Halloween falls on a Saturday this year. The city of Elizabeth and its public library have scheduled most of their events for the weekday afternoons before it. From Monday, October 26 through Friday, October 30, almost every event on the municipal and library calendars starts between 3:30 and 5 p.m. The biggest city event, Fall Fun Fest, is on a Wednesday. The Police Department's Trunk or Treat ends at 6 p.m. Friday, about when trick-or-treating would normally start.
What follows is the week laid out by day and by part of town. Before each item is the detail that decides whether you can go: the start time, the address, or whether you have to register first.
The Week Opens Saturday Morning in a Park
The city's own calendar starts on Saturday, October 24. The city's 6th Annual Howl-O-Ween Pet Costume Contest runs from 10 a.m. to noon at Carteret Park. The city's event listing gives the address as 428 Vine Street, and TAPinto Elizabeth places the park at Vine Street and Elmora Avenue. Some event roundups list a different Vine Street number, so go by the city's listing. The program includes costumes, pet vendors and prizes for the winners. TAPinto lists 908-820-4026 for questions.
The other big Saturday event is just over the city line. Liberty Hall Museum's Pumpkin Patch Day runs from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. that day at 1003 Morris Avenue. The museum lists its address as Union, NJ 07083, not Elizabeth. According to the museum's event page, tickets cost $14 per child and $8 per adult, children under three get in free, pumpkins cost extra, and reservations are suggested. The pet contest ends at noon and the pumpkin patch is open until 5, so a family can do both the same day.
The Main Library at 11 South Broad Street also lists an all-day Lego Day on October 24. It's not a Halloween program, but it's an option if the weather is bad.
The Hayride People Tie to Warinanco Is in the Watchung Reservation
Union County's Haunted Hayrides run the same weekend, Friday, October 23 through Sunday, October 25, with Monday, October 26 as the rain date. They are held at the Deserted Village of Feltville in the Watchung Reservation, not at Warinanco Park. Rides leave every half hour from 6:30 to 9 p.m. Friday and Saturday, and from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. Sunday.
What matters most is how you buy tickets. The county's September 8 announcement sets prices at $8 for Union County residents and $16 for everyone else. Tickets are sold in advance only, online or in person at Trailside Nature and Science Center or at Warinanco Sports Center, 1 Park Drive in Roselle. No tickets are sold at the site. This post goes up Thursday, October 22, and the rides start the next night, so there's one day left to buy tickets for opening night. For Elizabeth residents, the Warinanco Sports Center ticket counter is the closest in-person option.
Monday Through Friday Runs on the After-School Clock
During the week, the city and the Elizabeth Public Library run their programs at the same times, and those times match the end of the school day. Here's what the library's October 2026 newsletter and the city calendar show for each day.
- Monday, Oct. 26 to Saturday, Oct. 31: Harvest Scavenger Hunt in the children's area at the Elmora Branch, 740 W. Grand Street. Kids who find all the hidden images get a small prize from the treasure chest.
- Tuesday, Oct. 27, 4 p.m.: Boo-tiful Storytime at the LaCorte Branch, with Halloween coloring and a craft afterward.
- Tuesday, Oct. 27, 5 p.m.: Haunted Gingerbread Houses at the Main Library.
- Wednesday, Oct. 28, 4 p.m.: Decorate Your Candy Bag at the Main Library.
- Wednesday, Oct. 28, 5 p.m.: Fall Fun Fest at City Hall, 50 Winfield Scott Plaza.
- Thursday, Oct. 29, 3:30 p.m.: Lego-tastic Day at the Elizabethport Branch.
- Thursday, Oct. 29, 4 p.m.: Monster Mash! Halloween Party at the Main Library and Monster Mash Bingo at LaCorte.
- Friday, Oct. 30, 3:30 p.m.: Teen Spooky Movie at Main, showing Five Nights at Freddy's 2, rated PG-13.
- Friday, Oct. 30, 3:30 to 6 p.m.: Elizabeth Police Department Trunk or Treat at Police Headquarters, 1 Police Plaza.
- Friday, Oct. 30, 4 p.m.: Pumpkin Painting at the Main Library.
Every weekday event on that list starts at 3:30, 4 or 5 p.m. On Thursday, three branches start programs within 30 minutes of each other, and on Friday, Trunk or Treat, the teen movie and pumpkin painting all start within the same half hour. With this many events at the same hour, a family can only make one per afternoon.
Wednesday at City Hall Is the Main City Event
TAPinto Elizabeth reported on October 12 that the event is presented by Mayor J. Christian Bollwage, the City of Elizabeth, the Department of Recreation and the Department of Health and Human Services, in partnership with GoElizabethNJ. The plans include autumn-themed activities, contests and seasonal treats. It starts at 5 p.m. Wednesday, after the Main Library's candy-bag program and a few blocks from it, so you can go from one to the other. Call (908) 820-4124 for the final schedule, including what time it ends.
Putting the biggest city event on a Wednesday, three days before Halloween, fits the rest of the calendar. The Police Department's Trunk or Treat on Friday follows the same timing. It runs from 3:30 to 6 p.m. the day before Halloween, so it's done before dark.
Registration Fills the Library Rooms Before the Doors Open
You can just show up at the city's events in parks and at City Hall. The library's events work differently. The Elmora Branch tells patrons that space is limited and asks them to register on the library calendar at elizpl.org or by calling 908-353-4820. The Main Library's children's department also has limited space and takes registrations online or at (908) 354-6060, ext. 7209. Teen programs at Main are for ages 13 to 19 only and take registrations at ext. 7237. LaCorte has moved all of its program registration to the website.
That makes the library side of Halloween something you plan ahead for. If your child wants the Monster Mash party on Thursday, register on Thursday the 22nd, not the following Wednesday night.
Halloween Saturday Wraps Up at the Library by Early Afternoon
By Saturday, October 31, the city calendar has had its big events. The library still has three things going on Saturday. The Elmora Branch holds its annual Fall Fest at 11 a.m. with stories and games, Elmora's Harvest Scavenger Hunt runs its last day, and the Main Library runs an all-day scavenger hunt in the children's department. At Main, "all day" is short on a Saturday. The newsletter lists Saturday hours at both Main and Elmora as 9:30 a.m. to 1:45 p.m.
So on Halloween itself, the library events end by 1:45 p.m. when the doors close, and the evening is up to each family. Elmora's 11 a.m. Fall Fest is the last event of the week on either the city's or the library's calendar with a set start time.
A Stop on West Grand Street
Elmora Fall Fest is at 740 W. Grand Street. Farther east, at 33 West Grand Street beside the NJ TRANSIT station plaza, is the city's new "Welcome World" mural. It was unveiled at a ribbon-cutting on October 8, and TAPinto Elizabeth described it as public art celebrating the city's history and diversity. It's an easy stop on Halloween morning if you're driving down West Grand from the library.
At Turnkey Tverdov, we follow these same calendars because library branches, parks and City Hall shape daily life on the blocks where we own and manage rental housing. Join the Turnkey Waitlist to get our Central New Jersey updates as they're published.
