Five Low Cost Ideas for Halloween Fun

Halloween is creeping up! Yes, the holiday celebrating the scary and the sugary will soon be upon us. You don’t need to break the bank to have fun during Halloween. Our five low cost Halloween ideas are sure to please the whole family!

To be sure, Halloween is no longer just one day centered on children’s trick-or-treating. It has become a season unto itself. There are many ways that parents and kids can enjoy this highlight of the fall. Plan a spooktacular Halloween with these five ideas for enjoying the spirit of the season without having to spend a lot of money.

1.  Get thee to a pumpkin patch: There is no more perfect symbol of Halloween than a bright orange “globe” growing in abundance in the fall. Pumpkin patches can be found in many parts of the country, offering the opportunity to source your own gourd for a jack-o’-lantern or holiday recipe. You and the kids will be able to benefit from the fresh air and exercise as you search the patch for your “perfect” pumpkin, as well as from the satisfaction of supporting local growers.

2.  Amazing maize: Navigating the twists and turns of a corn maze can be great family fun. During Halloween season, many mazes feature a “haunted” theme complete with cobwebs, giant spiders and ghostly figures. Farmers began getting creative with their cornfields during the 1990s, carving labyrinths that folks could wend their way through for some fun in late summer and fall. These days, GPS technology is being used to design elaborate paths through some maize’s, adding a little high-tech to harvest time.

3.  A walk in the woods: If a cornfield maze gets the juices flowing for a further stretch of the legs, why not head out for a family hike? Crisp weather and autumn leaves turning colors often beckon families to woodsy trails. If no woodlands are close by, you can check out walking paths in a nearby park. A fall hike also is a great way to burn off the sugar from all that Halloween candy, and what could be more Halloween budget friendly than a free walk in the woods?

4.  Homemade Halloween: For indoor activities, Halloween is custom-made for crafts and other at-home projects. Children love color, and during this season they understandably favor orange and black. Keep costs low by using materials you already have to create truly unique budget friendly Halloween decorations. Little ones can make spiders from black pipe cleaners or fashion pumpkins from orange construction paper. Older kids can help you make wreaths decked with autumn leaves. The whole family can participate in piling decorative fall vegetables such as squash and mini-pumpkins in a bowl for the center of the dinner table. For kids’ Halloween costumes, nothing can be more fun and memorable than homemade.

5. Popcorn, anyone?: Halloween season is a perfect time to gather the family for a movie night at home. You can keep the thrills and chills theme without scaring the daylights out of your kids. Go vintage with a movie such as Abbott and Costello’s “Hold That Ghost,” or more contemporary with a film such as “Monsters, Inc.” Remember, even toddlers can enjoy “It’s the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown.”  Whatever the flick, enjoy the family togetherness – and don’t forget to turn out the lights!