This October, High Street Kensington will once again claim its crown as London’s Home of Halloween, when the streets come alive with playful oddities, including googly eyes, twisted trees, curious characters and a crazily peculiar take-over of Holland Park.
Throughout half term week (24-31st October), visitors will be able to follow a mapped Halloween trail in and around the destination’s shops with the opportunity to take in some strange sights, workshops and treats. Then, on All Hallows’ Eve from 4-7pm, Holland Park will transform into the Playful Park of Peculiar, a theatrical playground filled with monochrome characters, surreal and spooky installations, interactive games and quirky entertainment. Don’t miss our guide how to spend a day in High Street Kensington here.
Providing a ready-made backdrop for the perfect Halloween insta-shoot, behind its swirling gates, visitors will encounter proper other worldliness at the new and must-see event. There’s the chance to cast spells with a talking frog, take a spin on the Turntable Trick-or-Treat game and join the Day of the Dead inspired Skeleton Serenade parade – complete with a 9ft dancing skeleton puppet and magical mariachi band. Jugglers and magicians, glow-in-the-dark hula hooping, a mad bubble professor, plus songs and stories from Wolfman and his band, the Howling Stones – are just some of the madcap and macabre characters in twilight programme.
Beyond Holland Park, visitors can enjoy a Halloween themed dog parade, refuel with a delightfully spooky afternoon tea and experience the best trick or treating in town – with the destination’s houses famed for their legendary Halloween makeovers.
Halloween at Leighton House 25th October
There will be a touch of the Victorian super-sleuth Sherlock Holmes adding to the Halloween goings-on at Leighton House, the former home of Victorian artist Frederic, Lord Leighton this half term. On 25th October, children and their adults will work together to discover who stole Leighton’s painting, in an actor-led interactive crime mystery puzzle. There are two bookable slots at 11:00am and 2.30pm with tickets £5pp including free museum entry for one accompanying adult.
Running in tandem, the exhibition Ghost Objects: Summoning Leighton’s Lost Collection (on until 1 March 2026) will feature striking life-size paper replicas of four original objects once owned by Leighton, reimagined by acclaimed artist Annemarieke Kloosterhof (who has worked on the Bridgerton television series as well as for Hermès, Bottega Veneta). For more information: https://www.rbkc.gov.uk/museums/100-years-leighton-house
The Great Kensington Dog Parade – 31st October
Kensington is set to go barking mad this Halloween as Independent design boutique Fable & Mirth hosts its inaugural Great Kensington Dog Parade. The paw-sitively delightful costume parade along Kensington Church Walk will see four-legged fashionistas (and their humans) strut in spooky, silly and creative costumes, with proceeds going to Dogs Trust. For more information visit https://www.instagram.com/fableandmirth
Hair-raising Halloween Discovery Days in Hyde Park 28-30th October
Quirky half-term fun for families will take place at Hyde Park’s Hair-raising Halloween Discovery Days (28-30th October from 11-3pm). Combining nature with spooky goings on, highlights include ‘feely boxes’ in the Witches’ Den, a nature trail, bat discovery sessions and ghostly stories throughout the day. The activities are free but must be pre-booked. For more information https://www.royalparks.org.uk/whats-on
Design Museum
Halloween in Kensington wouldn’t be complete without a dose of creativity from the team at the Design Museum. Throughout half term, there will be some family-friendly activities where children can conjure up their own curious creations, plus a smattering of other Halloween pop-ups (from staff dress-up, to themed café treats, some amazing carved pumpkins on display in and around the grounds, and spooky shopping opportunities). Open until 8pm on 31st October, visitors will also get the chance to see another type of costume at the special late night viewing of the museum’s latest exhibition, Blitz: the club that shaped the 80s. Running until March 2026, it tells the story of the famous 1980s club and scene that launched the music and theatrical look of the new romantics and beyond. For more information https://designmuseum.org/
For more information on the full Halloween lineup, visit: https://highstreetkensington.co.uk
