Travelling to other areas for trick or treating

[MidnightPatrol]

I’d always assumed that everyone just trick or treated on their own / surrounding streets.

But our town’s parents group (mainly nursery and primary school chat) has people suggesting travelling to a handful of specific streets…

This does explain why there were quite so many trick or treaters last year (at least 100 - we eventually tuned the lights off and brought the pumpkins inside by about 7pm).

I thought it was just the local kids pottering round, not that their parents had driven them here.

Is this normal? Seems like CF behaviour to me!

I think it’s cheeky. But that’s easy to say when my immediate vicinity is great for it. If it wasn’t I suspect my kids would want to go to the “better streets” but I wouldn’t be very happy about it.

I am happy to offer treats to local kids that I sort of recognise, not so much ones I don’t.

That sounds like CF behaviour
Why don't they walk around where they live?

It’s not cheeky, we go to mil’s road because it’s where dh grew up and they get very little trick or treaters and we live on a dangerous rural road that has no path and only elderly people who don’t put up decorations.

I thought that was the reason some streets really go to town with the decorations, to encourage people to come?

I don't hold with trick or treating at all myself, but I like 31st much better now people seem to know only to go to decorated houses 🤣

Our street goes a little mad for Halloween and has done for years, we give out hundreds and hundreds of sweets. I don't begrudge anyone travelling to us to trick or treat. It's bloody lovely to see all the houses decorated and all the children having a great time.

I think it’s a bit cheeky, but then I don’t really approve of trick or treating. It wasn’t a thing when I was little.

The poor kids round here wouldn’t get any joy if they stayed in our area. Hardly any houses do trick or treat. I’m pretty certain they would have to go a bit further afield

If their own area doesn’t have much I don’t see the issue

We haven't gone yet, and have a party this year too, but our road is shit for Trick or Treaters. Big, fast roadside and just no homes really participate. Was considering going to a nearby, safe, set of streets well known for it ~ seems to be the 'done' thing when I ask around. If we don't do that, DS won't get the chance to go at all 💁‍♀️ Luckily this is now next years problem though!

Barely anyone had decorations where we used to live so we travelled to where my parents lived instead.

now we live on an estate where people travel for trick or treating. People have their houses professionally decorated (at Christmas too). A few have marquees outside their houses with mini scare rooms. You can hear the screams as you walk around. It has a very strict 5-8 policy. But the atmosphere is always great. Parents are also dressed up when trick or treating.

Our road doesn't have a path and has about 5 houses over about 4 miles. We would have to drive 10 minutes to get to a village and nearly 20 to get to a town.

Well as my nearest neighbour is three miles away.. yes we go to town.

People come to our estate, one year a mini bus turned up!!
Everyone does tend to go all out on decorations and a couple of houses even put on a sort of show BUT it does mean that its not unusual to get loads of kids knock and its expensive. We are in a small cul de sac off the main estate so its not as bad for us, we get on average 15-20 kids round but on the main bit they can get up to 40 or more. unfortunately it does mean that some people have decided not to do it at all as sweets can run out by 6.30 and its expensive to keep topping up.

We live in a city with wall-to-wall housing on lit streets for several miles in all directions, so the children would be having to come from really a long way away to have this issue.

Albeit, I think if I lived that rurally I’d just say ‘we can’t trick or treat because we don’t have any neighbours’ and organise to do something else instead.

We will be joining friends who live in a different area to us so that our children can go round trick or treating together. My son is an only child so it's nice to join up with other children for things like this.

It wouldn't even occur to me that it's cheeky to go to a different area. Previous years we've gone to surprise my parents and then trick or treated the street they live on too.

I think going to an area you have no ties to could be seen as cheeky. But some areas are shit craic (like ours) or dangerous because they don't have suitable footpaths, or are too rural for trick or treating to be sensible. So I don't blame those families going to other more suitable areas to trick or treat with friends or family.

DC1 went to a friend's last year and came home with a sack of sweets. I took DC2 around locally and I don't think we called at five doors. This year I'm staying home to make sure the locals have someone to call to, and DH is taking both DCs to the friend's.

Our road went all out when I was growing up and it was the same then - friends who lived on main roads etc tagging along.

I think it’s fine. Personally, we wouldn’t have time, but I don’t see anything wrong with it. There are some streets that go all out and I think it’s lovely people get into it. We live in the arse end of nowhere without neighbours, so we have to travel to our nearest village anyway.

The village I live in gets lots of people coming to. It's pretty, safe and friendly and lots of people get sweets in.

Wow! That sounds fun - never seen anything like that, I can see why that might be perceived to be encouraging people to come and have a look.

Here it’s just the traditional stuff - pumpkins, spiders. I can think of one house that goes really overboard and is maybe worth going to look at, but the rest… nothing anything like what you describe.

5-8 is that the time or the age range?

up to 12-13 age wise seems ok round here, I’m telling my 11yo I think he’s almost too old now

Our estate is like ET. All the houses are decorated and there's hundreds of guisers.

I expect some have travelled from estates that aren't so into it.

I really don't mind. As long as the kids have fun.

I don't think it's cheeky, as long as everyone is well behaved. Some areas really go for it at Halloween whereas other areas don't. The children unlucky enough to live in the latter areas will have much more fun going to a nearby area where people are enthusiastic about it.

Anyone who doesn't want to participate should obviously be left undisturbed.

If your house is decorated for Halloween you’ve chosen to participate. I’m not bothered if the children who knock are my neighbours or from the next town over as long as they are having fun.

Last year we went trick or treating on holiday. The kids absolutely loved it and the locals had gone to town on their decorations. Hadn’t occurred to me that there was anything cheeky about it

Same. I never did understand the whole thing - possibly as my parents never let me do it and referred to it as begging. But I've been glad to avoid it with my own DC. We've always gone to Halloween parties, love dressing up, and done pumpkins/apples at home, but we will be turning off the doorbell, front lights and closing all blinds as usual tomorrow evening!

I do recognise that IABU though as it's a very normal thing to do. However, going to another area, unless you have a connection of family or friends, just because you think you will get better sweets, totally CF territory.

I think that's a bit different as you have some connection with the area you're going to, but going to a completely random area is a bit odd. It like when chuggers turn up in a van at the top of your street and walk door to door 😁