It is Thursday, October 22 on the Hudson Beach FL coast, and Halloween week has officially begun. Halloween lands on a Saturday this year, which means a full week of trunk-or-treats, glow trails, block parties, and pumpkin patch weekends across Pasco County, plus some of the best fall paddling and fishing of the season in Hudson, Florida. Here is your warm-weather Halloween week guide from Kathleen Paglaiccetti.
This Weekend: Fourth Friday & a New Trunk-or-Treat at Sims Park
The fun kicks off Friday, October 23 with the Fourth Friday Block Party in downtown New Port Richey, running from 6 to 10 PM. Local artisans and makers set up along Main Street, food vendors line the riverfront, and live music keeps the whole evening moving. It is the best people-watching night of the month on the Pasco County coast, and it is a short drive from Hudson Beach FL. Plan to arrive a little early, parking along Main Street fills fast on Fourth Friday evenings.
Saturday, October 24 brings a brand-new family favorite: Pasco Street Culture's Trunk or Treat at Pack the Park, from 10 AM to 3 PM at Sims Park in New Port Richey. It pairs a car show with trunk-or-treating, pumpkin painting, and a dog costume contest, all in one riverside park, and it costs nothing to stroll through. Our friends at the Tampa Bay Beacons Pasco events roundup have the day-by-day details as the week shakes out.
That same evening, the Little Spookies Glow Trail & Patch lights up the grounds at A.F.I.R.E. on Ridge Road in Port Richey at 6:30 PM. Families walk a glow-lit trail, pick pumpkins, and enjoy the kind of spooky-but-sweet atmosphere made for little kids. It sells out some years, so if you plan to go, grab a spot early in the week.
Pumpkin Patch Weekends: Funville Farm
If you have not made it out yet, Funville Farm's 2026 Fall Festival at 13725 Hudson Ave in Hudson runs every Saturday and Sunday from 10 AM to 6 PM through November 1, with its final festival weekend on October 31 and November 1. The $12 admission (ages 2 and under free) covers the pick-your-own pumpkin patch, hayrides, the petting zoo, gem mining, the giant jumping pillow, mountain slides, and the barrel trains. In other words, it is a full day of family fun for the price of a movie ticket, and the last two weekends always have the best-picked pumpkins left. Their site posts the weekly details.
For a quicker stop, the farm stands along US-19 and State Road 52 in Pasco County, including the ones from our fall farm stands guide, are loaded with pumpkins, gourds, and mums right now. Pick your carving pumpkins this week and let them season on the porch before next Saturday.
Halloween Week: October 29-31 Across Pasco County
The week of the 29th is when the calendar fills up. On Thursday, October 29, Fall Sip or Treat turns downtown New Port Richey into a riverside wine-tasting stroll from 5 to 9 PM, an evening made for grown-ups who still want a little Halloween fun. Tickets are modest and the participating shops pour seasonal pours, so it sells out most years.
On Halloween Saturday, October 31, the kids take over downtown New Port Richey with Trick or Treat Downtown starting at 5 PM along Main Street, a safe, well-lit stretch of shops and restaurants passing out candy early so the littlest ghosts and goblins can be home before dark. Back in Hudson, Florida, Castriota Chevrolet's annual Trunk or Treat and Fall Food Truck Festival is the local favorite for Halloween evening, with decorated cars, costumes, and food trucks in the dealership lot. Confirm this year's hours with Castriota before you head out, they post details the week of the holiday. And for the skate crowd, the Boo Bash Halloween Sk8 Party at the Port Richey rink on Halloween afternoon keeps the all-ages fun rolling; the events page has the full rundown as details confirm.
One more tip for Halloween night: because the holiday lands on Saturday, many of the Hudson Beach FL canal neighborhoods turn out in force. The canals make for wonderfully walkable loops with water on both sides, so expect good candy and lots of decorated docks. It is one of the friendliest nights of the year along the Pasco County coast.
Trick-or-Treating Tips for the Coastal Neighborhoods
Halloween in a coastal community has a few quirks worth planning for. Sunset comes early this time of year, so map your route before evening, start in the neighborhoods closest to home, and be done by 8 PM. Flashlights or glow sticks are non-negotiable on narrow streets where boats and trailers park along the edge of the road. A battery-powered tealight inside a carved pumpkin beats a candle in the wind off the water, and it is safer on a dry lawn. Mosquito repellent is worth it even late in October, the Gulf coast evenings still hold a few biters after a warm day.
Keep candy expectations simple: chocolate can melt in the humidity, so gummies and hard candy travel best in a bucket. If you are handing out treats, set a chair near the end of the driveway and enjoy the show, the canal neighborhoods float their decorations and the decorated docks are genuinely worth a walk. And if you bring the dog out, skip the costume and bring a leash, loud ghosts are not every pup's favorite.
Fall Paddling, Fishing & the Weekend Beach Check
Between the Halloween festivities, the water on the Hudson Beach FL coast is putting on its best fall showing. The Gulf has slid into the mid-70s, the mornings have gone glassy, and fall is the season when paddleboarders get the calmest water of the year along Pasco County's shoreline. Launch from SunWest Park or Hudson Beach for a sunrise paddle, you will have the water nearly to yourself, and the chance of spotting dolphins working the shallows goes up as the crowds thin out.
The fishing has not let up either. Our late October fishing report has redfish schooling on the hard-bottom points, snook crushing topwater in the creek mouths, trout moving shallow, and the Spanish mackerel run building offshore. Stone crab season is in week two in Hudson, Florida, and the markets, including Seafood Connection FL and Whitney & Son, are the place to order claws for a Halloween party. The jumbo orders go fast in the first few weeks, so call ahead.
Before any beach walk this weekend, do the thirty-second check locals swear by: the Florida Healthy Beaches program posts the latest water quality ratings for Pasco County, and the FWC updates its red tide map daily at 5 PM. As of this week, the Hudson Beach FL shoreline is clean, the water is clear, and the mid-70s Gulf is crisp enough to make a fire pit on the beach feel like a real luxury after dark.
After Halloween: What Comes Next
The season does not end with the jack-o-lanterns. The Tarpon Springs Seafood Festival returns to the Sponge Docks on November 7-8, Veterans Day arrives November 11, and the Florida Senior Games bring athletes from across the region to Pasco County venues. Veteran's Day is a cause close to my heart, and if you or a veteran in your family is thinking about a move along the Hudson Beach FL coast, I would be honored to help.
Arrive early downtown. The Fourth Friday Block Party and Fall Sip or Treat both fill the New Port Richey waterfront fast. Grab parking before 6 PM on the 23rd and before 5 PM on the 29th, and you will have your pick of spots.
Order stone crab for the party now. Week two of the season still has jumbo claws available at the Hudson, Florida markets, but they go fast. Call Seafood Connection FL or Whitney & Son this week and reserve your order for Halloween weekend.
Paddle before the party. Late-October mornings are the calmest of the year on Pasco County waters. A sunrise paddle on the 24th or 31st, a shower, and then the evening festivities is the perfect Gulf coast Halloween rhythm.
The Bottom Line: Halloween week 2026 is stacked on the Hudson Beach FL coast. Fourth Friday kicks things off October 23, the Pack the Park trunk-or-treat and Little Spookies glow trail light up October 24, Fall Sip or Treat and Trick or Treat Downtown set the week's pace, and the canal neighborhoods of Hudson, Florida plus Castriota's trunk-or-treat carry Halloween night itself across Pasco County. The water is calm, the claws are fresh, and the pumpkin farms are open. Get out there, wave to a neighbor, and enjoy the coast's friendliest week of the fall.
See you at the pier,
Kathleen
