Camping during the Halloween season? Halloween RVing can be a blast, but sometimes it feels nice to still find ways to celebrate similar to what you would at home. Check out these easy fun RV Halloween camping activities.
Hitting the road for a fall RV trip during Halloween? You don’t have to miss out on Halloween fun just because you are traveling. There are so many easy fun RV Halloween camping activities you can add to your trip.
In fact, being on the road gives you more opportunities to experience the holiday in new and exciting ways both in the local area you are camping in, at the campground, or just at your campsite.
If you are traveling with children, many families find it is really important for kids to keep holiday traditions alive or even make some new ones!
This guide is going to give you ideas on how to find local Halloween activities near where you are camping and ideas to have your own holiday fun right at your campsite.
Local Events To Check Out When Halloween Camping
Fall is the return of the festival season. There is something going on everywhere you look.
From hayrides, pie eating contests, parades, corn mazes, pumpkin patches, haunted houses, lit carved pumpkin walks, haunted houses, trunk-or-treating, to pumpkin carving, there is so much to do this time of year.
Check the local community calendar for activities going on near your area.
Also, look for fun local fall festivals. We have seen many fall festival offerings during our RV travels like music festivals, renaissance festivals, fall carnivals or circuses, food and wine festivals, fall rodeos, harvest or apply festivals, art or craft fairs, and Halloween-themed dances or events.
There are so many things to do this time of year and checking out a new local event can really be a lot of fun!
Other Places To Look For Local Activities When Halloween RVing
Here are a few more ideas for places that we have often found really great fall or Halloween activities and programs.
Check the business websites in your travel area to see if they have a special holiday event going on.
Botanical Gardens Halloween Events
Botanical gardens are a wonderful alternative that many individuals would not consider.
Many botanical gardens offer nighttime carved Jack-o-lantern strolls, which are very popular at Halloween.
Pumpkin carving competitions are also held at several locations. At night, botanical gardens take on a whole new magical look compared to the daytime. This is an excellent choice for people of all ages.
Zoo Halloween Programs
Most zoos have special Halloween events in the evening that are ideal for families, children, and animal enthusiasts.
Some even get the animals involved in jack-o’-lantern smashing activities.
The majority of events usually include trick or treating. It’s always really fun to be able to visit a zoo in the evening when it is usually only open during the day. It has a unique feel to visit at night.
Amusement Parks Halloween Activities
There are a variety of special fall activities or Halloween events available at amusement parks.
We enjoy visiting amusement parks in the fall when the weather is cooler and there are additional seasonal themed activities.
Here are a few amusement parks that have fantastic Halloween and fall festivals.
Legoland – FL and CA
Legoland may just be the perfect little kid amusement park. Everything in the park is geared toward kids under 10 including the rides and shows.
They put on a fun Halloween festival called Brick-O-Treat with character greetings, shows, and trick or treating on the weekends.
Universal Studios – FL and CA
Universal Studio’s Halloween Horror Nights are on the bucket list of every Halloween enthusiast.
This is an event filled with haunted houses with horror movies and show themes. It is extremely heavy duty and not for kids.
Dollywood – TN
Dollywood has a fun family-friendly event with amazing carved and lit jack-o-lantern walks throughout the park. They also have many fun pumpkin sculptures that make great photo opportunities and tasty fall treats.
It’s a fun park any time of year but really comes to life at night for the fall season.
SeaWorld – FL, TX, CA
SeaWorld celebrates Halloween with something for all ages.
On the weekends they offer daytime fun with the Halloween Spooktacular for kids with special characters, costumes, and a trick-or-treat trail.
At night they have a horror haunted house event for adults called Howl-O-Scream.
Disney World and Disneyland – FL, CA
Disney puts on the ultimate Halloween party great for kids and families.
Mickey’s Not So Scary Halloween Party includes special treats, trick-or-treating, character greetings only found during the party, a special castle and fireworks show, and a Halloween parade.
It is a separately ticketed event from the park entrance fee.
Halloween Campground Activities
You may not need to look any further than the campground that you are staying at for a fun line-up of Halloween activities.
Common campground Halloween fun includes golf cart parades, concerts or dances, camping trunk-or-treat, costume contests, campsite decorating contests, pumpkin carving, crafts, Halloween movies, or even pool parties in warm area campgrounds.
Check the campground you are staying at to see if they have any seasonal activities.
State Park campgrounds also sometimes offer Halloween events.
These events are usually nature-themed programs around night animals or creepy nature like bats, spiders, or scorpions.
Sometimes we have also seen craft activities, guided walks, and trunk-or-treats at state parks we have stayed at in our RV.
