Long Island Kids Guide

Now that Halloween is behind us, I can feel a subliminal pressure mounting about the coming Holiday Season. The toy commercials are ramping up, the Toys R Us big book of presents as I call it arrived last Sunday, and I even spotted some tinsel being strewn, but I'm not gonna tell you where. At any rate, in case you hadn't heard, there is one less weekend between Thanksgiving and Christmas this year, meaning once Thanksgiving hits (which is just a few short weeks away), we are pretty much going to be in turbo Holiday mode until January 1st. Take advantage of the calm before the storm this weekend, and check out some of the cool family events going on across the Island:

With all the hullabaloo about Halloween lately, you might have missed another great happening here on Long Island-It's Long Island Restaurant Week. And, aside from giving you an excuse to get out and sample the local flavors and specialties, the restaurants participating are also giving you a chance to save some money. Over 200 venues are taking part in the celebration, and all are offering a 24.95 prix fixe menu. It's your chance to enjoy high end dining at lower end prices.

With Halloween falling on a Saturday, chances are your weekend plans include a day of Holiday festivities and a day of relaxation on Sunday. Or maybe you're looking for ways to stay out of the house and away from all the Halloween candy on Sunday. Whether you're looking for ways to get the most out of Halloween this weekend, or ways to get moving on from it, we've rounded up some of the best on and off the beaten path activities for you on Long Island this weekend:
 

When I was a kid, my fondest memories of Halloween were those I spent trick or treating, where our neighborhood was chock full of kids filling the sidewalks of tree-lined streets that were blocked off from auto-traffic. We’d come home with garbage bags full of candy, open it up and have our parents inspect it, select a few, and put the rest away (my mom told us it was going into the freezer to stay “fresh, and that we could eat a piece of candy a day until next Halloween”- a statement I recently confirmed was a falsehood after years of wondering why we needed more candy in our Easter baskets).

With one weekend left until Halloween, there are lots of great events going on to celebrate. And, before the weather turns cold, there are also some really nice Fall outdoor events for families to check out this weekend. There is still time to go pumpkin picking, and if you're looking for great farms, check out our pumpkin picking post. Or, we recently shared great Halloween events and the best kid friendly Haunted Houses on the island as well. So whether you're looking for more ways to get your "wear" out of those costumes or just looking for ways to get out, we've rounded up some of the best events on Long Island for families this weekend:
 

When it comes to Halloween, there are two kinds of people: you either enjoy scary things, or you don’t. Halloween offers plenty of kid friendly activities having nothing to do with being scared, like trick or treating and pumpkin picking. There is, though, one activity that is synanomous with Halloween: a trip to a Haunted House, and it can be hard to find a haunted house that isn’t scary. One tip we’ve learned is to check the schedules at your favorite Haunted Venue because many offer special showings or tours for the younger kids. With that in mind, we set out to find some of the best Haunted Houses on Long Island, keeping everyone in the family in mind.

Bayville Scream Park, 8 Bayville Avenue, Bayville: They don’t call it a scream park for nothing. This place is more than a Haunted House; Bayville is a Halloween theme park complete with 5 haunted venues, adventure park attractions and miniature golf. Voted Long Island’s #1 Scariest Haunted House, Bayville also offers Kids “not so scary days” on weekends when they clear out the monsters and ghouls from the Haunted Houses and tone down the fright factor. Visit their website for more information. 

Queens County Farm Museum , 73-50 Little Neck Parkway, Floral Park: If you want to keep the scare factor rated “G,” then this is the place for you. With a Haunted house designed for kids ages 4-12, The Queens County Farm also offers a Children’s Fall Festival complete with country music and dancing, farm field games like potatoe sack races and hay rides. Mark your calendars: The Haunted House is open October 24, 25, and 31 and the Children's Fall Festival is one day only, October 25. For more information, click here. 

Wicks Farm and Garden, 445 North Country Road (Rt 25A) St. James: Designed with younger children in mind, Wicks offers a Haunted House that offers eye-catching goblins, witches, and turkeys (yeah, turkeys). All day long, you’ll find the Haunted House at Wicks filled with minimized scare factors and the real bonus is because it is usually not too crowded, you can control the level of fright by simply telling a crew member to tone it down. Plus, Wicks has pumpkins, a feeding farm, pony rides and a bounce house to keep your little ones entertained all day long. Open only on Saturdays and Sundays now-October 31. 

The Haunted Hangars at the Cradle of Aviation Museum, Charles Lindberg Blvd, Garden City: Labeled as "historically haunted" the hangers are decorated and displayed to spook and scare. However, kids can also enjoy the Spooky Carousel, which is decorated for Halloween but isn't scary at all and when they're finished there are Halloween crafts and activities for them to enjoy as well. If you think your kids are up for it, you can receive discounted admission to both the Carousel and the Hangers for $15, while admission to a single attraction is $10. Hours for the Carousel are from 6pm-9pm while the Hangers stay open until 11:00pm. Visit the website for more detailed information.

Haven't picked up your Halloween costumes yet? Lucky for you, there are still plenty of other great activities going on here on Long Island this weekend for you. On the other hand, if you're looking for ways to get the most out of the Halloween costumes you bought or borrowed this year, check out our recent post on great Halloween Events on Long Island or check out our Halloween Guide. And here's our picks for the best events and activities to enjoy this weekend:

Halloween is going commercial. It seems like every place I go and everyone I know is offering a Halloween version of what they do. The museums, the parks, the playspaces: everyone is doing Halloween events right now. With more options than ever before, I set out to find some of the coolest and most unique Halloween activities on Long Island that would be worth a trip from the city or beyond. Some of these sell out so order your tickets soon: