Leaves have begun to swirl into vibrant colors of autumn, and temperatures are gliding from sticky summer days to crisp fall sweater days. As we drift past mid-October our mini gremlins and ghouls begin to devise their perfect Halloween costume attire for trick-or-treating. Living in the St. Louis area though, offers so much more than just your typical evening of candy collection and knock-knock jokes.
While we all adore our one evening of helping our kiddos get dressed up to don their spooky, creepy or scary costumes, it would be awesome to get more than one night out of their priceless attire. Plus, Halloween and autumn are some of the best times to work in those family outings that we’ve been meaning to put together! If you haven’t planned anything yet, worry no more. We’ve selected what we think will be the top 10 picks of things to go do with your little ones this Halloween in the Lou.
1-Trunk-or-Treat at Purina Farms-For this event feel free to bring the pups as well as the kiddos! It takes place from 11 am-1 pm on October 21st. This event is for littles 10 and under. Two-legged children ages 2-10 need a ticket for entry, and so do all four-legged children. Advanced ticket purchase is required, and you can get more information and tickets from Purina Farms event page: Trunk or Treat for Kids and Dogs.
2-Science Spooktacular at the St. Louis Science Center-This event takes place from Oct. 25th-Oct. 27th from 5 pm-8 pm. The Saint Louis Science Center hosts its annual Halloween party! In the Haunted Lab you can make your very own slime creations, the OMNIMAX will have Halloween-themed movies going, and the First Quarter moon will be visible through free telescope viewings. They will also be demonstrating their, “Spooky Science Goes Splat”.
3-Little Goblins Trick-or-Treat-The Little Goblins Trick-or-Treat event will take place on Oct. 26th. No need to let cool weather scare you away; this event is held indoors at The Pointe in Ballwin, from 10 am-11:30 am. A nutritious snack will be given to all the little goblins as well. This event is designed for the tiniest of our goblins though; they are asking for registrants to be between the ages of 1-5 years old.
4-The Bug Ball-The Butterfly House is putting on a Halloween Bug Ball to not be missed! You can join in the fun on Oct. 26th and Oct 27th from 5:30 pm-7:30 pm. Your little bugs will have the chance to collect treats from their hand painted Treat Houses, do some spooky crafts, enjoy some scary treats like creepy pizza fingers with some pumpkin punch, and view the Owl Butterflies! Visit their website to sign up!
5-Pumpkin Jamboree at Eckerts-If you’re looking for something a little less spooky for your little pumpkins, check out the Pumpkin Jamboree at Eckerts in Grafton, Millstadt, and Belleville, IL. You can take a wagon ride out to pick out your perfect pumpkin, listen to some country music, build your own scarecrow, wander the petting farm, enjoy some funnel cakes and other delectables, plus other children’s activities. Visit Eckert’s on Oct. 20th-21st, or Oct. 27th-28th to participate in the jamboree!
6-Pumpkin Glow in Historic St. Charles- The Historic St. Charles Pumpkin Glow will be held on Oct. 26th and October 27th between 5 pm and 9 pm. This is a free event! There will be glowing carved pumpkins, and merchants will be open late if you want to pop in for treats and tastings. Bringing your ghouls and gremlins in their costumes is highly encouraged!
7-Monsters on the Meadows Halloween Festival-This event takes place at The Meadows in Lake St. louis on Oct. 27th from 11 am-2 pm. This is also a free event, and all are welcome. The kiddos will be given free access to pumpkin painting, face painting, and trick-or-treating. Plus there will be free giveaways!
8-Boo at the Zoo Spooky Saturday-An event you may be already familiar with, or at least probably have heard of, is the St. Louis Zoo’s Boo at the Zoo Spooky Saturday event. This year’s event takes place on Oct. 27th from 9 am -4 pm, and has free admission. Mummies and daddies should be sure to make it between 9 am -2 pm for their ghouls to participate in activities. Spooky Saturday offers educational activities, lots of haystacks and pumpkins for fun photo opps (so wear your costumes!), and last but not least, the zoo animals! Please visit their site prior to visiting to review costume stipulations for guests ages 13 and over.
9-Halloween Hoopla-Visit Frontier Park in St. Charles for a free Halloween Hoopla on Oct. 31st from 3 pm-6 pm. This will be a super fun launch of your Halloween evening! Ghouls can dress up, enjoy the Bubble Bus, games and family activities.
10-Halloween Candy Exchange and Waves Swim-This is actually an after-Halloween event taking place on Nov. 2nd from 4 pm-8 pm at The Lodge of Des Peres. I think this may be the BEST event of all though! We all love dressing up our gremlins, goblins and ghouls, but who really wants their kiddos to eat all that candy?! Not me! Fear not the weeks of sugar crashes, tantrums and cavities, post-Halloween celebrations. The Halloween Candy and Waves Swim has got your back moms and dads.
The Lodge of Des Peres will give you a free youth admission AND a waves swim session in exchange for one pound of candy. This is for kids ages 3- 17 years old. You do have to call and reserve your children’s swim session by noon on Nov. 2nd though, so be sure to call ahead.
Give away candy and get free, fun exercise for your kiddos! Know what makes this event even better? All candy that is collected will be donated to the USO of Missouri! Win-win!
Better Office Furniture in St. Charles wishes your family safe, happy, creepy fun this Halloween. We hope you are able to hit up some of these events with your family, and enjoy glowing pumpkins, fiery, vivid leaves, fun activities, quality time, and a little exercise after the fact.
Happy Halloween!
