How To Trick-Or-Treat, Celebrate Halloween Safely In MoCo

ROCKVILLE, MD — Halloween will have a much different feel in 2020 due to the coronavirus pandemic. Trick-or-treating in large groups and hosting parties are against recommendations, but some people have found creative ways to keep the spirit of the annual Oct. 31 holiday.

Trick-or-treating isn't cancelled in Montgomery County, but it's strongly discouraged. And the COVID-19 Local Order does not allow for events or activities of more than 50 people — even if they're held outdoors. To keep with tradition, local officials are getting creative.

Here are some safer ways to celebrate Halloween in Montgomery County:

• Pumpkin Carving Contest
• Drive Through Candy Collection and Car Competition
• Rockville Pumpkin Decorating Contest
• Kentlands Ghost Walk
• Poems Macabre
• Halloween Walk-Thru
• Family Walk & Chalk
• Festival of Pumpkins
• Haunted Hustle Fun Run/Walk
• Pumpkin Harvest Days

Unlike St. Patrick's Day, when the pandemic was just a few days old, Halloween enthusiasts have had time to prepare for different kinds of celebrations this year.

Building a candy chute has been touted as a fast and fairly simple way to ensure trick-or-treaters can get the sweets without contact.

An Arlington, Virginia, woman told the Washington, D.C., ABC affiliate she bought a PVC pipe, had the kids paint it orange and black, decorated it, and attached it to the porch.

Transforming a front yard into a candy graveyard and holding a Halloween egg hunt are among 14 other ideas for low-contact trick-or-treating shared by Fun365, a website that offers party, wedding, and classroom ideas.

Lower-risk activities recommended by the CDC and Montgomery County health officials include carving pumpkins, decorating the house, having a Halloween-themed scavenger hunt, and a virtual costume contest.

"If you may have COVID-19 or you may have been exposed to someone with COVID-19, you should not participate in in-person Halloween festivities and should not give out candy to trick-or-treaters," the CDC states.