Halloween is on a Saturday this year, which is the best: That means there’s plenty of time to get the kids costumed up before you head out for an evening of trick-or-treating. Plus, when they have a sugar crash the next day, it won’t affect school.
Then the question is, “Where to go?” as many streets are lined with gloomy, dark doors where candy can’t be found.
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Happily, several Bay Area neighborhoods are keeping Halloween spirits high with homes adorned with orange lights, giant skeletons and lawns turned into interactive haunts or experiences right out of the movies. On these streets, generous residents hand out sometimes thousands of dollars’ worth of candy to the children who come knocking.
Here are eight of our favorite places to take the kids trick-or-treating around the Bay Area.
Northside San Jose
The big attraction in San Jose’s Northside neighborhood is the Albertson Halloween House at 497 N. 16th St., a community-supported project that’s celebrating its 25th year in 2026. This year’s theme is “The Mandalorian,” and the house’s blog details how each facet of the “Star Wars” show, from an AT-RT to the armorer’s archway, was re-created. The heroic effort brings 800 to 1,500 trick-or-treaters to the area, and it’s not the only spectacle worth seeing there — a “Ghostbusters”-themed house with the giant Stay Puft marshmallow man is just across the street.
Gold Coast, Alameda
Skeletons appear to jump rope in a Halloween-decoration scene on Sherman Street and San Antonio Avenue in Alameda in 2022. (Ray Chavez/Bay Area News Group)
The island of Alameda, with its grand old houses and small-town enthusiasm for public holidays, is a fine place to hunt for treats, and perhaps a few tricks. The Gold Coast neighborhood is prime territory for Halloween activity. Residents report having good luck treatin’ and sight-seein’ on Grand and Paru streets just south of Encinal Avenue. And while the famed “Christmas Tree Lane” on the 3200 block of Thompson Avenue shines especially bright in December, its lights and inflatable-loving residents put on a terrific show for the spooky season, as well.
RELATED: Map of homes decorated for Halloween in the East Bay
Willow Glen, San Jose
The Willow Glen neighborhood always takes it up to the next level with lawns filled with moving figurines like witches, skeletons, pumpkinheads and creepy dolls that trick-or-treaters have to make their way past to get to the doorbells. But once the kids do make it to the door, they’ll be rewarded with the good candy. Pro tip: Leave early and allow plenty of time if you’re going to this neighborhood; the traffic jams can be scary huge.
Burton Valley, Lafayette
Who would dig graves in their own front yard, then hire actors to dress up as scary characters and pop out of the grave just in time to send a child into a full-blown panic? Or turn the front side of their house into a movie screen that plays a horrific film? Homeowners in Burton Valley, that’s who. The Halloween frenzy is fierce among those near Burton Valley Elementary School, particularly along Merriwood Drive and Silverado, where families are said to be in an expensive competition to see who can celebrate the hardest. One neighbor reported spending more than $1,000 on candy for all the kids who are being driven from all over the place to experience the festivities.
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Almond Grove, Los Gatos
The quaint, historic Almond Grove district of stately Victorians and other architectural gems is prime territory for trick-or-treaters and those who appreciate decked-out homes, say South Bay holiday experts. Even real estate websites mention this attribute — for those who might want to move into this festive neighborhood. (Christmas season is big here also.) A lovely residential thoroughfare, Tait Avenue, is typically closed to cars on Halloween so that pint-size princesses and pirates and their parents can safely cross from one decorated home to another.
Children walk down a street while trick-or-treating in Pleasant Hill on Oct. 31, 2019. (Jose Carlos Fajardo/Bay Area News Group)
Poets Corner, Pleasant Hill
Full-sized candy bars, haunted walkways, spooky sounds and animated Halloween characters are among the highlights for this trick-or-treating neighborhood, which has reportedly exploded in the last few years. Jell-O shots for the adults, too!
Professorville, Crescent Park and Old Palo Alto, Palo Alto
Full-size candy bars and stuffed animals are among the Halloween goodies whispered about in these neighborhoods that a number of Silicon Valley tech billionaires and celebrities call home. Visitors of years past swear by their trick-or-treating hauls from these affluent neighborhoods, specifically the homes of Marissa Meyer (Professorville) and Laurene Powell Jobs (Old Palo Alto).
First and Second streets, Pleasanton
First Street is known as a popular Halloween spot, where businesses and homes go all-in on decorations, while Second Street reportedly gets thousands of visitors each year, to the point where neighbors have asked for candy donations.