Skip to content
OsloFamilie
Norsk
← All guides

Halloween in Oslo with children

The practical side of Halloween with children in Oslo: which evening it actually happens, how it works in a block of flats, and what can be too scary for small children.

Halloween events in Oslo this year

Taken from our events calendar, which updates every night. The age limits are the organisers' own, and they vary a lot: some events are made for preschoolers, others are twelve and up.

The list shows what is in the calendar right now. Much of the Halloween programme is only published during October, so more will come.

The date is 31 October, but not always

Halloween itself is 31 October. In practice many go out the evening before, or on the nearest Friday or Saturday, and it varies from neighbourhood to neighbourhood. It is worth asking in the parents' group or the housing association what applies where you live, so you are not ready on the wrong evening.

Trick-or-treating in a block of flats

In many blocks of flats the custom is that you ring where there is decoration: a pumpkin, a candle or something in the window means it is fine to ring. If there is nothing, most people walk past. Explain it to your child in advance, both because it is nicer for the neighbours and because a no at the door is easier to take when you have heard it might happen.

One stairwell can be enough

Plan a short round in your own stairwell or with two neighbours you know, and finish at home while it is still fun. It also helps to be done before it gets properly dark.

What counts as too scary varies

Many Halloween events are made for primary-school children and up, and a haunted house that is middling for an eight-year-old can ruin the evening for a five-year-old. Check the age guidance before you go, and expect that a child who says it isn't scary may change their mind inside in the dark.

Reflectors on the costume

The end of October is dark in Oslo, and many Halloween costumes are dark. A reflective band around the arm or on the bag spoils nothing, and the children are walking on streets with cars.

In 2026 Halloween falls on a Saturday

That makes this year simpler than usual: 31 October 2026 is a Saturday, so the day itself and the weekend day are one and the same. Note that several of the larger events still fall earlier in the week: the scare walk at Linderud gÄrd is on Thursday 29 October, and the Halloween season at Tusenfryd ends as early as 25 October.

The costume can easily be homemade

A sheet with two holes is still the fastest ghost, a black jumper and a pair of ears is a cat, and an old shirt with paint on it is all it takes for a mad scientist. If you want to buy, there is plenty second-hand: see the shops in our guide to second-hand children's clothes, where Halloween costumes turn up in October. Two practical things: the costume has to survive an evening out at five degrees, so plan for thermals underneath, and full-face masks make it hard to see in the dark.

Face paint instead of a mask

Face paint has the advantage that the child can see where they are going. Three faces cover a lot. A witch is a green base and a line under the eyes. A ghost is a white base and grey shadows in the cheekbones. A vampire is pale skin, dark lips and two red drops. Use paint made for children and test a patch on the arm the day before, because that evening is a bad time to discover an allergy. Bring wet wipes.

Pumpkins: let the child draw, you cut

A division of labour that often works is that the child draws the face with a marker and scoops out the inside by hand, and an adult handles the knife. A pumpkin cut on 31 October keeps well into November; one cut in mid-October may have started to go mouldy before Halloween, so hold off. The seeds can be roasted with a little salt while you work. If you have small children who should be nowhere near a knife, painting the pumpkin works just as well.

A Halloween party at home, without much fuss

A treasure hunt with five clues through the flat lasts long enough, and the clues can be drawings for those who cannot read yet. Many stick to the classics: apple bobbing, mummy wrapping with toilet paper, and guessing what is in the bowl of eyeballs (grapes) and brains (cold spaghetti). The food need be no more than sausages called fingers, clementines with pumpkin faces drawn on them and a cake with a white marzipan ghost. It helps to put an end time on the invitation; a party that runs right up to bedtime can get long.

The bag, and what happens to what is in it

What the sweets go in matters little, except that a paper bag gives way if it rains. Agree in advance what happens to the sweets when you get home, because that is often where the disagreement starts: some now, the rest over the week, is a deal a child understands if it comes before rather than after. If there are allergies in the house, go through the bag yourself, as much of what is handed out is unwrapped or unlabelled.

With a two-year-old, this may be plenty

Halloween can simply be a pumpkin in the window and a costume to wear at home. Nurseries often mark the day with dressing up and decorations, and that may be more than enough. If you do go out, stay in daylight and with people the child knows. Dark, masks and loud noises can be a lot for a small child, and 31 October does not have to be the evening to try it.

The full calendar holds more than Halloween, and it is harvested every night from the museums, libraries and other organisers:

Events in Oslo →Autumn break in Oslo with children →

The advice here is general. Age limits and content are set by the organiser, so always check their own description before bringing a small child.

Events in the run-up to Halloween

See all events →

kl. 09:00

Furuset Ă„pen barnehage

Furuset Ă„pen barnehage

0-6 Ă„rFree

kl. 09:00

Åpen barnehage pĂ„ TĂžyen

Åpen barnehage pĂ„ TĂžyen

0-2 Ă„rFree

kl. 09:00

Bþler Åpen Barnehage

Bþler Åpen Barnehage

0-6 Ă„rFree

kl. 09:00

Slime gÄrd Äpen barnehage

Slime gÄrd Äpen barnehage

0-6 Ă„rFree

kl. 09:00

Åpen barnehage Haugenstua Torg

Åpen barnehage Haugenstua Torg

0-6 Ă„rFree

kl. 09:30

Homansbyen Ă„pen barnehage

Homansbyen Ă„pen barnehage

0-6 Ă„rFree