The anchor of Westminster's Halloween calendar this year is a free festival in City Park on Saturday, October 17, and the season ends when The Frightmare Compound closes on Saturday, November 7. A lot of the season lands on one day between those dates. On Saturday, October 24, you can choose from a free trunk-or-treat downtown, indoor trick-or-treating at Butterfly Pavilion, an adults-only flashlight tour at the same zoo, and a ticketed immersive show at Orchard Town Center that ends its run the next day.
So the season is easier to plan as a sequence. There's a week of library programs starting October 13, a big free festival in the middle of that week, one crowded Saturday, an adults-only Friday, and a long haunted-house tail that runs past Halloween itself.
Westy Fest Is Also the City's Birthday Party
The City of Westminster lists Westy Fest 2026 for Saturday, October 17, from noon to 8 p.m. at Westminster City Park, 10455 Sheridan Boulevard. The city calls it a free fall festival with carnival games, trick-or-treating, a hot-air balloon glow, local bands, food trucks, jumping castles and a pumpkin patch.
This year it carries more than a usual fall festival. According to Mile High on the Cheap's event listing, Westminster is marking 115 years as a city, and Westy Fest will close with a special drone show at about 7:45 p.m., weather permitting. The same listing puts a State of the City presentation on the West Stage at 5:15 p.m.
That schedule makes the festival lopsided. The afternoon is built for kids, and the anniversary events come in the evening.
| Time | What's happening | Where |
|---|---|---|
| Noon | Artistic Fusion Dance Academy opens the day | East Stage, near the carnival area |
| 4:30 p.m. | Hot-air balloons arrive | City Park Soccer Fields |
| About 5:45 p.m. | Balloons inflate for the night glow and stay on the ground | City Park Soccer Fields |
| 5:15 p.m. | State of the City | West Stage, near the pumpkin patch |
| 6:30 p.m. | Narrow Gauge | West Stage |
| About 7:45 p.m. | 115th anniversary drone show, weather permitting | City Park |
During the glow, visitors can talk with the balloon pilots and ask questions, since the balloons stay grounded. Earlier in the day, the stage lineup includes Rebel Souls, Babah Fly, Samba Colorado, the city's TaeKwon-Do program, Guy, Norm, and Friends, Tom Pakele and Stevie Guitar Glotzer, School of Rock and Daniel Pouse.
Most of the festival is free, including carnival games, bounce houses, trampolines, ropes courses and trick-or-treating. Food, beer and pumpkins cost money, with pumpkin prices based on size. A free pumpkin valet will hold your pumpkin until you leave. Costumes are welcome, but leave sharp objects and replica weapons at home.
Getting there takes the most planning. The listing says parking near the event is extremely limited and asks visitors not to use the Recreation Center or Fitness Center lots. Shuttles run about every 15 to 20 minutes from noon until 9 p.m. from three stops:
- College Hill Library, 3705 W. 112th Ave.
- Westminster City Hall, 4800 W. 92nd Ave.
- Westminster High School, 6933 N. Raleigh Street
Courtesy golf carts help people with mobility needs, staff will direct drivers to handicap parking, and a free bike valet sits on the north side of the park. Shuttles keep running an hour after the festival ends, so you can stay for the drone show without worrying about the ride back.
The Library Week Around It
College Hill Library is a Westy Fest shuttle stop, and it runs its own Halloween programs that week. The Westminster Public Library calendar lists four:
- Teen: Hand Made Horrors, Tuesday, October 13, 4:30 to 6 p.m., Multipurpose Room L-107.
- Teen Pumpkin Chucking, Saturday, October 17, 2 to 4:30 p.m., Multipurpose Room L-107.
- Cryptid Creatures of the Rockies, Sunday, October 18, 2 to 3:30 p.m., Multipurpose Room L-211.
- After School Special: LEGO Trick or Treat, Wednesday, October 21, 3 to 4:30 p.m., Children's Program Room.
The first three require registration. Teen Pumpkin Chucking is on the same afternoon as Westy Fest, at a building where festival shuttles already stop. A teenager could finish at the library at 4:30 and ride to City Park just as the balloons arrive.
October 24 Is Where the Calendar Overlaps
After a quieter week, the following Saturday packs in more than any other day this season.
The free option is downtown. The City of Westminster's calendar lists the Trunk or Treat Halloween Spooktacular in Downtown Westminster from noon to 2 p.m. on October 24, in the Kokopelli Beer Company parking lot at 8931 N. Harlan Street. It's free and family-friendly.
