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Going Out Not Your Thing? Here Are 5 Things You Can Do Instead, This Halloween

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The opinions expressed in this article are the writer’s own and do not reflect the views of Her Campus.
This article is written by a student writer from the Her Campus at Cal Poly chapter.

It’s that time of the year where everyone begins ordering and planning costumes months ahead of time like their lives depend on it. But, guess what?! If going out all night and partying ‘til the sun comes up on Halloween isn’t your thing, you’re not alone. In no particular order, find an activity to occupy yourself with on the spookiest night of the year!

  1. Bake and Decorate Halloween Themed Cookies

Oh, how I love baking a sweet treat for the day. All is truly right in the world after you take a bite out of a homemade sugar cookie! After making homemade cookie dough or buying it from your local Trader Joe’s, shape the cookies into ghost-like or monster figures, pop them into the oven and prepare the icing as you wait. Once you have decorated your devilishly-delicious cookies to your liking, they will be irresistible–like blood to vampires. Enjoy them while watching a movie or bring one – or five – with you on a stroll through your neighborhood, while on a sugar high watching all the trick-or-treaters go door-to-door, wishing you were that young again.  

  1. Walk Through a Haunted House 

For the people who enjoy the thrill of getting scared or those who would dare step outside of their comfort zone for the night, I suggest you visit two of San Luis Obispo (SLO) County’s largest haunted houses – The Haunt in Atascadero and Nightmare From Main Street in Paso Robles. While this activity requires one to leave the comfort of their own home, the immersive experiences only last for 45 minutes to an hour. To end the night, you can ease your nerves with the Halloween themed cookies you baked earlier. (Go check out the San Luis Obispo Tribune’s article regarding these two scream factories, where they sent two Tribune reporters through both haunted houses!) 

  1. Paint Halloween Drink Glasses

Calling everyone with any sort of creative abilities; if you are like my household and have all sorts of paints laying around and no idea what to paint, look no further! Whether you’re a mocktail or cocktail enthusiast, this art-filled evening is just for you. With just the right items – a few paints or paint markers, paint brushes and drink glasses or shot glasses – you can spend the night creating all sorts of boo-tiful designs. Pinterest and TikTok are great places to search for painting ideas. Pick one or multiple designs and throw on a movie while you’re creating your masterpieces. When it’s all said and done, let your creations dry and find some delicious drink recipes to fill them with (I highly recommend checking out The G&M Kitchen Practical Magic Midnight Margarita Recipe!)

  1. Dress up and Pass out Halloween Candy

No need to plan a costume months in advance, this idea requires no such thing, just a quick run to your local target. Grab a Halloween pajama onesie or some cat ears, along with a pack of Halloween candy to pass out to neighborhood trick-or-treaters later that evening. Maybe don’t wait too long to buy these items or else the crowds at the store certainly will scare you! While the trick-or-treaters will appreciate your costume, you may also appreciate how comfy they are while laying on the couch eating your own Halloween treats. 

  1. Host a Movie Night 

Cast a spell to summon your coven (girl group) and invite them over for a movie night full of tears and fears. To ease yourself into the film frights of the night, start off with a Disney Halloween movie like Girl vs. Monster, to unearth the nostalgia of your youth. At this point, follow it up by watching Scary Movie, something to help you laugh at the characters when you forget how to later. Later on, after you’ve laughed all you can, watch Scream to make sure you know Randy’s rules of how horror movies proceed. Now, after you’ve built up your courage, turn on It or something equally horrifying. In order to conclude the night and ensure that you don’t have nightmares, turn on Practical Magic, for a flick about wholesome family magic. Once the clock strikes midnight, pour yourself a large glass of a midnight margarita as a reward for surviving the thrilling movie night and dance around the kitchen!

So, you mean you don’t want to spend your night, one of the busiest nights in SLO, walking from frat to frat, witnessing the SLO Police Department hand out a variety of citations; meanwhile you’ve lost half your costume jumping up and down in the sea of sweaty, frat attendees? Huh, me neither. While it would be frightening to witness the latter, staying in sounds a lot sweeter. I hope you found at least one activity that is worthy of your spook-tacular time this Halloween. Be safe and have fun witches!

Bella Cox

Cal Poly '26

Bella Cox is a third-year student at Cal Poly, majoring in Journalism. She is currently involved in Her Campus as a writer on the editorial team. Beyond her academic pursuits, she finds joy in exploring new places, immersing herself in literature, volunteering within her community, and journaling about life. She is eager to pursue a career where she can share her writing with as many people as possible, and maybe even travel while doing so!