Although COVID-19 has changed the way we engage in our daily lives doesn’t mean that we have to be miserable doing it. Workplaces have transitioned into a hybrid or fully remote work space, schools have begun full online and soon hybrid learning, and recent graduates are being supported in finding jobs through their previously graduated schools and online platforms like LinkedIn. So if we have that same flexibility and determination to create something out of nothing we can apply this to anything that was impacted by COVID-19 even Halloween. Below I am going to list 11 activities you can do to celebrate Halloween during COVID-19.
- Horror/Halloween Movie Marathon
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An easy fix to celebrating Halloween quarantine-style is having a horror movie marathon. This is the perfect time to rewatch some of our childhood favorites like “Monster House” and “Scary Godmother”. You can watch these on Netflix or on channels like Freeform, Syfy, and Lifetime that are known to be in the Halloween spirit by showing scary and thriller movies. So grab your popcorn and get to watching.
1. Goosebumps
2. Hocus Pocus
3. Halloween Town
4. Twitches
5. The Nightmare Before Halloween
6. Monster House
7. Scary Godmother
8. It’s the Great Pumpkin Charlie Brown
- Scary Baking
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Speaking of popcorn that relates to this section of scary baking. Right now there are tons of Halloween-themed recipes for your heart’s content. But if you’re like me and don’t feel like baking you can buy the Pillsbury Halloween-themed sugar cookies that are decorated with pumpkins and ghosts. You can find these at any grocery store near you in the frozen section.
- DIY
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Another creative activity is Halloween-themed DIY. There are tons of ideas through google and Pinterest especially. Some ideas of DIY are origami and carving pumpkins. Moreover, another pumpkin activity that you can do that brings awareness to a cause is pumpkin painting. Get a pumpkin, some pink and white paint, and start painting a pumpkin in celebration of breast cancer awareness month. When you’re done, put it outside your
doorstep to bring more awareness to breast cancer. In doing so you’re encouraging others to join in on spreading awareness of this terrible disease and the lives of people it’s impacted.
- Tarot Cards
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A spooky activity that I’m sure everyone’s tried at least once in their life is tarot card reading. Tarot cards are used for gaining insight into the past, present, and future. I myself was given a tarot card set by my mom and found it cool to learn about the meaning of each card. But you don’t need to have a special set of tarot cards to do a tarot reading, you can just use regular playing cards. To find out how to do this just google “how to do a tarot reading using playing cards” and you’ll find a ton of resources.
- Decorate Your Room
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This is an easy fix to get you in the Halloween mood. You don’t need to go to Home Goods, Target, or even Walmart, you’re local Dollar Tree will suffice. Despite Dollar Tree being cheap you can still find a lot of seasonal decor items there like mini skulls, fake pumpkins, stringed leaves, and candy which isn’t a decor item but why not get some candy while you’re over there.
- Themed Face Masks
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Even though it looks like COVID-19 pretty much cancelled Halloween costume parties you can have a party everyday by purchasing a Halloween-themed face mask. It’s not the typical Halloween costume but why not take advantage of the situation and give it a positive outcome. Another benefit of doing this is that you can dress up in a Halloween costume everyday. You just need one of those funny cheesy Halloween t-shirts, some jeans and there’s your private Halloween costume party.
- Seasonal Fall Food Specials
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With fall season in full-effect you are sure to find some seasonal fall-themed food specials. So check out the list below, order delivery and enjoy your favorites while watching a scary movie. (This is a snippet from my last article about different fall self-care activities to do for yourself so feel free to read that if you’re looking for some fall-themed R&R)
Starbucks
➢ Pumpkin Spice Latte
➢ Pumpkin Cream Cold Brew
➢ Salted Caramel Mocha
➢ Salted Caramel Mocha Frappuccino
➢ Pumpkin Scone
➢ Pumpkin Cream Cheese Muffin
Dunkin Donuts
➢ Signature Pumpkin Spice Latte
➢ Chai Latte
➢ Pumpkin Flavored Coffee
➢ Apple Cider Donut and Munchkins
➢ Maple Sugar Bacon Breakfast Sandwich
IHOP
➢ Pumpkin Spice Pancakes
➢ Cookies N’ Cream Hot Chocolate
➢ Cinn-A-Stack Pancakes
➢ Milk N’ Cookies Pancakes
- Drive-In Movie Theater
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Drive-in Movie Theaters are a perfect solution to wanting to see a movie outside of your house. Although all of Delaware’s drive-in movie theaters are closed with the last one closing in 2008 you can go to Delsea Drive-In Theatre in Vineland, NJ or Bengies Drive-In Theatre in Middle River, MD. Look for some drive-in theaters near your area and catch the next showing.
- Pumpkin Picking
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This activity is a childhood memory when I was in Elementary School and I’m sure others can relate as well. Although you can’t physically pick up the pumpkins you can order curbside pickup to get a pumpkin for the Halloween spirit. From there you can decorate your pumpkin (mentioned in activity #3) carve your pumpkin or simply make some delicious food out of it. The possibilities are endless!
- Celebrate Globally: Bake Traditional Foods
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Being in quarantine brought out the best in people where they learned new skills and engaged in different hobbies. You can even learn more about the world ironically. Halloween isn’t just an American holiday it’s celebrated globally with different cultural versions of celebrating the dead and ancestors. In Mexico they have Dia de Los Muertos, in Ireland and Scotland they have Samhain, in East Asia they have the Ghost Festival, and so much more! The most fun way to learn is by creating through cooking and baking cultural traditional foods and dishes. So take the time to learn more about the world around you and get in the kitchen!
- Virtual Escape Rooms
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Finally you can join in on the fun by doing a virtual escape room. Still the same as a regular escape room except with no waiting in line and you’re practicing social distancing. You can even play them in different formats which are listed below.
iOS
● Room Escape: 50 Rooms
● Escape Room: Mystery Word
● Room Escape Contest 2
● The Room Pocket
● Great Escapes
Android
● All That Remains: Part 1 ($1.99)
● Faraway 3: Arctic Escape (Free/$2.99)
● Great Escapes (Free/Up to $2,49)
● The Room Series ($.99 to $4.99 each)
● Rusty Lake/Cube Escape Series (Free up to $2.99 each)
If you want you can play on a more sophisticated platform by going onto theescapegame.com. The downside to this choice is that you have to pay $30 for each game but you get to play with other players in real time. Now choose a game and go play!
I hope I gave you some great ideas to think about when celebrating Halloween during COVID-19. Don’t let this situation put a damper on your Halloween spirit. Take advantage of the convenient opportunities and remote environment available and go have fun!