Halloween 2026: Perth is pulling out all the stops to make rare Saturday Halloween one to remember

If you feel like the energy across the city is downright supernatural this Halloween, you aren’t hallucinating.

This year marks the first Saturday Halloween since 2020, the year when COVID lockdowns turned trick-or-treating plans into phantom memories.

That means the last time Perth got to truly celebrate Halloween on a Saturday was more than a decade ago, back in 2015.

Fast forward 11 years, and the capital has gone completely Halloween mad, and for good reason — with Halloween not falling again on a Saturday until 2037.

From nightclub raves and bar takeovers to Halloween-themed pub quizzes, trick-or-treating at the Zoo and neighbourhood carnivals, Perth is pulling out all stops to make this one to remember.

Party suppliers say they have been pulling off frantic, last-minute emergency restocks just to keep up with the fanatical costume demand.

“The store’s been running in some form for about 15 years . . . but Halloween, to be honest, when we started, it was a tiny little thing,” Party Source owner Ajay Malhotra said.

“But now it’s just morphed into something that’s really, really big. This is definitely our biggest Halloween ever.”

Forget the old and basic sheet-ghost, trick-or-treaters this year are embracing high-concept horror, pop culture madness and DIY wizardry in an attempt to scare the pants off Perth.

“Some of the trends from this year for us is the Scream movie, and clowns, clowns have been really big this year,” Mr Malhotra said.

“Accessories have been huge too, especially our scary contact lenses. We’ve sold a lot more than we were expecting.

“Interestingly, we’ve noticed some of the common costumes like witches and things like that have probably not been as busy.”

The sheer volume of shoppers caught the seasoned party store completely off guard.

“We were always expecting it to be busier, being a Saturday Halloween, but it’s actually been much, much more than we expected,” he said.

“I think its because there’s so many events happening for Halloween this year so adults, especially younger adults need costumes this year.

“The kids’ side of it has been pretty steady. That’s always kind of been there, but I think adults getting into it is probably more of the change that we’ve seen.”

Mr Malhotra estimated the store’s sales figures are up 30 to 40 per cent compared to this time last year.

Party Town co-owner Pove Tan-Whall said the preparation and countdown to the craze kicked off earlier than ever, with shoppers raiding the shelves before spring had even sprung.

“Halloween started super early,” Ms Tan-Whall said.

“The store’s been around for about 30 years and its main focus has always been costumes . . . but this year Halloween is bigger for us because it’s a Saturday. It was big last year, but this year’s bigger again.

“We’re probably on target to do an extra 20 per cent on last year.”

Ms Tan-Whall said party goers are ditching cheap props and investing in Hollywood-level special effects.

“I think the most popular costume is the prisoner with the orange jumpsuit. He’s been super popular, and the flight suit, which is the Top Gun Maverick suit,” she said.

“A lot of those costumes are all year round, but during Halloween everyone still goes in the costumes, but they’ll add blood, scars, gore, tattoos and add all the special effects.

“Our store seems to sell a lot more of the high quality blood, we sell blood every year at Halloween, but some years it’ll be more of the cheaper range, but this year it seems like everyone’s going for stage quality in the blood and all the scars. A lot of people are doing their own makeup and getting really creative.”

For families, Halloween has cemented itself alongside the biggest occasions on the WA calendar.

Mt Hawthorn local Tobias Hoskins said his five-year-old daughter, Olivia, counts down the days until she can hit the pavement with her friends.

“She associates it with dressing up and the enjoyment they get out of dressing up in different costumes and putting makeup on,” Mr Hoskins said.

“Especially as a five-year-old, getting dressed up in a big dress or something like that really excites her.”

Little Olivia considers Halloween to be just as exciting as her birthday and Christmas.

“She is well aware when Halloween’s coming up — she knows it’s sort of coming up towards the end of spring,” her dad said.

“She’s very, very excited for it. As it approaches her birthday, it sort of ticks over to, ‘Okay, Halloween’s coming.’ She knows ‘I’ve got a birthday, then I’m going to dress up for Halloween.’ That’s her next event before Christmas.

