Celebrating Halloween in New Jersey is spooktastic!
Halloween is a holiday that allows kids and sometimes even grown ups to dress up and pretend to be whatever we want. A parent can take their kids to New Jersey Halloween events with cute crafts and non scary activities. Those of us with tweens and teenagers can scare our kids on spooky farms, trails and haunted houses all across New Jersey. Amusement parks get in on the fun with Halloween attractions.
This year Halloween activities in New Jersey are going to be phenomenal! Trunk or treats and traditional trick or treating in New Jersey are back as are all our favorite Halloween attractions.
If your family is anything like mine though, October can be hectic, very hectic. We’re balancing fall sports and school schedules, college applications, and part-time jobs (for the teens) all while trying not to have any mom guilt over not doing enough New Jersey Halloween family fun activities.
If your family is like outs, let us help you! We can help make having New Jersey Halloween family fun easy and possible! Just take a look at our ideas below and click over to our ways to celebrate a New Jersey Halloween with kids. Happy Halloween!
Check out the MOST Amazing New Jersey Halloween Activities to Try This Year, 2023
We know many parents will still be resistant to trick or treating. We understand that, but we couldn’t have a list of New Jersey Halloween activities without mentioning trick or treating and the status of it in New Jersey this year.
Go Trick or Treating from neighborhood to neighborhood with these New Jersey Trick or Treat Times
Whether you just trick or treat around your neighborhood or you like to visit a few different ones, we can help you find all the places to trick or treat and let you know what the designated time is for trick or treaters is.
Thirteen years of researching trick or treat times in New Jersey has shown us that A LOT of towns wait till midOctober to decide on trick or treat times. So even though, we are searching for 2023 updates, know that you may have to keep checking back here, because the details may not be released till October 15th or later.
Our listing of New Jersey Trick or Treat Times includes Halloween events with trick or treating and New Jersey trunk or treat events.
Pick out the best trunk at a New Jersey Trunk or Treat Events
Back for 2023, Seeing how popular trunk or treats in New Jersey have become, we knew we needed to create a list where you could find them all in one place. That’s just what we did in 2019 and we are updating it for 2023. We expect Trunk or Treats to be MORE popular than ever this year. Click over to our No Tricks, Just Treats at these New Jersey Trunk or Treat Events for a listing of trunk or treat events near you.
March in a Halloween Parade in New Jersey
In 2019, we created a new listing of New Jersey Halloween Parades. There were nearly 90 Halloween Parades in New Jersey. I’m so happy to share that it looks like New Jersey Halloween parades will happen again this year.
Not all communities announce their parades publicly. If you don’t see one local to you we suggest asking around in your local community. I expect that there will be several Halloween parades that will happen but may not be promoted publicly in an effort to keep crowd size down.
You can also view our calendar and scroll through by day to make sure you don’t miss any.
Drive thru a unique Halloween light display in New Jersey
The Skylands Stadium Jack O’ Lantern experience is one of the most popular Halloween activities in New Jersey. Thanks to our partnership with Chevrolet a few years ago we were able to experience it for ourselves.
As we test drove the 2021 Chevy trailer throughout the stadium, property, and surrounding cornfields we were able to ooh and awe at over 5,000+ Jack-O-Lanterns. We saw some of the most spectacular pumpkin displays we have ever seen.
Even better, admission includes visiting the Halloween carnival at the stadium. There’s an extra fee to ride the rides, pet the animals, paint a pumpkin, mine for gems, or roast marshmallows for smores, but it provides a way to add extra Halloween fun to your night.
While the drive thru Jack O’ Lantern experience takes about 15 – 20 minutes, you’ll need to arrive at about 15 minutes before your reservation to get in line. Allow for additional time if you want to take advantage of the carnival. Guests can visit the carnival either before or after their drive through the Jack O’ Lantern experience. Learn more and get tickets at the Skylands Stadium website.
Light up your night with Halloween Light Displays in New Jersey
A new trend has taken hold in New Jersey and since it only appears to be growing, so of course we had to put together a guide to tell you about New Jersey Halloween lights displays. Outdoor lights aren’t just for Christmas. They’re for Halloween too!
Residents across New Jersey are offering silly scenes and spooking settings all to thrill and delight others this Halloween. Check out our guide to New Jersey Halloween Lights to find one near you.
Drive by some fabulous residential Halloween displays
There aren’t just houses that have been decorated with Halloween lights in New Jersey, there are homes that have gone full out with elaborate Halloween displays in their front yard.
In our Insane New Jersey Haunted Houses We Dare You to See article, we talk about many haunted houses and Halloween displays, but the Summit Avenue Cemetery, at 51 Summit Avenue in Hawthorne, is one of the newest. There’s no admission fee and you can learn the hours by visiting their Facebook page.
