Best Family-Friendly Halloween Events in the Bay Area (2026 Guide)

Not every kid is ready for a haunted maze, and honestly, not every parent wants to find one either. Here's where to take the whole family this October , with the dates, prices, and honest read on each one so you can pick what fits your kid.

1. 🎃 Oogubi Wonderland: Haunted Shipwreck at Anchor's Landing

Oogubi's most popular event, in Halloween form: a haunted-shipwreck-themed indoor glow experience at Fisherman's Wharf, with a mermaid and pirate meet-and-greet, live DJ, balloon house, messy play, and sensory toys. Skews toward a younger, more sensory-friendly crowd and families who don't want anything scary! Private party rooms are also available if you want to book it out.

📍 Anchor's Landing at Fisherman's Wharf, 333 Jefferson St, San Francisco, CA 94133 📅 Saturday, October 31, 2026 🕐 10:30 AM–1:30 PM 🔗 Get tickets

*Anchor's Landing is sponsoring a limited number of tickets. Enter code 'SHIPWRECK40' at checkout and receive 40% off.

2. 👻 Boo on the Block Family Halloween Fest

Clean Living Magazine is hosting a family Halloween fest at a private estate in Palo Alto's Crescent Park neighborhood, timed to wrap up before trick-or-treating. Kids can decorate pumpkin gems and treat bags, and there's live art, music, and a festive photo moment. A coffee bar and local vendors are on hand, along with Halloween surprises and prizes for best kids' and adult costumes.

📍 Crescent Park, Palo Alto, CA (address provided with tickets) 📅 Saturday, October 31, 2026 🕐3-5pm 💵 Ticketed for kids · adults FREE 🔗 Get tickets

3. 🎢 Tricks and Treats at Six Flags Discovery Kingdom

The daytime, no-scares alternative to Fright Fest, this one's built for toddlers, preschoolers, and kids who want the candy without the jump-scares. Trick-or-treat trail, a hay maze, a Skelebration dance party, and a handful of family rides all running before the sun goes down. No separate event ticket. It's included with regular park admission.

📍 Six Flags Discovery Kingdom, 1001 Fairgrounds Dr, Vallejo, CA 94589 📅 Weekends, September 19 – November 1, 2026 🕐 11:00 AM–6:00 or 8:00 PM (check the day) 💵 Included with park admission · parking from $39 🔗 Plan your visit

4. 👻 Goblin Jamboree at Bay Area Discovery Museum

The longest-running Halloween festival in Marin, and it skips the sugar rush entirely. Plan for slime, magic brew, a hay maze, and hands-on crafts instead of trick-or-treating. Costumes strongly encouraged (no weapons of any kind). Best suited for kids 6 months to about 10 years.

📍📍 Bay Area Discovery Museum, 557 McReynolds Rd, Sausalito, CA 94965 📅 Weekends, October 3–31, 2026 (last day Saturday, Oct 31) 🕐 9:00 AM–4:00 PM 💵 $30 general admission · $5 members 🔗 Get tickets

5. 🚂 Thomas and Percy's Halloween Party at Roaring Camp

A genuinely low-stress option for train-obsessed little kids: a 25-minute ride with Thomas and Percy, a meet-and-greet with Sir Topham Hatt, a small pick-a-pumpkin patch, bounce houses, and live music. No costumes required, but most kids show up dressed anyway because it's fun and why not!

📍 Roaring Camp Railroads, 5401 Graham Hill Rd, Felton, CA 95018 📅 Weekends: October 10–11, 17–18, 24–25, 2026 🕐 Rides depart hourly, 10:00 AM–3:00 PM 💵 $25–27 per person (ages 1+) · book ahead, weekends sell out 🔗 Get tickets

6. 🎉 Fillmore After Dark

If you're already in the city on Halloween itself, this is the free option. San Francisco's Fillmore District turns into a Halloween night market — a Kids Scream Zone with bounce houses and trunk-or-treating, a costume contest, live entertainment, classic cars, and food vendors.

📍 Fillmore St, San Francisco (1500 Fillmore St) 📅 Saturday, October 31, 2026 🕐 4:00–9:00 PM 💵 Free 🔗 Event details

7. ⚔️ Halloween Fantasy Weekend at NorCal Renaissance Faire

The Faire's own closing-weekend Halloween theme, with costume contests and trick-or-treating through the village, alongside the usual jousting, falconry, and artisan marketplace. Kids 12 and under are free every weekend, and this is the last one before the season wraps.

📍 Casa de Fruta, 10031 Pacheco Pass Hwy, Hollister, CA 95023 📅 October 24–25, 2026 🕐 10:00 AM–6:00 PM 💵 Kids 12 & under FREE · $42 adults · parking $12 🔗 Get tickets

8. 🦁 Boo at the Zoo: San Francisco Zoo

One of the Bay Area's most popular family Halloween events, landing right on Halloween Day this year. It's a a genuinely daytime, kid-friendly event, not an after-dark haunt. Highlights include a costume parade and contest, a trick-or-treat station, crafts and activities, and special pumpkin treats given to the animals. One rule worth knowing ahead of time: no full-face masks, since they can startle the animals.

📍 SF Zoo & Gardens, Sloat Blvd at the Great Highway, San Francisco 📅 Saturday, October 31, 2026 🕐 11:00 AM–3:00 PM 💵 Free with paid daytime admission or Zoo membership 🔗 Get tickets

9. 🐘 Boo at the Zoo: Oakland Zoo

A self-guided scavenger hunt through the zoo rather than door-to-door trick-or-treating: find the hidden animal trading cards, finish the hunt for a limited-release card and a candy bar. Runs daily through the back half of October with themed costume days. Included with regular zoo admission. Reserve timed tickets in advance; it sells out.

📍 Oakland Zoo, 9777 Golf Links Rd, Oakland, CA 94605 📅 Daily, mid-to-late October through Halloween — confirm exact start date at oaklandzoo.org 💵 Regular zoo admission ($20–24) · free for members and kids under 2 🔗 Reserve tickets

10. 🎃 The Great Big BOO! at Gilroy Gardens

If your kid is too little for anything with the word "haunt" in it, this is your Halloween. Sweet, silly, and deliberately not-too-spooky. There is a trick-or-treat BOO Trail through the park, an animated light tunnel, character meet-and-greets, and live shows.

📍 Gilroy Gardens, 3050 Hecker Pass Hwy, Gilroy, CA 95020 📅 Select dates, September 25 – November 1, 2026 🕐 Fri 5:00–10:00 PM · Sat–Sun 1:00–9:00 PM 💵 Included with park admission · free for Premium Members 🔗 Check dates

11. 🐟 Fish or Treat at Aquarium of the Bay

This is Halloween at Pier 39. It's the aquarium's annual Fish or Treat celebration, with underwater pumpkin carving and otter pumpkin playtime. The best part: kids 12 and under who come in costume get free general admission all weekend.

📍 Aquarium of the Bay, PIER 39 (Embarcadero & Beach St), San Francisco, CA 📅 October 31 – November 1, 2026 💵 Kids 12 & under in costume FREE (general admission only, limitations apply) 🔗 Event details

 12. 🕯️ Autumn Days or Nightfall at Filoli

Filoli's gardens after dark, lit up and turned into a a candlelit walk through the historic house, glowing banana slugs in the woods, and a pumpkin-filled meadow. It's the one Halloween event I felt was enjoyable for parents AND the kids! It is dark out during Nightfall but nothing scary or gory. The spookies things will be inside in the mansion.By day, you can experience Aumnd Days at Filoli which features all of the same beautiful decor but by daylight.

📍 Filoli Historic House & Garden, 86 Cañada Rd, Woodside, CA 94062 📅 September 26 – November 1, 2026 (closed October 8) 🕐 Nightly 5:30–10:00 PM 💵 From $45/adult · members save · free parking 🔗 Get tickets

13. 🎉 Halloween Hoopla at Yerba Buena Gardens

A free costume parade and kids' festival in the middle of downtown SF — good if you're already headed that way on Halloween itself and want something free and daytime before trick-or-treating.

📍 Yerba Buena Gardens (Esplanade), 773 Mission St, San Francisco, CA 94103 📅 Saturday, October 31, 2026 💵 Free 🔗 Event details

14. 🎃 BCD Academy Trunk-or-Treat

This one is a free trunk-or-treat in San Bruno that kicks off Halloween weekend a day early. Families who come can also get discounts on BCD Academy summer camps, so it's worth stopping by if you're already planning for next summer.

📍 BCD Academy, San Bruno, CA 📅 Starting Friday, October 30, 2026 🕐 4-6pm 💵 Free 🔗 Event details here

15. 🎃 Halloween Jam: Mad Magic at Children's Fairyland

Oakland's storybook park turns Halloween into an all-afternoon party, with extended hours that run into the evening. Expect trick-or-treating, hands-on activities, and live entertainment inside a park that's already built for little ones. Best for kids 8 and under, since that's who Fairyland is designed for.

📍 Children's Fairyland, 699 Bellevue Ave, Oakland, CA 94610📅 Saturday, October 31, 2026🕐 12:00–7:00 PM 💵 Special event pricing (TBA, check Fairyland's site)
🔗 Event details

16.🌿 Green Halloween at Happy Hollow Park & Zoo

An unscary, eco-minded Halloween at the zoo, with the animals getting in on the fun. Kids can catch the Creepy Crawly Critter Show, join a costume parade, and play ghoulish games. They can also make cute and creepy crafts, including a reusable candy bag and a sustainable bird feeder, and race spiders in the Crooked House Meadow. Around the zoo there are animal encounters and spooky enrichment, where the animals explore pumpkins and hunt for hidden treats. Everything is included with general admission, so there's no separate event ticket.

📍 Happy Hollow Park & Zoo, 1300 Senter Rd, San Jose, CA 95112
📅 Saturday, October 31, 2026
🕐 11:00 AM–2:00 PM
💵 Included with general admission
🔗 Event details

17.🔬 Tech or Treat at The Tech Interactive

Halloween day means spooky science in downtown San Jose. Trick-or-treat stations are set up all through the museum, and there's a Skeleton Linkages hands-on activity plus festive photo ops. It's safe and not-too-scary, which makes it a great first trick-or-treat for little ones. There are extras if you want them: a Spooky Slime Workshop and two Halloween laser shows in the Dome Theater, Halloween Spooktacular and a new Stranger Things show. Members get a free Domi Halloween sticker and discounts on workshops and laser shows.

📍 The Tech Interactive, 201 S Market St, San Jose, CA 95113 📅 Saturday, October 31, 2026 🕐 10:00 AM–5:00 PM · laser shows at 4:30, 5:15 & 6:00 PM 💵 General admission · slime workshop & laser shows require an additional ticket 🔗 Event details

18. 🐺 Howl-O-Ween at Great Wolf Lodge Northern California

If you want to make a whole weekend of Halloween, this is the overnight option. The lodge in Manteca turns into a Halloween celebration all season long, with a trick-or-treat trail with free treats, a Monster Bash Dance Party, a Howl-O-Ween Spooktacular singalong, Halloween bingo and trivia, and themed arts and crafts. It's a resort, so it's a good fit for families who want Halloween fun alongside the water park and indoor attractions. Events are included with your stay, but some run at set times, so check the in-lodge schedule when you arrive to plan your days.

📍 Great Wolf Lodge Northern California, Manteca, CA (about 90 minutes from San Francisco)
📅 September 24 – October 31, 2026
🕐 Event times vary, check the in-lodge schedule on arrival
💵 Activities included with your stay · lodging rates vary by date
🔗 Event details

Don't forget the pumpkin patch

A pumpkin patch trip doubles as a Halloween outing on its own — costumes optional, corn mazes and hayrides included. We keep a free map and guide to every patch across the Bay Area if you haven't picked yours yet.

🔗 See our free pumpkin patch map & guide

Know a family-friendly Halloween event we should add? DM us @bayareakidsgo — this list grows as we hear about more.

Dates, hours, and pricing are accurate as of publication but always subject to change — verify directly with each venue before you go.