Halloween Treats in London

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Halloween can get pretty scary, even before the big day rolls around. The kids need costumes, and the days of throwing a white sheet over them (with a couple of eye holes cut out if they’re lucky) seem to be long gone. My youngest has her heart set on going as Miley Cyrus, and while I agree Miss Cyrus does have some of the necessary qualities for a Halloween costume, I was a little unsure about the pop stars suitability. We eventually settled on a compromise, she went as Miley, and I had a glass of wine. 

There’s plenty to worry about as Halloween approaches, letting loose the kids to ask strangers for sweets seems to go against everything my parents taught me, but hay, if Miley Cyrus and a seven year old boy dressed as an evil Jedi squirrel aren’t safe trick and treating on the streets of Croydon then what has the world come to?

With the kids off for half term, I know I’ll be in dire need of a source of entertainment that doesn’t require a computer screen, or mortal danger. Thankfully there’re a host of Halloween themed attractions in London this October, and this website has put together a list of the very best. By some sheer coincidence, they also seem to have had their prices slashed... 

Upon closer inspection, it appears that many of London’s most popular attractions have gone far beyond the usual pumpkin in the window. Many of them seem almost unrecognisable to the tried and trusted family favourites, so with a host of new exhibits to explore heading into town seems like the perfect idea. With Boo at the Zoo, Shrek’s Adventure and numerous, unexplained sightings of ghosts at the London Dungeons there really is plenty to explore.

When Halloween rolls around, many of the capital’s lesser known attractions come creeping out of the dark. The London Bridge Experience, as my cantilevering loving father-in-law discovered to his upmost displeasure, isn’t an exhibition about bridges. Instead he found a fright-filled adventure through London’s murky past. 

With my parent hat firmly on, crushing my once youthful curls beneath the ever increasing weight of my family’s expectations, I sought out something that could focus the minds of two children bouncing off the walls thanks to mountains of cheap Halloween chocolate.  The Ghost Bus Tour of London ticks all the boxes, with the added bonus of a particularly scary conductor to keep the little ones in check.

The nights may be drawing in, but it’s not all doom and gloom this Halloween. You’ll find a massive 63% off Ripley’s Believe it or Not! tickets if you book before 30th September. All this and we’re not even in October yet!

In a moment of weakness, I asked my children how they’d like to spend Halloween. After being forced to explain why mummy and daddy couldn’t afford a space rocket because the government hates stay-at-home parents and stole all our tax credits, I discovered what they wanted more than anything was for me to get all dressed up and just spend a little quality time with them. Sadly the costume they picked out for me was a skeleton, and my heart just wasn’t in it.