Halloween Trivia and Wicked Good Ideas
Photo credit: Alina Matveycheva
Halloween is a time-old tradition that has its roots in the ancient Celtic festival Samhain (pronounced SAH-win), which marked the end of the harvest season. Lighting bonfires, wearing costumes to ward off ghosts, and leaving small offerings at village outskirts to appease woodland fairies were part of the festivities. Over time, the evening before All Saints Day, All Hallows Eve, became what we now call Halloween.
Almost 2000 years later, we're still celebrating the end of the harvest and All Hallows Eve has since evolved into one of the most popular celebrations with haunted houses, costume parades, trick-or-treating, and elaborate Halloween parties for young and old alike. Here are some Halloween facts and tricks for spooky good fun.
5 Frightfully Fun Halloween Destinations
Photo credit: Márcio Silva
Martha Stewart's website lists the top US destinations for Halloween festivities and spooky vacations. Here are five favorites.
- Screams Halloween Theme Park, Dallas, Texas – This is a good, old-fashioned theme park filled with Halloween activities and good scares around every corner.
- Neewollah, Independence, Kansas – Neewollah is Halloween spelled backward and one of the most anticipated fall festivals with ten days of live entertainment, food venues, and activities for kids of all ages.
- Knott's Scary Farm, Buena Park, California – The largest Halloween SoCal attraction with scary creatures, spooky mazes, and hauntingly innovative venues to thrill and delight on this most haunted night.
- Kersey Valley Spooky Woods Haunted Attraction, Archdale, North Carolina, is listed in the top five Travel Channel haunted attractions in the US. This historic city hosts one of the most successful and memorable haunted house attractions, including movie-quality supernatural scares and special effects.
- Village Halloween Parade, New York, New York – The city that never sleeps also delivers one of the most iconic, entertaining, and original parades with over 50,000 zombies, ghouls, and other scary creatures. The Village Halloween Parade is the largest Halloween parade in the world, where anyone in costume is welcome to join in on the fun.
10 Halloween Movie Favorites
Photo credit: Wilson Vitorino
Do you like scary or funny Halloween movies? There's an infinite number of Halloween-genre films and as many sequels. Some are terrifying, others are cult classics, and then there are family-friendly favorites. It's a never-ending debate, but here are ten that make the grade.
- What We Do in the Shadows (2014) – An instant cult classic, this bloody yet hilarious spoof about quirky, out-of-touch vampire roomies never gets old.
- Halloween (1978) – The original teen-slasher film that launched the genre. The iconic indestructible villain Michael Meyers terrorizes superheroine babysitter Jamie Lee Curtis.
- The Nightmare Before Christmas (1993) – A Tim Burton original mixes Christmas and Halloween into a delightful stop-motion animated film with a memorable soundtrack.
- It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown (1966) – Short and sweet, this classic about the "Peanuts" gang's tricks and treats while waiting for the Great Pumpkin is a must-see prime-time tradition.
- The Witches (1990) – A creepy, adventurous romp that's scary, but in a good way. In this film, kids unwittingly attend a witch's convention that leads to many spells and hijinks.
- It (2017) – This movie is an even creepier remake of a Stephen King classic that takes coulrophobia (fear of clowns) to a truly terrifying level.
- The Blair Witch Project (1999) – How do you take fear and suspense to new heights without a single drop of blood or dismembered body parts? Easy. Deliver on a "killer concept."
- The Exorcist (1973) – This Oscar-winning, gut-wrenching chiller about a possessed young girl was terrifying almost five decades ago and still is today, so don't watch it alone.
- Young Frankenstein (1994) – A tongue-in-cheek take on the Frankenstein classic where the American grandson of the infamous scientist sets out to disprove grandad was insane. Hilarity ensues.
- Scream (1996) – This tongue-in-cheek scare fest pumped new energy into the horror film genre and launched a hard-to-beat Halloween costume.
5 Favorite Halloween Candies
Photo credit: Monstera
Quick – what is your favorite Halloween candy? Forbes has done the research to determine the top five Halloween candies. Let's see if your favorites top the list.
- Reese's Cups
- Skittles
- M&M's
- Starburst
- Hot Tamales
In 2021 an estimated $3 billion was spent on Halloween candy and $10 billion on the entire holiday. Holy trick or treat!
7 Halloween Costumes for Kids of All Ages
Photo credit: Charles Parker
Skeletons, witches and superheroes are always winners. These are some of the top trending Halloween costumes for 2022.
- Ted Lasso
- Stranger Things (Hellfire Club)
- Baby Yoda
- Bridgerton
- Hocus Pocus Sanderson Sisters (witch costumes)
- Buzz Lightyear
- Mirabel from “Encanto”
5 Surprising Halloween Facts
Photo credit: Charles Parker
- Why orange and black? These are the colors most associated with Halloween. Black connotes death, darkness, and plants withering on the vine. The orange hue comes courtesy of Mother Nature, as leaves turn orange and carved pumpkins and gourds are on display.
- The pumpkin is a fruit. Much like the tomato and other squash-like fruits, pumpkins are often confused with a vegetable. Anything that grows from a flower and holds seeds in its flesh is a fruit.
- The creepy mask that Michael Myers wore was an altered Captain James T. Kirk mask purchased for about a dollar. The original James T. Kirk masks have become collector's items and are hard to find.
- Halloween is the second largest commercial holiday in the US, behind Christmas.
- Kids prefer the classics; according to the National Retail Federation, kids love to dress up as superheroes and princesses while their parents opt for witch costumes. Even dogs get in on the fun, with pumpkin costumes topping the list, naturally.
Drizzly cold weather shouldn't dampen the festivities. Misty weather even adds to the Halloween mystique. Check out these ingenious Halloween hacks for trick-or-treaters and anyone handing out candy on All Hallows Eve.
Boo-tiful Costumes for Chilly Evenings:
Photo credit: Monstera
Halloween-worthy yet warm and cozy too:- Little Red Riding Hood
- Cruella Deville
- The Gorton Fisherman
- Stay Puff Marshmallow Man
- Pac Man Ghost
- A Yeti (Abominable Snowman)
- Sumo Wrestler suit
The list goes on.
Make a WeatherPod® into a Spooky Treat Stand:
Need some inspiration? It's oh-so-easy. Start with a Pod.
- Pin together furry fabric, googly eyes, and felt teeth to turn one of our pop-up Pods into a Monster.
- Use some cobwebs, plastic bats, and spiders; add dry ice for fog and a motion-activated floating skeleton for a genuinely creepy effect.
- Channel your psychic powers with tarot cards, a crystal ball, battery-operated flickering candles, and fortune teller ensemble.
And just like that! No matter the weather, handing out treats on Halloween will be a scream. Happy Haunting!
