Spooky times in Ottawa 2024
Sweets, pumpkins, imagination and maybe a bit of good-natured fright: visiting with little neighbourhood ghosts and goblins at the door is a recipe for a fun-filled Halloween; but if you’d like to explore some family activities, we have some suggestions for you.
Halloween in the forest
Sunday, October 27 from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m.
Richelieu Park Forest (300 des Pères-Blancs Ave.), Vanier
Cost: Free. No registration needed, but you’re encouraged to wear a costume!
info@museoparc.ca; (613) 842-9871
The Museopark, in collaboration with the Vanier Optimist Club, invites kids and grown-ups to take a stroll in the Richelieu Park forest to celebrate Halloween. Little monsters can take part in several activities and collect treats along the way. A volunteer from the Lire et faire lire program will also read stories around the campfire.
In case of rain, the Halloween activity will take place inside the Richelieu-Vanier Community Centre, in the Accueil Hall.
Pumpkins glowing in the dark
Pumpkinferno at Upper Canada Village
Until Oct. 31, 6:30 to 10:30 pm
Upper Canada Village, 13740 County Road 2, Morrisburg
$20-22; children 4 years old and younger, free
Take a nighttime stroll through a truly extraordinary outdoor exhibit of more than 7,000 handcrafted, lit-up pumpkins lit up along a 1-km path.
The pumpkins have been designed and carved by a talented group of young artists from the Eastern Ontario region.
A festival of pumpkins and much more
Saturday-Sunday Oct. 26-27, 10 am to 5 pm
7893 Bleeks Road, Munster
General admission $39; children two and under, free
Pumpkinfest is a celebration of October and Halloween, a delightful place for children with activities such as “Haunted Attractions”, stage and puppet shows, mazes, a pumpkin patch hayride, play structures, woodland adventure, “Witch Mountain” slide, and zipline.
Not a ghost tour (but it sure has possibilities)
Secrets of the Chateau Laurier Hotel
Oct. 27; Oct, 30; Nov. 1
75 minutes
1 Rideau St., Ottawa
Adults $24.99; Youth up to 14, $19.99
Ottawa’s most famous castle, the Fairmont Chateau Laurier, has all kinds of stories and secrets. The tour will show you concealed passageways, tales of political rendezvous, the grand ballrooms, and behind-the-scenes snippets about notable guests and its storied past. Tour organizers hint that although this is not about ghost stories, they just might share one.
Tickets here.
Pathway of pumpkins
Oct. 29-31, 6:15 -10pm
Wesley Clover Parks, 401 Corkstown Road, Nepean
Adults from $21.62; Youth from $17.49
See more than 10,000 hand-carved lighted pumpkins in a pathway of sculptures and displays, complete with music, sound effects, special effects and classic Halloween characters.
Tickets here