“As a father, it’s really cool to see. It’s great to see the excitement it brings the kids but to see Perth actually putting on different events, seeing pubs and the Perth community really get around it is really exciting for us as parents. It is a really good opportunity for the kids and it’s just a great time for the family.

“It’s definitely another event on the parents’ calendar, and we’re all really, really excited for it. The joy you get to see from the kids when they’re trick-or-treating is something very special so yeah, we love it.”

Perth mum Natalie Brown, whose kids Charlie and Dominic are completely obsessed, said the shift over a single generation has been mind-blowing.

“It’s funny, because even when I was younger, it was around-ish, but not really that popular, whereas it seems to have boomed over the last couple of years,” she said.

“My dad was always like, ‘Halloween’s not Australian. We’re not doing that. It’s just asking for lollies.’ But now it’s huge for my kids and in my family.

“The kids are absolutely obsessed with Halloween, they love it. It’s been a really nice kind of community event, meeting neighbours and they normally go trick-or-treating with school friends. It’s a fun celebration.”

Ms Brown praised how much local spirit is being poured into making Halloween a force for good.

“The way that now they’ve kind of incorporated some arts and things into it as well, and they’ve got markets with food. There’s lots happening for all age groups, which is great. It’s just some good, wholesome fun for families,” she said.

“It’s definitely an event that goes down in the books and like we have a countdown to ‘how long until Halloween,’ marked on the calendar. It’s very exciting.”

What makes this Halloween huge is that the celebrations have exploded out of suburbia and into every corner of Perth’s social scene, with events for everyone from hardcore ravers to pub trivia fanatics, bottomless brunch enthusiasts and families up for a Halloween themed environment to enjoy dinner.

Nightowls and electronic music lovers are being catered to like never before. Ice Cream Factory is putting on a massive drum and bass lineup. At Wellington Square, Seasons Halloween festival is bringing international heavyweights alongside thrill rides, tarot readers, haunted mazes and silent discos.

Meanwhile, Magnet House and Amplifier Bar are teaming up for a dark, candlelit takeover running until the early hours, and The Court is unleashing its wild Dance of the Dead: Nightmare in Northbridge with a $200 prize for best dressed.

If day-drinking or relaxed pub vibes are more your style, Perth’s venue scene has gone all out.

The Aviary and The Camfield are hosting Halloween bottomless brunches complete with two hours of free-flowing cocktails and costume prizes.

For something a bit spicier, Caballitos is throwing The Dead Don’t Dance Alone featuring free entry, pole performers and tequila, while Port Beach Brewery is hosting an eerie, open-air haunted session with Therapy Halloween.

Even local favourites like The Como and Tradewinds Hotel are getting in on the action with $10 mini cocktails, trick-or-treat bags and spooky horror quiz nights.

For families and little monsters, the options are practically endless.

Perth Zoo is opening after dark for two magical nights of Boo at the Zoo, complete with rides, trick-or-treat stations and a monster mash dancefloor.

Subiaco is undergoing a three-day Spookiaco transformation with haunted walking tours and the Subi Fright Market.

Down at Burswood Park, the Perth Makers Market is running a Twilight Halloween edition with scavenger hunts and dog costume competitions, while Joondalup Night Market, Kardinya Park, Wembley Golf Course, and The Claremont Hotel are serving up free slime workshops, potion shows, face painting and trick-or-treat trails.

So how on earth did a holiday once dismissed by Aussie’s as “just an American thing” transform into a cultural juggernaut?

Edith Cowan University cultural studies expert James Hall said you can thank the power of social media.

“In the last decade, maybe two, Halloween has gone from something that was on the periphery of Australian popular culture to a focal point at this time of year,” Mr Hall said.

“There’s definitely been a big role played by social media and streaming platforms, we’re starting to get quite a lot more content from the US . . . things like Halloween now tend to be global trends because social media is a global platform.”