Halloween is creeping closer, and if you love an excuse to dress up, stock up on sweet treats or get the kids out for some spooky fun, there’s plenty happening around Chermside this October.
From family-friendly Halloween events to activities for those who like their celebrations a little scarier, we’ve rounded up some of the best ways to get into the Halloween spirit close to home.
Aspley Hornets Halloween Party
Aspley Hornets has been holding an annual Kids Halloween Party for many years, and you can be sure it’s a good one. Running from 11 am–1 pm on Saturday, the 31st of October, adults get free entry while each child must hold a ticket. There will be a professional DJ, games, prizes, and delicious treats. Don’t forget to dress up!
Price: $25 per child
Location: Aspley Hornets, 50 Graham Rd, Carseldine
Spooktacular Halloween Disco Party
If you’re looking for a disco party that’s suitable for the whole family, The Sands Bowlo is holding its annual Spooktacular. Despite the name, don’t expect any scares at this event; it caters to the younger audience.
Price: from $10 (children under 1 go free)
Location: 7 Burnett Place, Sandgate
Redcliffe Festival of Frights
The Twilight Market opens at 4 pm and is open until 9 pm. In addition to the 200+ stalls on site, there’s a scavenger hunt, a costume competition with prizes, street eats, and entertainment! It’s free entry, but you need to reserve a spot to avoid missing out.
Price: Free
Location: Redcliffe Parade
Cursed on Conway
If you’re looking for something a little different this year, Cursed on Conway is back, and it’s better than ever. What should you expect? Creepy characters creating havoc and plenty of scares, and this year there are four dates to choose from! They’re already deep in plans to one-up themselves.
It runs from 5-8 pm on Saturday, 24th October; 5-9 pm on Friday, 30th October; 4-9 pm on Saturday, 31st October; and 5-8 pm on Sunday, 1st of November.
Price: Free
Location: 1 Conway Court, North Lakes
Albany Creek Tavern – Kids Halloween
The two-hour event kicks off at 12:30 and, in addition to a Halloween costume contest, expect a delicious lunch, face painting, and trick-or-treating. It should be frightfully fun!
Price: Free entry; book a table for lunch
Location: 730 Albany Creek Road
There is an after-hours Halloween party for adults at Albany Creek Tavern as well. The Halloween Drag Bingo event kicks off at 7 pm, and you can expect entertainment and laughs as Sarah Problem and Mandy Moobs take the mic. It’s also for a great cause, raising funds for The Queensland Children’s Hospital Foundation.
Price: $37 (plus booking fee)
Location: 730 Albany Creek Road
If you’re looking for something further afield, Mango Hill Tavern is holding a range of events on Halloween for the kids. From face painting and witch’s potion labs to spooky entertainment, it’s one worth checking out. Strathpine Library also has a free Halloween event for young children from 9:30 am-11:30 am.
Halloween Activities At Home in Chermside
The best part of Halloween is that you can have loads of fun without spending a fortune, and you can even do it at home.
Ghost Freeze
Forget plain old freeze dance; with a spot of spooky music, you can add a Halloween twist. Let the kids dance away to the “Monster Mash” or Ghostbusters theme song, and when the music pauses, everyone must freeze! The twist? They need to pull a monster face or spooky pose. Transform your home or garden into a scavenger hunt for sweet treats. Or hold a mummy wrap race. Break off into teams and see who can turn their volunteer into a toilet roll mummy the fastest.
Good Old Fashioned Trick-or-Treating
What Halloween would be complete without dressing up, grabbing a pillowcase, and trick-or-treating in the neighbourhood? Head out between four and five with the littlest ones or wait a bit later if your children are a bit older.
Crafting & Kitchen Fun
There are plenty of budget-friendly craft ideas suitable for children of all ages. If you have young ones, paper and kid-safe paint are enough for an exciting afternoon. Make handprints on the paper and, once dry, let your kids go crazy with googly eyes and markers to turn their handprints into silly ghosts and monsters.
Repurpose old white socks and sheets to create hanging ghosts that you can hang throughout the house and out front for spooky décor.
Halloween Movie Night
Hocus Pocus, Hotel Transylvania, Casper, Zombies, and so many more Halloween movies to choose from. No matter how old your children are, there are age-appropriate films to create an entire movie day with the family. Alternatively, choose one, enjoy movie night with the kids and pack them off to bed before you get into the horror flicks.
Halloween-Themed Sensory Play
This is fun and relatively easy. You’ll need:
- ½ cup baking soda
- ½ cup water
- Vinegar
- Dish soap
Add to a bowl and add food colouring of your choice, mixing until the baking soda is damp. Grab a handful and fill it with plastic spiders; grab another handful to cover the spiders and cover them well before adding pipe cleaners for legs. Pop them on wax paper and freeze them for a few hours. When it’s playtime, add vinegar and a drop of dish soap to a shallow baking pan, mix it well, and then add the frozen spiders. As they foam and dissolve, the kids will go crazy when the baby spiders emerge.
Halloween in Chermside
Whether you love the spooky dramatics of the season or enjoy getting your hands dirty with the kids at home, there are plenty of ways to keep the family entertained and make the most of Halloween.
Are you holding an event in Chermside this Halloween? Or do you have big plans at home? Let us know in the comments below.
