The Ankeny Brief

Seasonal guide · Halloween 2026

Halloween in Ankeny: trick-or-treat hours, the Uptown trunk-or-treat, decorated houses, and the haunts worth the drive.

Every October the same questions land in our inbox: what night is trick-or-treat, where are the good decorated houses, and which haunted house is actually worth the drive? Here is Halloween in Ankeny for 2026, every date checked against the organizer, in one place. We update it as new events post through the month.

The quick answer

Trick-or-treat is Saturday, Oct. 31, 6 to 8 p.m. Halloween in Uptown already ran Oct. 8, but the last two weeks bring trunk-or-treats at Ankeny Christian Church (Wed Oct. 21) and Ankeny High (Thu Oct. 22), Hy-Vee (Sat Oct. 24) and two on Sun Oct. 25, plus Trick or Treat in The District on Fri Oct. 30. Fright Lights glow in Uptown every evening all month. For real scares, Linn's and The Slaughterhouse are 15 to 20 minutes south in Des Moines.

Mark the calendar

Ankeny's Halloween dates for 2026

Oct 1-31
Fright Lights in Uptown Free
Halloween light displays across Uptown's historic blocks, every evening all month. Walk it, bike it or drive it. Spooky, not scary, so bring the little ones, then grab dinner in Uptown. Uptown Ankeny
Thu Oct 22
Witches Night Out
3:30 to 8 p.m. A Halloween shopping night hosted by the Ankeny Area Chamber: hop between local businesses for shopping, Halloween activities, raffles and a costume contest.
Wed Oct 21
Trunk or Treat at Ankeny Christian Church Kids
6:30 to 7:30 p.m., 2506 SW 3rd St, hosted with Ankeny Christian Childcare: candy, pizza, local small businesses and a vote for your favorite trunk.
Thu Oct 22
Trunk or Treat at Ankeny High Kids
6 to 7:30 p.m., 1155 SW Cherry St. Built so kids of all abilities can join in, with sensory wristbands, two lines and the Sweet Swirls food truck.
Sat Oct 24
Kids Club Trick-or-Treat at Hy-Vee Free
10 a.m. to 1 p.m. at the Hy-Vee at 410 N Ankeny Blvd.
Sat Oct 24
Pumpkins & Pints
5 to 9 p.m. at the Ankeny Market & Pavilion, 715 W 1st St: an evening market with pumpkins from the Ankeny Historical Society, books from Rotary and seasonal beer from Uptown Garage. Uptown Ankeny
Sun Oct 25
Trunk or Treat at Ankeny United Church of Christ Free
1 to 3 p.m., 602 SE Delaware Ave. All welcome.
Sun Oct 25
Westwood Elementary PTO Trunk or Treat
3 to 4:30 p.m., 2920 NW 9th St, mainly for Westwood families.
Fri Oct 30
Trick or Treat in The District Kids
4 to 7 p.m. at The District at Prairie Trail. The District
Sat Oct 31
Trick-or-treat night Kids
6 to 8 p.m. citywide. Porch light on means trick-or-treaters are welcome. And yes, kids here tell a joke before they get the candy: here's why.
Decorated houses

Where are the best-decorated Halloween houses?

The biggest list is FrightMaps, where homeowners register their own displays. It shows around 40 Ankeny homes, from yard graveyards to full garage haunts, with a map (FrightMaps: Ankeny). The catch: listings don't say whether a house is decorating this year, and some carry over from past seasons. So treat it as a route to try, not a promise, and look for the lit-up yards as you go. The best nights are the last weekend of October, when most displays are fully up.

Two more lists fill in through the month. The Des Moines Register is taking nominations for the best-decorated Halloween homes in central Iowa, your own or one you've spotted (the Register's call for nominations). Des Moines Parent keeps a reader-submitted list of metro yard displays (desmoinesparent.com; check the year at the top).

Decorating in Ankeny this year? Email your address and a line about the display to hello@theankenybrief.com. We'll add confirmed 2026 houses to this page and share the best ones in the Monday email. We only list a home with the owner's OK.

For the kids

Halloween with little ones

Start with one of the trunk-or-treats listed above and a stroll through Fright Lights. For a bigger day, Adventureland's Phantom Fall Fest in Altoona (about 20 minutes) runs weekends Sept. 26 through Oct. 31, with a daytime trick-or-treat trail, bubble dance parties and pumpkin painting from noon to 6 p.m. before the haunts open at night (Adventureland). And the pumpkin patches and corn mazes are at their best right now.

