jack-o-lantern sitting on a bar with people drinking and partying behind it

9 Ways to Celebrate Halloween in Windsor/Essex, Ontario

If you’re looking to get in the mood this spooky season, #YQG has got you covered! From haunted houses to spooky fundraisers, there is something for everyone. If you’re looking for something fun to do throughout the Halloween season, check out these great suggestions to celebrate Halloween in Windsor/Essex!


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It likely comes as no surprise that I can’t get enough of the Halloween festivities! This time of year, I find myself tempted to pull out all the stops when it comes to embracing the spooky season, decorating my house to the nines, visiting every haunted house I can find and rocking out to my favourite Halloween-esque tunes. In short, my life goes from about 75% Halloween (as it is most of the year) to 110% overnight on October 1st!

While you may not be quite ready to buy a whole new creepy wardrobe or decorate your home top to bottom overnight, that doesn’t mean you can’t enjoy all this season has to offer! If you live in Windsor/Essex, there are a large number of incredible events and festivities happening right here in your back yard! Don’t believe me? Check these out…

9 Ways to Celebrate Halloween in Windsor/Essex:

#1 – Hocus Pocus Halloween

If you are a lover of all things magic, this is a show that you don’t want to miss! Presented by Paul Reaume, Hocus Pocus Halloween brings together 6 different magicians alongside several fun ‘misfits’ as the show organizers refer to them including Box Girl, Count Creeps and Cleetus the Clown. It will be a night of shock, awe and laughter for the whole family.

There are two different showtimes to choose from, Saturday, October 26th at 7:30 PM and Sunday, October 27th at 2:30 PM. For more information or to purchase tickets, visit Paul Reaume on Facebook.

poster for Hocus Pocus Halloween magic show event

#2 – Transition to Betterness 4th Annual Halloween Spooktacular

The Transition to Betterness Youth Ambassadors in conjunction with the Windsor Essex County Humane Society is hosting the 4th Annual Halloween Spooktacular on Sunday, October 27th, 12 PM to 5 PM, at Malden Park. This is a free event with a wide variety of family-friendly activities including pumpkin decorating, live entertainment by local youth, yard games, face painting, a costume doggie walk and more.

For more information, visit the Transition to Betterness website.

poster for the Transition to Betterness Halloween Spooktacular event

#3 – No Strings Attached First Annual Halloween Bash

Are you looking to up your trick-or-treating game? This is a great way! On Halloween Night, October 31st, local musical group No Strings Attached is hosting the First Annual Halloween Bash to benefit the Essex Food Bank. Starting at 6 PM volunteers will be handing out hot chocolate and candy at 21 Alice, Street South, Essex. Then, starting at 7 PM, the musicians of No Strings Attached will be performing some of their favourite spooky tunes live. We are also a supporter of the Teal Pumpkin Project and will be offering a non-food option for trick-or-treaters.

The cost? Bring a non-perishable food item to donate to the Essex Food Bank. We will also have a donation box for monetary donations. For more information, visit the Facebook Event Page.

poster for the No String's Attached Halloween Bash

#4 – Colasanti’s 6 Nights of Scares 2019

For 23 years now, Colasanti’s Tropical Gardens has been bringing all things Halloween to the people of Windsor/Essex, and they are at it again! On the weekends of October 18th to 20th and October 25th to 27th they will be presenting over 135,000 square feet of Halloween attractions including their Haunted Greenhouse and the Horror Hedgemaze & Hayride.

Tickets are limited, so don’t wait or you may miss out! You can learn more or purchase tickets on the Colasanti’s Tropical Gardens Website.

poster for the Colasanti's Haunted Greenhouse and Horror Hedgemaze events

#5 – Western Secondary School Pumpkinfest

An event held to raise funds for school activities at Western Secondary School, Pumpkinfest is a craft show and sale celebrating all things autumn and Halloween. With over 100 crafters in attendance, there is sure to be something for everyone! The event includes free parking and admission is free with a monetary donation or canned good at the door.

For more information, visit the Facebook Event Page.  

poster for Western Secondary School's pumpkinfest event

#6 – Windsor Zombie Walk

What better way is there to celebrate the Halloween season than with a Zombie Walk? The Windsor Zombie Walk is back for another year and it’s bigger and better than ever! The walk takes place on October 19th and will kick off at 5:30 PM. Prizes will be awarded for Best Zombie, Zombie Couple, Survivor Team and Cutest Lil Zombie (ages 12 and under).

