Halloween Costumes - Witch Costume

California beach holiday vacations -     Halloween Slide Show
 

Californians love Halloween celebrations. There are several commercial Halloween scare experiences held as special events at California theme parks, there are dozens of reported and unreported ghost hotels and museums and there are hundreds of Halloween festivals, hunts and event celebrations. Halloween is big business in California. From professional costume rentals to parties, party lights, gift cards and candy, if you're not celebrating Halloween, you should at least get out and enjoy it. Those who move to California can be amazed at the celebration's status as a holiday worthy of more attention and planning than most others. The kids rule the evening, but the adults rule the night in this ritual of partying in masquerade costumes.  On the California Events Calendar, we've begun posting celebration events throughout the Golden State. Take time to take a look and send us your event if you like. It should be sent via email to californiatravelnews  (@) yahoo.com.

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OCTOBER

Universal Studios Hollywood Theme Park Halloween Experience with "Halloween Horror Nights" extending over seven nights begins Friday the 13th of October and continue Oct. 14, 20-21, 27-28 and on Halloween, October 31. The "Halloween Horror Nights" experience will be staged as a production by "The Director," a mysterious and demented horror genre auteur who will convert Universal's working studio backlot and the theme park's most popular rides and attractions into terrifyingly realistic settings for an intense and enveloping manifestation of mayhem. Actors and guests will intermingle seamlessly for an immersive experience that will shatter pre-conceptions, transcending notions of horror genre theatrics and "Halloween maze" experiences to take visitors to a state of extreme dread, shock and terror. For the first time in the studio's 93-year history, guests will be able to disembark from studio trams and walk among the historic sets of the Universal backlot, birthplace of the horror genre. The backlot experience-incorporating such Hollywood landmarks as Psycho House and the War of the Worlds disaster scene-will play a central role in "The Director's" Universal Studios Hollywood's "Halloween Horror Nights" production, a scenario that calls for guests to be transported into eerie, darkened sets while subjected to disorienting and unnerving interactive experiences. The event will begin nightly at 7:00 PM. Tickets are available online at www.HalloweenHorrorNights.com and range in price from $34.00 to $39.00 when purchased in advance. For more information on Universal's "Halloween Horror Nights" log on to www.UniversalStudiosHollywood.com or call 818-622-3801.
PETALUMA - Halloween Historic House Tour - Petaluma, California. This fun & spooky tour is held the Sunday before Halloween each year and combines spine tingling old houses with local history. Costumed docents at each location share the real (and Surreal) history and lore about the homes and the past inhabitants. Petaluma is a town that time forgot since it was saved from destruction during the 1906 earthquake. No one knows why Petaluma was able to come through the earthquake
unscathed when all the towns surrounding it were hit with major earthquake damage. Because of this, Petaluma has one of the largest collections of pre-1906 historic homes. Founded in 1858 Petaluma was known for supplying everything the 49ers needed by way of the large schooners that would load up the butter, eggs and other manufactured products and take them by way of the Bay into San Francisco. Besides supplying the material needs of the 49ers, Petaluma was also known for being one of the safe havens for vice in the 1800's. Houses of ill repute plied their trade without any interference from the local
police. Bars lined the streets leading down to the river and served alcohol to thirsty workmen day and night. Eventually the sins of their husbands became too much to bear, and the local Women's Temperance Union forced the closure of the Bawdy houses and bars, but only temporarily. Even today, there are those who claim that the old buildings that housed the ladies of the evening are haunted by ghostly wayward  women still attempting to sell their wares. The Halloween Historic House Tour takes you back to the early days of Petaluma's past and lets you experience an old-fashioned Victorian era Halloween. This tour is perfect for the whole family because it combines history & chills in equal measure. Location: 200 Prospect St., Petaluma, CA Date: Sunday, October 29th, 2006. Time: 6 p.m. to 9 p.m. Cost:$15/ adults or teen; $5/ 12 years and under. (Children & teens must be accompanied by an adult)  www.heritagepetaluma.com/tours/bi_annual_tours.html

October 31

HUNTINGTON BEACH - Halloween on Main includes bounce houses for kids, petting zoo, booths, candy from merchants and a costume contest. Location: Main Street between Pacific Coast Highway and Orange Street. Time: 6 - 9 p.m. www.hbdowntown.com

SANTA CRUZ - Halloween on the Wharf - , Santa Cruz Wharf. Witches, goblins, and ghosts and their parents can enjoy safe and sane trick-or-treating at the Parks and Recreation Department’s Halloween celebration on the wharf. Treats for kids provided at wharf businesses. A costume contest from 4:30 to 5:30 p.m. and a photo booth at the wharf stage are all part of the fun. Call 420-5273 Time: 4  - 6  p.m. Cost: FREE  |