Halloween and camping go together like Jack-o’-lanterns and candles. Telling scary stories around the campfire, playing pranks on fellow campers and listening for spooky sounds in the woods have grown into longstanding camping traditions. Of course, nobody wants their camping trip to turn into a scene from a slasher flick, but we can strive for the next-best thing: A few harmless thrills and chills during those crisp autumn nights.
Several Good Sam Parks will scratch that itch for the macabre by unleashing fiendish Halloween festivities on their guests. These events aren’t for the faint of heart: Visitors will endure haunted houses, costume contests, ghost stories and RV decorating competitions that will make you want to huddle in your vehicle until dawn. Some parks start their Halloween festivities as early as late September, so wait at your own peril.
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• Big Creek RV Park holds special spooky events just for guests. Events include scary movies and hayrides. Put your pumpkin-carving skills to the test and earn a trophy or win a prize for RV decoration. There are four Halloween Weekends, starting October 9-10 and continuing through October 30-31. The festivities also include barn dances and spooky stories told around the campfire. Take a side trip north to the Caledonia Pumpkin Fest and Parade (October 12), an event that celebrates all things related to this ghostly gourd. Back at camp, hit the pool or go fishing when not avoiding ghouls and goblins. The park’s game room and playground will keep the kids busy when they’re not dressing up in their scary Halloween best.
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• Guests at Midway Campground & Resort in Statesville, North Carolina, don’t have to go far to feel Halloween chills. In the adjacent property, the Midway Wicked Woods springs ghastly surprises on unsuspecting visitors. A Tunnel of Terror and Haunted Graveyard are just a few of the eerie diversions that will raise the hair on the back of your neck. When not getting scared silly, guests can relax at one of the park’s roomy sites, with WI-Fi- and full-hookups. During the day, enjoy fishing, pedal carts and a game room in the park.
• Throughout October, Gettysburg Campground in Gettysburg, Pennsylvania, invites guests to three Halloween weekends (October 16–18, 23–25 and 30–November 1. Activities include crafts; ceramics; a pumpkin carving contest; costume contests for adults and children; trick or treating; haunted hayrides; a Halloween dance; and a haunted house.
Costume fun at Sky High Camping Resort.
• Celebrate Halloween Wisconsin-style at SkyHigh Camping Resort, where activities include a pumping carving contest, a monster mash dance and trick-or-treating fun. Prepare to scare!
• Tall Pines Campground in Bainbridge, New York, pulls out the stops for its Halloween Spooktacular. Activities include the Spookiest Site Contest, trick-or-treat, Halloween plaster casts, a costume parade and Halloween craft. The Pet-Agree slate painting lets guests’ four-legged companions get in on the act.
Pirate fun at Pine Acres RV Resort.
• Who doesn’t love a parade? At Pine Acres Family Camping Resort, Halloween festivities kick off with a parade through the campsite of Trick-or-treaters, costumer dressers and staff members. During this event, RV sites are judged for site decoration. Prefer to avoid nocturnal activities? Participate in Halloween-themed games and bingo during the day.