Free to participate, event coordinators ask participants to bring non-perishable food items for The Windsor Downtown Mission and/or monetary donations for The Windsor Youth Centre. For more information, visit the Facebook Event Page.

poster for the Scarehouse Windsor Zombie Walk 2019

#7 – 16th Annual Witches Night Out

An annual event for the ladies only, Witches Night Out is an evening of dancing, good food, cold drinks and spook fun. Witches Night Out will occur on October 26th at The Witches Vault, 415 Devonshire Road, Windsor. There will be prizes for the best hat and private readings conducted by a handful of well-respected individuals including a Metaphysical Spirit Whisperer, a Clairvoyant and a Psychic.

There are a limited number of tickets, so don’t miss out! You can get more information about the event as well as the link to purchase tickets on the Facebook Event Page.

poster for the Witches Night Out 2019 event

#8 – 7 Chambers, LaSalle

Located just outside of Windsor, in LaSalle, Ontario, 7 Chambers consists of 7 separate Greenhouses of horror, each themed after one of the 7 circles of Hell. From the melancholy of Limbo in the first circle through to the 7th level reserved for those who sinned in violence, 7 Chambers will challenge even the experienced haunted house lover.

For more information including hours of operation, visit the 7 Chambers Facebook Page.

poster for the LaSalle 7th Chamber haunted attractions event

#9 – Farmer Pete’s Halloween Extravaganza

If you live in the Windsor/Essex area, then you’ve likely heard that Thiessen Apple Orchards is one of the ‘must visit’ stops during the Halloween season! While apple picking and wagon rides already scream autumn, the addition of the Scaredy Cat Haunted Barn, corn maze and a pumpkin decorating station will ensure that you’re feeling the Halloween spirit. The Halloween Extravaganza will also include live entertainment, a free hot beverage and access to the Fun Acre, Jump Pad and Mini Golf.

To purchase tickets, check out the Facebook Event Page.

poster for the Thiessen's Apple Orchard Halloween Extravaganza event

In no way are these the only events in the Windsor/Essex area. In fact, there are so many great options that it was almost impossible to narrow them all down into a single post! Stay tuned to our local Facebook groups, radio stations and other media sources to stay informed about all the spooky, creepy and Halloween-themed opportunities here in #YQG. After all, Halloween in Windsor/Essex is not one to be missed!

What are your favourite ways to celebrate the spooky season? Do you have an event that you look forward to each year?



24 thoughts on “9 Ways to Celebrate Halloween in Windsor/Essex, Ontario”

    1. Thank you! I wanted to make sure to highlight some of the awesome options right here in Windsor/Essex! I can’t wait to get out there and attend as many of them as possible myself… After all, this is my favourite time of year

    1. There are, this is only a small handful of everything going on here! I can’t wait to get out and enjoy some Halloween fun throughout the rest of this month!

  1. Wow, it looks like there are tons of things to do! I know we have some Halloween parties near me, but nothing that special. We like to head up to Salem one weekend during October. The whole atmosphere there is always fun and exciting and they do a really good job too!

    1. I’ve always wanted to visit Salem but I think I’ll likely do that on the off-season. I can imagine that it gets pretty crazy with tourists this time of year.

  2. The zombie walk and the haunted greenhouse / horror hedgemaze sound amazing and totally scary! We never get anything really THAT big in the UK, unless you head to theme parks for their fright night events x

    1. Aren’t they great? There are so many incredible events that happen here, each totally over the top and I adore it! I think it’s part of the reason why I have such a huge love for Halloween – it’s such a big holiday over here that it fed into my love for it and blew it up lol

  3. I love all of these ideas to ceberate Halloween! Even though I am not in Windsor/Essex, some of these are pretty neat. I love that there are a lot of different celebrations going on in various venues. Thanks for sharing!

    Nancy ? exquisitely.me

    1. One thing I do love about this area is that there is always something going on for every season, holiday, etc! I was excited to start looking into the Halloween events as I even discovered some I didn’t know where happening that I can’t wait to attend!

    1. The one event, #3. No String’s Attached First Annual Halloween Bash is the one I’m most excited for. No Strings Attached is a local saxophone quartet that I am part of, and we’re doing this to try to reach out in our community. We’ve already got food items and monetary donations, so I know it’s going to be a success!

  4. These sound like a lot of fun! I’ll admit I’m a little jealous of all the Halloween activities on offer – sadly we don’t have a lot where I live.

    1. I can’t imagine not having the Halloween events to take part in – We always went all out on Halloween growing up.

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