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43 Creative Trunk-or-Treat Ideas for Families Who Love to Go All-Out
Small sedan or SUV, these are what the best-dressed cars will be wearing come Halloween.
What's so great about doing a trunk-or-treat event? Well, if you live in an area where houses are spread out, trunk-or-treating makes it easier to have the same kind of trick-or-treat experience in a smaller area. Even better, the cars get to wear costumes, too! People go all out with cool themes, balloons and goodie-bag giveaways to go with them.
If you're looking for some inspiration, these are the best trunk-or-treat ideas for 2023. Many of them are pulled from favorite movies and TV shows, like The Super Mario Bros. Movie, Wednesday, Encanto or Pixar films. Others are more of a mood or a vibe, be it a spooky one or something that's more colorful and cool. And still others like to turn the cars themselves into giant creatures, be they monsters, black cats or dragons. Whichever way you decide to go this year, you're sure to have a well-dressed ride.
And if the effect is only greater if you or your family wears a costume that goes with the theme. To that end, take a look for inspiration for costumes for kids (including costumes for babies, costumes for toddlers and even maternity Halloween costumes that show off those baby bumps), family costumes and group costumes that can be worn to your trunk-or-treat event, too.
Super Mario Bros.
Kids who were thrilled checking out Mario, Luigi, Peach, Toad and Bowser on the big screen this year will get a kick out of this Super Mario Brothers trunk — I mean the Spooky Mario Brothers trunk. (Well, there are ghosts.) For this video game scene, paper lanterns became ghosts and chain chomps and tissue poofs became the bombs.
Flamingo
This setup offers some good advice — if you don't know what to be for Halloween, be a flamingo! Something like this is perfect for a family that doesn't want to do anything ghoulish or scary.
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles
You don't have to re-create the grimy New York City sewers to pay homage to those heroes in a half shell (though you always could — they are frightening). This trunk-or-treat setup took inspiration from the TMNT's love of a pizza and decorated the car to look like a pizzeria (though you can see the sewer-entrance manhole in the left corner).
Up
Kelly Parker of The Craftpreneur made this Up-themed trunk-or-treat setup so vibrant, it looks like it's going to take off from the trunk! And yet, she says it only cost $14 in supplies (even with the lights for nighttime illumination).
After the Barbie movie comes out in July, more Barbie girls are going to be living in Barbie worlds. This prop is great for photos, and it comes in heights of 2 feet to 6 feet, so adults can get in on the act. It also comes with a silver curtain streamer backdrop.
Minecraft
Trunk-or-treat and Minecraft are both all about crafting, so they make for a natural match. This one features DIY pumpkins, TNT and — the pièce de résistance — a life-size creeper. (There's also an Enderman just out of the frame, but you'll see it if you click through to the blog post below.)
Pokémon
When it comes to Halloween candy, "Gotta catch 'em all!" isn't a bad motto. Run with it with a Pokémon-themed trunk. This one features a giant Pokéball made from cardboard.
Star Wars
Crossed lightsabers and a pumpkin carved to look like the Death Star are the focal point of this Star Wars-themed setup, which is perfect for nighttime events. Other touches, like the Millennium Falcon and other ships, are the icing on the cake.
The Addams Family
Try to walk past this trunk without snapping twice. Wednesday fans are encouraged to bring their own "Goo Goo Muck" dance moves.
RELATED: How to Easily Create the Ultimate Wednesday Addams Halloween Costume
The Great Pumpkin
Everyone knows that the truly loyal wait in the pumpkin patch on Halloween, hoping the Great Pumpkin will rise up and give them treats. If your kids can't wait that long, a scene like this is the next best thing.
Hocus Pocus
Okay, who lit the Black Flame Candle? This Hocus Pocus-themed trunk-or-treat setup includes gravestones for some of the movie's favorites characters, along with cauldrons, witch hats, skulls and other spooky items.
Wizard of Oz
Follow the Yellow Brick Road to this re-creation of the Emerald City. The striped socks of the Wicked Witch of the East sticking out from under the bricks is truly a great detail.
Three Little Pigs
Did you make your house with straw, sticks or bricks? (Or, heaven forbid, candy!) A Three Little Pigs theme is the best way to incorporate a trio costume like the ladies of HersheKissis did — just be on the lookout for the Big, Bad Wolf.
Welcome ... to Jurassic Park! While the full Jurassic Park trunk-or-treat decorating kit is currently sold out at Oriental Trading, life finds a way, and you can still buy pieces of it — like raptor cutouts, fake leaves, dinosaur footprints and paper cones and tissue paper to make torches — all individually.
Beetlejuice
There's a lot going on in the afterlife as envisioned by Beetlejuice, which makes for great trunk-or-treat fodder. In this display, black and white tablecloths make for the striped backdrop, and flashing LED globe lights even illuminate the sign at night.
Minions
Everybody say, "Banana!" Evil Minions and good ones gather together in this trunk-or-treat setup, which even has a Minion pumpkin.
Alice in Wonderland
You're invited to a tea party — a mad tea party. This Alice in Wonderland-themed trunk-or-treat is set out for tea with a checkerboard table runner and oversized playing cards.
Friends
We'd recognize that purple door anywhere! This trunk-or-treat Friends tableau is titled "The One Where They Went Trunk-or-Treating," and it comes with the colorful umbrellas featured in the show's opening credits (which is helpful in case of inclement weather).
Toothless
For her "frunk-or-treat" (since Teslas have their trunk in the front), Jen Street of Forged Flare took her inspiration from the How to Train Your Dragon series. She designed the car with a 30' wingspan and a 12' tail, and made it so the headlights give the eyes a green glow. When it's open (which you can see on her Instagram), there are two rows of teeth!
The Sandlot
Wendy of Wendy Kathleen Photography admits that her then-14-year-old beagle, Sasha, stole the spotlight from this Sandlot-themed trunk-or-treat display. Sasha made a perfect Hercules.
Marisa (she/her) has covered all things parenting, from the postpartum period through the empty nest, for Good Housekeeping since 2018; she previously wrote about parents and families at Parents and Working Mother. She lives with her husband and daughter in Brooklyn, where she can be found dominating the audio round at her local bar trivia night or tweeting about movies.
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