What are the best hours for trick-or-treating on Halloween? The best strategy to receive more candy

Every year, children, and many adults, look forward to getting dressed up for Halloween to celebrate the spookiest of nights. One of the main features of the most ghoulish of festivals is trick-or-treating, which for the younger among us is a chance to secure a stash of candy that will last for several months.

Generally, one can just walk the neighborhood streets and go from door to door and easily find homes whose residents are more than willing to hand out treats, but to ensure that you get the most candy possible you need to have a plan.

What are the best hours for trick-or-treating on Halloween? The best strategy to receive more candy

Two of the first things you will want to consider when getting ready to go out on Halloween is where you are going to do your trick-or-treating and what time you will start. Both of which will have an effect on how much sweet loot you will have at the end of the night.

First off, let’s consider the location you will be targeting. Unless you have somebody ready and willing to haul you from one place to another, you’ll want to narrow your area of trick-or-treating to one neighborhood.

Many recommend finding more a well-heeled neighborhood with the reasoning being that you will have a better opportunity of getting whole candy bars and bigger servings. While on the other hand, others in chat groups claim that while their neighborhood might not be as well-off, the people handing out treats are generous.

However, you may be limited to the neighborhood that you live in. Either way, it’s recommended to do some research. Check out the layout of the streets so that you can set up a route, so you aren’t wasting time backtracking, or wasting time walking long stretches of road with no houses. Also find out which houses are known for giving out the best and most generous treats.

You may want to avoid any houses where dentists live. But you never know, they might be using Halloween to build their clientele list.

Start trick-or-treating early

Once you know which neighborhood you want to go scour for every last treat available, make sure trick-or-treating there takes place on Halloween proper. Some communities organize trick-or-treating when it suits them best.

As well there may be a timetable agreed upon for trick-or-treating in the area where you are planning to go. However, typically trick-or-treating begins after sunset, usually around 5:30 to 6:00 pm, and will run until roughly 9pm or the candy runs out.

Don’t waste time while trick-or-treating

Now comes the next part of the strategy to get the most candy when trick-or-treating, get out early and move fast. Getting going when people just start handing out treats, you’ll have a better shot at the candy givers being more generously, their candy bowls are full after all.

Obviously, by moving fast you will be able to hit more houses. Recommendations are to be polite and friendly, but don’t waste too much time on chitchat. Also don’t bother with ‘tricks’ if there is no candy on offer as pranks take time and you might need to run and hide for a while. Additionally, don’t bother with the houses that have their lights turned off.

Putting effort into your costume can also help you score more treats. Keep it relatable, you don’t want to have to spend time explaining what you are dressed as. You can also coordinate with the others in your trick-or-treating group.

Some cheekier ways to pull in a bigger haul is to have a second or reversible costume so that you can do a second round through the same area. If you have a place to safely stash your haul, you can partially empty out your bag along the way so that people will take pity on your small haul and give you more generous amounts.