If you’re looking for Halloween events in Preston this year, there’s plenty happening across the city and the surrounding Lancashire countryside. Halloween falls on Saturday 31 October 2026, at the end of the October half-term, and the week brings pumpkin carving and woodland adventures for children, spooky steam trains, ghost tours at historic houses and themed nights out in the city centre. Below are Halloween events in and around Preston for 2026, with dates and prices taken from the organisers’ own listings. Please check with each venue before you travel, as sessions can sell out or change.
Family-friendly Halloween events in Preston
Get creative with pumpkin carving at Brockholes Nature Reserve
Dates: 24–31 October 2026
For a classic Halloween activity, head to Brockholes Nature Reserve, just off Junction 31 of the M6. Its pumpkin-carving sessions give you the chance to choose a pumpkin from a themed patch before creating your own spooky design.
The activity takes place between 10am and 3.30pm, with indoor carving stations, so you can enjoy the experience whatever the autumn weather brings. Tickets are listed at £10.50 and include a pumpkin, carving facilities, a cookie and a drink. There’s also a cosy Halloween display on the floating visitor village, making it a lovely spot for seasonal photographs.
It’s a good choice for families, but adults can join in too. Booking a half-hourly time slot in advance is recommended.
You can find details and tickets here.
Enjoy a Halloween woodland adventure at Brockholes
Dates: 28 and 30 October 2026
If your children love dressing up and getting imaginative, Wild Magic at Brockholes Nature Reserve offers something a little different from the usual Halloween activities.
This outdoor woodland adventure invites young witches, wizards and little monsters to create enchanted cloaks, make broomsticks, mix magical potions and choose a wand. Sessions run from 10am to 11.30am and 1pm to 2.30pm on 28 and 30 October.
Tickets are listed at £9 per participating child, with accompanying adults admitted free, although adults still need to book a ticket. Fancy dress is welcome, but remember to bring waterproofs and sturdy footwear. You can find out more here.
For another outdoor option, the reserve’s Halloween Xplorer Challenge runs from 24 October to 1 November. Follow a map, find markers around Brockholes and complete a family-friendly trail. There are two courses, including a pram-friendly route, and advance tickets are listed at £5.50. You can find out more here.
Discover Halloween magic shows at Brockholes
Date: 31 October 2026
For a Halloween treat aimed particularly at younger children, Brockholes is hosting magic shows and workshops with entertainer Billy Sparks on Halloween itself.
The programme includes live entertainment, interactive games and a workshop where children can learn some magical tricks. The workshop also includes an Xplorer Challenge pack, adding an outdoor adventure to the day.
The advertised show times are 11am–12pm and 2pm–3pm, with the magic workshop running from 1pm to 1.45pm. Children’s tickets are listed at £9.99, while adults and children under two can attend free with a ticket booked in advance.
The activities take place indoors, making this a useful option if the October weather turns wet. Find out more here.
Little Scare-lings Halloween tea party at Dobbies, Clifton
Dates: 24, 25, 29, 30 and 31 October 2026
For younger children, Dobbies Garden Centre on Blackpool Road in Clifton is hosting its Little Scare-lings Halloween tea party. The 90-minute sessions include making a potion that turns into glow-in-the-dark slime, decorating a trick-or-treat bag, Halloween games and a themed children’s afternoon tea.
Tickets are listed at £15 per child, with adult options from £7.50. Both adults and children need a ticket, and Dobbies says the event is best suited to children aged three to ten. You can find out more and book on the Dobbies website.
Take a spooky train ride with Ribble Steam Railway
Date: 31 October 2026
For a Halloween day out with a difference, head to Ribble Steam Railway on Preston’s riverside. Its Halloween Spooky Trains event combines heritage railway rides with ghostly goings-on in the museum and on the trains.
Children can dress as their favourite spooky character and help hunt for ghosts as they explore. It’s a fun way to combine a little local history with Halloween excitement, and the railway’s route offers views along the River Ribble and across Preston’s dockland surroundings.
The event is advertised for 10.30am–4.30pm on 31 October. Listed prices are £12.50 for adults, £7.50 for children, £10 for concessions and £32 for a family day-rover ticket.
You can find out more here.
If you can’t make it on Halloween itself, Ribble Steam Railway is also running Helga the Haunted Railbus on Wednesday 28 October (10.30am–3.30pm), when its 1950s diesel railbus operates the spooky trains service from the museum, across the dock swing bridge and alongside the River Ribble. Find out more about Helga the Haunted Railbus.
Visit Samlesbury Hall for a Halloween Pumpkin Fest
Dates: 26–30 October 2026
For a mix of history and Halloween fun, make your way to Samlesbury Hall, a historic building just outside Preston that describes itself as Lancashire’s most haunted house.
Its 2026 Halloween Pumpkin Fest turns the courtyard into a seasonal pumpkin spot, where you can choose a pumpkin to take home and carve. Inside, visitors can take part in a pumpkin hunt and Halloween quiz, explore spooky rooms and discover the hall’s ghost room and witches’ garret.
Fancy dress is encouraged, and refreshments are available from Maria’s Tea Room, making it easy to turn the visit into a relaxed autumn outing.
