Everyone knows their own neighborhoods well, and they know the best places to go trick or treating in their own neighborhoods.  Some of you even know of places to travel to find the houses that give away the full sized candy bars.  Others will try to get to the neighborhoods that leave the bags out with the candy in them so you can fully stock up before moving to another location. Obviously, if you know the best place in your area to go, you should go there.

However, as we saw locally with Hurricane Sandy and Irene, you sometimes need to pivot when it comes to bad weather or when natural disasters cause Halloween to be postponed in your community.  You also may want to try something different for a numbers of reasons (traffic in your area, not many houses giving out candy, etc.).  With that in mind, here are some alternatives you could try:

Mall

Most malls have trick or treating.  There are many benefits to going to your local mall to do the trick or treating.  First, you are indoors, so weather is not going to be an issue.  With that, your child can fully show off the costume that you purchased or made.

While too much might have been made about it in the past, you know the candy is coming from a business, so there are lesser concerns about someone tampering with the candy.

Another factor is that the mall has a number of benches and seats for you to take a respite.  This is not as much of a need now that my son is older, but it was helpful his first Halloween.  We needed the rest because we were carrying the candy, the diaper bag, etc.  He needed a stop every so often because it’s a lot for a baby to walk around a mall.

Lastly, the mall is well lit with no traffic.  Once you are inside, you don’t have to worry about cars coming down the road too quickly or a driver not paying attention.  You can also stay indoors trick or treating well after it has gone dark.  With this in mind, you could even stop by the mall after your kids are done trick or treating in the neighborhood if they still want to go out and get more candy.

Local Downtown 

Most people either live in a town with a nice downtown area, or they live near one.  While the downtown doesn’t share all the benefits of the mall, it is still a great place to go trick or treating.

First, local businesses are not going to tamper with the candy they are giving your children.  Another benefit is most downtowns do have benches here and there if you need to take a quick stop to sit for five minutes.  You also know that even as it gets darker, the sidewalks and streets will be well lit.  Additionally, the areas are usually filled with cross walks, stop signs, and police officers (especially on days like Halloween), so you know traffic is going to be less of an issue than it normally is.

There is another benefit to the local downtown.  These are primarily comprised on small businesses that want to entice to you to come back to their store.  Many of them will hand out not just candy, but coupons to entice you to return to them next year.  I know last year we walked home with a free studio session for a pottery studio, a free ice cream cone, 10% off our next pizza order, and a buy one get one offer from the local candy shop.  You are not likely to get these at the mall, and you are really unlikely to get them from your neighbors.

Contact Your Local Officials

Many towns try to organize safe or more controlled trick or treating, or in some instances trunk or treating.  These events usually take place at a local school parking lot or even at a local park.  These are usually organized by the town, school, or sometimes the local police force.  These events allow your child to trick or treat in a safer more organized environment.  Sometimes, they are accompanied by pumpkin decorating and parades.  And like trick or treating in your downtown, many local businesses make an appearance giving away free beverages (juice and hot coffee) and snacks.

Throw a Party

When all else fails, get together with some of your child’s friends’ parents and organize a party.  Each parent can bring a goody bag full of candy so no one misses out on getting candy.  You can also order pizza and watch scary movies (appropriate age level of course).  This allows your child to have fun with their friends, and it allows you to make sure your child is in a safe environment.  Note, you can obviously do this in conjunction with any of the above.

I know last year with Halloween being on a Saturday, we did all of the above with our son.  We started early at the mall, and then we went to the downtown to grab lunch and trick or treat.  We then returned home to just go to a few houses in our neighborhood.  Lastly, we sat down and passed out candy while watching the Mets game (that ended scarier than any movie could have).  It was fun, and depending on who you are and what you enjoy, I would recommend doing any of the above.  The important thing is you are safe and have a good time.

Happy Halloween.