to the mixture?
- How does the amount of fizzing relate to the amount of gas produced in the reaction?
4. Guess How Many Game
I play this game at every party and event I host. It’s such an easy game and a fun icebreaker!
- Fill a jar with candy corn or candy bars. I like using candy corn because you can fit more in! You can reuse the candy corn for a fun game afterward. Here are a few suggestions.
- Make sure to count how many pieces of candy are in the jar.
- Have your students guess how many pieces of candy are in the jar. You can have them write their guesses and name on scrap paper.
- At the end of the day, reveal the answer (or count it out loud with the students).
- Whoever comes closest without going over wins a prize!
5. Repurpose Milk Jugs For Halloween Crafts and Decor
Repurposing and reusing items you already have for your fall decor is a great way to celebrate Halloween without trick or treating, but also a great way to practice sustainability. Instead of throwing away old milk jugs, rinse them, draw faces on them, cut a hole in the back, and stuff them with lights. These can be placed in front of your doorstep or used around your home.
This can even be a fun activity for students to decorate the classroom or take home with them.
6. Minute to Win It Games
Play games throughout the week of Halloween, leading up to the day or play these games on Halloween!
Minute to Win It games are fun because they don’t last longer than a minute and they can be played with items around the house! Again, reuse and repurpose what you already have! Here are a few ideas for a minute to win it games you can play in your home or classroom to celebrate Halloween without trick or treating:
7. Pumpkin Carving/Pumpkin Painting
A classic and timeless Halloween activity that is great for both kids and adults – at home or at school.
Celebrate Halloween without trick or treating with this idea. Grab your carving tools and don’t forget to toast the pumpkin seeds!
Take out the pumpkin carving tools and see who can carve the best pumpkin, the most creatively. Another fun option is pumpkin painting. We usually opt for this option because we have young kids and it is a safer (but messier!) option rather than dealing with sharp tools. If don’t like the idea of messy paint, you can also use permanent markers and stickers!
We got these Halloween decor stickers about 4 years ago and still have some! We use them every year and they’re so much fun!
8. Visit a Pumpkin Patch
This is one of those fall bucket list items that are a must, but have you ever visited a pumpkin patch on Halloween? There is added fun to the pumpkin patch on Halloween. Typically there are special treats, events, and rides to celebrate Halloween. If you want to go out and about on Haloween, but don’t necessarily want to go trick or treating, celebrate Halloween without trick or treating by visiting a pumpkin patch or finding a new pumpkin patch you’ve never visited.
9. Spruce up your Halloween Treats
Add these adorable Halloween tags to your treats to make them extra special. This small touch is a great addition to any treat espeically if you celebrating Halloween without trick or treating.
Use these Halloween gift tags to print on decorative paper or cardstock and label/ personalize gifts, treats, party favors, and other items during the Halloween season.
These tags have 20 unique designs. Each design is in black & white, color, and editable. Half of the gift tags are pre-signed as “your teacher”. The other half of the gift tags can be edited to add your name.
10. Try Low Waste Candy
When it comes to candy, there are several zero-waste options you can consider. These options focus on minimizing or eliminating single-use plastic packaging and promoting eco-friendly choices. Here are some zero-waste candy options:
Candy in boxes:
Candy in foil:
11. Make Halloween-themed treats
I’m an adult and this is secretly still one of my favorite Halloween treats! I also use this activity during Earth Day. Find out how to make it here!
12. Have “scary” meals
Coordinate your meals with the season! Making “scary” meals is a great way to celebrate Halloween without trick or treating. These meals are easy and delicious!
13. Binge-watch (appropriate) Halloween movies
Of course, you can determine what is age-appropriate for your child. Here are some of our favorite Halloween movies.
Halloween Movies For Kids
- Hocus Pocus
- Halloweentown I
- Halloweentown 2 Kalabar’s Revenge
- Halloweentown High
- Casper
- Under Wraps
- Tim Burton’s The Nightmare before Christmas
- Goosebumps
- Double, Double, Toil & Trouble
- Don’t Look Under the Bed
Halloween Movies For Adults
- (Old Version) Halloween
- (New Version) Halloween
- Friday the 13th
- A Nightmare on Elm Street
- Pet Sematary
- Children of the Corn
- Paranormal Activity
- I.T.
- Scream
- The Conjuring
- Child’s Play
14. Try Trick or Treating At Home
Instead of going out to trick or treat, we will be trick or treating at home. Some of my family members come over on Halloween night and we provide them with a bowl of candy and have a different family member in each room of the house.
Another alternative is to play a Halloween scavenger hunt. At each stop the child, or student gets candy!
I hope you enjoyed this post about Halloween Without Trick or Treating
How are you spending Halloween night this year?
Some really great ideas here I will definitely have to try. Taking my daughter trick or treating on our street with some precautions all the families on our block agreed to – trying to make the best of it!
This year will definitely be different. Trying to make the best of it is all we can do! Hope these tips will help you have an even more fun day!
Love these ideas! We are going to a local church’s trunk or treat this year since it is basically the only thing happening. We may have to add in some of the fun ideas for the week though 🙂
Truck or treat sounds like so much fun! Yes! Celebrating during the week makes the holiday that much more special. Maybe you will end up creating a new tradition!
So many fun Halloween ideas! I loved the baby pumpkin costume too cute
Thank you! Yes! We have to find ways to still have Halloween fun at home
I love the milk containers and the spider cookies!! All of these look super fun 🙂
I’m so glad these Halloween ideas were helpful for you! The milk containers are so fun and use items you already have at home!