Halloween Events and Activities for Families Around NYC

Halloween Events and Activities for Families Around NYC 2022

Halloween Events and Activities for Families Around NYC

There are countless Halloween events and activities for families around NYC. Celebrating Halloween is a great way to spend time together as a family, and we’ve rounded up some of the best events and activities to check out this spooky season! If you’re looking for a full-break down of everything Halloween this year, make sure you check out our Halloween Guide.

Click on your region to jump to events near you!

 

Manhattan

Hocus Pocus Halloween on Henry Street

Sol Lain Park, 290 East Broadway, Lower East Side
Sunday, Oct. 20, 12 pm – 4 pm
All Ages
Free

Enjoy a frightfully fun afternoon filled with games, a costume photo booth, art activities with Abrons Arts Center and Chinatown Arts Festival, giveaways, candy, refreshments, and more! Witches, ghosts, and goblins of ALL ages are welcome! This event is rain or shine.

Harlem Grown’s 2024 Halloween Festival

116 W 134 St., Harlem
Saturday, Oct. 26, 10 am – 3 pm
Ages 3 – 12
Free

Stop by for a spooky, good time at the farm to celebrate Halloween with family-friendly activities, including FREE healthy food giveaways Healthy cooking demonstrations Halloween-themed art activities Haunted tent! 

The Wiz: Movie Screening & Dress-up Day

Sugar Hill Children’s Museum of Art & Storytelling, 898 St. Nicholas Ave., Washington Heights 
Saturday, Oct. 26, 12 pm – 3 pm
All Ages
Free

The Wiz: Movie Screening & Dress-up Day at the Sugar Hill Children’s Museum! Celebrate the iconic film that highlights home and chosen family, as part of David Antonio Cruz’s When the Children Come Home exhibition. Sing along with the stellar performances on screen and dress up as your favorite character! 

High Line Halloween: Ghostly Gardens

The High Line, W 16 St. and 10th Ave., Greenwich Village
Saturday, Oct. 26, 1 – 4 pm
Ages 5 – 8
Free

Inspired by past Halloween events at the park, this festive, family-friendly celebration promises thrills and chills for all ages. Encounter lively musical performances and spooky sculptures made from High Line dried plants, and enjoy storytelling, larger-than-life carnival games, art activities, a photo booth, and special treats. 

Spooky City

MUSEUM OF THE CITY OF NEW YORK, 1220 5th Ave., East Harlem
Saturday, Oct. 26, 1 – 4 pm
All Ages
Free

Come out for Halloween activities for visitors of all ages – including a trick-or-treat activity around the museum’s galleries!  Learn more below about what they have in store for families in the daytime and adults after dark.

Seaport Kids x Halloween Block Party

Seaport Square, Between Pier 16 & 17, Downtown Manhattan
Saturday, Oct. 26, 3 – 5 pm
Ages 5 – 8
Free

Pumpkins.Tricks. And plenty of treats. The cobblestones and Seaport Square will transform into a Halloween-themed block party for kids. Enjoy a live music performance from urban cowboy musician Hopalong Andrew, as well as pumpkin-painting, face-painting, Halloween crafts activities, and of course, a celebration of attendees’ fabulous costumes. 

Playgarden’s Halloween Costume Party

Playgarden, 95 Franklin St., Soho
Sunday, Oct. 27, 10:30 am – 12 pm
All Ages
Free

Join Playgarden for a free costume party on the Haunted Playground with crafts, games, sing-a-longs, dancing, and treats! 

Historical Hallowe’en Party at New-York Historical Society

New-York Historical Society, 170 Central Park W., Upper West Side
Sunday, Oct. 27, 2 – 4 pm
Ages 12 and under
Free with Museum admission: $6-$24; free for children younger than 5.

Get dressed in your Halloween best and join the New-York Historical Society for an afternoon of hands-on games, spooky and silly stories, historical fall activities, and buckets of candy! Discover the immigrant origins of some of our most iconic fall traditions (like jack-o’-lanterns) and learn all about Día de los Muertos (the Day of the Dead, a holiday celebrated at the beginning of November in Mexico and beyond by many families). 

Creepy Crafts and Spooky Stories: An Irish Halloween

American Irish Historical Society, 991 5th Ave., Upper East Side
Sunday, Oct. 27, 2 – 4 pm
Ages 5 – 12
$20 per child

Bring your little ghouls and goblins in costume to celebrate Halloween like the ancient Irish people! Thousands of years ago in ancient Ireland, what we now call Halloween began as the Irish festival of Samhain, marking the end of the harvest season and the start of winter. 

