Where can a costumed five-year-old in Menlo Park go in the last week of October? The city's schedule spans five days and four venues: Fremont Park, Belle Haven Pool, Burgess Pool and Belle Haven Community Campus.
The City of Menlo Park calls it Halloweek. There are three events: Halloween Hoopla on Saturday, Oct. 24, Pumpkin Splash on Sunday, Oct. 25, and Trunk-or-Treat on Wednesday, Oct. 28. Each one happens on a city site. The week starts downtown and moves east, and by Wednesday it is at Belle Haven Community Campus. Meanwhile the renovated playground at Flood Park on Bay Road is still behind a fence while the county works on its metal slide.
Saturday Starts in a Parking Lot on Maloney Street
The Halloween Hoopla Parade and Carnival runs 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Saturday, Oct. 24. The parade doesn't start at Fremont Park. It starts a few blocks away. Here is how the morning runs:
- 10:45 a.m. Parade participants arrive at Parking Lot #1, the Maloney Street lot behind Cheeky Monkey. Decorated bikes, wagons and scooters are welcome.
- 11 a.m. The costume parade heads down Santa Cruz Avenue.
- Along the way Trick-or-treaters get a free bag to use at participating downtown Menlo Park stores.
- At Fremont Park The parade ends at the carnival. It has games, jumpers, prizes, candy, balloon and tattoo artists, and performances by Menlo Park school bands.
Downtown businesses and partners fill out the carnival. Cheeky Monkey is supplying the craft tables. American Medical Response is bringing an ambulance for touch-a-truck, and the Public Works fleet is bringing what the city calls "a spooky vehicle." Family entertainers Lori and RJ will be on the Fremont Park stage all day with music, dancing, bubbles, puppets and magic.
The parade's new addition this year is a "Howl-o-ween Walkers" section, open to costumed dogs and their owners. The city asks that dogs stay leashed the whole time and that owners pick up after them. Dogs and kids in costume can march in the same lineup.
Sunday Moves to the Pools, in 25-Minute Slots
On the second day you need to book ahead. Pumpkin Splash runs on required reservations through Menlo Swim & Sport at two city pools, with a floating pumpkin patch in each. Tickets are $12 and include a pumpkin, supplies to decorate it, a goody bag and extra swim time.
| Pool | Session times, Sunday, Oct. 25 |
|---|---|
| Belle Haven Pool | 11:30–11:55 a.m. · Noon–12:25 p.m. |
| Burgess Pool | 1:30–1:55 p.m. · 2–2:25 p.m. · 2:30–2:55 p.m. · 3–3:25 p.m. |
That makes six sessions of 25 minutes each: two in the late morning and four in the afternoon. The city notes that parents must be present. Registration is on the city's Belle Haven Pool page and its Burgess Pool page. Belle Haven's sessions are first. If your children are still worn out from Saturday, the Burgess sessions give you a slower start to the day.
Wednesday Ends at Belle Haven Community Campus
The week ends on a school night. Trunk-or-Treat runs 4:30 to 6 p.m. on Wednesday, Oct. 28, at Belle Haven Community Campus. This is its third year. Kids go from car to car instead of door to door, and each car's trunk is decorated with a Halloween theme. Every trick-or-treater gets a free bag, and there will be candy and music.
Trunk-or-Treat is a small event, and three years in, it is now a regular part of the city's calendar. It also wraps up three days before Halloween itself, so it doesn't compete with trick-or-treating on the 31st. Belle Haven Community Campus is also where the city holds Cocoa at the Campus on Monday, Nov. 30, 6 to 7 p.m., with youth performances, cocoa, mini-churros and a small tree lighting.
The Playground That Missed the Calendar
Every Halloweek event is run by the city at a city venue. Flood Park is run by San Mateo County, and this month its newest feature is closed for an unexpected reason.
The Almanac reported on Oct. 8 that San Mateo County Parks had delayed the opening of the renovated Flood Park playground again, this time because its metal slide gets dangerously hot. County Parks spokesperson Jeneane Crawford told the paper the slide went above 130 degrees at peak hours this summer. She added that the temperature depends heavily on the angle of the sun, so the slide can be safe even on otherwise hot days.
The department is monitoring equipment temperatures and looking at ways to shade parts of the playground. It hopes to open by November, as cooler weather arrives and the sun's angle changes. Crawford told The Almanac that the newly planted trees may eventually shade the play structure.
This is the second delay this year. The county Board of Supervisors approved a $4.1 million contract for the playground in May 2025. Construction was first expected to take nine months. In June, safety reviews called for modifications, and the opening was pushed back. The finished playground has a climbing tower, zip lines, slides, spinners, swings, open play space and a separate area for children ages 2 to 5.
The county already has advice for the first visits after it opens. Crawford told The Almanac that families should use a five-second rule: if you can comfortably hold your hand on the slide for five seconds, it is safe to use. "It's really a wonderful playground, and we can't wait to see kids enjoying it," she said.
What Is Open at 215 Bay Road Right Now
The fence around the playground doesn't close the rest of Flood Park. The playground is the second phase of the county's "Reimagine Flood Park" renovation of the 21-acre park, which opened in 1937 and which the county decided in 2014 needed a full overhaul. The first phase cost an estimated $11.5 million, was funded by Measure K, the county's half-cent sales tax, and opened in 2025.
That phase is open now:
- Basketball courts
- Sand volleyball
- Tennis and pickleball courts
- A bike pump track
- Renovated picnic areas
A child who decorated a scooter for Saturday's parade can ride it on the pump track any afternoon this week. The zip lines will have to wait until at least November.
The Alameda's Evening Room Closed Before the Season Began
None of the Halloweek events are in West Menlo, and this fall the Alameda de las Pulgas corridor lost the business that hosted many of its evenings. Lutticken's, at 3535 Alameda de las Pulgas, was set to close permanently Sept. 30 after 45 years, and its After 5 dinner, bar and live-music program served its last night Aug. 29. The Almanac reported that After 5 had hosted Thursday karaoke, open mic nights and monthly sets by local bands since 2011, and that the community held a farewell with live music outside the building on Sept. 12.
According to the same report, the storefront's future is undecided. The Lutticken family said it needed time to "figure out where we stand," and After 5 manager Carlos Magana said he and an investor were ready to take over the business. Until something new opens at 3535 Alameda, the dates that are set for this season come from the city's calendar.
The Next City Dates
After Halloweek, the calendar is already published:
| Date | Event | Location |
|---|---|---|
| Nov. 5, 15, 16, 21 | 11th annual Menlo Park Storytelling Festival | Menlo Park Library |
| Nov. 12 | StoryFest | Online |
| Nov. 30, 6–7 p.m. | Cocoa at the Campus | Belle Haven Community Campus |
| Dec. 4, 5:30–7 p.m. | Light Up the Season tree lighting | Fremont Park |
The holiday season starts at Fremont Park, the same place Saturday's parade ends. If County Parks gets the timing it hopes for, the Flood Park slide will be open before the tree lighting.
If you live a few blocks from Fremont Park or near Flood Park on Bay Road and want to know what your home is worth this fall, Drew Doran and The Doran Team can walk you through it with a clear, local read. Get Your Home Value.
