Halloween lands on a Saturday this year, which means a full long weekend of trunk-or-treats, costume parades, ghost stories and movie nights across Prince William County. Whether you are taking little one’s trick-or-treating, planning a spooky night out with friends or just want a scary movie on the big screen, something is happening every day from Thursday, Oct. 29, through Halloween night.
The forecast looks friendly for being outside: mostly sunny and 73 degrees on Thursday, sunny and 78 on Friday, and partly cloudy and 76 on Saturday, with only a small chance of rain each day. Below is where to go, day by day, plus what is playing at local theaters. Many events are free, but a few require registration or tickets. Times and prices come from event listings and can change, so check with organizers before you go.
Halloween Weekend Events, Day by Day
Thursday, Oct. 29
• Haunted mini golf – 10 a.m. to 5:30 p.m., Locust Shade Park, 4701 Locust Shade Drive, Triangle. The 18-hole course runs through Saturday, weather permitting. Admission is $5.75 for ages 3 to 16 and 60 and older, $6.50 for adults, and free for children under 3 with a paying adult.
• Haunted Grō Trail – 4 to 6 p.m., James S. Long Regional Park, 4603 James Madison Highway, Haymarket. A costumed trail with games and trick-or-treating for ages 2 to 8. It costs $5 per child, and adults are free.
• Chinn Trunk or Treat – 4 to 6 p.m., Chinn Aquatics & Fitness Center, 13025 Chinn Park Drive, Woodbridge. Free trick-or-treating among decorated trunks for ages 6 months to 12 years, with staff from several county agencies.
• Halloween Doggy Costume Yappy Hour – 6:30 to 8:30 p.m., Rockwood, 7505 Iron Bar Lane, Gainesville. Free. Costumed dogs and their owners gather on the patio.
• Dogtopia Halloween Costume Party – Thursday through Saturday, Dogtopia of Woodbridge, 14885 Persistence Drive. A costume day and photo shoot for dogs, with a spooky playlist. Day starts at 7 a.m. Thursday.
Friday, Oct. 30
• Alanwood Farm Halloween Scavenger Hunt – 5 to 8 p.m., 5601 Beverleys Mill Road, Broad Run. Scavenger hunt, games, treats, horse visits and marshmallow roasting. Registration is required; tickets are $20 in advance and $25 at the gate.
• Glow Party – 6 to 7:30 p.m., Sharron Baucom Dale City Recreation Center, 14300 Minnieville Road, Dale City. A glow-in-the-dark costume party for ages 5 to 12. Registration is required and the cost is $36.
• Haunted Market of Haymarket – 6 to 10 p.m., 15111 Washington St., Suite 129, Haymarket. Shopping with local artisans, a DJ and an 8 p.m. costume contest.
• Kena Shriners Trunk or Treat – 6 to 9 p.m., Kena Temple, 9500 Technology Drive, Manassas. Decorated trunks, candy and games, with food and hot drinks for sale.
• Ben Lomond Campfire Ghost Stories – evening, Ben Lomond Historic Site, 10321 Sudley Manor Drive, Manassas. Ghost stories tied to the site’s history as a Civil War hospital, farm and private home. Tickets are $5 and advance registration is recommended. Bring a chair and flashlight.
• Country Friday Nights: Haunted Hoedown – 8 to 11:45 p.m., Salisbury Center, 8890 Mathis Ave., Manassas. Live country music, line dancing and a 10:15 p.m. costume contest. Tickets start at $10.
• Costume party at The Farm Brewery at Broad Run – 7 to 10 p.m., 16015 John Marshall Highway, Broad Run. A live DJ and dancing.
• Old Fashioned Friday at KO Distilling – Manassas. $5 old fashioneds, including Halloween specials called “The Blob” and “Creature From the Cerulean Lagoon.” Limit 4 oz per patron.
• HAUNT: Dark Encounters – 7 to 10 p.m., Workhouse Arts Center, 9518 Workhouse Way, Lorton. A timed-entry haunted trail for $35 per night, recommended for ages 13 and up. Friday is the last night of the season. The box office closes at 9:50 p.m. and the trail at 10:30 p.m. The music and night market are free.
• Historic Flashlight Tours – 7 to 10 p.m., Workhouse Arts Center, Lorton. A guided after-dark walk through the former Occoquan Workhouse grounds.
• Haunted Historic House & Cemetery Tour – nighttime, Weems-Botts Museum Welcome Center, 3944 Cameron St., Dumfries. A 1.5- to 2-hour walking tour of the historic district with ghost stories. Tickets are $10 to $15. The tour repeats Saturday.
Saturday, Oct. 31 (Halloween)
Morning and afternoon
• Halloween at the Market – 8 a.m. to 1 p.m., Manassas Farmers Market. Trick-or-treating, a photo booth, face painting, glitter tattoos and a scavenger hunt. Costumes encouraged.
