Halloween fell on a Saturday this year, and for some Perth households it was the busiest they have seen. Others sat by the door with a full bowl of chocolates and barely a knock.
One local who usually gets 30 to 40 trick-or-treaters said only two kids had come by early on Saturday evening, and asked whether anyone else's street was as quiet. The answers showed how much depends on where you live.
The hotspots
A household in Baldivis said 624 children had come through by Saturday night. They keep a tally every year so they know how much to buy, and stock up gradually in the weeks before.
"We prepare for it these days, usually buying from Costco slowly over a few weeks." - Baldivis resident
Locals also reported crowds in Mount Hawthorn, Mount Lawley, Inglewood, Maylands, Bassendean, Victoria Park, Pearsall, Yanchep, Craigie and Merriwa. Some said streets had been closed to traffic for trick-or-treaters in Victoria Park and Mount Lawley, and that several houses had run out by 6pm.
A Victoria Park resident said nearby streets were busy, but their own street, a few blocks away, had no kids at all. A household in Yanchep celebrating its first Perth Halloween ran out of three bags of lollies in 30 minutes.
A teacher in the northern suburbs said some students planned to catch the train to Leederville, several stops away, to join the crowds.
Photo: Orderinchaos via Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 3.0). File photo of Mount Hawthorn.
Why some streets were quiet
Locals say Halloween in Perth now gathers in a few suburbs and estates where neighbours organise it. Families drive in from elsewhere, while streets without that reputation miss out. Several people said local Facebook groups and trick-or-treat maps, where households list their address, decide where the crowds go.
Others had their own theories. One parent said a burst of rain in their area around 3pm nearly kept them home. Others said a weekend Halloween meant families were at parties instead of walking the streets. One Kinross resident said they had 25 kids, well down on last year, and noticed far fewer teenagers.
A few, including a South Perth household that had 25 kids against the usual six to eight, said this was their best year yet.
Photo: Ashton 29 via Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 4.0). File photo taken in Adelaide.
Bowls, grabs and jelly shots
Unattended bowls were a sore point. A Spearwood resident said two kids ran up and emptied an entire bowl into their bags before sprinting off. Others said leaving a bowl out only works until the first child without a parent arrives.
One household made vodka jelly shots for the parents, and when hardly anyone turned up, said they would have to finish them off themselves.
Some people still grumbled that Halloween is an American import. Others replied that anything that gets kids outside and neighbours talking is worth a few bags of chocolates.
Tips for next year
- Most trick-or-treating in Perth happens from about 4pm to 7pm, with stragglers until 8pm.
- Join your suburb's community Facebook group, where households post their addresses and organisers share street closures.
- If you live in a known hotspot, buy more than you think you need. Several households ran out before dark.
Sources: comments from Perth locals.
Main photo: ami harikoshi via Wikimedia Commons (CC BY 2.0). File photo of a jack-o'-lantern.
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