New Jersey has no statewide trick-or-treating start time or curfew, so when Halloween lands on a Saturday this year, it’s left up to individual towns to decide when the candy run begins and ends. Some South Jersey communities are starting in broad daylight, while others are shifting the whole event to Friday night to dodge a scheduling conflict. The result is a patchwork of trick-or-treating hours that families are being urged to check before they head out the door.
There is no statewide start time for trick-or-treating in New Jersey, and there is also no single statewide curfew, according to app.com, which means each municipality sets its own rules. Among the towns that have posted 2026 schedules, the most common window runs from 3 to 8 p.m., per the same report. But several communities are breaking from that norm entirely, opting for earlier or altogether different timing.
Collingswood and Nearby Towns Start Before Dark
Collingswood is holding trick-or-treating from noon to 7 p.m. on Saturday, October 31, according to a notice posted on the borough’s own website, Collingswood.com. The borough is encouraging families to begin early, and Daniela Solano-Ward said the borough wants families, especially young children, to have the opportunity to go out earlier and return before dark, according to CBS News Philadelphia.
Haddon Heights and National Park are also encouraging families to trick-or-treat earlier in the day, the station reports. Haddon Heights has set its hours for 3 to 8 p.m. on October 31, matching the statewide trend identified by app.com, while Medford has opted for a longer noon-to-8 p.m. window the same day, also per the same outlet.
Why Toms River Pushed Trick-or-Treating to Friday
Not every town is sticking with Saturday at all. Toms River and four neighboring communities are celebrating trick-or-treating a day early, moving their event to Friday, October 30, from 4 to 8 p.m., the app.com report notes. The shift avoids a direct conflict with the Toms River Halloween Parade, which falls on Saturday, and the separate dates allow families to participate in both traditions, per the same report…