These NYC suburbs love all things tricks, treats, and ghoulishly fun
Each October, Halloween in the NYC suburbs transforms quiet neighborhoods into festive, candy-fueled celebrations. These are the towns where front yards compete for scariness, streets are lit up with jack-o-lanterns, and trick-or-treating feels more like a curated event than a candy run. Here are standout neighborhoods across the NYC suburbs that go all out every fall!
Pleasantville, NY (Westchester)
Pleasantville’s annual Ragamuffin Parade & Festival remains a centerpiece: kids line up at Bedford Road School, march down Bedford Road to Memorial Plaza, and then the plaza hosts rides, games, food trucks, and costumed revelry. But the real trick-or-treating magic happens in the surrounding residential blocks, where neighbors amp up their display game and pedestrian foot traffic surges. The parade acts as a communal kickoff to a fine-tuned Halloween evening.
Rye, NY (Westchester)
Rye’s Indian Village neighborhood is a local legend for its trick-or-treat infrastructure: streets are closed to vehicular traffic, and multiple smaller avenues (Mendota, Seneca, Cayuga, Onondaga, Oneida, Mohawk) become candy corridors. In recent years, Rye also stages a daytime Halloween Parade through the business district, with a costume competition and storefronts showcasing theatrical windows. End result: you get both the curated spectacle and the immersive walkable candy crawl.
Larchmont / Mamaroneck, NY (Westchester)
Tucked away from the bigger events, Larchmont’s Brook area (East and West Brookside Drive) has earned a reputation as one of Westchester’s premier trick-or-treat destinations. The neighborhood comes alive with spirited décor, steady crowds, and friendly competition among homeowners, creating a festive, block-party feel without an official parade..
Greenwich, CT (Fairfield County)
Greenwich definitely punches above its weight. Maher Avenue has earned near-mythical status among local families. Each year, the stately homes along this leafy stretch transform into a Halloween stage set, with coordinated lighting, fog machines, and costumed greeters handing out king-size bars. Police often block off sections to cars, turning it into a pedestrian-only zone that feels more festival than neighborhood. Meanwhile, nearby streets like Ridgeway and Fairfield Road join in, creating a seamless trick-or-treat loop that’s as photogenic as it is candy-packed.
Fairfield, CT (Fairfield County)
Downtown Fairfield turns Halloween into a full community production. The annual Halloween on the Green at the Museum Commons transforms the heart of town into a family carnival — local businesses set up trick-or-treat booths, food vendors line the walkways, and live performers keep things buzzing from morning through afternoon. Costumed kids spill out from the green into nearby streets like Beach Road and Old Post Road, where residents go all out with pumpkins, lawn scenes, and porch lights blazing. It’s compact, walkable, and perfectly calibrated for families who want small-town charm with big Halloween energy.
Montclair, NJ (Essex County)
Montclair’s village core leans into Halloween: the “Halloween Fun in Montclair Village” event includes a costume run/walk, trick-or-treating among merchants, live music, crafts, and balloon animals. Homes in nearby neighborhoods up the ante with lighting displays, projection setups, and multi-house themes. The result: you roam walking streets past storefronts and spirited homes.
Garden City, NY (Nassau County)
While Garden City doesn’t host a major centralized Halloween parade, it does lean into seasonal programming: the Ghostly Gala at the Long Island Children’s Museum offers gallery trick-or-treating, costume contests, and indoor/outdoor Halloween installations.
In the residential enclaves, many blocks become continuous trick-or-treat stretches, with neighbors coordinating lights, lawn scenes, and synchronized themes, turning a regular walk into a “neighborhood show.”
Rockville Centre, NY (Nassau County)
Rockville Centre punches above its residential footprint by staging Spooky Fest at the Tanglewood Preserve. That includes a haunted-woods path with zombies and surprises, plus a gentler “not-so-spooky” route for younger children, along with crafts, music, and community engagement. In the adjacent streets, many local homes ramp up their decor and hand out candy en masse, making RVC a favorite target area.
Merrick, NY (Nassau County)
Merrick stages a Fall Festival and Street Fair near the train station precincts, helping gather families in pedestrian zones before trick-or-treating begins. Plus, the downtown core serves as gathering hubs, and the adjacent residential streets often see neighbors stepping up displays in response.
Old Bethpage (Nassau County)
Old Bethpage is a special case: the Old Bethpage Village Restoration hosts ghost tours, pumpkin carving, and a self-guided ghost walk or scavenger hunt across its historic structures in the fall. While that’s more attraction-style than street trick-or-treating, the immersive setup, period architecture, and walking trails lend it a haunted-village feel that spills over into neighboring blocks.
Choosing YOUR Treat!
From Westchester to Nassau, Halloween in the NYC suburbs means parades, decorated blocks, and entire towns joining in the fun. Here, streets turn into stages, neighbors become set designers, and trick-or-treating feels like a shared performance — equal parts spooky, sweet, and suburban. Whether you’re chasing the best candy haul or just the best people-watching, Halloween in the NYC suburbs proves you don’t need a city skyline for a show-stopping October 31.
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