Free Halloween events for kids at national chains in 2026 included 500 free prize tickets for kids in costume at Chuck E. Cheese through October 31, and free kids meals for kids in costume at Red Lobster from October 30 through November 1, with a full-price adult entrée. The next free events are The Home Depot’s dump truck workshop on November 7 and the Barnes & Noble LEGO Holiday Build on November 13 to 15.
The Christmas version is my Free Christmas Events for Kids guide, with free Santa photos, workshops and crafts at five chains, listed by date.
Free Halloween Events for Kids by Date
| Date | Where | What it is | Cost and sign-up |
|---|---|---|---|
| Every day in October | Chuck E. Cheese | 500 prize tickets for each kid in costume, on every visit | Free, come in costume |
| October 16 to 24 | Barnes & Noble, 10 stores | LEGO Halloween mini build | Free, reserve with your store |
| October 19 | Michaels, online | Kids Club: Mini Witch Hats class, 3 p.m. Pacific | Free class, supplies extra |
| October 25 | PetSmart | Tricks for Treats, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. | Free at every store |
| October 26 | Michaels, online | Kids Club: Halloween Slime class, 3 p.m. Pacific | Free class, supplies extra |
| October 30 to November 1 | Red Lobster | Kids in costume eat free, dine-in, with an adult dinner entrée | Free kids meal with a full-price adult entrée |
| October 31 | Mall of America, Bloomington, Minnesota | Mall-O-Ween, store-to-store trick-or-treating, 4 p.m. | No ticket or price listed |
| November 7 | The Home Depot | Kids workshop, a dump truck, 9 a.m. | Free, register on Home Depot’s site |
| November 13 to 15 | Barnes & Noble | LEGO Holiday mini build | Free, reserve with your store |
Chuck E. Cheese: 500 Free Tickets for Kids in Costume
Kids who visited Chuck E. Cheese in costume got 500 free Bonus Tickets, which they traded for prizes at the Prize Wall, on every visit in October. Chuck E. Cheese has nearly 500 locations across the United States. Each one held a dance party every night in October, with Chuck E. on the dance floor every hour from 6 p.m., and participating locations opened two hours early on October 25 for a sensory-friendly morning with less noise and dimmed lights. My Chuck E. Cheese Boo-tacular report has the Halloween menu and the $34.99 Boo-Meal Deal.
Michaels Kids Club: Four Free Online Halloween Classes
Michaels’ Kids Club ran four free Halloween craft classes online in October, each from 3 to 4 p.m. Pacific on video, and all four have passed: Spooky Glue Ghosts on October 5, Skeleton Puppets on October 16, Mini Witch Hats on October 19 and Halloween Slime on October 26. The glue ghosts and slime classes were listed for all ages, and the puppets and witch hats classes for kids over 6. The classes were free and the supplies were not, with Michaels’ supply lists running from $20.95 for the slime class to $53.31 for the witch hats class. Michaels lists its classes at michaels.com/classes.
Barnes & Noble: Free LEGO Builds, Next on November 13 to 15
Barnes & Noble’s free LEGO Halloween mini build ran at more than 470 stores in 48 states on the weekend of October 9 to 11. On October 13, 10 stores still listed a Halloween build between October 16 and 24, now past, in Alabama, Connecticut, Florida, Georgia, Kansas, and New York, and two of them had marked it full. The next free build, the LEGO Holiday Build, is listed at more than 500 stores for November 13 to 15, and 89 had marked it full by October 13. Sign-up is store by store, so find your store’s session on the events locator at stores.barnesandnoble.com and reserve the way the store asks. My Barnes & Noble LEGO build report lists the eight Halloween sessions that were not marked full and the Holiday Build’s listings by day.
PetSmart: Tricks for Treats Ran October 17 and 25
PetSmart’s free trick-or-treating for pets ran on Saturday, October 17, and Sunday, October 25, from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. at every store. Pets collected treats at stations around the store, kids got coloring pages and sticker sheets, and the first 50 attendees got a Halloween tote. My PetSmart trick-or-treat report has the costume contest and the other October dates.
Red Lobster: Kids in Costume Eat Free, October 30 to November 1
Kids who came to Red Lobster in costume ate free from Friday, October 30, through Sunday, November 1, at participating restaurants in the U.S. and Canada. One full-price adult dinner entrée covered up to two free kids meals for families dining in, with a limit of two free kids meals per table.
For To Go orders placed online, the code SPOOKY26 gets one free kids meal with each full-price adult dinner entrée. The offer cannot be combined with other Red Lobster offers or rewards.
Mall of America: Mall-O-Ween on October 31
Mall-O-Ween was store-to-store trick-or-treating for kids 12 and under inside Mall of America, a single mall in Bloomington, Minnesota, on Saturday, October 31, at 4 p.m., with a DJ in the Rotunda from noon and no ticket. My Mall of America Halloween guide has the rest of the mall’s calendar.
The Home Depot Kids Workshop: Next Date Is November 7
The Home Depot’s free kids workshops are at 9 a.m. on the first Saturday of every month, while supplies last. The first Saturday of October was October 3, so no Halloween workshop is left this month. The next three on Home Depot’s list are a dump truck on November 7, a Christmas car ornament on November 21, and a holiday train on December 5. Registration for the dump truck is open on Home Depot’s kids workshop page, and registration for the other two opens November 7.
Lowe’s Kids Club and Bass Pro Shops
Lowe’s Kids Club workshop dates are shown to signed-in MyLowe’s Rewards members, and the public Kids Club page listed none on October 13, so no Lowe’s date is in the table. The workshops are free and the club is free to join, with a free lollipop at every visit and a tool bag for a child who collects 12 workshop badges. If a workshop is sold out, Lowe’s says to visit the store at 1 p.m. for unclaimed kits. Bass Pro Shops’ Halloween event page had no 2026 dates on October 3.
Free Halloween Events FAQ
What Time Is the Home Depot Kids Workshop?
The Home Depot kids workshop is at 9 a.m. on the first Saturday of every month. The next one is November 7.
Is the Home Depot Kids Workshop Free?
Yes. The Home Depot lists its in-store kids workshops as free, while supplies last.
Is the Barnes & Noble LEGO Halloween Build Free?
Yes. The build is free and kits are limited. Most stores held the Halloween build from October 9 to 11, and the next free build is the LEGO Holiday Build on November 13 to 15.
Does Lowe’s Have a Free Halloween Event for Kids in 2026?
Lowe’s Kids Club page lists free workshops without dates, which Lowe’s shows to signed-in MyLowe’s Rewards members.
More Halloween for Families
- The 150 best trick-or-treat streets in America, listed by state.
- The meaning of a teal pumpkin, and Halloween candy made without nuts.
- Freeform’s 31 Nights of Halloween schedule, night by night.
- LEGO’s 2026 Halloween sets, for building at home.
- Free Halloween cards for patients at Children’s Hospital Los Angeles, which earn the hospital $1 each from the LA Kings, up to $50,000.
Last updated: November 3, 2026.