For teens & adults

Haunted houses near Ankeny, 2026

These are genuinely scary and built for teens and adults. Nights and prices below are for 2026; most sell tickets online, and buying ahead shortens the line.

~15 min
Linn's Haunted House
Basement of Linn's Supermarket, 3805 6th Ave, Des Moines. A longtime pitch-black, crawl-through classic. Select nights Oct 2 to 31 from 7 p.m.; $25 at the door, cash preferred. Full schedule
~20 min
The Slaughterhouse
500 Locust St, downtown Des Moines. The metro's big walk-through, running select nights Sept 25 through Nov 1. Nights & tickets
~20 min
Sleepy Hollow Scream Park
4051 Dean Ave, Des Moines. 10-plus haunted attractions on one site. Weekends Oct 3 through Nov 1. Tickets
~20 min
Phantom Fall Fest after dark
Adventureland, Altoona. From 6 p.m. on fall weekends: five haunted houses, four scare zones and select night rides. Adventureland
~20 min
The Docks
97 Indiana Ave, Des Moines. Fridays and Saturdays Oct 9 through 31, 7:30 to 11 p.m., $25.
~30 min
Haunted Woods
1478 Gateway Dr, Carlisle. An outdoor trail, this year "The Mare Witch 5." Opens Oct 2, Fridays through Sundays plus Halloween and Nov 1; $20, cash only. Haunted Woods
~25 min
Tunnel of Terror
Tommy's Express car wash, 645 S 60th St, West Des Moines. A haunted ride through the wash from the safety of your car. Oct 23-24 and 30-31, 7 to 9:30 p.m.; $21.40 in advance, $25 at the wash.
Grown-ups' night out

The haunted trolley from Whiskey River

Leave the driving to someone else: The Haunted Trolley Tour by Charters on Vine picks up at Whiskey River in Ankeny and runs 6:30 to 11:30 p.m. on Oct 2, 3, 9, 10, 16, 17, 23, 24, 29 and 30. It's 21+ only, $80 a person, and drinks are allowed on board (Charters on Vine).

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Quick answers

Halloween in Ankeny: FAQ

When is trick-or-treat in Ankeny in 2026?

Saturday, Oct. 31, from 6 to 8 p.m. Ankeny moved trick-or-treating from Beggars' Night (Oct. 30) to Halloween night starting in 2025. Turn your porch light on if trick-or-treaters are welcome.

When is Halloween in Uptown Ankeny?

Thursday, Oct. 8, 2026, from 4 to 8 p.m. It is free: four blocks of trunk-or-treating on SW 3rd Street, a DJ, rides on the Uptown Express, and a costume contest with check-in from 4 to 6 p.m.

Are there haunted houses near Ankeny?

Yes. Linn's Haunted House and The Slaughterhouse in Des Moines are about 15 to 20 minutes away, with Sleepy Hollow Scream Park, Adventureland's Phantom Fall Fest in Altoona, and Haunted Woods in Carlisle a little farther. Most run Friday and Saturday nights in October.

Where can I see Halloween decorations in Ankeny?

Uptown Ankeny's Fright Lights light up the historic district every evening Oct. 1 to 31, free. For decorated homes, FrightMaps lists about 40 Ankeny houses registered by their owners, though listings don't confirm the current year; the Des Moines Register and Des Moines Parent also collect nominations each October.

Is there a kid-friendly Halloween event in Ankeny?

Halloween in Uptown on Oct. 8 is built for kids, and Fright Lights is spooky but not scary. Adventureland's Phantom Fall Fest runs a daytime trick-or-treat trail from noon to 6 p.m. on fall weekends before the haunts open at night.

More for the season: pumpkin patches & corn mazes · Ankeny holidays & the joke-for-candy tradition · what's on this week · events calendar

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Sources: Des Moines Parent (2026 metro trick-or-treat hours; 2026 trunk-or-treat list); Travel Iowa (Halloween In Uptown, Oct. 8, 2026, and Fright Lights, Oct. 1-31, 2026); Uptown Ankeny; Linn's Haunted House; Charters on Vine (Haunted Trolley Tour); Adventureland and Amusement Today (Phantom Fall Fest 2026); Haunted Woods (2026 opening and admission); Des Moines Haunted Houses 2026 list, updated Sept. 28, 2026 (The Docks, The Slaughterhouse, Sleepy Hollow and Tunnel of Terror nights and prices); the Des Moines Register via Yahoo (decorated-house nominations; central Iowa Halloween calendar, Sept. 22, 2026, for Witches Night Out); FrightMaps (homeowner-registered Ankeny displays). Dates, hours and prices can change; confirm with each event before you go. Updated September 2026.
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