To help you plan your busy weekend, we have partnered with Mommy Poppins, the FREE online resource curating the best things to do for kids and families in NYC. Each week they will provide us with their top weekend picks for events and activities in New York City.
Halloween may officially fall on October 31 but many of New York City’s best celebrations for families take place this weekend—and a bunch of them are FREE.
All Weekend:
Halloween Parades – Citywide
On Saturday, costumed kids can march through Fort Greene Park, Harlem, Coney Island, Greenpoint, Marcus Garvey Park and Soho with Clifford the Big Red Dog. Sunday’s processions include Tribeca’s Washington Market Park, Battery Park City and Astoria. See our comprehensive roundup of kid-friendly Halloween parades for even more options.
Puppets on Film – Fort Greene
See puppet masters in action at BAM Rose Cinemas’ annual weekend-long film fest. The lineup includes new classics (The Great Muppet Caper, Return to Oz), a pair of world premieres and even a Little Shop of Horrors sing-along. Plus there will be special guests, a shadow puppet workshop and a live puppet show. Check our event listing for the complete schedule. Advance tickets recommended. Screenings are $13 for adults, $9 for children
Saturday:
Halloween Haunted Walk and Halloween Carnival – Prospect Park
Usually Prospect Park‘s Lookout Hill is a serene setting but not today as zombies, wolf men, headless horsemen, and good and bad witches take over. Although it’s all in ghoul fun, the spine-tingling hike might be a bit too much for sensitive tots. Families with very young children can opt to go straight to the Nethermead for a Halloween carnival featuring games, treats and other fun. FREE
Monster Mash – Crown Heights
Get your ghoul on at the Brooklyn Children’s Museum‘s spooktacular bash with a museum-wide scavenger hunt, face time with creepy critters, scary storytimes, “Thriller”-style dance lessons, live holiday-themed entertainment and a dance party. Friday and Saturday. Advance tickets are a must. $12
Ghouls & Gourds – Crown Heights
Head to the Brooklyn Botanic Garden for a seasonal celebration with a wacky bent. March in a costume parade led by giant puppets and kooky stilt-dancers, bang your head to an all-kid heavy metal band, dance with human-size woodland creatures, meet local children’s book authors, and romp in a Victorian toy parlor and on the garden’s gorgeous grounds. Free with admission: $15 for adults, free for children under 12
Halloween Festival – Fort Greene
Hit Fort Greene Park for its annual fest featuring a costume parade, pumpkin patch, two horse-drawn carriage hayrides, games, face painting and a costume contest for dogs (and their owners). FREE
Sunday:
Screamin’ Green Halloween – Battery Park City
At this eco-friendly fete, families can make masks and costumes out of recycled and repurposed household materials, bob for apples, pin the face on the pumpkin, compete in a gourd roll, hear spooky tales and follow wandering puppets and marching bands. There will also be green art projects, photo ops in front of a ghoulish green screen, organic and fair-trade sweets, a costume swap and a climactic parade around the neighborhood. FREE
Visit Mommy Poppins to find more events, activities and things to do with your kids this weekend.
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