Halloween is Saturday 31 October. Free trick or treat fun at the Harvey Centre on 30-31 Oct, two pumpkin patches near Harlow from £6.95, scare nights, prices.

Halloween 2026 falls on Saturday 31 October, the last day of the Essex half term week. Harlow’s own free events are in the town centre on the Friday and Saturday. The two big pumpkin patches are just outside the district, near Bishop’s Stortford, and both opened for the season today, Saturday 3 October. Every detail below was read on the organisers’ own pages on 3 October 2026.

The quick answer

  • Halloween is Saturday 31 October. Essex half term is 26 to 30 October; some Harlow academies break up on 19 October. Dates by school are on our half term page.
  • Free in town: the Harvey Centre’s trick or treat bag workshop on Friday 30 October (10am to 3pm) and face painting on Saturday 31 October (11am to 4pm), no booking.
  • Pumpkin picking: Cammas Hall Farm (day tickets from £6.95) and Hatter’s Farm (£5 to £7 by its own FAQ). Both are pre-book only, and the pumpkins cost extra.
  • The fireworks are the next day: Sunday 1 November, Town Park, display 6.30pm. See our fireworks page.

Updated 5 October: Harlow Library has added a free Spooky Craft session on Wednesday 28 October.

Free Halloween events in Harlow

Halloween Happenings, The Harvey Centre, CM20 1XR. On Friday 30 October, 10am to 3pm, children can decorate a trick or treat bag at a workshop, then try the “Trick or Treat Door” for giveaway treats. On Saturday 31 October, 11am to 4pm, Halloween face painters are in, and children are invited to come in costume. The centre says both days are free and need no booking. Friday’s session is also its monthly Fun Friday. (The Harvey Centre)

A Halloween party for dogs. The Pup Up Cafe’s “Spook-tacular Halloween Party” is on Saturday 10 October, 10am to 2pm, on the Harvey Centre’s ground floor. It is free, with no booking, and the centre promises free puppuccinos and treats. (The Harvey Centre)

Spooky Craft at Harlow Library. A free hour of Halloween crafts on Wednesday 28 October, 2.30pm to 3.30pm, at Harlow Library, Cross Street CM20 1HA, with no booking. Children under 12 need an adult with them. (Essex Libraries) Our half term page has the library’s other holiday sessions.

Pets’ Corner, Harlow Town Park. Free entry, open every day from 11am to 4pm (Harlow Council). The council has not published a Halloween programme for 2026. In 2024 the farm ran a week of small-fee activities over half term, including a £1.50 ghost hunt, a creepy crawly lair, spooky crafts and a pumpkin carving competition, as Your Harlow reported at the time. We will add 2026 dates if they appear.

Halloween at Harlow Playhouse and the Leisurezone

Halloween in Concert, Thursday 15 October, 7.30pm, Theatre 1, Harlow Playhouse, Playhouse Square, CM20 1LS. £28.20 before the booking fee. A live band and cast play spooky hits, from Monster Mash and The Time Warp to Thriller, with a prize for the best costume. The running time is two 55-minute halves and a 20-minute interval. (Harlow Playhouse)

The Playhouse’s half term family show is RARE Productions’ Frozen, 29 to 31 October, £20 to £22, with a 2pm and a 6.30pm performance on Halloween itself. (Harlow Playhouse)

Harlow Leisurezone, Second Avenue, CM20 3DT, has three Halloween sessions in its October half term programme (pdf). Prices are for members, with non-member prices in brackets. Book on 01279 621500.

Session When Ages Price
Spooky Fun Swim, with inflatables and floating pumpkins Wed 28 Oct, 2pm to 3.30pm 8+ main pool, under 8s learner pool £6 (£7) a child
Spooktastic Multi Activity Day, booking required Thu 29 Oct, 8.30am to 3pm 5 to 12 £28.50 (£30.50)
Halloween Lazer Tag: The Zombie Game, fancy dress welcome Fri 30 Oct, 6.30pm, and a late session at 8pm 5 to 11 £8.80 (£10.80)

Pumpkin patches near Harlow

Neither patch is in Harlow. Both are in Uttlesford, near Bishop’s Stortford. Both sell timed tickets online only and charge for pumpkins on top of the ticket.

