If you’ve read my blog for a while, you might remember that I am not a huge Halloween fan. I didn’t grow up celebrating Halloween (in Germany, November 1 – All Saints’ Day – is a national holiday, but we didn’t celebrate Halloween with costumes or trick-or-treating), and I am not a fan of horror movies (or horror fiction for that matter). And because I don’t have kids, I feel like I never had to get into the Halloween spirit.
However, as previously mentioned, I went for my annual Halloween run through our neighborhood and thought I would share some of the decorations. We didn’t decorate for Halloween ourselves, but I certainly appreciate the neighbors who did!
We also had Trick-or-Treaters again this year. I am so glad I remembered to purchase candy last weekend. I would have felt terrible not to have anything to hand out.
The last picture on the right was taken at a house that goes completely crazy with the decorations. They had at least 20+ life-size clowns and gory-looking figures in their front yard and driveway, complete with a light show and scary noises, and voices. This display was already up at the beginning of October, when my parents were here, and my mom was absolutely fascinated (and freaked out – haha!) by it.
Do you just more or less tolerate Halloween – like me – or do you go all out?
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violet
November 5, 2025 at 1:35 pmI live in an apartment building so we don’t get trick or treaters, but I enjoy seeing them out and about (or pictures of them). It is mildly annoying when people decorate for Halloween as far ahead as October 1st. When I was little, it was always the thrill of seeing them for the first time on Halloween night as we went out.
San
November 6, 2025 at 3:03 pmHaha, I agree, the Halloween decorations in very early October are indeed a little annoying but I can see how people want to “make the most of the short time they have”. Most decorations were taken down the weekend after Halloween.
Nicole MacPherson
November 5, 2025 at 1:47 pmOMG at first I thought that cat and dog were humping. I was like, what kind of display is that? But then I see that they are not, and I’m a little bit disappointed both with the display and with myself.
We used to go all out, but now we are on the end of a dead-end road and have no trick or treaters OR kids that are trick or treaters, so things are quiet around here. I do like lots of decorations though.
Birchie
November 5, 2025 at 6:42 pmYES! I thought the same thing and had the same emotions! Let’s face it, we are the same person.
San
November 6, 2025 at 3:06 pmHaha, you guys!
Tierney
November 5, 2025 at 7:53 pmI love this reaction to your first impression!
San
November 6, 2025 at 3:03 pmThat made me laugh-out-loud, Nicole. You have such a dirty mind sometimes :)
Allison McCaskill
November 5, 2025 at 1:47 pmI’m in the middle. We decorated a little for our kids, and I enjoyed helping them with their costumes. I always felt awkward taking them trick or treating unless we went with someone else. When Eve was about five, she finished every interaction with “Happy Halloween, Sir/Ma’am!”, so that was pretty awesome. I enjoy having kids come to our door now, especially the little ones who don’t know what the heck is going on.
San
November 6, 2025 at 3:04 pmIt totally makes sense that you’re doing more for Halloween when you have kids! The small toddlers in costumes are the cutest.
ernie
November 5, 2025 at 2:46 pmI tolerate Halloween. I loved making costumes for my kids when they were little, and I do own a few, mostly indoor, decorations, but I don’t always dig them out. This was a year I didn’t bother. Some of those decorations are super cool. I like the Minions. I took the tots I babysat for to a house last year that had a pirate theme. There were like 70 skeletons and a pirate ship. Unbelievable.
San
November 6, 2025 at 3:04 pm70 (!) skeletons. Wow! How do they store this stuff?
Melissa
November 5, 2025 at 2:51 pmHalloween has only just started to be a thing here in recent years, but there are still only the occasional houses decorated. Your neighbourhood has some amazing displays.
San
November 6, 2025 at 3:05 pmAh, Australia sounds like Germany, just more recently adopting the Halloween traditions.
Lisa
November 5, 2025 at 6:42 pmIt looks like the decorations in your area are getting scarier, just like here. Kids must be used to it though. I decorate, but silly scary. Smiling witches, big fuzzy spiders. We had about 60 trick or treaters. I live a block from an elementary school.
San
November 6, 2025 at 3:05 pmWow, were you prepared for 60(!) trick-or-treaters. That’s a lot of candy you had to buy!
Birchie
November 5, 2025 at 6:43 pmIf it was just me, I would tolerate Halloween. As it is, I enjoy the decorations and I love my husband and stepsons’ enjoyment of it.