Pre-Halloween Kids ‘N Comedy Show

Gotham Comedy Club, 208 W 23rd St., Chelsea
Sunday, Oct. 27, 2 – 3:30 pm
Ages 9 and older
$18 plus a one item minimum

See the school’s best comedians performing for audiences of kids (ages 9 + up), families and the general public. The highlighted talent at these monthly shows are selected because they are the best in class and have spent multiple years with the organization developing their acts. Ranging in age from 12-16, these performers are as good as any adult comic, but keep it clean for the family audience.

Dyckman After Dark

Dyckman Farmhouse Museum, 4881 Broadway St., Inwood
Wednesday, Oct. 30, 6 – 8 pm
All Ages
Free

You walk into the farmhouse, costumed to the ninth, and you’re pleasantly surprised to find a candlelit, decorated house! Now that you’re in the Halloween mood, you go to get a tarot card reading, and obviously, it’s gonna tell you that Dyckman After Dark is going to be so much fun. Then you’re free to go and have as many Halloween snacks as you want.

10th Annual Halloween in East Midtown

919 3rd Ave. at 56th St., Midtown
Thursday, Oct. 31, 3 – 7 pm
Ages 12 and under
Free

Paint your ghastliest pumpkins with the seniors at Sunrise at E. 56th Street, snap selfies at the spooky Jack-O-Lantern display by Maniac Pumpkin Carvers at 919 3rd Avenue, and of course, trick-or-treat for candy and other phantasmic treats at over 100 participating businesses around East Midtown.

Bronx

Pumpkin Nights at the Bronx Zoo

Bronx Zoo, 2300 Southern Boulevard, East Bronx
Thursdays – Sundays, 7 pm, through Oct. 27.
All Ages
Tickets start at $24.95; free for children 3 and younger

After its successful debut last year, Pumpkin Nights returns to the Bronx Zoo! See more than 5,000 animal-themed jack o’lanterns will illuminate a half-mile trail in the Zoo to ring in the spooky season. Lighting up the Bronx Zoo after the sun sets, Pumpkin Nights will display different ecosystems – from the African Savanna waterhole to the Amazon rainforest to the bioluminescent deep-sea, as guests step into the night and meet the amazing animals who inhabit these wild places.

Pumpkin Decorating

The Mall at Bay Plaza, 200 Baychester Ave., Co-op City
Saturday, Oct. 19, 1 – 5 pm
Ages 3 – 12
Free

Pick up tickets in advance

Children are invited to decorate pumpkins and crafts while DJ Omar plays your favorite tunes. One per child, while supplies last. 

Trick or Treat Trek

Bartow-Pell Mansion Museum, 895 Shore Road, City Island
Saturday, Oct. 26, 11 am – 2 pm & 3 – 5 pm.
Ages 3 and up
$10

Trick or Treat Trek at Bartow-Pell! Arrive in costume, rain or shine, it’s outdoor trick-or-treating time! Wander the grounds, and search for a treat, one never knows who one might meet.

39th Annual Bronx Halloween Parade 2024

Bronx Halloween Parade, Westchester Ave & Southern Blvd., Hunts Point
Saturday, Oct. 26, 12pm – 4 pm
All Ages
Free

Join the 39th Annual Bronx Halloween Parade promising a ghoulishly good time for all ages. The theme this year is “Zombie Apocalypse,” so embrace the undead and join the fun! After the parade, head over to Bill Rainey Park for an artist showcase featuring celebrities, local politicians, talented artists marching bands, and thrilling costume contests with cash prizes. Indulge in a cornucopia of candies and treats for a sweet finish to your spooky day.

Wave Hill-O-Ween

Wave Hill, 4900 Independence Ave., Riverdale
Thursday, Oct. 31, 3 – 8:30 pm
All Ages
Free
Advanced registration required

Calling all ghosts and goblins, pirates and princesses! For the first time ever—it’s Halloween at Wave Hill! Venture through the iron gates (if you dare!) for an evening adventure with treats, tricks and good old spooky fun. Grab a map to guide you on an eerie treasure trail through the gardens with “gourdgeous” photo ops along the way. Personalize a treat bag and decorate a mini-gourd favor, then dance away the eve with family-friendly tunes in the spooktacular Armor Hall. 

