NATIONAL TRICK OR TREAT DAY

NATIONAL TRICK OR TREAT DAY

National Trick or Treat Day on the last Saturday in October extends one of the country's favorite holidays - Halloween! This celebration offers the ideal opportunity to host spooky parties, neighborhood trick or treating or local festivals.

#TrickOrTreatDay

Dressing up as the scariest or most fascinating character we know draws us to the holiday. People of all ages put hours of effort into creating elaborate costumes for one big night. Wouldn't it be nice to get dress up and pretend just a little bit more? Of course, it would!

The best part is everyone gets to wear their scariest, funniest, most elaborate, delightful costumes, too! There is no better way to have fun with family and friends to carve pumpkins and enjoy the fall weather while extending the life of your creative ideas.

Today, think about using your creativity all day long! Start the day by spending the afternoon decorating Halloween-themed cookies, making caramel apples, or creating spooky "dirt" cups with pudding and gummy worms. As evening approaches, hide candy or small Halloween toys around the house or yard and give out clues for a fun scavenger hunt. After that, dim the lights, pop some popcorn, and enjoy a lineup of classic Halloween movies! End your night by telling ghost stories. Gather in a circle with flashlights and take turns telling spooky (or silly) ghost stories.

HOW TO OBSERVE TRICK OR TREAT DAY

Get the whole family dressed up and go trick or treating! Organize a trunk or treat activity with your office, church, or volunteer group. Host costume party. No matter how you celebrate, extend the life of your costume for the season and make sure more people see your creative ideas.

And no matter how you celebrate, be sure to take pictures and share them using #TrickOrTreatDay on social media.

NATIONAL TRICK OR TREAT DAY HISTORY

The Halloween & Costume Association (HCA) founded National Trick or Treat Day in 2019 to extend the Halloween season. In 2018 they launched a national petition to change the date Americans celebrated Halloween. Nearly 70,000 people signed their change.org petition, and more than 200 major media outlets covered their story. After interacting with the public and listening to feedback, they initiated an extension to Halloween instead. Additionally, the HCA created an Official Halloween Toolkit with ideas to help communities all across to help implement parades, events and costumes.

The Registrar at National Day Calendar® proclaimed this spooky celebration to be observed the last Saturday in October, annually.

DATES
25 October 2025
31 October 2026
30 October 2027
28 October 2028
27 October 2029
26 October 2030