Choose A Campground That Will Be Fun For Halloween Camping
One thing you can do to really hoop it up on Halloween is to book a campground that has amazing Halloween activities versus just trying to find activities in the area you are staying in.
Doing a little research or calling around your destination can help you find campgrounds with Halloween events.
Camp Fort Wilderness Halloween Fun At Disney World
Speaking of choosing a fun campground with activities to stay at in your RV over Halloween, did you know that Disney World has its own campground?
Fort Wilderness would be the most exciting campground to stay at for Halloween fun and activities.
You don’t need to visit any of the amusement parks to enjoy this place. There is so much in the campground to keep you busy.
People decorate their campsites for Halloween to a level that you just have to see to believe!
Some of the RV Halloween decorations almost look professionally done. It’s a great place to get RV campsite decorating ideas for next year.
Golf Carts Decorated For Halloween – Campground Fort Wilderness
Not only is campsite Halloween decorating a huge deal at the Disney campground, but so are golf carts.
If you don’t have your own golf cart you can also rent one there to enjoy during your stay.
The campground is enormous so it does really help to have a golf cart to drive around and look at all of the decorated campsites.
Campers here get just as into decorating the golf carts as they do their campsites.
You can buy golf cart decorating kits or even trunk-or-treating decorating kits to decorate yours.
Alternatively, find some easy golf cart Halloween decorations on Pinterest and up your camping holiday game.
It’s so much fun to see all of these amazing decorations. Also don’t miss the nightly campfire sing-a-long with Disney characters followed by an outdoor movie.
It’s so much fun to stay here!
Campsite Activities To Have Your Own Fun Camping On Halloween
If you’re camping out in the middle of nowhere or wish to keep the party going at your campsite, there are still many enjoyable activities you can do on your own while camping during Halloween.
While traveling, our family enjoys celebrating the seasons and keeping holiday traditions. Here are some fun and easy Halloween activities that we enjoy at our campsite.
Halloween Decorations For Camping
It’s really fun and festive to decorate your campsite, your RV, or both for Halloween.
A trip to the dollar store is often a goldmine for easy Halloween decorations that really transform your campsite into a party.
We like to use black crepe paper streamers, balloons, and other paper Haunted House decorations like black cats and ghosts.
The cheap thread spider webs are also enjoyable to hang around the RV.
Grab some purple or orange lights to really light everything up. If you want to get more elaborate, consider having a theme.
We love the Peanuts and the TV show It’s The Great Pumpkin Charlie Brown.
Oriental Trading Company has a wide range of Great Pumpkin Peanuts party supplies and decorations available for purchase.
Amazon also has inexpensive Halloween paper decorations. Pinterest can be a great source of campsite Halloween decorating ideas.
Another fun touch is a handful of small gourds from the grocery store to place on your table inside or outside with a fun fall tablecloth.
Halloween RVing Food Ideas
Make Popcorn Balls
Another fun traditional Halloween activity is making old-fashioned popcorn balls. It’s just as much a sensory experience as it is a tasty treat.
Kids love forming the balls because they get sticky making them.
You can’t beat the flavor of this recipe made with popcorn, butter, and marshmallows/marshmallow fluff. We also like to add a little vanilla to ours.
Alternatively, you may get creative and add additional toppings such as almonds, chocolate chips, or sweets to create different shapes and colors.
We microwaved our popcorn and combined the other ingredients in our single-pot Foodie pressure cooker, which may be used indoors or outside.
If you don’t like popcorn balls, consider making caramel apples instead. You can still add colorful decorations to the apples and turn them into a tasty treat.
Make 3 Ingredient Pumpkin Hot Chocolate
Treat the family with super easy pumpkin hot cocoa:
– heat milk or milk substitute (we love Simply Almond Milk)
– add Hershey’s chocolate syrup (we love Hershey’s Simple 5)
– add pumpkin coffee creamer (we love Chobani Pumpkin Spice Creamer)
– optional: top with real whipped cream
Yum!!!!!!!
Roast Ghost-Shaped Marshmallows
This one may be tougher to find. We have seen Great Value brand ghost-shaped marshmallows at Walmart.
They also make fun ghost and pumpkin-shaped Peeps if you can track these down. Why not enjoy a fire with these fun-shaped marshmallows?
Daytime Halloween Camping Ideas
Make Glow Slime
We enjoy creating glow-in-the-dark Halloween slime every year. It’s great fun to play outside with a flashlight and kids adore it.
Slime has so many possibilities because you may make your own and add fun Halloween pieces or colors.
We purchase a glow-in-the-dark slime kit made by Elmer’s Glue from Amazon each year to make the job easier on me while still being enjoyable.