Costume Carnival 2024

Sankofa Haus, 2422 3rd Ave., Mott Haven
Thursday, Oct. 31, 3 – 6 pm
All Ages
Free

Get ready for an evening filled with fun, laughter, and amazing costumes. This year the whole block will be shut down so whether you’re a superhero, a princess, or something totally unique, this event is the perfect place to show off your creativity. Get ready for more games, competitions, bouncy houses and prizes for the best costumes, so make sure to bring your A-game.

Bean-O-Ween

Bean Morris Garden, 2096 Morris Ave., Morris Heights
Thursday, Oct. 31, 3 – 7 pm
All Ages
Free

Join the garden group at Bean Morris Garden for their annual Halloween event, where the garden will be decorated with Halloween decorations and animatronics and there will be fun activities! Garden members will also have candy and snacks to hand out to children.

Halloween Shows & Costume Contest

The Mall at Bay Plaza, 200 Baychester Ave., Co-Op City
Thursday, Oct. 31, 4 pm & 6 pm.
All Ages
Free

Enjoy The Great Charlini Magic Show Shows, and Meet Miss YaYa for the Halloween Costume Contest and other family fun. Costume contest is open for children 12 and under.

Brooklyn

Pre-Halloween Kiddie Disco

Friends of Firefighters, 199 Van Brunt Ave., Red Hook
Sunday, Oct. 20, 11 am – 3 pm
Ages 8 and under
$10-$35

Calling all Pirates, Princess, and Superheroes too…It’s the Pre-Halloween Kiddie Disco! Experience Includes: DJ playing a mix of various genres while incorporating Disney’s finest soundtracks, blended with lullabies. KDR fun loving staff. Tummy time area for our youngest guests. Healthy snacks, waters and 100% juices. Stroller parking. Noise makers and more!

Halloween Storytime with Tiffany D. Jackson: Trick-or-Treating in the City

Books Are Magic Montague, 122 Montague Street, Brooklyn Heights
Saturday, Oct. 26, 11 – 11:30 am
All Ages
Free

Dress up in your costumes for a spooky, silly storytime with bestselling author Tiffany D. Jackson as she reads from Trick-or-Treating in the City!

Wyckoff Museum and Elite Learners: Spooktacular

Wyckoff Farmhouse Museum, 5816 Clarendon Road, East Flatbush
Saturday, Oct. 26, noon – 3 pm
All ages
Free

Families and kids can celebrate Halloween outdoors with a visit to the Wyckoff Farmhouse park. Come dressed up for a costume contest with prizes along with a live DJ and positive vibes, a pumpkin patch, themed crafts and games, spooky house, snacks and refreshments.

Haunted Carousel

Prospect Park Carousel, 452 Flatbush Ave., Prospect Lefferts Gardens
Oct. 26-31, Saturday, Sunday, and Thursday, 12 pm – 5 pm.
All Ages
$3

Don’t be scared when you see the haunted carousel! Take a spin on the spooky ride to your favorite Halloween jams at the beloved Prospect Park Carousel.

Treats on the Trails

Shirley Chisholm State Park Penn Side Entrance, 1750 Pennsylvania Ave., East New York
Saturday, Oct. 26, 1 – 4 pm
All Ages
Free

Come out for this Halloween spectacular event along the trails of the Penn side of the park! The festival begins at Hendrix Creek Patio and extends down Hendrix Creek Road. Along the way participate in crafts, play games, learn about the park, and collect goodies! This year, the event will feature free button making, a kids’ bike raffle, and a photobooth!

Kings Plaza, Halloween Spooktacular

Kings Plaza Shopping Center, 5100 Kings Plaza, Flatlands
Saturday, Oct. 26, 2 – 5 pm
All Ages
Free

Celebrate Halloween with family-friendly entertainment which includes interactions from costume characters, dancing, giveaways and more! Plus, experience a Magic Bubble Show that’s sure to be on and poppin‘.

Annual Halloween Parade at Urban Meadow

Urban Meadow Community Garden, 19 President St., Park Slope
Sunday, Oct. 27, 10 am – 12 pm
All ages
Free

The Urban Meadow garden group will hold its Annual Halloween Party and Parade through the Columbia Waterfront Neighborhood. Come in costume! The parade will start marching at 11:00 a.m. led by the Underground Horns!

Halloween at BCM

Brooklyn Children’s Museum, 145 Brooklyn Ave., Crown Heights
Sunday, Oct. 27, 10 am – 6:30 pm
Ages 12 and under
$15; free for members.

