Halloween falls on a Saturday this year, the first since 2020, giving us a full weekend to celebrate here in the Santa Clara Valley. And daylight saving time ends early Sunday, Nov. 1 At 2am the clocks go back an hour, so late-nighters get an extra hour of Halloween night this year. Spooky, right?
From haunted mansions and Morgan Hill corn mazes to downtown cocktail nights, Campbell’s costumed street party and Día de los Muertos commemorations around San Jose, here are some options to commune with the living and the dead.
Haunted Houses and Halloween Attractions
Festival Fright Nights at Winchester Mystery House
Select nights through Nov. 1
Sarah Winchester’s estate becomes a walk-at-your-own-pace Halloween festival with four themed zones and 13 attractions, including haunted houses inside the mansion itself. The 2026 storyline is set in 1926, after Sarah Winchester’s death, and add-ons include a flashlight-only Underhouse tour, an attic adventure and a Houdini séance. Recommended for ages 13 and up; tickets start at $59.99 and are sold online only, with prices varying by night.
525 S. Winchester Blvd., San Jose
festivalfrightnights.com
The Bernal Scream
Through Nov. 8
The backyard haunt that father and son Abel and Mike Barrera started in 2013 has grown into one of the South Bay’s biggest commercial scares. For 2026, it opens two haunted attractions under one ticket for the first time in its history. It stays open a week past Halloween for anyone who missed the rush.
Santa Clara County Fairgrounds, 344 Tully Rd., San Jose [This year we will be located in Gateway Hall at Santa Clara County Fairgrounds. Look for the big blue archway, entrance Gate C.]
Dead Time Dreams: The Veil
Through Nov. 1
What could be more spooky than celebrating the holiday in an empty shopping mall parking lot? Dead Time Dreams sets up a haunted attraction built around supernatural creatures and jump scares. A Midway of Terror outside adds roaming characters, live entertainment and nightly shows. Tickets start at $25, and parking is free.
Eastridge Mall, 322 Eastridge Loop, San Jose
Grimm’s Hollow: Grimm Manor
Select evenings through Oct. 31
Moreland Education Foundation’s pumpkin patch adds Grimm Manor, a family haunted trail where visitors solve clues to escape a cursed estate. After 8:30pm, The Shadows turns up the terror and is not recommended for children under 10. The trail costs $15; community games and movie nights are free, and proceeds fund Moreland School District after-school programs.
Easterbrook Discovery School, 4835 Doyle Rd., San Jose
The Albertson Halloween House
Oct. 31
For its 25th year, an East San Jose family and their neighbors turn a front yard into a walk-through Star Wars: The Mandalorian set, complete with a life-size AT-RT walker and an Armorer’s forge. Costumed characters greet 800 to 1,500 trick-or-treaters each year. Admission is free.
497 N. 16th St., San Jose
Pumpkin Patches and Trick-or-Treat Events
Trick or Treat Along Lincoln Avenue
Oct. 30, 11am–12:30pm (toddlers) and 3–4:30pm (school-age kids)
Downtown Willow Glen businesses between Minnesota Avenue and Willow Street hand out candy in two sessions split by age. Organizers ask families to walk the route clockwise.
Lincoln Avenue, San Jose
Halloween at the Palo Alto Farmers Market
Oct. 31, 8am–12pm
With Halloween on a Saturday, the downtown market folds trick-or-treating, games and a scavenger hunt into its regular morning. Pumpkins are for sale, and kids can guess how many creepy-crawlies fill a jar. Free.
Gillman St, parking lots between Forest Ave. and Hamilton Ave., Palo Alto
Safe Trick or Treating and Pumpkin Market
Oct. 31, 3–7pm
Downtown Morgan Hill hosts free Halloween-afternoon trick-or-treating, community booths, vendors and activities. It’s an early option before the neighborhood rounds after dark.
Downtown Morgan Hill
Spina Farms Pumpkin Patch
Through Nov. 2
The South County farm combines pumpkins with an express train, a dinosaur walk, a hayride and a corn maze. Check the farm’s site for daily hours and attraction prices before driving down.
225 Laguna Ave., Morgan Hill
Halloween Nightlife and Entertainment
LASERS: Stranger Things at The Tech Interactive
Oct. 23–31
The Tech’s Halloween-season laser show takes its cue from the Upside Down of Stranger Things. It brings sci-fi chills to downtown San Jose for anyone who prefers lasers to latex masks. Check The Tech for showtimes and ticket prices.
201 S. Market St., San Jose
The Haunting at Paper Plane
Through Oct. 31
New for 2026, the downtown cocktail bar becomes a forgotten Victorian mansion lit by candles and dressed with cemetery scenes. A specialty cocktail menu is served entirely in custom glassware made for the pop-up.
72 S. First St., San Jose
A Nightmare on 2nd Street at MINIBOSS
Through Oct. 31
The downtown arcade bar runs a month-long Halloween pop-up. It’s a natural stop for anyone who likes seasonal frights served with arcade games.
MINIBOSS, 52. E. Santa Clara St., downtown San Jose
Ghostbusters at Dr. Funk
Through Oct. 31
Who you gonna call? Dr. Funk’s rum bar borrows from Ghostbusters for its October pop-up, adding a supernatural twist to its tiki surroundings.
Dr. Funk: Rum House + Kitchen, 29 N San Pedro St., downtown San Jose
Terrifier Takeover at Five Points
Through Oct. 31
Five Points Cocktail Bar adopts a theme inspired by the Terrifier horror films. Expect a distinctly more sinister mood than the usual pumpkins and candy corn.