Cammas Hall Farm, Hatfield Broad Oak

Needham Green, Hatfield Broad Oak, CM22 7JT. The farm says it reopened on Saturday 3 October for a Halloween event on “selected dates throughout October”, and that pre-booking is essential. Its booking calendar shows which days are open. (Cammas Hall)

  • Daytime pumpkin patch: from £6.95. More than 80 varieties of pumpkin and squash, sold by weight. The ticket includes the patch, Halloween characters, the “Wicked Walkway” and the farm’s erupting “Pumpcano”. There are no scare actors in the daytime. The Terror Tunnel is recommended for 12 and over. Under-2s go free without a ticket. On Thursday 15 October the patch stays open from midday to 8pm. (booking page)
  • A quieter SEN session: £8.95, with fewer visitors, and free essential companion tickets for Nimbus access card holders. (booking page)
  • Extras: the Halloween maize maze at £6, or £4.80 if booked with a patch ticket, and not suitable for prams or wheelchairs; Auntie Celia’s Anti-Crow Cure, a witch comedy show, £5.95 at weekends through October; and the Party Monsters’ Halloween Takeover, 26 to 30 October, adults £5, children £8.50.
  • Resurrected! nights, recommended 12 and over: Friday 16, Saturday 17, Friday 23 and Saturday 24 October. Gates open 6pm, last entry 7.30pm, close 9pm, with scare actors in the Terror Tunnel and a different tribute act each night from 6.30pm. Adults £15.95, under-16s £9.95. No dogs. (booking page)
  • Haunted Resurrected!, 18 and over only: Friday 30 and Saturday 31 October, £19.95, with roaming scare actors and a scare maze. (booking page)
  • On night-event days the farm closes at 5pm and reopens at 6pm, with no facilities in between. Dogs on leads are allowed in the daytime outdoor dining and play area and the maze, but not in the patch.

Hatter’s Farm, Takeley

Hatter’s Farm, Takeley, CM22 6NP. Its FAQ gives the season as: (Hatter’s Farm FAQ)

  • Daytime picking: 3, 4, 10, 11, 17 and 18 October, then every day from 21 to 31 October. Opening is 9am or 10am depending on the day, and closing is 5pm. You can stay up to two hours.
  • Pumpkin Nights: 5pm to 9pm on 16 to 18 October and 23 to 31 October.
  • Prices: daytime £5 to £7 a person, nights £10 to £12, plus a booking fee; under-2s free. The maize maze is £3 and the pumpkin cannon is 3 shots for £7.
  • Dogs on leads are allowed. The farm warns that the site is an open field and may be difficult for people with disabilities, and that it can be muddy.

One caution: the FAQ does not name the year, and lower down it quotes a different range, £2 to £6. Its dates do match the 2026 calendar, with 3 and 4 October falling on a weekend. The booking page shows the price you will actually pay.

Down Hall’s pumpkin staycation

Down Hall Hotel, Spa and Estate at Hatfield Heath is selling a “Pumpkin Patch Staycation”: an overnight stay with breakfast, pumpkin picking at Cammas Hall’s patch, and hot chocolate and craft kits. It runs 15 to 18 October and 21 to 31 October, from £279 for two adults and two children, according to the hotel’s announcement in Your Harlow. Down Hall’s own site blocks automated reading, so check the price when you book.

Getting there and parking

The Harvey Centre and the Playhouse are in the town centre. Our parking in Harlow page covers the car parks. Both pumpkin farms are reached by country roads east and north of Harlow, and Cammas Hall lists free car parking. Before you drive, check our Harlow roadworks and travel page for M11 and A414 closures.

What is still to be confirmed

  • Pets’ Corner’s Halloween week. The council’s page listed none on 5 October.
  • Cammas Hall’s exact daytime dates, which are only in its booking calendar.

We will update this page as those are published. For everything else on in town this month, see What’s On in Harlow.