Halloween is Canada’s second most celebrated holiday – one that both kids and adults look forward to each year. But with social distancing orders altering all typical holiday celebrations, it will look a bit different this year. So we’ve put together a guide to help you safely celebrate, especially in your RV. Whether you RV throughout the season, or occasionally rent an RV, here’s how to plan a fun Halloween in your RV.
Choose a Spooky Setting
An RV park or campground located in a rural area and surrounded by trees adds to the spooky ambiance of Halloween. You could also camp near one of Canada’s most haunted sites and explore the site during a day trip. Popular haunted sites include:
- Dunvegan Provincial Park, Alberta
- Fairmont Banff Springs Hotel, Banff, Alberta
- Tranquille Sanatorium, Kamloops, B.C.
- Peggy’s Point Lighthouse, Nova Scotia
- Fairmount Château Laurier, Ottawa
- HI-Ottawa Jail Hostel, Ottawa
- West Point Lighthouse, O’Leary, P.E.I.
- Plains of Abraham, Quebec City
- Keg Mansion, Toronto
- Mount Pleasant Cemetery, Toronto
- Old Spaghetti Factory, Vancouver
- Fairmont Empress, Vancouver Island
- Craigdarroch Castle, Victoria
Decorate your RV Inside and Out
One of the easiest ways to get festive is through RV decoration. Ask your entire family to use their imaginations and create a spook-tacular environment inside and out.
On the inside of your RV, cover the windows with orange curtains, and decorate doors with Halloween themed paper or as tombstones. You can also hang pumpkin, ghost and witch cutouts from the ceiling.
Outside, drape fake cobwebs or separated cotton balls over the RV slide-outs, and hang jack-o-lantern string lights from the awning. Arrange pumpkins, skeletons, tombstones, or scarecrows around the RV, and use hay or straw bales as seating.
Prepare Festive Foods
Feast on festive foods and beverages as you celebrate Halloween in your RV. Use themed tablecloths, plates, cups, silverware, and straws to complement your food selections.
1. Cook chili or stew in a Dutch oven or cast iron “cauldron” over the campfire.
2. Serve spaghetti as a bucket of guts.
3. Wrap hot dogs or sausages in bread strips that resemble mummy cloths.
4. Design a jack-o-lantern or a witch from raw vegetables and serve with spinach dip.
5. Make spiders from cheese cubes and pretzel sticks.
6. Drop eyeball gummy candy into red juice.
7. Decorate Black Magic cupcakes with themed cutouts or orange icing.
Organize Activities
Whether you celebrate with only your immediate family or invite RVing neighbours to join your social distance activities, you can have some Halloween fun thanks to several activities.
Halloween Hike – Take a walk after dark on a designated path. Arrange festive surprises ahead of time, such as glowing eyes, scarecrows or fake arms and legs on the ground.
Scavenger Hunt – Invite your RVing friends to join in a park-wide scavenger hunt. Make a list of items for participants to find, such as a black witch’s hat, a stuffed scarecrow, a glowing ghost, and candied apples. Or hide items around the park and give participants clues to decipher as they hunt for the items.
Pumpkin Carving – Using carving tools, design unique jack-o-lanterns. Young children can paint designs on pumpkins to stay safe.
Trick-or-Treat – Assemble bags of candy and treats for the kids. Set the bags outside and allow children to pick up a bag as they walk through the park and maintain social distance.
Costume Parade – Dress up your children or your dog and walk through the RV park on a costume parade. Or ask fellow RVers to decorate their golf carts or campsites, and enjoy the unique RV decoration during a family Halloween walk.
Tell Stories Around the Campfire
Share a ghost, folklore or another scary story as you sit around the campfire. Your family members can alter fairy tales or make up stories as you try to scare each other. To add ambiance, play spooky music on your RV stereo or electronic device.
Visit a Local RV Park or Campground
If you decide not to plan your own Halloween fun, join in the festivities at another local RV park or campground. Possible events might include a costume parade, haunted hike or pumpkin carving that allow participants to maintain social distance and have fun.
To celebrate Halloween this year, why don’t you take a trip in your RV? With the above suggestions, you can plan and enjoy RV Halloween fun as you comply with health and safety guidelines.