Glen Ellyn's Halloween Festival & Parade returns Saturday, Oct. 24, with a costumed kids' parade, pet costume contest and trick-or-treating at downtown businesses.
The Glen Ellyn Chamber of Commerce announced the event, scheduled from 9:30 a.m. to noon in downtown Glen Ellyn. Parade staging begins at 9:30 a.m. in the Glenwood Station Lot at the corner of Main Street and Crescent Boulevard. The parade steps off at 9:45 a.m., with marchers following the Glenbard West Drumline east to Forest Avenue, north on Forest, then circling back via Pennsylvania Avenue to Main Street.
Community members line the route to cheer on the costumed marchers.
After the parade wraps, Main Street stays busy. Halloween games, crafts, costume contests for children and pets, and trick-or-treating at participating downtown shops run from 10 a.m. to noon. A Halloween juggler will roam the area as families move between storefronts.
Scout window painting sign-up opens Oct. 1
Scout troops can sign up to paint a storefront window in downtown Glen Ellyn as part of the festival. Registration opens Thursday, Oct. 1, on a first-come, first-served basis, with one window per troop. Troops choose their storefront online and then coordinate directly with the business on a convenient time to paint between Sunday, Oct. 4, and Sunday, Oct. 11.
The paintings stay up through the festival, adding Halloween color to the downtown shopping district.
The Chamber called the festival a longstanding Glen Ellyn tradition and invited all families to join the parade. Sponsorship and volunteer opportunities are listed on the Chamber's event page, with volunteer details noted as coming soon. A downloadable parade map and poster are already available.
Upcoming dates
- Thursday, Oct. 1 — Scout window-painting sign-up opens online
- Oct. 4–11 — Window painting at downtown storefronts
- Saturday, Oct. 24, 9:30 a.m.–noon — Halloween Festival & Parade, downtown Glen Ellyn