Across town, Butterfly Pavilion's October page lists that same Saturday as the first of three CRAWL-O-WEEN dates. The zoo describes it as an indoor, weather-proof event where kids explore in costume and collect candy and toys throughout the building. Its event calendar lists CRAWL-O-WEEN hours as 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. on October 24, 25 and 31. October 24 is also the adult night for the zoo's Flashlight Tours, which run on October 23, 24 and 25. Family tours are on the 23rd and 25th.
The fourth option is at Orchard Town Center. SIP by Culture House Immersive, staged by The Catamounts, runs October 2 through 25 with tickets sold through the event listing. That weekend is the last chance to see it.
The trunk-or-treat runs only two hours, from noon to 2 p.m., while CRAWL-O-WEEN covers most of the day. That leaves room to do both. Here's one way a family could plan October 24:
- Spend the morning at CRAWL-O-WEEN at Butterfly Pavilion, which opens at 9 a.m.
- Head downtown to the Kokopelli Beer Company lot before the trunk-or-treat ends at 2 p.m.
- Save the evening for adults. That could be a Flashlight Tour or an immersive show at Orchard Town Center, depending on schedules and ticket availability.
Butterfly Pavilion Runs Most of the Ticketed Calendar
Westy Fest and the downtown trunk-or-treat are free. Most of the paid Halloween programming in town is at one address, Butterfly Pavilion at 6252 W. 104th Ave.
CRAWL-O-WEEN prices were the same on the October 24 and October 31 ticket listings:
| Ticket | Public price | Member price |
|---|---|---|
| Adult | $25 | $15 |
| Child, ages 2 to 12 | $19 | Not listed |
| SNAP adult or child | $5 | Not listed |
| Under 2 | Free | Free |
The ticket listing describes it as a one-hour costumed trick-or-treat with candy stations and exhibit access. Costume weapons and full-face masks aren't allowed. The $5 SNAP price matters here. Without it, a family of two adults and two kids would pay $88 at the public rates.
Halloween falls on a Saturday this year, and October 31 is CRAWL-O-WEEN's last date. That gives families a daytime, indoor plan before evening trick-or-treating in their own neighborhoods.
The adults-only night is the night before. Bugs & Brews: Toxic Terrors runs Friday, October 30, from 6 to 9 p.m. for guests 21 and up. Public tickets are $45 and member tickets are $40. The zoo says guests can roam the exhibits after dark, see its most venomous and poisonous animals, get a drink, enter a costume contest and get exclusive access to Spider Zone.
If you want a smaller group with an expert, the calendar also lists two evening tours with entomologist Cori Brant. Toxic Terrors After Dark is Thursday, October 22, and the Toxic Terrors VIP Tour is Thursday, October 29. Both run from 6 to 7:30 p.m. The Spider Zone and Toxic Terrors exhibits run daily through October 31, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.
Frightmare Runs Into November
The Frightmare Compound at 10798 Yukon St. stays open a week after Halloween. The Denver Post's 2026 haunted house roundup lists it through Saturday, November 7, with general admission at $43.23 and add-ons available. The Post says the complex bills itself as Colorado's oldest haunted house, with more than four decades in Westminster. Besides the main haunted house, it has horror escape rooms, a Monster Museum and gift shop, a Crypt Keeper Coffee shop, a coffin-simulator ride and a Zombie Brain Smash arcade game.
The Post adds that the attractions on its list are open for timed entry on weekends, and that most are open weeknights closer to Halloween. Most are recommended for ages 12 and up. Frightmare's hours are on its own site, which is promoting new escape rooms this season.
The first week of November is quieter for Halloween events, and Frightmare is open the whole time.
After the Costumes Come Off
Standley Lake has been on its off-season schedule since October 1. According to the city's Standley Lake FAQ, the park is open year-round. From October 1 through April 30, walk-in hours are sunrise to sunset, and drive-in access runs from 7:30 a.m. until one hour before sunset. The FAQ lists the paddling and camping season as May 1 through September 29, and the shoreline is open for fishing all year. The FAQ doesn't date this as a 2026 schedule, but it's the city's standing schedule. With shorter days, the drive-in gate closes earlier each week.
Downtown has the next event on the city calendar. The Downtown Westminster Holiday Lighting Ceremony & Market is Saturday, November 21, from 2:30 to 6:30 p.m., with vendors, live performances, caroling and Santa. The Downtown Westminster events program still lists the location as TBD, so check back before you go.
If you're new to Westminster this fall, the city calendar is a good way to get to know the place. For local questions, or to talk through which part of the city fits your next move, Mark Hutchinson is happy to help, with the iMPACT Group behind him. Let's Connect.
