Headed out on Halloween? See 2023 trick-or-treat hours for southwestern Illinois towns

Get out your candy buckets, Halloween is just a few days away — Tuesday, Oct. 31 —and several metro-east towns offer designated trick-or-treating hours.

Leading up to the holiday, there’s no shortage of seasonal fun to be had near Belleville, including pumpkin patches, apple-picking and more.

Here’s what to know about trick-or-treat hours in southwestern Illinois towns, including Belleville, Fairview Heights and more. Plus, we’ve rounded up some tips to make sure your child is prepared to safely participate.

Belleville

Children who are in the eighth grade or younger can trick-or-treat in Belleville between 5 and 8:30 p.m. Halloween night.

The age limit does not apply to children with developmental disabilities who are accompanied by a parent, guardian or other responsible person.

O’Fallon

Trick-or-treaters can go door-to-door from 6 to 9 p.m. Tuesday in O’Fallon. Candy-seekers should only visit homes or residences that are well-lit and should pass by buildings that don’t have their lights on, city officials said in an Oct. 19 press release.

“We hope that everyone will practice safety during this year’s Halloween celebration,” O’Fallon Mayor Herb Roach said in the release. “Please be respectful of everyone’s property, watch for vehicles, and have fun!”

Young children should be accompanied by a parent or another responsible adult, the release continued.

Fairview Heights

Trick-or-treating typically happens between dusk and 9 p.m. in Fairview Heights, a police officer told the News-Democrat, but the hours are not formally set.

Swansea

Swansea’s trick-or-treat hours are from 6 to 9 p.m. Tuesday.

Shiloh

Young Shiloh residents can enjoy trick-or-treating from 6 to 9 p.m. this Halloween, according to a town Facebook post.

Freeburg

The village of Freeburg observes trick-or-treating until 9 p.m. Oct. 31.

Millstadt

Trick-or-treaters can head out between 5 and 9 p.m. in Millstadt this Halloween.

Halloween safety tips

There are a few precautions you might want to take to ensure you have the safest Halloween experience possible, the Illinois Department of Public Health reported in an October 2022 press release.

First, you should stay home if you’re feeling sick, health care officials advise. Take a COVID test if you are experiencing symptoms, and consider wearing a mask for indoor festivities, especially if your county is seeing elevated hospitalization numbers.

It’s also a good idea to bring hand sanitizer when out trick or treating, and wash your hands frequently if you are giving out candy.

If you’re decorating pumpkins for Halloween, children may be better off tracing designs for you to carve or painting pumpkins as carving can be dangerous for kids, the health department reports.

While respiratory viruses and carving-related injuries can be problematic, one thing that is not a documented widespread threat is drug-laced Halloween candy.

Misinformation about “rainbow fentanyl” being given out to children trick or treating circulated last year despite the lack of reports of children actually receiving and being injured by drugged treats.

The threat of laced candy is “greatly exaggerated,” the History Channel reported, citing a study on crimes committed using Halloween candy. This does not mean it’s impossible for a child to receive Halloween candy that’s been tampered with, but it is not occurring on a widespread scale.