If you are looking for some fun things to do this week to celebrate Halloween, there are a ton of activities happening in Sacramento for kids and families. Most of these events are FREE or inexpensive!
Happy Halloween!
Halloween Showtime
Thursday, 10/29, 4pm – 5pm
Southgate Community Library, 6132 66th Ave., Sacramento, CA
Riddles, jokes, a play, “The Perfect Pumpkin”, in which some lucky boys and girls will play the parts; and then all will make a sorcerer’s hat!
FREE
Halloween Puppet Show
Thursday, 10/29, 4pm – 5pm
Arcade Library, 2443 Marconi Ave., Sacramento
Winnie the Witch with Puppet Art Theater. On her way to pick up some candy, Winnie the Witch discovers Willard the Wizard trying to ruin Halloween by making the World’s Candy Supply taste like Brussels sprouts. Help Winnie dodge Dancing Ghosts, Batty Bats and Silly Skeletons to save Halloween!
FREE
Night of 1000 Pumpkins
Friday, 10/30
Historic Folsom – Sutter Street
Sutter Street transforms into a jack-o-lantern extravaganza. Submit your pumpkin in the carving contest, in the hopes of being crowned the most scary, funny, original or complex! 4-6pm drop-off pumpkin, 6:30 Judging, 7:30 Pumpkin Lighter’s Parade.
FREE
Halloween Trick-or-Treat Bounce
Friday, 10/30, 5:30-8:30 pm
The Bounce Spot, 2939 Promenade St, West Sacramento, CA
Trick-or-treating, bouncing, games, pumpkin carving, costume contest, and lots more fun.
$3.00 per child
Halloween Family Storytime
Saturday, 10/31 10am – 11am
Belle Cooledge Library, 5600 S. Land Park Dr., Sacramento
Calling all goblins! Come to the library for non-scary songs, rhymes and stories, a craft, and a treat. Costumes are welcome, but not required.
FREE
Bats at the Library
Saturday, 10/31 2pm – 3pm
Rancho Cordova Library, 9845 Folsom Blvd., Sacramento, CA
This Halloween, celebrate a popular spooky animal with the Rancho Cordova Library: BATS! Aaron and Hayley Morgan will be presenting a program about bats in Sacramento, bringing along some of their rescued bats, and teaching you what to do if you see an injured bat. We will also read some bat stories, do a bat craft, and have a bat-tacular time!
FREE
Black-light Puppet Spectacular
Saturday, 10/31 2pm – 3pm
Carmichael Library, 5605 Marconi Ave., Carmichael
Winnie the Witch Loves Halloween, especially the candy! On her way to Candy Island she discovers Willard the Wizard trying to ruin Halloween by making the World’s Candy Supply taste like Brussels sprouts. With the help of the audience and her trusty broomstick, Winnie must dodge Dancing Ghosts, Batty Bats and Silly Skeletons to save Halloween!
FREE
Boo at the Zoo
10/30 & 10/31 4:30pm – 8pm
Sacramento Zoo, 3930 West Land Park Drive, Sacramento, CA
Come dressed up! Kids can safely trick-or-treat around Lake Victoria and enjoy fun crafts, games and goodies, magic shows, a kids’ haunted house, food, music, spooky train, creepy carousel, and lots of family fun! Appropriate for kids under 10.
Tickets $9.00, Zoo Members $5.00, Kids 2 and under Free. (Order at the Zoo, by phone 808-5888, or online.)
Halloween in Midtown
Saturday, 10/31 11am – 3pm
Trick-or-Treat around the local Midtown shops and businesses on Halloween! Enjoy midtown from L Street to J Street from 16th Street to 27th Street. Participating businesses will have a special poster displayed designating their business as a place to stop to trick-or-treat! There will also be fun activities available from 11am-3pm at 2400 J Street (Relles Florist parking lot), and at the 1801 L Street Lofts courtyard. Activities include Howdy-Do-Dat the Magical Magician (complete with real bunny!), a face painting artist, and more….For your convenience, there will be a parking “freeze” (free parking at meter spaces/no time limit enforcement) in Midtown from I St thru Capitol Avenue, and from 16th to 29th. Please note that handicap, fire, and loading zones will be enforced. Please remember that vehicle traffic will be active all day. Additionally, Port-o-potties will be available. The Costumed Doggy Parade will start at 1:00 at 24th & J Streets with the route going up J Street to 1801 L Street.
