You know what trick-or-treat is, but unless you have young children, you’ve probably never heard of trunk-or-treat. Trunk-or-treat is a new trend sweeping New Jersey and many parts of the U.S. where communities create a safe-space for young children to trick-or-treat.
Families decorate their cars, bring their treats and park together, usually in a town park or commercial parking lot so kids can trick-or-treat, usually under the supervision and support of local law enforcement.
It’s usually a few days before the actual Halloween holiday, giving young children multiple days of Halloween fun. Trunk-or-treat events are sometimes carnival-like events that also include pumpkin carving, pumpkin painting, hayrides and other fall and Halloween themed activities.
This week, a study by Vivint showed New Jersey is the king of trunk-or-treat when it comes to the number of events held annually.
“Trunk-or-treat attendees create a miniature version of the classic neighborhood-sized activity by dressing up, adorning their cars with spooky decor, and taking kiddos from trunk to trunk to collect their Halloween treats. These gatherings can have fewer “tricks” to worry about, with kids always kept within eyesight,” according to Vivin. “And since they tend to be relatively small, trunk-or-treating activities can also limit exposure to strangers (a particular concern for many during the height of the pandemic). This also offers a less overwhelming way for sensitive young ones to safely dip their toes into the trick-or-treating experience.”
Over the past five years, New Jersey must have been home to some spectacularly-decorated soirees, with more residents searching online for “trunk-or-treating” than any other state. Many other East Coasters have also hopped on the trend; Rhode Island, Maryland, Virginia, Delaware and Pennsylvania were the other top states where the term was searched most. But Massachusetts and Maine didn’t even make the top 20—maybe trunk-or-treating hasn’t made it that far up the coast yet.