When we make it on our own, I’m slime challenged, but it usually turns out fantastic with Elmer’s kits.
Have A Halloween Scavenger Hunt
There are a number of free Halloween-themed scavenger hunts on Pinterest that you and your family may complete together.
I usually hide the answers both inside and outside our campsite, then offer a reward to the winner who arrives first.
Maybe choose the glow slime kit as the prize?
On there, we’ve even discovered a free harvest game to print off.
Bob For Apples
Take everyone outside and go old-school again to bob for apples. You can even give every kid their own bowl of floating apples and make it a race.
We always end up cracking up and soaking wet from this fun activity.
Carve Or Paint A Pumpkin
Each year camping pumpkin carving is our must-do Halloween tradition. The pumpkin carving tools that come with the small book of designs are generally what we purchase.
This way, our daughter may trace the pattern on the pumpkin with a pencil and use the equipment to carve it safely.
We remove the top for her and she gets to scoop and clean it out. After that, we work on decorating it together.
This is always an outdoor activity conducted on the picnic table to contain the mess.
It’s lots of fun, and we just enjoy seeing it at night when it’s illuminated. We usually carve it on Halloween so that we have at least two evenings to enjoy it.
Consider painting pumpkins instead of carved jack-o’-lanterns for smaller kids. It’s still enjoyable and far safer than carving one.
Every year, we carve a huge pumpkin and decorate smaller pumpkins with faces and designs. We have even done an RV pumpkin carving.
It’s fun to paint pumpkins regardless of your age. They also sell pumpkin face kits that allow you to just stick the features onto a pumpkin, but children really enjoy getting their hands dirty with the paint.
Create A Halloween Sensory Tote
Sensory totes can entertain kids for hours. They really encourage imaginary play. A simple Halloween tote can use a fill/base of black beans.
Add some simple kitchen measuring scoops, a wooden or large kitchen spoon, tongs, and a random assortment of dollar store Halloween items.
Grab a few rocks from your campsite to use as tombstones. Maybe find a spooky-looking twig to add. Or a few colorful leaves. Have fun with it!
Watch Halloween Movies Or Shows
We like watching various Halloween classics on DVD, so we can enjoy them even if we are in the middle of nowhere with no TV or internet.
Every year, for us, It’s The Great Pumpkin Charlie Brown is a must.
We’re Peanuts fans through and through, and this program really gets us in the Halloween spirit.
During Halloween, we always watch Hotel Transylvania movies as well as The Nightmare Before Christmas.
Nighttime Halloween Camping Activities
Have A Glow Candy Hunt
Even if you don’t have anywhere to go trick-or-treating, we discovered a really fun alternative that the kids enjoy equally as much.
On Halloween night, we held a glow-in-the-dark candy hunt.
It’s very easy and looks fantastic at your campsite. This takes some time to set up, but the end result is amazing.
Pick up a large bundle or 2 of glow sticks and other glow jewelry. All of the glow sticks, necklaces, and bracelets should be activated, and one should be attached to each piece of candy.
Then throw the sweets around with the glow jewelry outside in the dark. This looks so neat all lit up at night and is lots of fun.
Have A Halloween Glow Dance Party
After you finish the glow candy hunt, gather all the glow jewelry, blow up some glow balloons, and crank up the Halloween music.
Find a Halloween party play mix with fun tunes like The Monster Mash and Purple People Eater.
Get the kids dancing with the glow balloons and glow jewelry. It is a blast!
You can find glow balloons in the party aisle at Walmart. Or you can add glow jewelry inside of regular balloons.
Frequently Asked Questions Halloween Camping
What Is Halloween Camping?
Celebrating the Halloween season while camping out in nature is Halloween camping. It’s fun to stay at a campground with seasonal activities or have your own Halloween fun at your campsite.
How Do You Decorate A Campsite For Halloween?
There are so many fun campsite decorations you can choose from inflatables to lights, spiderwebs, and skeletons. You can even decorate your golf cart.
Who says you can’t have a blast celebrating holidays on the road? With a few simple supplies, you can create wonderful new memories of RV Halloween camping with your family!
I hope this inspires you to make some new Halloween traditions with your family. Please leave me a comment and let me know about your family traditions!
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Enjoy your adventure detour!
Scott and Van of The Adventure Detour are travel writers focusing on RV travel, family outdoor travel, national parks travel, and hiking. They have been full-time RV living and traveling across the US since 2015. In 8 years of full-time RVing, they have visited 38 national parks so far with the ultimate goal to see them all. They work as digital nomads while roadschooling their daughter nicknamed Sissy. On the way to all 50 states, they have visited and hiked through 42 states so far. The travel bucket list is forever growing!
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