Halloween falls on a Saturday this year, which sounds convenient until every invitation, costume decision and candy obligation lands on the same day. Give October a little breathing room. Birmingham has Halloween plans spread throughout the month, including daytime trick-or-treating, witchy movie nights and an evening of orchestral chills.
The useful question is how you like your Halloween: with children in costume, friends quoting a favorite movie, or the genuine possibility of regretting your decision to enter a dark hallway. Here are a few options worth putting on the calendar now.
For Families Who Prefer Halloween in Daylight
Hoots & Howls at Birmingham Zoo gives children a reason to wear their costumes more than once. The daytime celebration runs October 10–11, 17–18, 24–25 and 31, from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.
The schedule includes magic shows, interactive animal shows, lawn games and a noon costume parade and contest followed by a Dino Dance party. It’s a good fit for families who want a Halloween outing without building the whole evening around bedtime negotiations.
Pay attention to the ticket options: event activities are included with Zoo admission, but the candy trail costs extra. A candy-only ticket is listed at $5.50, while the $15 Candy Trail wristband adds unlimited rides on the Red Diamond Express Train and climbs on the Full Moon BBQ Adventure Tower. Neither option includes Zoo admission. Candy trail ticket sales end at 3 p.m.
Check Hoots & Howls details and ticket options.
For a Movie Night With the Sanderson Sisters
You could watch Hocus Pocus on your couch again. You could also give it the Alabama Theatre treatment.
The downtown theater screens the 1993 favorite on Friday, October 23, at 7 p.m., with doors opening at 6 p.m. An organ presentation and sing-along precede the film, giving the evening a little ceremony before the witches get to work.
The film is rated PG, and seating is general admission, first come, first served. Arrive with enough time to find seats together, especially if your group includes children or several friends whose definition of “on time” varies considerably.
Get screening details and tickets for Hocus Pocus.
For Gothic Atmosphere and Live Music
The Alabama Theatre’s screening of the 1925 silent film The Phantom of the Opera offers a different kind of Halloween afternoon on Sunday, October 25, at 2 p.m. Doors open at 1 p.m.
Tom Helms accompanies the film with his original score on Big Bertha, the theater’s Mighty Wurlitzer organ. That live accompaniment is the reason to go: you’re seeing a silent classic with music performed in the room, rather than simply adding another title to your October watchlist.
Choose this one if old-fashioned suspense and a dramatic setting sound more appealing than a haunted-house queue.
Plan a Phantom of the Opera afternoon.
For People Who Actually Want to Be Scared
Conjure Haunted Attraction, at 906 40th Street North, is the choice for readers who want their Halloween entertainment considerably more intense. Its 2026 season runs on selected nights through November 1, with doors opening at 7 p.m.
The attraction is unguided, and its posted rules admit guests ages 13 and older, with a parent or guardian required for ages 13–16. Expect darkness, sudden noise, fog, strobe lighting and confined spaces. Read the attraction’s entry guidance before booking.
General admission is listed at $27 before fees. The optional Touch Pass permits actor contact, so know which ticket you’re selecting. Check the dated calendar rather than assuming it operates every evening.
Choose a Conjure date and review admission options.
For a Halloween Eve Outing With a Seat
Friday, October 30, presents two appealing ways to start the final weekend.
At UAB’s Alys Stephens Center, the Alabama Symphony Orchestra performs After Dark: A Symphony of Shivers at 7 p.m. The announced program includes music from Halloween, Psycho, Harry Potter, The Nightmare Before Christmas and Wicked. Tickets are listed from $36.50.
Across downtown, the Alabama Theatre screens Practical Magic at 7 p.m., with doors opening at 6 p.m. The PG-13 film gets an organ presentation and sing-along before the feature. This is our pick for friends who would rather spend the evening with the Owens sisters than something chasing them.
Explore Symphony of Shivers tickets. Or plan a Practical Magic movie night.
Pick the outing that suits your household, book through the organizer and leave October 31 room for its own plans. Halloween is much more enjoyable when the only last-minute scramble is finding the other costume glove.
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