2022 Halloween Festivities Around the Bay
Halloween is my favorite thing in the entire world, ask anyone. Every year I scour the internet looking for a full month’s worth of Halloween activities to take my kids to so we can wear our costumes many times and get all the items on our Halloween bucket list checked off. Pumpkin patch, check. Corn Maze, check. Trick or Treating, Check. Spooky stories, check!
This year, my enthusiastic list-making is to the reader’s benefit. If anyone loves Halloween as much as I do, take notice, because I’m about to spell it out. These are my eight do-not-miss Halloween festivities for 2022!
Jack O’Lantern Jamboree – Oakland
Children’s Fairyland really throws a party with the usual unlimited rides and fantastic entertainment but the big deals are the balloon animals, costumed characters, treat bags, parades, pirate school, and bounce houses. Come in costume for the extra fun. 10 a.m.-4 p.m. 10/21-23 and 10/28-30. See website for daily schedules. All ages. Children’s Fairyland, 699 Bellevue Ave., Oakland. 510-238-6876, www.fairyland.org.
4th Street Halloween Parade & Trick or Treat – Berkeley
Berkeley’s 4th Street merchants, such as Peet’s, Sur La Table, and MAC are open to trick or treat in for those kids who are too tiny to stay up late but still want to show off their costumes. Participating merchants will have a marking on or above their doors to let revelers know where the candy is. There will be live music, entertainment, even a few treats and free samples for grown-ups. 1 p.m.-5 p.m. 10/31. 4th St., at Hearst, Berkeley. www.fourthstreetshop.com
50th Annual Half Moon Bay Art and Pumpkin Festival – Half Moon Bay
Half Moon Bay might not be famous for many things, but pumpkins are one thing that has put this little hamlet on the map. The coastal air makes pumpkin magic and grows some gourds that are as big as a smart car. All ages will be agog at the marvelous and gigantic pumpkins, but will also love the rest of the festival with crafts for sale, art, live music, food, wine, and children’s activities to do too. Expert pumpkin carvers will amaze the crowd with epic works of art unbelievably carved from pumpkins and gourds. There will be pumpkin flavored everything from pies to cocktails, as well as zip line rides, bungee jumping, and more.9 a.m.-5 p.m. 10/7-16. Check website for daily schedule. Free admission. All ages. Main St. between Mill and Spruce, Half Moon Bay, www.pumpkinfest.miramarevents.com
Goblin Jamboree – Sausalito
The Bay Area Discovery Museum in Sausalito puts on an amazing Halloween to-do for the early childhood crowd. Children can dress up and enjoy the Disglow party, hay maze, slime banquet, spooky science, and more! Buy tickets online in advance. See website for daily schedules and ticket prices. Oct 22-23 & 26-30. Babies under 6 mo. are free. All ages. Bay Area Discovery Museum, 557 McReynolds Way, Sausalito. 415-339-3932, www.bayareadiscoverymuseum.org.
Halloween Hoopla – San Francisco
Yerba Buena Center for the Arts hosts their annual Halloween event, and it is fantastic. Kids will enjoy arts and crafts while zany clowns run amok. Games, prizes, fortune tellers and more. Music and dancing are followed by a parade that everyone gets to join. 10/30. Noon – 2 p.m. Free. Kids under 10. Children’s Garden, Yerba Buena Gardens; www.ybgfestival.org
Boo at the Zoo – Oakland
Calling all ghosts, goblins, and witches – join us for Boo at the Zoo! Grab a program as you enter the Zoo and follow the clues on our self-guided scavenger hunt to trick-or-treat for animal trading cards throughout the Zoo. Remember to dress in costume (no inflatable costumes – they can scare the Zoo animals) when you visit and tag Oakland Zoo on social media to enter our Halloween costume contest! 10/22 – 31. See website for details. All ages. Oakland Zoo, 9777 Golf Links Rd., Oakland. 510-632-9525, www.oaklandzoo.org.
“The Coolest Corn Maze on The Planet” – Dixon
Between the Bay Area and Sacramento is a little farm town called Dixon and it boasts the coolest corn maze on the planet. It’s actually way more than just that. There are tubs of dried corn for kids to “swim” in, giant hay bale structures to climb, and 50 acres of mazes and fun, including hay rides and a pumpkin cannon! It is open throughout the month and has free parking. There are food, drinks and pumpkins available for purchase. Check website for daily offerings. All Ages. Cool Patch Pumpkins, 6585 Milk Farm Rd., Dixon. 530-746-8725, www.coolpatchpumpkins.com
The Pirates of Emerson – Pleasanton
This crazy scary haunted house is for older kids, teens and adults. They mean to scare people, and it’s no joke! It’s great for the crowd that’s too cool to trick or treat. There are 5 haunted attractions, including a maze, a pirate themed attraction, and some crazy Voodoo stuff! There is entertainment each night, fortune tellers, and a sideshow of oddities. Spooky! They allow all ages, but it is not for little ones. See website for the various show times throughout October, Thursdays – Sundays, and Halloween, of course. Event sells out early. All ages but best for teens and up. Pirates of Emerson Haunted Themed Park, Valley Ave., Pleasanton. (At Alameda County Fairgrounds) www.piratesofemerson.com
So, start working on costumes now and make a game plan to hit all the hot spots to maximize the Halloween fun! Don’t forget to read those spooky stories on All Hallow’s Read to wrap it all up.