FREE
Carmichael’s Creepy Halloween Carnival
10/31, 10am-1pm
La Sierra Community Center, John Smith Hall, 5325 Engle Road, Carmichael
Games, a costume contest, trick o’ treats and more! Don’t miss Dr. Solar and his suitcase of Scalawags at 11am. Ages 8 and under. Participants must wear a costume.
$1.00 per child
Halloween at the Fountains
Saturday, 10/31, 5pm-7pm
The Fountains at Roseville
Main Street closes to automobile traffic and hosts a harvest festival, accommodating a safe, fun environment for kiddos to participate in a costume parade, enjoy Halloween-themed
activities and trick-or-treat from shop to shop. 5:30pm costume parade, 6pm trick-or-treating begins.
FREE
Halloween Scene
Saturday, 10/31 1-4pm
Crocker Art Museum, 216 O Street, Sacramento
Have a delicious and nutritious, safe and artsy Halloween. Children (age 5 and under)
will march in a costume parade, trick-or-treat for healthy goodies, take part in interactive puppet theater and get crafty at hands-on art stations.
Free with admission: $6 adults, $4 seniors, $3 students
Monsters at the Mall
Saturday, 10/31, 5pm
Sunrise Marketplace Mall, Citrus Heights
Bring your costumed kiddies to trick-or-treat at one of the largest (plus, indoor and safe) annual Halloween parties. Games include fishing for prizes, pumpkin bowling and tic-tac-toe. Call 726-6767 for more info.
FREE
Owl Prowl
Saturday, October 31st and Sunday, November 1st, 12pm – 3pm
Discovery Museum Science & Space Center
Whooo’s ready for spooky science fun this Halloween weekend? Meet the museum’s two owls, examine owl displays, and kids (12 and under) can even create an owl-themed craft project.
$6 adults, $5 seniors and teens, $4 children, free for age 3 and under
Spooky Story Time
Saturday, 10/31, 10:30am
The Effie Yeaw Nature Center, Carmichael
The Sacramento Storytellers Guild helps you gear up for Halloween with some spooky stories guaranteed not to cause nightmares! Call 489-4918 for more info.
$1 per person, plus $5 park entrance fee per car
Haunted Pony Town Halloween Carnival
Saturday, 10/31 12pm-4pm
Grace Foundation, 5800 Latigo Lane, El Dorado Hills
Games & Prizes, face painting, crafts, costume parade, raffle, goblins, ghosts, and ghouls!
$5.00 donation per child ages 3-11 includes access to all games. (Meal tickets and raffle tickets may be purchased separately.)
Old Sacramento Activities:
Spookomotive Train Ride
10/31, 11/1, Train departs on-the-hour 11am to 4pm
Halloween-themed “Spookomotive” trains decorated for the season. Departs from the Central Pacific Railroad Freight Depot in Old Sacramento. 40-minute, 6-mile roundtrip ride along the Sacramento River.
$8 for adults, $3 for youths ages 6-17, children ages 5 and under ride free.
Scarecrow Design Showcase
Come and see what local artists can do with straw and stuffing at Old Sacramento’s annual Scarecrow Park showcase — presented by the Old Sacramento Schoolhouse Museum and Old Sacramento. Scarecrow Park (called Atlantis Park the rest of the year) just west of the I & J street alley, is the place to be scene this fall. Check out themed vignettes, up-lighting, creatures lurking, wall of faces, photo opportunities, face painting and many more surprises.
Ghost Tours
Friday, 10/30 at 6:30pm, 7:00pm, 7:30pm, 8:00pm, and 8:30pm
Old Sacramento Living History For more information, call (916) 808-4980.
$15 per person or $12 for children under 12
Trick-or-Treat
Saturday, 10/31, 12pm-4pm
Get out the costumes and trick-or-treat with Old Sacramento businesses.
FREE
Written by Keilah Woodard
My love for exploring and creating experiences with my three kids led to the founding of SacramentoSidetracks.com in 2009. I realized that Sacramento has so much to offer and I was excited to share my findings with other parents. Besides simply having fun, these are the other positive side effects of taking my kids on outings that I’ve discovered: we have quality time together away from the distractions at home, we cultivate our curiosity, learn new things, conversations are triggered by what we see and do, we connect and bond as a family, and we create new memories. Ready to get sidetracked, too? Let me be your guide!
