Kid-Friendly Minneapolis Halloween Events

Halloween events in Minneapolis, Minnesota abound! Many parents who live downtown express concern over a Minneapolis Halloween evening of trick-or-treating in some rather shady neighborhoods. Fortunately, there are all kinds of Minneapolis events that are sure to make this year's Minneapolis Halloween the best one yet!

1. Powderhorn Park Haunted House

3400 15th Ave. South, Minneapolis

612-370-4960

This is a favorite Halloween event among families with small children. The haunted house is spooky for visitors of all ages and offers many chilling surprises! All children under the age of twelve must be supervised by an adult in order to attend this Halloween event. The Minneapolis Halloween event is inexpensive, at only a dollar for children under twelve and two dollars for adults.

2. Wacky Witch Wednesday at Kenwood Park

2101 Franklin Ave. West, Minneapolis

Wacky Witch Wednesday gets the Minneapolis Halloween excitement started early! This Minneapolis Halloween event is earlier than other local Halloween events-it takes place on a Wednesday afternoon a few days before Halloween. At this Minneapolis Halloween event, you'll listen to scary and funny witch tales, sing spooky Halloween "carols," do Halloween arts and crafts and have a treat prepared in a cauldron!

3. Halloween Party-Bethune Park and Phyllis Wheatley Community Center

1301 10th Ave. North, Minneapolis

Families short on cash this year will love this Minneapolis Halloween event! The Minneapolis Halloween Party at Bethune Park is absolutely free, unlike the pricier Minneapolis Halloween events. The popular Halloween event takes place on Halloween evening and features tasty snacks, scary movies, games, and free Halloween treat bags with edible treats and toys for the kids!

4. Pumpkin Painting Party

Kenwood Park

2101 West Franklin Ave, Minneapolis

612-370-4941

The Pumpkin Painting Party Halloween event is a precursor to the evening Minneapolis Halloween events-it takes place at 9:30 am on Halloween morning. The Halloween event gives families the opportunity to paint pumpkins and carve Jack-O-lanterns while eating Halloween treats and hearing the story of the Runaway Pumpkin.

5. ValleyScare at Valleyfair Amusement Park

1 Valleyfair Drive, Shakopee

ValleyScare is the ultimate Halloween event for pre-teens and teens in the twin cities area. Held at Valleyfair, it differs from the typical Minneapolis Halloween events targeted at younger children-ValleyScare offers much more excitement and more thrills. Wind your way through one of four spooky mazes such as Mr. Cleaver's Bloodshed and the Mangler Asylum. At night, several of the popular Valleyfair rides such as Renegade, Steel Venom and the Wild Thing are open and during the day the children's rides are open.

Some parents are concerned about attending the ValleyScare Halloween event at Valleyfair because the mazes and other attractions tend to be very frightening and show several gory images. But there are activities at ValleyScare to please the entire family. Younger children will enjoy spending time in Pumpkin Hollow which is much more family-friendly than the rest of ValleyScare. At Pumpkin Hollow, youngsters can explore a trick-or-treat maze and listen to the Boogiemonsters children's band.

6. Anoka Halloween Capital of the World

Anoka, Minnesota

http://www.anokahalloween.com/events.html

Anoka is located just north of Minneapolis and it is famous for being the Halloween Capital of the World! This is by far the best place to be for Minneapolis Halloween events. There are dozens of Anoka Halloween events, many of which are free or extremely inexpensive. Here are a few of my personal favorites:

• Grand Day Parade

Held on Halloween afternoon on Main Street in Anoka, this Anoka Halloween event is not your average hometown parade! For one thing, how many parades have ghosts and witches instead of clowns? Or hand out caramel apples? Another aspect that makes this Halloween event distinctive is the fact that it is the largest and most attended town parade in Minnesota.

• Spooktacular Carnival

This Anoka Halloween event takes place from 10 am until the Main Street Parade starts at 1 pm. It is a great Halloween event for little kids who will enjoy carnival games, face painting and Halloween treats.

• House Decoration Contest

The House Decoration Contest is open to all residents of Anoka, Andover and Ramsey. People really get into this Halloween event, and it has taken on a highly competive nature. I always wonder what astronomical amount their October electricity bills show after displaying thousands of lights (sometimes painful to the retinas!) The judging takes place on October 28^th, with a first place prize of $150! Even if you don't plan to enter this popular Anoka Halloween contest, you should cruise around these cities and check out the dozens of wacky and spooky house decorations!

• Little Shop of Horrors

Theater lovers rejoice! Now you have a great Anoka Halloween event to attend with the kids, and you don't have to walk for miles or knock on strangers' doors. This Anoka Halloween musical is extremely popular and sells out quickly, so get your tickets asap at http://www.lyricarts.org/

There are many more Anoka Halloween events, including crafts and stories at the Anoka Library, a nighttime parade on October 24^th, a Pumpkin Carving contest, the Ghosts of Anoka walking tour and more! I wish I could attend them all!

No matter what Minneapolis Halloween event you end up attending, all the Halloween events described above will ensure that you and your family celebrate Minneapolis Halloween in style! You'll be sure to make some wonderful memories while having a frightening amount of fun!