I’ve always been a fan of Horror. Halloween is always a way to express that love and obsession out into the world. This year I created and built a sizable amount of my props ranging from big things like tombstones, corpsing, and coffins to smaller objects like replacing plastic teeth on our skeletons with actual human teeth. Other than my love for Halloween, Summit Ave Cemetery was a way to bring in more crowds, families and trick or treaters to our very secluded part of town. After using social platforms to generate some attention, this idea became a reality and people actually started showing up. It was then I knew I had to make this a major place for people to come, visit, and enjoy every year and I intend to deliver that to them. Plans to expand and a walk through maze are already in the works for next year. We Hope to Scare You. Happy Haunting
Sal, creator of Summit Ave Cemetery
Pick a pumpkin from one of the New Jersey Pumpkin Patches
We’re sharing our favorite spots to go pumpkin picking in New Jersey with a listing of New Jersey pumpkin patches organized by region and county. Find out where you can pick pumpkins in North Jersey, Central New Jersey, and South Jersey.
Visit FrightFest at Six Flags Great Adventure
From amusement parks with Halloween attractions to NJ attractions with Halloween activities, across New Jersey different attractions are offering Halloween activities. One of our favorites is Frighfest at Six Flags Great Adventure.
One of our favorite New Jersey Halloween activities, Great Adventure will feature Thrills by Day with family-friendly activities and Chills by Night with rides on monster coasters…in the dark and haunting Halloween theming throughout the park. There’s trick or treating through a trail and trails of haunted mazes if you dare.
Get spooked at Scariest Places to Visit in New Jersey
Want to spook out your kids? Are your teens looking for haunted attractions? Then check out our list of the Scariest Places to Visit in New Jersey, these places are open yearround and guaranteed to give you a good scare.
Ride a train through a Halloween village
Another one of the great New Jersey Halloween activities for younger kids is the ALL-A-BOO DiDonato’s Trick-or-Treat Train.
In their little-goblin friendly Halloween town, guests will ride along Rolling Railway, where, as always at DiDonato’s, each family has their own train car! Families are invited to find their way through a hay maze created just for DiDonato’s, choose their own special pumpkin from the patch to bring home, enjoy endless fun on the 19 foot tall Big Kahuna slide and enjoy an individually-wrapped treat. Learn more in this Jersey Family Fun article, DiDonato’s Halloween Activities in Hammonton.
Watch Halloween movies under the stars
Over the past few summers, New Jersey drive in movies made a comeback that shows no signs of stopping down. Across our state farms, communities, and businesses are hosting Halloween movies to the delight of families. Here are a few that we think will make for a great Halloween activity, but you can find even more on our Calendar of Events.
- Absecon Halloween Movie Night 2023
Bound Brook Trunk or Treat and Drive In Movie- Branchburg Halloween Movie Night 2022
- Cranford Halloween Pumpkin Carve Out and Movie 2022
- Cresskill Halloween Drive In Movie 2022
- Dennis Township Family Movie Night 2022
East Brunswick Halloween Movie Night and Trick or Treat Activities- New Brunswick Halloween Movie Night and Trick or Treat at The Yard 2022
- North Bergen Halloween Teen Movie Night 2022
- Northfield Trunk or Treat and Halloween Movie 2023
Ocean Township Trunk or Treat and Drive In Movie- Marlboro Halloween Movie Night 2022
- Red Bank Halloween Movie 2023
South Orange Halloween Movie Night and Seton Village Celebration
Find more Halloween movie nights in New Jersey.
Clever New Jersey Scarecrow Creations You Have to See
Did you know New Jersey is home to many unique scarecrows? It’s cool and clever to see how some adults and kids can transform some hay into a wonderful scarecrow creation. Have some New Jersey fall family fun by taking a family walk at these free New Jersey scarecrow trails. Click on our guide of New Jersey scarecrow trails to find one near you.
Close the kitchen and dine out at these restaurants where Kids Can Eat Free on Halloween
Who wants to cook on Halloween? You’re either busy taking your kids trick or treating or getting ready to host trick or treaters. Use our listing of where Kids Can Eat Free this Halloween or at a discounted rate across New Jersey and in some national restaurant chains to save yourself work and money this Halloween. Currently updating for 2023.
MORE ideas for Halloween Activities in New Jersey!
Check out these additional Halloween events in New Jersey, any of them would make for great New Jersey Halloween activities for kids. We’ve made it easy for you to find Halloween events near you. Just click the link for a listing of current Halloween events in your area.
- Atlantic County Halloween Events
- Bergen County Halloween Events
- Burlington County Halloween Events
- Camden County Halloween Events
- Cape May County Halloween Events
- Cumberland County Halloween Events
- Essex County Halloween Events
- Gloucester County Halloween Events
- Hudson County Halloween Events
- Hunterdon County Halloween Events
- Mercer County Halloween Events
- Middlesex County Halloween Events
- Monmouth County Halloween Events
- Morris County Halloween Events
- Ocean County Halloween Events
- Passaic County Halloween Events
- Salem County Halloween Events
- Somerset County Halloween Events
- Sussex County Halloween Events
- Union County Halloween Events
- Warren County Halloween Events
Halloween Things to Do in New Jersey with Kids
Updated for 2023.
Even MORE ideas for Halloween Fun no matter where you are!
You don’t need to be in New Jersey to take advantage of these 15 ways to make sure Halloween doesn’t suck for kids.