Five Points Cocktail Bar, 169 W Santa Clara St., downtown San Jose
Dearly Departed at Alter Ego and Leprechaun at O’Flaherty’s
Through Oct. 31
Two more downtown bars round out a spooky crawl: Alter Ego’s Dearly Departed pop-up and O’Flaherty’s Irish Pub’s Leprechaun takeover. Visit San Jose lists both; menus and hours are best confirmed with the bars.
Downtown San Jose
Wild West Country Night
Oct. 29, 6–11pm
Cowboys meet club kids at Spark Social SJ, where a country line-dancing stage hosted by SJSU and SCU dance clubs runs alongside an EDM stage. A $500 costume contest covers best overall, duo, group, western and most creative looks. The first 500 guests who RSVP get in free, with 10-plus food trucks, a 21+ beer garden and mini golf on-site.
Spark Social SJ, a block from SAP Center, San Jose
Halloween Bash at the Granada Theatre
Oct. 30, 9pm–1am
Morgan Hill’s restored downtown theater throws a 21+ late-night party with a DJ, a costume contest and sponsor drink specials. Tickets are sold through promoter Live Love Léal.
17440 Monterey Road, Morgan Hill
Fright Night at The Ritz
Oct. 31, 9pm
DJ Basura returns to The Ritz for a Halloween night of new wave, synth-pop, indie, disco and old-school favorites with special guest DJ BIT. Costumed revelers compete for cash prizes. Ages 21 and over.
400 S. First St., San Jose
Halloween at El Jardin
Oct. 31, 7pm
Santana Row’s El Jardin Tequila Bar throws its first Halloween party with live music, cocktails and giveaways. Costumes are encouraged.
368 Santana Row, San Jose
Bitten by the Bay
Oct. 31, 6pm
A Halloween costume and dance party that has run for more than a decade under different names takes over the second floor of the Hyatt Centric. DJ Dave X spins, there’s a costume contest and singles and couples are both welcome. Tickets were listed around $42, and discounted rooms are available.
Hyatt Centric Mountain View, 409 San Antonio Rd., Mountain View
Family Halloween Festivals
The Great Big BOO at Gilroy Gardens
Select days through Nov. 1; Fridays 5–10pm, Saturdays and Sundays 1–9pm
Gilroy Gardens’ silly-not-scary Halloween event centers on BOO Alley, a sing-along musical and trick-or-treating along the BOO Trail. Themed rides, including Wendella’s House on the Hill and the BOO Train, run lit up after dark, along with a light tunnel. A day ticket or Premium Membership is required.
3050 Hecker Pass Highway, Gilroy
Green Halloween at Happy Hollow
Oct. 31
Happy Hollow Park & Zoo celebrates with creepy-crawly critter shows, costume parades, crafts, games, trick-or-treating and special animal encounters. Activities are included with park admission. Happy Hollow visitors in costume from Oct. 24 to 31 get $3 off general admission.
748 Story Rd., San Jose
Halloween by 365 Night Market
Oct. 30–31, 4–10pm
More than 50 vendors fill Grand Century Mall for a Halloween weekend of street food, shopping, music, dance performances and raffle giveaways. Admission and parking are free.
1001 Story Rd., San Jose
Halloween Night at the Museum
Oct. 31, 5–9pm
The Museum of American Heritage opens after dark for a flashlight ghost hunt, weird history and artifacts, a mad-scientist demo, tarot readings and candy. Admission is free with an RSVP through the museum.
Museum of American Heritage, 351 Homer Ave., Palo Alto
San Jose Earthquakes Halloween Game
Oct. 31
The Earthquakes host Real Salt Lake on Halloween, giving soccer fans a reason to wear costumes to the stadium. Check the club for kickoff time and any themed giveaways.
PayPal Park, 1123 Coleman Ave., San Jose
Día de los Muertos Celebrations
Día de los Muertos Run-Walk
Oct. 31, 8:30am
Gardner Health Services’ seventh annual 5K along the Guadalupe River Trail raises money for medical care for uninsured children and families. Runners are encouraged to come in masks, makeup and costumes, and can bring a photo of a loved one for a giant community ofrenda. Registration includes a timing chip, finisher’s medal and tech shirt; kids 12 and under have a lower-priced entry.
1621 Gold St., San Jose
22nd Annual Micailhuitl: Día de Muertos
Oct. 31, 2pm – Nov. 1, 10am
History San José hosts a two-day ceremony rooted in Mexican traditions of remembrance at History Park. Community altars and vendors are part of the celebration.
History Park, 635 Phelan Ave., San Jose
Avenida de Altares
Oct. 31, 5:30–10:30pm
The School of Arts and Culture at Mexican Heritage Plaza fills its plaza with community altars, music and artisan vendors for its 10th annual celebration. Face painting and hands-on art activities round out the evening. Admission is free.
1700 Alum Rock Ave., San Jose
Día de los Muertos at Children’s Discovery Museum
Nov. 1; activities 10am–2pm
Aztec dancers from Mictlan Danza y Cultura open the day at 10:30am, and Teatro Familia Aztlán leads calaca processions through the museum at 11am and 1pm. Kids can try sand painting, calavera painting and marigold butterfly masks, and the processions stop to visit Lupe, the museum’s 14,000-year-old mammoth. Museum admission is $22 for adults and children.
180 Woz Way, San Jose
Día de los Muertos at Santana Row
Nov. 1, 10:30am
Santana Row closes the holiday weekend with a free community celebration of music, dance and crafts. Announcements promised mariachi, Catrina and Catrin appearances and community ofrendas at Zazil restaurant.
377 Santana Row, San Jose
