The City of Powell has set its official 2026 trick-or-treat for Saturday, Oct. 31, from 6 to 8 p.m. That's the night most families plan around. In Powell, though, almost everything else about Halloween wraps up a week earlier. Downtown trick-or-treating, the city's trunk-or-treat at Adventure Park, and the last day of both fall events at the Columbus Zoo and Aquarium all fall on Oct. 24 and 25.
So Powell gets two Halloween weekends this year. The first is spread across downtown, a city park and the Zoo, and it's over by Sunday night. The second happens on your own street. Plan only for Oct. 31 and you'll miss most of the season.
Saturday, Oct. 24 belongs to Liberty Street
The downtown weekend starts Friday. Finn and Roe, the boutique at 27 S. Liberty St., holds its six-year anniversary sale from 10 a.m. Friday, Oct. 23, through 8 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 24. The listing covers books, home goods and clothes, and it asks shoppers to bring their own bags.
On Saturday morning the sidewalks turn into the trick-or-treat route. Powelloween runs from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. on Oct. 24, with downtown businesses handing out candy. The organizers welcome kids, teens and adults in costume. No registration is required, but candy is "while supplies last," and the listing reminds everyone to bring a bag.
Right after, from 1:15 to 1:45 p.m., Escape Into Fiction Bookstore at 50 S. Liberty St. #174 hosts a kid-friendly Halloween storytime. Visit Powell also says some downtown restaurants may serve Halloween-themed drinks and beer that weekend.
Downtown's trick-or-treat is a daytime event a week before Halloween, so it doesn't compete with the evening of Oct. 31.
The Zoo closes two fall seasons on the same weekend
Oct. 24 and 25 is also the last weekend for both of the Columbus Zoo's fall events, and they run on different clocks.
Boo at the Zoo runs Saturdays and Sundays only. Its last dates are Oct. 24 and 25, from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., and it's included with Zoo admission. It takes place in the Adventure Cove area. Two features are new for 2026: a "Rave at the Grave" DJ dance party, and a Trick or Treat Trail with 11 candy stops plus two "teal pumpkin" stations that hand out candy alternatives. Giant pumpkin carving, Henry's Character Craze Hay Maze and the Imaginarium Fun House are back.
The Lantern Festival starts after the Zoo closes for the day. It runs Thursday through Sunday evenings from 7:30 to 10:30 p.m., and its last night is Oct. 25. This year's festival has more than 70 sets of lanterns, and new for 2026 are dinosaur lanterns placed among the animal scenes.
The two events are priced differently, which matters if you're thinking about doing both:
| Boo at the Zoo | Lantern Festival | |
|---|---|---|
| Final dates | Sat. Oct. 24 and Sun. Oct. 25 | Sun. Oct. 25 |
| Hours | 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. | 7:30 to 10:30 p.m. |
| Ticket | Included with Zoo admission | Separate ticket, festival only, or with discounted Zoo admission added |
| Parking | $12 daytime Zoo parking | Free with the festival |
For visitors from outside Franklin County, daytime admission starts at $34.95 for ages 10 to 59, $27.95 for ages 3 to 9 and $32.95 for ages 60 and up. Children under 3 get in free. The Zoo says prices may change without notice. Lantern Festival tickets don't include daytime admission. According to the festival FAQ, you can buy them online or at the main gate and use them on any festival date. The Zoo hasn't posted 2026 festival prices on the pages we reviewed, so check the ticket page before you go.
Sunday, Oct. 25 is the busiest day of Powell's season
On Sunday the city, a downtown brewery and the Zoo all have something going on, and the times overlap. Here's how the day lines up:
- 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. The last day of Boo at the Zoo in Adventure Cove.
- 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. Books N Brews at Ill Mannered Brewing Co., 38 Grace Drive. It's an open book-and-beer group discussing several spooky October reads.
- 4 to 6 p.m. Candy by the Carload at Adventure Park, 260 Adventure Park Dr. It's a free trunk-or-treat with Powell community organizations, open to all, with no registration. Columbus DanceArts Academy performs its Halloween Hip Hop show throughout, and kids get chances to learn some moves and dance along.
- 7:30 to 10:30 p.m. The last night of the Lantern Festival.
The city has its own name for Sunday afternoon. Its event page calls Candy by the Carload "the perfect excuse to wear your costume again," and the scheduling backs that up. A child who trick-or-treats downtown Saturday morning can wear the same costume to Adventure Park on Sunday afternoon and again on their own street the next Saturday night.
The week in between has a grown-up calendar
Between the two weekends, the listed events are fewer and mostly aimed at adults.
On Friday, Oct. 30, Downtown Powell Ghost Exploration with the Ghost Sisters runs from 7 to 10 p.m. Tours start at 7 and 8 p.m., with 10 spots in each group, and the route includes the Powell Liberty Antique Mall and the cemetery. With 20 spots for the night, this is the one event in the stretch where availability is the deciding factor.
On Saturday, Oct. 31, Ill Mannered Brewing and The Cheesecake Girl host a Fall Cheesecake and Beer event from 1 to 4 p.m. It wraps up two hours before the city's trick-or-treat begins at 6 p.m.
Powell Trick or Treat: Saturday, Oct. 31, 2026, 6 to 8 p.m., per the City of Powell.
One note for households near the city line: the official time above comes from the City of Powell. The newest Liberty Township calendar listing we found was for 2025, so if your address is in the township, check the township's own channels for 2026 hours.
Between the lanterns and the lights, nearly four weeks
The Lantern Festival ends Oct. 25, and Wildlights doesn't open until Nov. 20, nearly four weeks later. Wildlights then runs through Jan. 3, 2027. Unlike the Lantern Festival, it's included with regular Zoo admission or membership. The Zoo's Wildlights guest information page lists hours of noon to 9 p.m. Sunday through Thursday and noon to 10 p.m. Friday and Saturday, and says the lights start at 5 p.m. nightly. That page carries no publish date, so confirm closer to your visit.
The 2026 additions:
- Starlight Safari in Adventure Cove: seven large animal sculptures, one for each region of the Zoo, each lit with thousands of points of light.
- Starlight Constellation Quest, also in Adventure Cove.
- Bricktopia: LEGO builds by OhioLUG, a recognized LEGO fan community, inside the Naomi Coyle Dempsey Quest for Enlightenment Interpretive Center in Asia Quest.
The free rides are back: the "12 Days of Wildlights" train in North America, the 1914 historic carousel, and the Dino Island Yule Tide Boat Ride, which runs through Dec. 31. If Santa is on your list, the Zoo says he isn't available for photos after Dec. 23.
Back in downtown Powell, Holidays in Powell takes over Village Green Park on Saturday, Dec. 5, from 4 to 7 p.m. It's free, with an iceless rink, free s'mores at a bonfire, Santa photos, performances and roaming entertainment. The city tree lighting is at 6 p.m. For more on downtown's year, see our earlier look at what opened in downtown Powell this summer, and our guide to Powell's parks and trails for Adventure Park and Village Green beyond event days.
At Ayana Realty Group, we follow Powell's local calendar as closely as the market, from Liberty Street to Adventure Park. If you have questions about Powell, this season or any other, Contact Us.
