When does Halloween actually happen in Saratoga? Most of the town's Halloween programming runs in the afternoon and is built for children under ten. It's spread over about ten days and hosted by groups that have been part of the town for decades. In 2026 the calendar also lines up in a way it doesn't every year. Halloween falls on a Saturday, so the Village's biggest event lands on the holiday itself.
Here's how the week goes, from the scarecrows already up on Big Basin Way to a quiet tea ceremony the day after.
The Scarecrows Have Been Up for Weeks
The first sign comes before any candy. The SCAREatoga Scarecrow Competition asked residents to build homemade scarecrows for Big Basin Way or their own front yards. Entries were due at the Saratoga Chamber of Commerce, 14460 Big Basin Way, by October 9. The scarecrows stay on display through November 1. Winners are picked in five categories: Most Original, Most Creative, Funniest, Scariest and Best Organization. Each winner gets a $60 gift card to a Saratoga restaurant of their choice, according to the City of Saratoga's October 2 newsletter.
The prize is small, and it's paid out in meals at local restaurants. That fits a town whose Halloween runs through its Village businesses. The Chamber taking the entries is also marking a milestone this fall. It celebrated its 100th anniversary on October 10 at the Odd Fellows Lodge. A century-old business group judging homemade scarecrows says a lot about how Saratoga does Halloween. The groups that run the town's everyday life run the holiday too.
The Weekend Before Is All Afternoons
The first full weekend of events comes this Saturday and Sunday, October 24 and 25. Both days finish while it's still light out.
On Saturday, Saratoga Federated Church hosts a Halloween Trunk or Treat from 4 to 6 p.m. at 20390 Park Place, with games and decorated car trunks, according to the city's event calendar. Kids go trunk to trunk in a parking lot instead of door to door, and they're done by early evening.
On Sunday, Montalvo Arts Center holds Goblins in the Garden from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. Families are invited to bring a picnic blanket and their own food to the Great Lawn or West Lawn. Food trucks and a no-host bar serve drinks for adults and kids. The activities include a slime-making workshop, chalk art on the pathways, a Potion Lab and face painting. There's also a family costume contest.
The Fratello Marionettes perform their "Spooktacular" twice in the Oval Garden, at 11:30 a.m. and 1 p.m. Each show is 30 minutes long. Montalvo describes it as happy ghosts, Frankenstein, the Purple People Eater, a not-so-scary spider and a witch. The organizers say special care is taken to keep it kid-friendly. Montalvo says the activities are designed for ages 0 to 10.
Montalvo's event page lists tickets at $20 for adults and $14 for children. The ticket page breaks that into $18 and $12, plus $2 in fees each, and counts anyone under 18 as a child. Tickets are sold in advance through Montalvo's box office.
That same Sunday shows how much of Saratoga's after-dark calendar is for adults. Goblins in the Garden ends at 2 p.m. At 7:30 p.m., Everclear plays the Mountain Winery, part of an October concert series that also books Foreigner on Wednesday, October 28.
Halloween Lands on a Saturday This Year
The Saratoga Village Development Council's Witchy Walk-A-Bout is the center of the week. The 2026 Walk runs Saturday, October 31, from 2 to 4 p.m. along Big Basin Way in the Historic Village, according to the city's listing. The event is free. Kids can play games, do crafts, show off costumes, check out the scarecrows and trick-or-treat at local businesses. The Saratoga High Robotics Team will give demonstrations, there's a giant bubble booth, and the No Direction Ukulele Band will play.
The date is what's new this year. In 2024 the Walk ran on Saturday, October 26, the weekend before Halloween, according to the Los Gatan. In 2026 the weekend and the holiday line up, so the Village event and Halloween itself happen on the same day. Families who used to treat the Walk as a warm-up get to do both at once. The Walk ends at 4 p.m., with the whole evening still ahead.
The tradition goes back about two decades. In 2024 a former Saratoga mayor told the Los Gatan:
"Over 20 years ago Witchy Walk-A-Bout, an event for Saratoga's children with Halloween as the theme, was started for all to enjoy. Big Basin Way has been crowded with 300-500 children dressed in costume, with their parents, too, all decked out. Village merchants hand them candy or some form of treat."
A 2008 Mercury News report called that year's Walk the fifth annual. The two accounts don't give exactly the same start year, but both put the Walk at roughly 20 years old. Through all of it, the format has stayed the same: a two-hour afternoon on Big Basin Way, with merchants handing out the treats.
A Morning at the Market, an Afternoon in the Village
A Saturday Halloween also lines the Walk up with the weekly farmers market. The Saratoga Farmers' Market sets up at West Valley College Parking Lot 3, at Fruitvale Avenue and Career Way, from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. on Saturdays. The city's October newsletter still lists the market at West Valley Community College with those same hours. The market closes an hour before the Walk starts.
One mix-up comes up every year. Search results for "Saratoga Farmers' Market Harvest & Haunts" or "Fall Fest at High Rock Park" lead to saratogafarmersmarket.org, which is the market in Saratoga Springs, New York. Those events are on the other side of the country. The local market's details are on the Saratoga Farmers' Market page run by its California market association.
The Week at a Glance
- Now through November 1: SCAREatoga scarecrows on display along Big Basin Way and at participating homes.
- Saturday, October 24, 4 to 6 p.m.: Halloween Trunk or Treat at Saratoga Federated Church, 20390 Park Place.
- Sunday, October 25, 11 a.m. to 2 p.m.: Goblins in the Garden at Montalvo Arts Center. Marionette shows at 11:30 a.m. and 1 p.m.
- Saturday, October 31, 9 a.m. to 1 p.m.: Saratoga Farmers' Market at West Valley College Parking Lot 3.
- Saturday, October 31, 2 to 4 p.m.: Witchy Walk-A-Bout along Big Basin Way.
- Sunday, November 1, noon or 1 p.m.: Tea ceremony demonstration at Hakone Estate and Gardens.
November 1 Ends Things Quietly
On Sunday, November 1, Hakone Estate and Gardens holds a tea ceremony demonstration, with sessions at noon or 1 p.m. The same weekend, Hakone's Cultural Exchange Center is showing UMI by Chris Sicat, an exhibit that runs July through December 2026. November 1 is also the last day the SCAREatoga scarecrows are up. The Halloween displays come down the same day the town moves on to a quieter seasonal event.
Halloween week is one of the times Saratoga comes out to Big Basin Way, with merchants at their doors and neighbors on the sidewalk. If this season has your family thinking about what comes next, like a parent's home that's grown too big or a first place closer to the Village, Team NL Homes is happy to talk it through with you, calmly and without pressure. Schedule a consultation whenever the time feels right.
