Halloween Lands on a Saturday This Year, but East Cobb's Busiest Halloween Day Comes a Week Earlier

Halloween falls on a Saturday in 2026. Most organized events around East Cobb don't. Saturday, Oct. 24 has two midday trick-or-treat events running at the same time, a free county festival in the evening and the opening night of the county's $5 Haunted House. By Oct. 31, nearly every organized event has already happened. What's left is 90 minutes of face painting at the library and a haunted house that stays open one hour later than usual.

The day-by-day calendar below is built from this year's listings from Avenue East Cobb, Cobb County and the East Cobb Beacon. The busiest days come first.

Saturday, Oct. 24 has four events

Avenue East Cobb's Boo Bash runs 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. in The Plaza. Families pick up a stroll map at check-in and trick-or-treat at participating stores and restaurants around the center, including 13 Hub Lane, Ann Taylor and Barnes & Noble, while supplies last. Face painting, a bounce house and crafts are free. East Cobb Church hosts a "Mega Awesome Costume Party" on the main stage twice, at 11:30 a.m. and again at 1 p.m., and a live DJ plays from noon to 1 p.m.

During the same three hours, the Cobb Department of Public Safety holds its free Trunk or Treat & Fall Festival at 1285 Al Bishop Drive in Marietta, at the Emergency Vehicle Operations Course. The county lists decorated cars, food trucks, candy, K-9s, touch-a-truck and face painting. Both events run 11 a.m. to 2 p.m., so most families will have time for one or the other.

The evening moves to Jim R. Miller Park and Event Center at 2245 Callaway Road SW in Marietta, a drive west of East Cobb. Cobb PARKS' Fall Festival of Fun is free from 5 to 9 p.m., with hay rides, a petting zoo, magic shows and live entertainment. The county Haunted House opens to the public at the same park at 5 p.m. and runs until 10.

A family can fit in a morning trick-or-treat, an afternoon break and an evening at Jim Miller Park, all on Oct. 24, one week before the holiday.

Sunday stays close to home

On Sunday, Oct. 25, the calendar moves back into East Cobb. East Cobb Park hosts a Halloween Hike from 5:30 to 6:30 p.m., and the county encourages costumes. The East Cobb Beacon reported that the hike is free and sends families to eastcobbpark.org for details and registration. The registration steps weren't clear in the listings we reviewed, so check that site before you go.

The Haunted House is open again Sunday from 5 to 10 p.m., so a family can do the hike at 5:30 and still reach Jim Miller Park later that evening.

Monday and Tuesday are dark

Haunted House general admission runs Oct. 24 and 25, then picks up again Oct. 28 through 31. The house is closed Monday, Oct. 26 and Tuesday, Oct. 27. The week before opening is also off-limits to the public, because Oct. 21 and 22 are set aside for county employees only, from noon to 4 p.m.

That leaves six public nights. Admission is $5 per person, paid on-site. The county describes a maze of scenes that runs from an abandoned nursery down to a crypt.

Wednesday, Oct. 28 is built around different comfort levels

The midweek restart is the most carefully planned night of the run. Cobb County sets aside Wednesday, Oct. 28 as an All-Inclusive Night for guests with disabilities, split into three sessions. In the county's words:

Guests can choose from three sessions with different lighting and scare levels based on their individual sensory, access, and comfort needs.

• 5 to 6 p.m. Lights on, with no performers trying to scare anyone
• 6 to 7 p.m. Lights off, still with no scares
• 7 to 10 p.m. The regular show, with darkness, costumed performers and surprises

The county says lighting and scare levels change "promptly at the listed times," so arrival time matters on this night more than on any other. The staged format also suits families with younger children who want to see the house before they're ready for the full version.

Back in East Cobb that same evening, the free Sewell Mill Spook-tacular runs from 5 to 7 p.m. at Sewell Mill Cultural Center and is open to all ages, according to the East Cobb Beacon. A family can finish at Sewell Mill and still reach the regular Haunted House session after 7.

Thursday and Friday move to the Square, mostly for grown-ups

Late in the week the events shift toward adults. The Strand Theatre at 117 North Park Square on Marietta Square, run by the nonprofit Friends of the Strand, Inc., shows Halloween on Thursday, Oct. 29 at 7 p.m. and The Rocky Horror Picture Show on Friday, Oct. 30, at both 8 p.m. and midnight. The county listing doesn't give ticket prices, so check the Strand's calendar before you go.

The Haunted House also runs both nights from 5 to 10 p.m., so the late-week options include a jump-scare maze and a midnight cult-movie screening.

Before the 24th, the season was already underway

A few events start before the Boo Bash weekend.

Cobb County Water System's Trick or Treatment sPOOky Tour runs Oct. 16 and 17 at the R. L. Sutton Water Reclamation Facility, with candy, costumes and a guided walk through the plant. Registration is through the county. On Marietta Square, HarvestFest and Scarecrows in the Square is set for Saturday, Oct. 17, from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., with Halloween activities and costume contests. The Square has already lost one fall weekend. Chalktoberfest was canceled for weather after the county closed every government facility on Oct. 10 ahead of Hurricane Isaias, and organizers say it will return in 2027.

For pumpkins, Mt. Zion UMC at 1770 Johnson Ferry Road runs a pumpkin patch through its Youth Ministry from Oct. 6 to Oct. 31. Hours are noon to 7:30 p.m. Sunday through Friday, and Saturdays from 9:30 a.m. The church's page doesn't list a year, so call ahead to confirm this season's hours. East Cobb United Methodist Church is taking a group to Big Springs Farm at 2100 Sugar Pike Road in Woodstock on Sunday, Oct. 18, from 1:30 to 3:30 p.m. The $5 per person fee includes a hayride. Pumpkins and food cost extra, and the church asks for online registration.

Oct. 31 has one organized event in East Cobb

On Halloween itself, the only organized event we found in East Cobb is at the East Cobb Library, 4880 Lower Roswell Road. The library offers free Halloween Face Painting from 3 to 4:30 p.m. for children 3 and up. The East Cobb Beacon noted the timing lets kids get painted before trick-or-treating. The county lists it for three age groups: preschoolers 3 to 5, elementary-age children 5 to 9 and tweens 9 to 12.

The Haunted House closes out its run that night and is the only night that stays open late, from 5 to 11 p.m. instead of the usual 10 p.m. close. Admission is still $5, paid at the door.

Halloween is about getting the timing right, and so is selling a home. At Rich & Heather Homes, we watch East Cobb's calendar and comparable sales with the same care. If a move is in your plans for the months ahead, we'd be glad to prepare an appraisal-grade estimate of where your home stands today. Request a Free Home Valuation.