It’s almost Halloween, the spookiest night of the year : the night when the ghosts of the dead return to earth, and the line between this world and the next becomes blurred. 

Are you in the Halloween spirit yet? If not, I have just the cure to get you there! Halloween only comes round once a year and just for one night, but it can pretty much be celebrated for the entire month of October with pumpkin spice lattes, scary netflix movies, fun costumes, decorations, ghoulish food and spooky books!

Halloween is an annual holiday celebrated each year on October 31, and Halloween 2020 occurs on Saturday, October 31. Despite popular belief that Halloween originated in the US, it actually has its origins in Ireland in the ancient Celtic festival of Samhain, when people would light bonfires and wear costumes to ward off wandering ghosts.

Halloween

The Celts believed that on ‘All Hallows’ Eve’, the boundary between the worlds of the living and the dead became blurred, and the ghosts of the dead returned to earth.

On Halloween, witches come true; wild ghosts escape from dreams. Each monster dances in the park.

Nicholas Gordon

Celebrating Halloween this year is a bit different, as many of us can’t travel, some of us have curfews (we have a curfew here from 9pm to 6am), so travelling to spooky destinations and Halloween parties are off the agenda. But, that doesn’t mean we can’t still have a little fun – why not use the opportunity to enjoy some family time, decorate the house, watch a scary movie, cook a spooky meal and try some devilish cocktails.

What to do at Halloween

We may not be able to have Halloween parties, but there are still a number of socially distanced activities we can try, and here are a few ideas (mostly around the Los Angeles area, but look for similar around your area).

Visit a Pumpkin Patch

Mr. Jack O’Lanterns Pumpkin patch opened on October 3rd for this 2020 season, and there are three locations this season, including Los Angeles, San Diego and West Palm Beach.

Pumpkin patch
  • Hollywood: 1841 N. Highland Ave., Los Angeles, CA 90028
  • La Jolla: 6710 La Jolla Blvd., San Diego, CA 92037
  • West Palm Beach: 419 Lakeview Ave., West Palm Beach, FL 33401

New this season, Mr. Jack O’Lanterns Pumpkin Patch is now offering online ordering, delivery and contactless curbside pick-up to bring the Halloween spirit to your home or office whilst ensuring a safe and pleasant experience.

Mr. Jack O’Lanterns Pumpkin Decorating Kit is $10 and comes with a softball sized pumpkin, a variety of colors of washable paint, a paint brush, shiny glitter, glue, Halloween themed stickers, pom poms, rhinestones and googly eyes.

Halloween

Visit Mr. Jack O’ Lanterns’ website for more detailed information, including Covid 19 safety and sanitization information.

Take a socially distance stroll through Decanso Gardens

Throughout October, you can take a socially distanced stroll through Descanso Gardens (daily from 9am to 5pm, with extended 5 to 8pm hours the final week of October ).

Guests are invited to safely wind their way through socially-distanced, pumpkin-themed displays in the most popular sections of Descanso Gardens, including mandalas of orange, white and green pumpkins over at the Oak Grove.

Halloween

Look out for all the seasonal Halloween displays, including a hay maze, a pumpkin arch, wooden jack-o’-lantern boxes, a scarecrow trail through a forest and a house made entirely out of pumpkins.

Advance admission is required for non-members and can be purchased here. Descanso Gardens members get in free and do not need tickets or reservations.

The Halloween displays are included in the regular admission ($15, kids $5), and reservations (and masks, of course) are required.

Drive through a Haunted Hayride

Take a drive through a defunct Midnight “Drive-In” Theater and watch a haunted spectacle, all from the safety of your own car in the Bonelli Regional Park in San Dimas. You’ll find it there on select nights from September 25 to November 1.

You enter at All Hallows Lane, a spooky stretch of road that would be at home in any horror movie! This sets the stage as you brace yourself for the ultimate theatrical drive-in horror experience, featuring a multimedia story displayed on a 40 foot screen, as well as horrifying sets and characters from Midnight Falls that surround the theater and bring the story to life!.

Rising from the dead is Horror Movie Host, Monte Revolta, to assume management of the theater. With the help of his Minions of the Living Dead, he will bring the latest and gravest in terrifying sights and sounds to life as they host Monte Revolta’s Monster Movie Spooktacular.

Tickets to the hour-long experience start at $50 per car and up to two passengers (you can add on extra people for $10 each).

Go on a Halloween themed drive-through “Food Crawl”

The Bite LA is a Halloween-themed food crawl that snakes its way around the eerie Legg lake, complete with virtual campfire and “creature safari that guests can enjoy from the safety of their own vehicle.

Halloween

This unusual twist on the drive-thru/drive-into haunted attraction offers a delectable Halloween food crawl, where various ghouls and dark creatures serve you 8 Bites (vegan, vegetarian and gluten-free options are available) as you wind your way from station to station.

Bring your own flashlight and scan the surrounding darkness from the safety of your car, in a hunt for the shadowy and monstrous creatures that roam the abyss.

At the end, park up around the virtual campfire and listen to scary ghost stories, while rounding out the evening’s food experience with a special campfire dessert and your choice of hot cocoa, hot apple cider or coffee.

And if you love playing “dress-up”, every car that arrives “in a Halloween costume” will be entered in the costume contest to win fun prizes throughout the season.

Tickets average between $40 and $50 per person, depending how many people are in your vehicle.

Decorate the house

Have some fun decorating the house, and here are a few decoration ideas. Just click on the image for more details.

Watch a scary film

Settle down with some Halloween themed food and drink and enjoy a spooky film! Here are a few of my favourites :

  • Hocus Pocus
  • Ghostbusters
  • Beetlejuice
  • The nightmare before Christmas
  • The witches of Eastwick
  • The Addams Family
  • HalloweenTown
Halloween

Food and Drink at Halloween

Continue the Halloween thematic and opt for some spooky food and “boo“-zy cocktails!

halloween
Halloween

If you’re stuck for cocktail ideas, then you can pick up a Halloween Cocktail Kit from 101 North Eatery & Bar .

L.A’s 101 North Eatery & Bar has created a new cocktail kit to get you in the Halloween spirit. The “Cold Blooded” Cocktail Kit is only available ‘to go’ for the month of October. It serves 8 people and is $50. Order online, get it delivered or pick it up curbside this cocktail kit is perfect for spooky nights in!

The “Cold Blooded” Cocktail Kit consists of vodka, freshly muddled blackberry, orange blossom, citrus and bubbles.

The cocktail kit includes:

  • 32 oz. Mason Jar
  • 1 bottle Vodka
  • 6 blackberries
  • 1 lemon
  • 1 champagne split
  • Red Sugar for rimming (This is naturally dyed with beet juice. No artificial ingredients.)

I hope you enjoyed this feature about What to do, eat and drink at Halloween and have a look here for more of our lifestyle features.

Have a “spook-tastic” Halloween,