Angela
November 5, 2025 at 7:54 pmI’m with you – I don’t decorate for Halloween, but it’s always interesting to see what everyone else does! Absolutely hell no on those clowns, though. I do NOT like clowns, they freak me out.
San
November 6, 2025 at 3:06 pmI am with you – the clowns were actually creepy!
Sarah
November 5, 2025 at 8:38 pmlove it! your neighborhood looks lovely
San
November 6, 2025 at 3:06 pmIt’s fun every year to make my round :)
Tina
November 5, 2025 at 9:22 pmI don’t mind Halloween, but I do not go all out for it. I put a few decorations out in the house but don’t bother really with outside. I usually have a bunch of pumpkins, gourds and small hay bales for fall decorations, so I figure that’s good enough. I do get a bunch of candy to pass out and I have a spider web poncho thing and leggings I wear to hand out candy. I do love looking at some of the displays, but I have to agree with a video I saw that asked, where in the heck to people store all of these decorations? The ones I dislike the most? The inflatables.
San
November 6, 2025 at 3:07 pmI can get on board with pumpkins and other fall decorations!
Noemi
November 5, 2025 at 9:55 pmWhoa! Those are some REALLY cool Halloween decorations. I wish our neighborhood went all out like that! We have one house on our street that is super done up, but otherwise there is not much. Thank you for sharing all the cool stuff in your area!
San
November 6, 2025 at 3:07 pmI love that some in our neighborhood go all out and I don’t have to :)
Suzanne
November 6, 2025 at 3:20 amOh my goodness, these decorations are spectacular! I love Halloween, but I don’t go all out. We have a few ghosts that I stick in my lawn and hang from trees, and have a decent number of decorations inside my house. But I think it’s pretty moderate compared to some!
San
November 6, 2025 at 3:08 pmIt sounds more moderate than what other’s do, but then again, it’s more than some do (me! haha).
Stephany
November 6, 2025 at 4:59 amYour neighborhood really goes all out! I am not a huge Halloween fan. Growing up evangelical Christian, Halloween was considered the “devil’s holiday” so considering it to be a fave holiday was a no-no! So silly, I know. And since I live in an apartment, I don’t get trick-or-treaters. Even my mom’s neighborhood doesn’t get many – maybe 10-15 tops?!
San
November 6, 2025 at 3:08 pmYeah, I remember living in an apartment and not getting any trick-or-treaters at all. I guess it also depends on who lives around you – we have a lot of young families in our new neighborhood.
Elisabeth
November 6, 2025 at 5:31 amThat is a lot of decorations. I love that you get to enjoy all the fun of decor…without having to store it.
I didn’t have a single outdoor decoration – not even a pumpkin. And 4-5 (small) things inside.
I’m not a big fan of Halloween and would very gladly skip the whole thing forever. But my kids enjoy it and I’ve actually gone to my parents’ house the last two years which has been great!
San
November 6, 2025 at 3:09 pmI know you and I are pretty much the same when it comes to Halloween and I am glad you were able to escape the last couple of years and spent time with your parents instead ;)
Jenny
November 6, 2025 at 6:01 amI’m somewhere in the middle- I don’t go out, but I do enjoy the holiday. I do love it when other people go all out, and I love the decorations from your neighborhood. I’m in favor of anything that makes life more fun!
San
November 6, 2025 at 3:09 pmYes, Jenny, I am also absolutely in favor of anything that makes life more fun!
NGS
November 6, 2025 at 9:03 amI love Halloween, but didn’t really get into the spirit of the thing this year. Next year will be better!
San
November 6, 2025 at 3:10 pmIt’s ok, Engie. I know you had a hard year too. 2026 will hopefully be better.
Tobia | craftaliciousme
November 8, 2025 at 2:51 amI don’t care about Halloween at all.
Specially here in Germany because it has no tradition and is just being copied without knowing why or where it comes from. So I am almost a Halloween boycotter. I didn’t wipe the door for any of the kids ringing my doorbell.
Anne
November 22, 2025 at 12:07 pmHalloween is a big no. I’m a Halloween scrooge, always have been. (Dressing up = the WORST, but trick or treating was always just a tidge WORSTER, if that’s possible…)
But I love the picture of the minions. :)
San
November 22, 2025 at 12:08 pmThe minions make me laugh!