ST. LOUIS — Halloween will look a little different this year, due to the ongoing coronavirus pandemic.
Some events have been canceled, while others are still going on with social distancing and mask mandates in place. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has also discouraged traditional door-to-door trick-or-treating.
However, there are still a few ways to celebrate Halloween safely in the St. Louis area this year.
Saint Louis Zoo
Boo at the Zoo will be held from 5-8:30 p.m. on Oct. 16 through Oct. 30.
At the event, families can enjoy festive decorations, strolling entertainers, special food and drink menus and more.
Time-ticket reservations are required and must be purchased in advance.
Tickets for members are $7.95 (ages 2-12) and $8.95 (ages 13+), non-members are $8.95 (ages 2-12) and $9.95 (ages 13+). Children under 2 years old are free.
Click here for more information.
Six Flags
Six Flags St. Louis is hosting HALLOWFEST this year.
The event will feature thrills by day and family-friendly activities and chills by night with rides on rollercoasters in the dark and Halloween theme throughout the park, according to a press release.
HALLOWFEST will take place from 2-10 p.m. on Saturdays and Sundays from Oct. 3 through Nov. 1.
The park said it will continue to operate with limited capacity admission to prevent overcrowding and reservations will be required.
Click here for more information.
Grant’s Farm
Grant’s Farm will reopen in October and host its first Halloween drive-thru experience. It will begin Oct. 1 and run through Halloween.
Tickets are $40 per car.
Guests will check in at the Grant’s Farm parking lot and will then be guided through the property to explore the "Tiergarten" where there will be spiders, witches, bats and some of the farm’s animals.
Guests will also drive through Deer Park to see the “mystical world that lies beyond the shrieking trees.”
The festivities will be held at Grant’s Farm from 7-10 p.m. Thursdays and Sundays and from 7-11 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays until Oct. 11. Beginning on Oct. 15, the events will start early at 6:30 p.m.
Click here for more information.
St. Louis Union Station
St. Louis Union Station will have some spooky vibes for the Halloween season this year.
Visitors can take part in the Union Station Halloween Experience from Oct. 9 through Oct. 31. The Halloween experience was created for children 12 and under and their families, according to a news release.
The experience is a themed walking journey through the historic railroad terminal’s stationary rail cars. Each car will feature a spooky theme including pirates, witches, dark creatures and a candy wonderland.
On the rail cars, characters will read a story with clues and interactive elements to solve the “Riddle of the Werewolf” and kids will get a special treat at the end of the journey.
Click here for more information.
Eckert's Belleville farm
Eckert’s is hosting two Halloween events at its Belleville farm over the holiday weekend on Oct. 30 and 31.
Halloween Scavenger Hunt
Children can dress up in costume and take part in the farm’s scavenger hunt. Participants will work at their own pace to follow clues that loop throughout the farm. When the hunt is complete, kids will receive a prize full of Halloween goodies.
The event will be held from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. on both days and reservations are required. It costs $5 per child.
Halloween Costume Parade
Kids will be able to show off their Halloween costumes at the parade.
Participants will meet at a white tent near the restaurant parking lot five minutes before the parade starts. Kids will get the chance to walk across the stage as their name and costume are announced.
Masks are required and participants will be socially distanced while they wait in line to cross the stage. Each participating child will receive a treat.
The event will be held from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. on both days. It is free and no reservations are required.
Marcoot Jersey Creamery
Marcoot Jersey Creamery is hosting its annual Fall Fest as a drive-thru event from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Oct. 10. The event will operate similar to Cheesefest, which was held in June.
Fall Fest will include a drive-thru hay bale maze and a radio-guided tour of the creamery with farm views. Guests will be able to see and learn about farm animals like cows, sheep, goats and a llama.
There will kid-friendly activities including a scavenger hunt, according to a news release.
Children are encouraged to dress up in Halloween costumes to receive candy at the event. The event is free, but the creamery said donations will be accepted at the event.
Click here for more information.
Halloween in Edwardsville
The City of Edwardsville announced trick-or-treating days and times along with other events for the community to celebrate a “Healthy Halloween.”
The Department of Parks and Recreation will host a virtual costume contest from Oct. 15 to Oct. 30 on the department’s Facebook page.
The Edwardsville YMCA will be hosting a trick-or-treat drive-thru event on Oct. 30 from 6-7:30 p.m. at Plummer Family Park at 3501 Sports Park Drive.
The Downtown Trick-or-Treating event will take place on Oct. 31 from noon to 2:30 p.m.
With the cancellation of the Edwardsville-Glen Carbon Chamber of Commerce Annual Halloween Parade, both cities have agreed to hold trick-or-treating on Oct. 31 from 4-9 p.m.
Click here for more information.
Westport Plaza
Westport Plaza, Maryland Heights Parks & Recreation and Maryland Heights Police Department have teamed up to host a drive-thru trunk-or-treat event.
Local businesses will be handling out Halloween goodies from their decorated cars and tents as guests drive through the event. The Special Olympics will also be at the event taking cash donations.
The event is free, but you must register in advance. Tickets must be reserved for each child that will be in a car and guests must arrive at the time designated on the ticket.
The event will be held from 6-8 p.m. on Oct. 29. Click here to register.
Spooktacular Drive-In
Girl Scouts of Southern Illinois is hosting a “Spooktacular Drive-In” on Oct. 23 in Edwardsville.
The event kicks off at 6:30 p.m. with Halloween-themed games before the movie starts playing at 7 p.m. in the parking lot of the Metro Community Church, located at 3551 Ridgeview Road.
The movie of choice will be Hotel Transylvania. A big screen will be set up with sound directed to guests’ FM car radios.
The cost of the event is $28 per car, which includes one adult and one child. Each additional child in the car is $15 and each additional adult is $13.
Click here to register for the event.
Virtual Halloween
There’s a "Hocus Pocus" reunion in the works.
Bette Midler, Sarah Jessica Parker and Kathy Najimy will reunite for a virtual special as part of Midler's annual "Hulaween" celebrations to benefit the New York Restoration Project.
"In Search of the Sanderson Sisters: A Hocus Pocus Hulaween Takeover" will be a one-hour special taking place on Oct. 30.
Click here for more information.