Pumpkins are sold individually and are available on a first-come, first-served basis, so arriving earlier may give you a better choice. All proceeds go to the Samlesbury Hall Charitable Trust. Find out more here.
Spooky stories at The Harris
Date: Thursday 29 October 2026, 2pm
In the city centre, The Harris is hosting Family Friendly Spooky Stories with storyteller John Meredith, who tells tales of Lancashire witches, ghosts and ghouls pitched for all ages. The 30-minute session takes place in the Reading Room and tickets are listed at £5. Book spooky stories at The Harris.
The Harris is in the city centre, so it’s easy to combine with lunch and some of the other things to do in Preston.
Zombies at Preston Markets
Date: Saturday 31 October 2026
On Halloween morning, a roaming troupe of friendly zombies will be dancing and entertaining shoppers around Preston Markets on Earl Street, with appearances at 11am, 12pm and 1pm (40 minutes each). It’s a free event. See the details on Visit Lancashire.
Pumpkin picking near Preston
If you’d rather pick your own pumpkin, several farms near Preston are open this week, including Clarks Family Farm in Woodplumpton (28–31 October, 10am–4pm, free entry, pay for the pumpkins you pick) and Bowland Country Park in Chipping (sessions up to 29 October, £5 including one pumpkin). Visit Preston has a full list of pumpkin patches in and near Preston.
Ghost tours and haunted history near Preston
Ghost tours at Hoghton Tower
Dates: Friday 30 October and Saturday 31 October 2026
For an adults-only Halloween evening, Hoghton Tower, which describes itself as “reputedly the third most haunted house in Britain”, runs ghost tours led by silent torchbearers through its darkened halls and underground passages, with stories of ghostly happenings from across the centuries. The evening begins with a two-course meal of meat and potato pie or a vegetarian butter pie, followed by sticky toffee pudding.
Doors open at 5.30pm, food is served at 6pm and the tour is expected to finish by 9pm. Tickets are listed at £40. The tour isn’t suitable for under-16s, at least one member of each party must be over 21, and the house is cold at this time of year, so wear warm clothing and sensible shoes. The tours raise funds for the Hoghton Tower Preservation Trust.
Book Friday’s ghost tour or the Halloween ghost tour on Saturday. Further dates on 6 and 22 November are listed on Visit Lancashire.
Explore Samlesbury Hall after dark
Date: 30 October 2026
If you prefer your Halloween activities with a more atmospheric edge, Samlesbury Hall is also advertising Halloween torchlight tours on 30 October.
Exploring a historic building after dark by torchlight offers a different experience from the daytime pumpkin festivities. It’s an option to consider for adults, older children and anyone fascinated by haunted places and local history.
The 60-minute guided tour takes in the Great Hall, the Chapel, the Long Gallery and the Priest’s Room, with stories of the hall’s former (and, the hall suggests, possibly current) inhabitants. Samlesbury Hall says the tour is suitable for everyone, with no effects or scares. Tickets are listed at £22 plus a booking fee per person. Bring your own hand torch (not a phone light), dress warmly, and be aware that the tour includes staircases.
The organiser lists the event between 6pm and 11.30pm, so check tour times and ticket availability before travelling. You can find out more here.
Halloween train at the West Lancashire Light Railway
Date: Saturday 31 October 2026
A short drive from Preston at Hesketh Bank, the volunteer-run West Lancashire Light Railway is running Halloween evening trains at 5pm, 5.30pm, 6pm and 6.30pm. The railway describes them as “scary fun for all the family”, suitable for all ages, and booking is essential. See the West Lancashire Light Railway’s special events.
Halloween nights out in Preston city centre
If you’re celebrating with friends, Chew’s Yard on Market Street West is holding a Halloween Emo Music Bingo on Friday 30 October (7pm–9pm, £5 per card, cash, booking by email), followed by an emo music disco from 9pm. Fancy dress is encouraged. Find out more about Halloween Emo Music Bingo.
For more Halloween parties and live music across the city this week, Blog Preston has a what’s on guide for the week of 26 October, and our guide to Preston’s nightlife has more ideas.
Planning your Halloween in Preston
- Book ahead. Many Halloween events have limited places or timed slots, and some sessions sell out before the day.
- Check age guidance. Hoghton Tower’s ghost tours are for over-16s only, while Samlesbury Hall’s torchlight tours and the Brockholes, Dobbies and railway events are aimed at families.
- Dress for the weather. Outdoor trails, evening train rides and historic houses can be cold in late October, so bring warm layers and sturdy footwear.
- Allow travel time. Brockholes is just off Junction 31 of the M6, and Samlesbury Hall and Hoghton Tower are a short drive east of the city, so plan your route if you’re combining events.
- Support local charities. Several events raise money for the venues themselves, including the Hoghton Tower Preservation Trust and the Samlesbury Hall Charitable Trust.
If you’re visiting Preston for Halloween, staying in the city centre at No.10 Preston puts you close to The Harris, Preston Markets and the city’s bars and restaurants, with Brockholes, Samlesbury Hall and Hoghton Tower a short drive away. We offer luxury and boutique accommodation for solo travellers, couples, families and groups, so you can relax and unwind in peace. Why not take a look at what we can offer today?