To think driving to roads where there's good trick or treating is a bit wrong

[sahknowme]

We live in an area that puts a lot of effort into trick or treating (assumingly for the "local" kids). There's recently been a thread on a forum asking for streets/routes that are good to drive to for their kids to trick or treat, and our street has been mentioned.

AIBU to think this is a bit wrong/grabby, and we are doing it for our local area - not for randoms to drive from all over town?!

[PumpkinSquash]

Meh. Not read all the thread, but I can't get worked up about kids going t different areas to trick or treat.
Trick or treating's begging whether it's on your own doorstep or not.
If you're happy to answer your door to them, who cares whether they're "local" or not. Kids are kids.

[Threenme]

I ant got a clue who isnt local! I know some of the kids but how would you know All kids unless it was little village! Plus I don't care love seeing excited kids!

[Abbylee]

Well, we moved to a country home and I'm sad every Halloween bc we do not get any trick or treaters. We also took our dc to a neighborhood bc we can't very well get candy from cows and horses.
I used to leave our candy on our porch with a sign "take 2" and we never came back to an empty bowl...although one of my dc admits to emptying somebody else's.
You always have the option of turning out your lights...BUT it is TRICK or treat...think about it.

[Abbylee]

(We did live in a neighborhood when they were younger, so left bowl and went trick or treating...)

[Threenme]

Also seeing elderly people getting a bit of a bad rep on here. My grandad is in his 80's and loves the trick or treaters visiting. He always buys extra special sweets for next doors kids as they're really kind to him! He'd be sad if they didn't visit.

[Aurora87]

Honestly, who gives a f*?

Build a bridge, call it you and get over yourself.

[Threenme]

Aurora that so harsh... but really made me laugh!

[sahknowme]

Seems there's a big divide in opinions - between the people who live in populated areas with hundreds/thousands of kids travelling from outside their community and those who live in smaller areas where there's lots of streets with no trick or treating at all.

[MaisyPops]

OP
I think it ptobably can come down to common sense.

Small quiet village with mot much trick or treating, going to town/another village with friends from round there makes sense.

Think your children deserve the best experience and most sweets so go off like a halloween tourist, just grabby.

One thing I do wish is that more parents taught their kids a bit of halloween etriquette.
This year DH got in from work and within 30 seconds he had loads of knocks. We were both going out that evening and had our front lights off and no decorations. This is clearly not a house to knock on. I got home and the same happened. Just because you have seen a car doesn't mean you pounce within seconds of me getting in. (One was a guy sat in his people carrier with 4 kids, clearly driving village ti village and estate to estate so his kods can have laods of sweets)
No decorations, no trick or treating in my book unless you know them.

[HeyDelRey]

Exactly MaisyPops.

Halloween pumpkins are like pampas grass. They give off a signal that the household is receptive to approaches

[longestlurkerever]

Totally agree you only go to decorated houses, only take one and say thank you. I think the groups should be small, ideally, so one gang doesn't wipe out the sweet supply, but in practice this is quite difficult to enforce when the kids are excitable and there are loads of them out together

[cloudspotter]

Ooh, can I see both sides, I can't decide? I personally love the constant knocking and we welcome the increase this year compared to say 5 years ago when it was really quiet round here.

But I do understand it could get excessive if people are coming over in droves. While I wouldn't mind, I could sympathise if people did. I personally have no idea whether any of the kids were local or not.

One or two of the kids were a bit grabby, but most were delightful and only took one or a couple. We went through six massive bags of individual Haribo sweets and they all went by 7pm.

I say switch your pumpkin off if you don't want visitors and leave it to those who have gone into it with the right spirit. It's not about your own neighbourhood kids, it's about joining in a fun seasonal event. Don't bah humbug it for everyone ekse who enjoys it!

[Carriecakes80]

I am shocked with the meanness of some folk!!! I thought this was fun for kids, giving out a necklace to prove you are local, what is this?? The bloody League of Gentleman? 'Our sweets are for LOCAL people Tubs!'
Jesus!
We live in a very posh lil village, where most of the elderly rich biddies don't want scary arsed clown kids coming and asking for sweets at all, fair play, so we go further afield, and never have my children been turned away for not being local!
Heres how I see it, You buy some sweets to give out to kids for Halloween, you dish them out as and when, you run out, you turn the lights off and blow out the pumpkin candles! Theres no difficulty!
You don't make a plan to turn away kids because they might live more than two or three roads away from you, unless you are tighter than a gnats chuff obviously!
Honestly!

[SherbrookeFosterer]

"Trick or treat" is one of the very few dreadful imports to the UK from the US.

It all started with a journalistic piece from BBC TV's show "Nationwide" in 1976.

It is a horrible custom.

It terrorises many elderly people in their own homes, creates fear of young people, a misguided sense of entitlement among young people, and should be discouraged by as many smart parents as possible.

[cantthinkofabloodyname]

@sahknowme you sound like you live in a similar area to me. There have been lots of posts on Facebook about parents driving from all over to visit our estate to go trick or treating.

[Booboo66]

OP I'm one that lives in the populated area with hundreds of kids in their droves. I still think you and all the people involved in the necklace scheme ABU

[Booboo66]

And living in Scotland I can guarantee that this is not an American import from 1976. Guising as we call it here is an age old tradition although when was a kid it used to be hard cash you were given not mini bags of haribo.

[AvoidingDM]

Boo hoo I don't ever remember hard cash. Monkey nuts (monkey nut earing😂) and apples the odd house would throw in a sweetie.

The bottom line is everybody has their limit. If you know there's less than 50 kids who live in your area because that's how many get the school bus but you make up extra bags any way. It still becomes difficult if your running out and the kids who you actually know still haven't been. You don't want the neighbours to get a bad feeling because you never gave to their kids and they gave yours.

Another option for those who don't live in good areas is most soft plays will do a Halloween Party or invite some of your kids friends over and have a party yourself dookin for apples - do the Americans do that bit?

[silky1985]

i think you should only trick or treat in areas that you either know people in or have a relative there. I used to go where my dad lived, he died so we now go where my mom lives as where I live is a little bit dangerous. But just going to a random area where you know no one is a little weird to me

[NumberEightyOne]

Americanisms are depressingly the norm. I hate the word candy for that reason.
Sonya, you are bloody horrible.

[Petalflowers]

I think it’s a bit weird to go to a random area as well. Okay to go to look at decorated houses, but a little unfair to expect Mr and Mrs Smith of Poplar Drive to provid sweets for the entire neighbourhood.

[ducktale]

This happened in our area the last few years, this year the local kids where given a necklace card to wear so if we get kids without them we know the are not local and not to give them anything

This is hilarious

[MaisyPops]

I agree petal.
There's a house in a local town who do the most amazing christmas lights. Each year they do a display and take donatioms for charity if people would like to. Their lights go in the local paper and people can choose to donate to the charity if they would like to. I think it's quite nice. Quite a lot of people go to see them with their children, it raises moeny and awareness.

I think if they did it for halloween and people expected them to feel the area's kids sweets it would be grabby and rude (but that's essentially what some people on here are saying is reasonable oj the grounds of 'but they made an effort so why shouldn't we ferry our children across to beg for sweets'l

[ducktale]

The only reason I find it annoying is that we hardly got any trick or treaters cos they all went down the road to the area that really get into it , I’ll be eating haribo for weeks.

Anyway down there they do ask parents to donate sweets to give out while they’re walking round as they put so much effort in, seems fair.

[heron98]

YABU.

We are the only family on our street, everyone else is students.