• Forest Park Fall Festival and Zombie 3K – 8 a.m. to noon, Forest Park High School, 15721 Forest Park Drive, Woodbridge. A 3K run benefiting the band and orchestra ($35 to register), followed by a festival with vendors, food trucks, hayrides and a decorated-vehicle contest.
• Virginia Trading Collective Card Show – 9 a.m., Harbour View Wedding & Event Venue, 13200 Marina Way, Unit 101, Woodbridge. A Halloween-themed trading card show with local vendors, giveaways and a trick-or-treat station for kids in costume.
• Old Town Manassas Fall-O-Ween – 10 a.m. to 3 p.m., Manassas Museum Lawn, 9101 Prince William St. Free, rain or shine. An outdoor marketplace, seasonal treats and family activities. Pets are welcome.
• Occoquan Costume Parade & Contest – 10 a.m. to noon. The parade starts on Mill Street and ends at River Mill Park, 458 Mill St., Occoquan, led by Mayor Ernie Porta, with costume judging afterward.
• HARVEST: A Common Ground Celebration – 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., Wyndham Garden Manassas, 10800 Vandor Lane. Free. A family fall festival and small-business celebration with vendors, face and pumpkin painting, crafts and trick-or-treating. The first 100 guests get a swag bag.
• “Go Rogue” Halloween Event – 11:30 a.m., Woodbridge Public Auto Auction, 1108 Horner Road. A live public auto auction with a 2017 Nissan Rogue giveaway (raffle tickets are for sale), a buy-one-get-one promotion for costumed attendees, free food and drinks and test drives.
• OmniRide Transit & Treats – noon to 3 p.m. at Triangle Plaza, 18050 Triangle Shopping Plaza, Dumfries, and Prince William Plaza, 14490 Jefferson Davis Highway, Woodbridge. Free. Candy, games, face painting, balloon twisting and bus tours.
• Mall-O-Ween Boo Bash – 1 to 3 p.m., Potomac Mills, 2700 Potomac Mills Circle, Woodbridge. Families can trick-or-treat store to store at participating retailers, which display a pumpkin sticker in their windows. Halloween characters roam the center for photos, and there is a Halloween photo station in Grand Court, near T.J.Maxx and the kids’ play area.
• Hallowed One’s Day – 1 p.m., Holiness Tabernacle COGIC, 1505 Walnut St., Woodbridge. An outdoor community festival with free food, a cake walk, a bounce house, games, a wing competition, music, movies and candy. Non-scary costumes requested.
• Early Voting Trunk or Treat – 2 to 5 p.m., Prince William County Office of Elections, 9250 Lee Ave., Manassas. Free. Hosted by the Prince William County Alumnae Chapter of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc., with decorated trunks, candy, a DJ, face painting, games, raffles and a costume contest. You don’t have to vote to attend.
Evening
• Trunk or Treat at Garrison Park – 5 to 7 p.m., 17749 Main St., Dumfries. Free, with candy while supplies last.
• Chrysalis Concert Series: Friction Farm – 7:30 to 9:30 p.m., Bull Run Unitarian Universalists, 9350 Main St., Manassas. Acoustic duo; costumes encouraged. Tickets are $20 in advance and $25 at the door.
Still running
• Pumpkin patch at Lake Ridge Nursery – 3705 Old Bridge Road, Woodbridge. Fall hours are 9 a.m. to 7 p.m. Monday through Saturday and 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. Sunday.
• Halloween sale at House of Mercy – 8178 Flannery Court, Manassas, through Saturday, 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Black and orange casual clothing and costumes are $1.
Halloween at the movies
Alamo Drafthouse Cinema Woodbridge, at 15200 Potomac Town Place, is showing Casper (11:30 a.m.), The Shining (3:50 p.m.), Halloween (1978) (7:30 p.m.) and Trick or Treat (9:40 p.m.) on Saturday. Newer horror releases there include Other Mommy and Wicker.
AMC Potomac Mills 18, at 2700 Potomac Mills Circle, is running The Crow on Friday, Oct. 30, and Saturday, Oct. 31, as part of its “Welcome to Horrorwood” series. Screenings in the series start at 8 p.m. Scream and Hell House LLC 10th Anniversary are also on the Oct. 30 and 31 listings.
Library story times
Prince William Public Libraries are hosting Halloween story times at 10:30 a.m. at Dale City on Wednesday, Oct. 28; Central on Thursday, Oct. 29; Bull Run, Haymarket Gainesville and Montclair on Friday, Oct. 30; and Lake Ridge (2239 Old Bridge Road) on Saturday, Oct. 31, which includes a costume parade.
Looking for more events? Read our Halloween Week in Prince William newsletter issue.

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