Experience Halloween like never before at Brooklyn Children’s Museum! This year they’re combining their usual costumed festivities with our first-ever anime/manga themed event, curated by AniTOMO Con. Get dressed in your Halloween costume or favorite cosplay! Trick-or-treat around the Museum, meet creepy crawlies from our living collection, and dive into the world of anime at the inaugural Kawaii Kreature Festival, taking place on our rooftop.

Trick or Treat at IKEA Brooklyn

IKEA Brooklyn, 1 Beard St., Red Hook
Sunday, Oct. 27, 10 am – 1 pm
All Ages
Free

Join IKEA Brooklyn for a Halloween celebration! There will be treats, crafts, giveaways, and a photo station for your little goblins. 

Town Square BK’s 21st Annual Greenpoint Children’s Halloween Parade And Spooktacular Party

Hide & Seek, 593 Manhattan Ave., Greenpoint
Sunday, Oct. 27, 10 am – 3 pm
All Ages
Free for parade, $20 for party.

Calling all princes and princesses, heroes and villains, witches and wizards! Join Town Square BK for their popular annual Greenpoint Children’s Halloween Parade and Spooktacular Party! 12 Noon ~ The FREE Greenpoint Children’s Halloween Parade will step off around 12 PM in McCarren Park (Manhattan Avenue and Driggs Avenue). Costumed kids of all ages will march up Manhattan Avenue to Greenpoint Avenue and back to the park. 

The Rock And Roll Playhouse: Halloween Spectacular 2024

Brooklyn Bowl, 61 Wythe Ave., Williamsburg
Sunday, Oct. 27, 12pm– 1 pm
Ages 7 and younger
$16

Performing songs created by the most iconic musicians in rock history, The Rock and Roll Playhouse band offers its core audience of families games, movement, stories and most importantly an opportunity to rock out.

Big Halloween Get Down

Brooklyn Bridge Park Pier 3 Plaza, 334 Furman St., Downtown Brooklyn
Thursday, Oct. 31, 6 – 10 pm
All Ages
Free

Join Brooklyn Bridge Park Conservancy for Big Halloween Get Down with Sounds from Herbert Holler! Bring your good vibes and your best moves! 

Dumboween

DUMBO Archway, 155 Water St., DUMBO
Thursday, Oct. 31, 4 – 7 pm
All Ages
Free

DUMBOWEEN brings hundreds of costumed Dumbonians out for the Annual March to the Arch through Brooklyn Bridge Park with brass bands + puppets, followed by an Archway Party featuring crafts with Creatively WILD Art Studio, a photobooth and of course, candy! Plus, Trick-or-Treat at 50 + Dumbo small businesses around the neighborhood! 4pm March to the Arch: Parade through DUMBO en route to the Dumbo Archway, led by live music and puppets!

Queens

Hands-on History: Spooky Season

King Manor Museum, 150-03 Jamaica Ave., Jamaica
Saturday, Oct. 19, 1 – 4 pm
All Ages
Free

Celebrate Spooky Season and discuss author Washington Irving and his 1820 story “The Legend of Sleepy Hollow.” Make Headless Horseman paper pumpkin masks to take home!

Trunk Or Treat Halloween Event

The Shops at Atlas Park, 8000 Cooper Ave., Glendale
Saturday, Oct. 26, 11 am – 2 pm                                                                      
All Ages
Free

Have a Halloween family day of fun with a pumpkin patch, pumpkin decorating, a costume parade and contest, photo booth, music and 50/50 raffles. 

Halloween Harvest Festival 2024

Socrates Sculpture Park, 35-01 Vernon Boulevard, Long Island City
Saturday, Oct. 26, 12 pm– 4 pm
All Ages
Free

Celebrate the autumn season with the cutest and spookiest dog costume contest around, presented by Chateau le Woof! Enjoy workshops, music, and food vendors. Dog Costume Contest registration begins at 1pm, at Chateau le Woof’s vending table on-site.

Kids Family Halloween Event

First Presbyterian Church of Forest Hills, 70-35 112th St., Forest Hills
Saturday, Oct. 26, 1 – 3 pm
Ages 3 – 8
Free; donations appreciated

Dress up in your favorite costume and get ready to show off your spooky style. There will be games, crafts, treats, giveaways and zombie bingo with our friendly neighborhood volunteers. It’s going to be a fun community event that you won’t want to miss. 

