[Spanishtulip]

I was curious about how people feel about ToTing outside of your neighbourhood.

We live out in the country so my husband and I always take our son into a subdivision in the city to ToT. We usually go with friends who have kids and make a night of it.

So what do you think? Do you appreciate people coming out to your neighbourhood or wish it was just your actual neighbours?

 

[Madame Leota]

We have kids that come from all over and I love it! If we only got neighbors kids we'd be done in about ten minutes. Where's the fun in that?

 

[Garden State Ghoul]

I don't live in the neighborhood I haunt in, so it would be hypocritical of me to only want the neighbors to come see our haunt. Besides I wouldn't know who is and isn't from the neighborhood. I just see it as more people to scare and more fun to be had.

 

[Stochey]

The more the merrier, and I sort've judge people for not wanting to include kids from other neighborhoods... that seems really cold hearted. If you run out of candy and don't want to buy more, just turn off the lights and pretend your not home.

 

[Jenn&MattFromPA]

Yep, we feel like the more the merrier too! Although we like seeing our neighbors & kids that we know, we only know a small portion of our street, let alone the whole neighborhood. We wouldn't really have any idea if you weren't from around here unless you told us or unless we saw you get off a tour bus or something. LOL! If you are in a costume and/or seem like you enjoy our decorations, we're happy to have you & don't care where you come from.

 

[Therewolf]

This is a touchy subject among many people, and as host of many Trick-or-Treaters I see both sides. I do a large display and enjoy having as many people as possible enjoy all my work, so bring everyone on by. However, I am also buying bags and boxes of candy and snacks, I live in a single entrance sub division, and on Halloween night the streets become one way because of all the parked cars of all the "visitors". I have run out of candy two years in row despite stocking up with more than before. I kept my kids in my neighborhood when they were little, I don't want to be spending all my money feeding everyone that likes my neighborhood, but does not live in it. I guess if you have no where else to go then come on by, especially if you have friends or family that are my neighbors. But if you are just out trolling for a "better take" than what you get in your neighborhood... GO HOME!

 

[boo who?]

I've had over 200 TOTs when our rural neighborhood only has about 30 kids at most. Most years we get around 80-100 and that's just perfect in my eyes.

 

[kakugori]

We had people drive 3 hours to us one year - a young couple who had grown up here bringing their kids. I don't care where you come from. It's not like there's a lot of children in our neighborhood anyway. So many of the people we get come to see what we're doing, not just for the candy. And lots of adults! Just checking out the haunt.

I do think you ought to do what TOTing you can within your own neighborhoods, keeping up tradition and all that, but by all means go out and find the locals who love Halloween and decorate, put on a haunt, etc. Halloween is the last real community holiday we have.

 

[moony_1]

Yep we go among our neighborhood but we go as far as my kids legs (and arms doing the carrying) will take them! There is a big stret h of houses that don'tdo anything. We had over 200 kids last year. I don't see a problem with rural kids coming in to ToT...where else should they go? They shouldn't have to miss halloween due to geography. That's lame to exclude on geography to me. It is halloween after all! The night made for giving candy away to youngsters! That said...we definitely have to give not as much now with over 200 than when we were only getting about 50 kids. And that sucks to not be able to give as much. That is my only downfall

 

[UnOrthodOx]

We get plenty of people 'bussed' in from out of neighborhood, and I enjoy it quite a bit. Been doing it long enough I've started getting Grand-tots (my tots have grown up, moved out, and are bringing their own tots back to the house...).

 

[Ugly Joe]

Bring 'em in.
All of them.
Just drive very, very slow.
It's really crowded.
My halloween nights usually see around 800 or more kids.
With adults along to supervise.

Out of your neighborhood? Then stop in mine.
I've had people from over 20 miles away come by.
Love asking people where they're from.

 

[dbruner]

I don't care where the ToTs come from as long as they come!!

 

[Hallow Girl]

I wouldn't care at all how many people came and from where. I love that people are in the spirit and I would enjoy seeing their costumes. Perhaps, people come from different areas because their is no one who celebrates it. Why wouldn't anyone want to go somewhere where they can see all the great decorations/ haunts and other ToTers. The more the merrier!! Of you don't like people coming from other areas then don't open your door to anyone. Just stay inside and be grumpy.

 

[SpookyBlackKat]

I always had to ToT in other neighborhoods growing up because we lived out in the sticks. As long as they don't park in our yard, I love it. We've had to ask someone to move their car one year because lots of people were parking in the street and ToTs could not get to the front of our haunt. I see it as a compliment that they picked our neighborhood to come to. We have lots of competition so every decision to come here makes me work harder the next year!

 

[moony_1]

Ugly Joe 800!?!?! What do you hand out? I couldn't aggord to have that many tota come to my door! wish I could!

 

[LadyMage]

As a young kid I lived in an area that was surrounded by far flung cottages that were shuttered largely by October. In order to hit 20 occupied houses my sister and I would have to walk several kilometers. So my parents took us to a neighborhood in town where we could get a reasonable number of houses in a reasonable walk, a neighborhood where we had friends, because what makes halloween more fun than experiencing it with friends? I can't begrudge the kids from other neighborhoods who come here, but honestly we don't get many TOTers, because while my house is lit up and awesome, my neighbors don't participate, so this whole side of the block is dark, but me. Most of this neighborhood is in transition, very few families, mostly empty nesters and elderly. I'm starting to see it turn around but it hasn't touched this side of my block just yet.

 

[FeistierErmine]

As someone who has just started stepping up my haunt game in the last couple years I'm all for ToTers coming from other neighborhoods. Just last year I had my first parent say that they had driven by the house a few days before with their kids, and the little ones insisted that they come back to see the display on Halloween. I'd gladly buy candy for 100 of those, than for the usual 5 or 6 non-costumed, surly high school kids I used to get a few years back.

 

[jdubbya]

We normally get around 600 TOT's and most of them are from other hoods. I also know that most of them would not have TOT if they just went in their own streets, that is to say their own neighborhoods are either unsafe or the residents don't give a damn about Halloween (or much else for that matter). I love to see throngs of kids, even teens, from other neighborhoods and we give them a great Halloween experience. Many of their parents thank us for putting on our haunt and they come back year to year. We don't care that many of them aren't in costume. They just enjoy coming to a safe neighborhood and allowing their kids to have some fun. A couple pics from last year. The line stretched four houses down from ours!

 

[Ugly Joe]

Ugly Joe 800!?!?! What do you hand out? I couldn't aggord to have that many tota come to my door! wish I could!

Uhhmmm...don't tell anyone, but I pick up clearance candy during the course of the year after holidays (non-chocolate types, which store much better than chocolate). So, there will be some lucky ToT'ers who receive St. Valentine or Easter candy...perhaps some Christmas even.

I always test from each batch (oh, the suffering! Forced to eat candy) to make sure it's okay, and have only had one or two bags (ever) that didn't meet my taste test - didn't taste quite right, so into the trash instead of taking a chance.

Right before Halloween (actually starting September, so it'll be soon), I'll start buying chocolate candy that's on sale, and building the stockpile.
So, at Halloween, I have a good amount of pretty good candy to hand out to lots of people.

 

[Impy]

I don't care where the ToTs come from as long as they come!!

^ This is how I feel. Last year we didn't get anyone at all and it was the worst Halloween ever, including the time I fell down the stairs as I was running around doing last minute prep and basically couldn't move for the next week.