Halloween Parties: Strange & Unique Ideas for Celebrating Halloween

Blood and gore, ghoulish mist boiling from cauldrons, scary music and haunting sounds in the background, and contests for the most horrific, disgusting, yet creative costumes ever! As a child, I certainly enjoyed those annual Halloween parties that my family put together, and we tried every year to out do the year before. Our Halloween parties were infamous feasts of delightful frights, but it became harder and harder each and every year to come up with just the right Halloween costume or party theme that would make the previous year's party seem boring.

Maybe you want to host your own Halloween party but can't come up with the perfect theme, or maybe you want to skip the party this year and try something out of this world different. Get inspired by these distinct (albeit hair-raising) ideas for making your Halloween celebration a haunting, memorable success.

A Spooky Halloween Picnic in the Woods, or a Cemetery:
As a teenager in high school, I attended a Halloween Party that involved a late-night hike through the woods, in full costume, which turned out to be one of the creepiest Halloween parties I've ever attended. Have your friends and family come dressed in costumes as usual, but instead of holding the party at your home, why not move the venue to the woods, or if you can find a cemetery that isn't locked (though you might not be alone there), even better! Pack a light picnic for your guests and form a ghostly parade through the woods or the cemetery, find a spot and enjoy a night outside with friends, family, wine, food, a bonfire, and some ghost stories.

Visit a Local Urban Legend Spot on Halloween
We've all heard those grim tales of tragedy that took place in our local town/city decades, if not centuries before we were born. The tales that are handed down generation after generation that we convince ourselves aren't true...but what if? Skip the party this year and head out with family and friends on Halloween to an area that is ripe with urban legends. If you do a search on line on "your city + urban legend" I'm sure you will get a plethora of ideas. Spend Halloween night investigating one or more of these local frightful legends and find out for yourself if they are true or simply legend. Follow the above example and bring along a picnic.

Take a Ghost Tour in Town (especially a carriage ride)
Many cities and towns, especially metro areas, have van, bus, or carriage ghost tours and even though they may be geared more towards tourists, these tours can be a fun, educational, yet frightful way to spend a Halloween. If you are looking for a low-key Halloween with minimal work that will still give you those much desired "willies" then book a ghost tour for your family. I myself have had great fun in Charleston, SC, Philadelphia, PA, and New Orleans, LA on these ghost tours. Not only are they a little creepy, they can be educational from an historic standpoint as well while still providing a memorable Halloween.

Tour a Cemetery
There are many cities with "famous" or "infamous" cemeteries, and during the Halloween season, nightly tours are available. I took a Halloween tour once of Laurel Hill Cemetery in Philadelphia, PA and it was so much fun and educational. The cemetery staff sold hot cider and hot chocolate to the tour members, and the tour guides were dressed as ghostly apparitions. Do a search of cemeteries in your local area to see if you can find a Halloween tour. I highly recommend this if you want to do minimal planning, yet still get a wicked Halloween jolt!

Dead Rock/Music Star Party
I've seen this theme come up quite often recently and it could be fun, though a macabre way to spend Halloween. Throw a party and have all of your guests come dressed as dead rock stars or musicians. Serve some creative grisly food (I found this site, Celebrations.com that has some great Halloween food ideas) and punch that resembles blood. In today's economy, don't feel bad about putting BYOB on the invitations. If your guests ask, here are some examples of Halloween costumes for this ghoulish event of folks who have passed:
Jim Morrison, Jimi Hendrix, Joey Ramone, Janis Joplin, Elvis, Freddie Mercury, Buddy Holly, Mama Cass Elliott, Jerry Garcia, Ray Charles, Tiny Tim, John Lennon, Josephine Baker, Ian Curtis, Frank Zappa, Roy Orbison, and Sid & Nancy.

Halloween Karaoke Party
Maybe singing is your thing, so why not combine Halloween and karaoke, but the songs have to be Halloween inspired in some way. Have guests come in costume (you could even combine the Dead Rock/Music Star party with the Karaoke Party and have your guests dress as dead rock/music stars), serve creepy food and punch--again, don't be afraid to put BYOB on the invitations--and rent a karaoke machine. The karaoke machine rental company can help you select some great Halloween tunes, but here are a few:
"Highway to Hell" - AC/DC
"Season of the Witch" - Donovan
"Witchy Woman" - Eagles
"Monster Mash" - Bobby "Boris" Pickett
"Voodoo Child" - Jimi Hendrix
"Don't Fear the Reaper" - Blue Oyster Cult
"Bela Lugosi's Dead" - Bauhaus
"Thriller" - Michael Jackson
"Werewolves of London" - Warren Zevon

Whatever you decide to do for Halloween, be safe, have fun, and be spooked!