Halloween on the Farm

Queens County Farm Museum, 75-50 Little Neck Parkway, Glen Oaks
Sunday, Oct. 27, 11 am – 4 pm
All Ages
$20

It’s a monster mash! Wear your costume to the farm for this Halloween spooktacular for kids and their grown-ups. Halloween on the Farm Tickets include: Show Up, Kids! When the main attraction doesn’t show up, the kids in the audience help create a comedy show from plot to props, characters to costumes, and set to sound. Anything can happen at Peter Michael Marino’s internationally acclaimed, interactive show.

9th Annual ”Batty Over Halloween” Celebration

Astoria Park, 19 19th St., Astoria
Sunday, Oct. 27, 1 – 4 pm
All Ages
Free

Show up in costume for stilt walkers, arts & crafts, free treats, as well as performances.

Frights & Fiesta: A Halloween & Día de los Muertos Bash

Queens Center, 90-15 Queens Blvd., Elmhurst
Wednesday, Oct. 30, 1 – 6 pm
All Ages
Free

Join Queens Center Mall for a spine-tingling Halloween Trivia Event! Test your knowledge of all things spooky with our thrilling trivia challenges, perfect for ghost hunters, witches, and goblins of all ages. Come dressed in your most creative costume and compete in our Costume Contest for a chance to win exciting prizes! It’s a night of fun, fright, and fantastic giveaways—don’t miss out on the eerie excitement! Whether you’re a Halloween expert or just looking for a fun night out, there’s something for everyone at this haunted gathering.

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Broadway Dance Center Children and Teens

<p dir="ltr">With more than 35 years of experience, Broadway Dance Center Children & Teens provides young movers ages 3-18 with exceptional training. BDC delivers the finest all-around dance experience for students by offering a wide variety of styles and levels, performance opportunities, and the highest caliber dance instruction that only New York City and BDC Children & Teens can provide.</p> <p dir="ltr">This studio is so much more than a training course for young dancers; it is a diverse, family-friendly community for budding creatives. It has an exemplary faculty who follow the vision to not only develop a dancer’s love and ability in dance, but to do so in a nurturing and supportive way.</p> <p style="text-align: left;"><span id="docs-internal-guid-16583089-7fff-d8a9-61c2-8f689f7348b2"></span></p>

Belle da Costa Greene: A Librarian's Legacy

<p>The Morgan Library & Museum will present a major exhibition devoted to the life and career of its inaugural director, Belle da Costa Greene (1879–1950). Widely recognized as an authority on illuminated manuscripts and deeply respected as a cultural heritage executive, Greene was one of the most prominent librarians in American history. The exhibition will trace Greene’s storied life, from her roots in a predominantly Black community in Washington, D.C., to her distinguished career at the helm of one of the world’s great research libraries. Through extraordinary objects―from medieval manuscripts and rare printed books to archival records and portraits―the exhibition will demonstrate the confidence and savvy Greene brought to her roles as librarian, scholar, curator, and cultural executive, and honor her enduring legacy.</p>

The Music Institute of Long Island

<p dir="ltr">Established in 1990, the Music Institute of Long Island (MILI) is a classical music school staffed by exceptional instructors from many of the most prestigious conservatories and graduate music schools in the United States and Europe. Long Island’s foremost musical academies, its instrumental programs include violin, viola, cello, piano, flute, clarinet, saxophone and voice classes. MILI has been voted # 1 BEST MUSIC SCHOOL Consistently. </p> <p dir="ltr">They teach the Traditional, Suzuki, and ABRSM methods. Students participate in All-National, All-Eastern, All-State, youth orchestras, and score highly in NYSSMA and Royal Academy Music Festivals. First prize winners of competitions earn solos at Carnegie Hall and with orchestras. MILI offers Fall/Spring semesters plus Summer Sessions. Semesters include 15-17 weeks of private lessons, solo recitals with a final GALA Concert featuring chamber music.</p> <p dir="ltr"><strong>About the Directors: Carol & Geri Kushner:</strong></p> <p dir="ltr">The sisters are violinists, violists, chamber coaches & performers. They believe in instilling the love of music,  fostering proficiency, success, confidence & believe all MILI students achieve success.</p> <p dir="ltr">Degrees BM, MM (+), K-12 certifications, attended Manhattan School of Music, Queens College & Stonybrook University.They have been adjunct professors at Syracuse University, Aaron Copland School of Music Pre-College & Five Towns Colleges, Stonybrook University & have taught in L.I. public schools.</p> <p><span id="docs-internal-guid-e9f5dcc8-7fff-2ad2-edea-98d61c367d72"></span></p>