Halloween in Birmingham 2026: zoo Hoots & Howls Oct. 25 and 31, Practical Magic and a Sloss night tour Oct. 30, Atrox Lights Out Oct. 31 and Nov. 1.

Last checked Oct. 25, 2026. This page is updated each year at the same address; the dates below are for Halloween 2026. Each listing links to the organizer’s own page.

Updated Oct. 25: The Summit Spooktacular and the Oct. 23-24 movie nights have passed; the library now closes every branch on Oct. 31; Atrox prices added.

Halloween falls on a Saturday this year, the same day as the Magic City Classic parade and game, so the costume events were spread across the two weekends before it. The zoo’s daytime trick-or-treating has two days left, the Alabama Theatre and Sloss Furnaces both hold Halloween nights on Friday, Oct. 30, and the Atrox Factory haunted house in Leeds runs through Nov. 1. Neighborhood trick-or-treat hours, and how the Classic affects them, are on our separate trick-or-treat hours page.

Who to call

  • City questions: 311, or 205-254-2489
  • Birmingham Police non-emergency: 205-328-9311; 911 in an emergency
  • Birmingham Zoo: 2630 Cahaba Road, 205-879-0409

Halloween events, in date order

When What Where
Sunday, Oct. 25, and Saturday, Oct. 31, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Hoots & Howls: candy stations, costume parade, magic shows; zoo admission required Birmingham Zoo, 2630 Cahaba Road
Sunday, Oct. 25, 2 p.m. The Phantom of the Opera (1925 silent film) Alabama Theatre, 1817 Third Ave. N.
Friday, Oct. 30, 7 p.m. Practical Magic Alabama Theatre
Friday, Oct. 30, 6 to 10 p.m. Bowl Night: Molten & Mysterious: cast iron bowl class and historic night tour; tickets Sloss Furnaces, 20 32nd St. N.
Saturday, Oct. 31, and Sunday, Nov. 1, 6:30 to 10 p.m. Atrox Factory Lights Out, tickets from $30 8404 Parkway Drive, Leeds

Trick-or-treat events for children

Hoots & Howls at the Birmingham Zoo is the city’s biggest daytime Halloween event. The zoo lists 10 candy stations, magic shows, animal presentations and a costume parade and contest, with Birmingham Public Library storytellers on select dates. Zoo admission is required, and the candy trail wristband is a separate ticket. Full details, including this year’s dinosaur theme, are on our trick-or-treat hours page.

Two free family evenings have passed: The Summit Spooktacular on Friday, Oct. 23, and the Birmingham Botanical Gardens’ Monsters, Inc. costume movie night on Saturday, Oct. 24.

As of Oct. 25 we had not found a Birmingham church or school trunk-or-treat with a published date, time and address from its organizer. Hosting one? Submit it with the date, time, address and a link, and we will add it here.

Halloween movies at the Alabama Theatre

The 1927 Alabama Theatre, 1817 Third Ave. N., shows the 1925 silent The Phantom of the Opera at 2 p.m. Sunday, Oct. 25, and Practical Magic at 7 p.m. Friday, Oct. 30, according to the theater’s event listings. Tickets are sold through the theater’s website.

Haunted history and a haunted house

Sloss Furnaces, the city-owned blast furnace site, holds Bowl Night: Molten & Mysterious on Friday, Oct. 30, from 6 to 10 p.m. Each ticket covers a cast iron bowl class in the Historic No. 2 Casting Shed and a guided historic night tour of about an hour to an hour and a half. Gates open at 5:30 p.m.; park in the Visitor Center lot. Costumes are encouraged but not required, and guests may bring their own drinks and snacks, according to the city’s event listing.

Atrox Factory, an all-indoor haunted attraction at 8404 Parkway Drive in Leeds, east of the city, opened its season Oct. 2. It is open 6:30 to 10 p.m. Sunday, Wednesday and Thursday nights and 6:30 to 11 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays, and its Lights Out nights are Oct. 31 and Nov. 1, 6:30 to 10 p.m. The attraction says guests 13 and younger must come with a parent or guardian, tickets must be printed or on a phone, and parking is free, according to its website.

After Halloween

Bare Hands’ Día de los Muertos celebration at Sloss Furnaces is Monday, Nov. 2; see our fall festivals and pumpkin patches guide for it and the rest of the season. Daylight saving time ends at 2 a.m. Sunday, Nov. 1, the night after Halloween.

What this means for you

  • Saturday, Oct. 31, is crowded downtown. The Magic City Classic parade starts at 8 a.m. and kickoff at Legion Field is 2:30 p.m.; plan evening routes with our road construction and closures page.
  • Book ahead for Sloss Bowl Night and Atrox Factory; both sell tickets online.
  • Libraries: every Birmingham Public Library location is closed Saturday, Oct. 31, for the Classic, and the Smithfield branch also closes at 1 p.m. Thursday, Oct. 29, and all day Friday, Oct. 30, according to the library’s holiday closures list.

Related: things to do this month and kids’ activities in Birmingham.

Frequently asked questions

What Halloween events are in Birmingham in 2026?

The Birmingham Zoo’s Hoots & Howls has two days left, Sunday, Oct. 25, and Saturday, Oct. 31. The Alabama Theatre shows Practical Magic and Sloss Furnaces holds a Halloween bowl night and night tour on Friday, Oct. 30, and Atrox Factory in Leeds runs Lights Out nights Oct. 31 and Nov. 1.

Is there a free trick-or-treat event in Birmingham?

The two free family evenings this year, The Summit Spooktacular on Oct. 23 and the Botanical Gardens costume movie night on Oct. 24, have passed. As of Oct. 25 the city had not posted a 2026 Harvest Festival, its free children’s event at City Hall in past years.

Where is the nearest big haunted house to Birmingham?

Atrox Factory, an indoor haunted attraction at 8404 Parkway Drive in Leeds, opened Oct. 2. Its Lights Out nights are Oct. 31 and Nov. 1 from 6:30 to 10 p.m., with tickets from $30. Guests 13 and younger need a parent or guardian.

What are trick-or-treat hours in Birmingham?

The city had not announced trick-or-treat hours as of Oct. 25. Our separate trick-or-treat hours page is updated when it does.