Halloween Party Ideas for Teenagers for a Fright-Night of Fun

Host a thrilling, chilling Halloween party that teens and tweens will talk about all year.

Updated August 22, 2022
Young woman in a Halloween costume, holding Jack o' Lantern at Halloween party

Halloween is one of the best times to throw a party, whether it's for a huge group of teens or just a few friends. These Halloween party ideas for teenagers will help you get inspired to make this year's gathering something spooky you'll remember for years to come.

Skeleton Scavenger Hunt

Scavenger hunts are always fun, but this teen Halloween party idea is a particularly scary version of the classic. You'll need a fake skeleton that can come apart and a great place to hide the pieces. This can be your backyard, a beach where you can bury the fake bones, or any other location you choose. Ahead of time, someone can hide all the parts of the skeleton, and at the party, everyone can work to put it all back together. You can build a whole party around this activity with these ideas:

Friends having a Skeleton Scavenger Hunt
  • Decor - Obviously, you'll need to use a lot of skeletons in your decorating. Find them on sale or borrow them from friends.
  • Costumes - It's up to you whether everyone dresses up, but it can be fun to make this into a costume party.
  • Food - Serve skeleton-themed food like cupcakes decorated with skulls and gingerbread people with bones painted on in icing.

Garage Haunted House

Having a haunted house in your real house can be a bit inconvenient and a little less than scary, but your garage is another story. It's also easier to take your time making the haunted house when it's in the garage, since parking outside for a few days isn't the worst thing ever. Plus, garages often have exposed rafters that are perfect for hanging creepy decorations. You can hang curtains to make a maze or route for people to take as they go through the horrors you've set up. Don't forget to include a creepy soundtrack. Turn your haunted garage into a party:

Group of friends in garage haunted house
  • Decor - This teenage Halloween party idea is all about the decorations. Pick up lots of crepe paper, hanging zombie and ghost decorations, skeletons, and more.
  • Costumes - You can make costumes optional for this party or ask everyone to dress as their favorite horror character.
  • Food - Serve food after everyone has had a chance to go through the haunted garage. Serve some great Halloween party food for teens like monster burgers and ugly mugs.

Creepy Manicure Party

A great Halloween party idea for tweens and teens is a creepy manicure night. Have everyone bring their favorite polish colors and print off some great Halloween nail art inspiration. You can try everything from striped candy corn nails to monster nails and take turns helping each other achieve the look you have in mind. It's fun to hold this party the weekend before Halloween so everyone can show off their nails at school and on Halloween night. Include these fun ideas:

Halloween Ghosts Nail Art Design
  • Decor - Decorate your house like a nail salon with a table for doing the manicures and a comfy chair to sit in. Add some creepy decorations too, such as skeleton hands with painted fingernails.
  • Costumes - This party can include costumes or just be a fun, low-key event. You can even make it a slumber party and have everyone wear pajamas.
  • Food - People will have wet nails for some of this party, so avoid the finger foods. Pasta is a fun choice, since you can add fake eyeballs to a pile of spaghetti and make it look super horrifying.

Halloween Photoshoot

Get the best Halloween photos this year with a super fun Halloween photoshoot. You can post your pictures on social media with amusing Halloween captions, share them with everyone you know, and just have a great time getting wild in costume. This teenager Halloween party idea is fun for everyone, and it's easy to set up. You'll need a camera or phone, a simple background like a black wall, and some Halloween accessories like colored balloons and funny hats. Hold the party in the afternoon so you have plenty of light and take lots and lots of pictures so you can choose your favorites from the bunch. Make it a party with these additions.

Halloween photoshoot
  • Decor - Set up a plain background as your decoration, but you can also include baskets of Halloween accessories for people to use in photos.
  • Costumes - Guests can come in costume or can wear simple clothes they can accessorize with different Halloween touches.
  • Food - Choose foods that aren't messy so people don't have to worry about spilling on their photoshoot outfits. Sandwiches and chips can be great.

Halloween Mocktail Party

Make creepy and tasty Halloween mocktails and have everyone over for an awesome party. You can make this a 1920s Gatsby-style event, a costume party with traditional outfits, or anything else you like. The point is the interesting drinks. Try dropping gummy eyeballs or other creepy candy in the bottom of a glass of sparkling juice, making funky colored Italian sodas with Torani syrups, or just having fun mixing sodas together. It only takes a few ideas to make this into a party.

Teens in Halloween Mocktail Party
  • Decor - Break out your best Halloween decorations or give this a 1920s touch with lots of gold, silver, and black.
  • Costumes - Have everyone dress in cocktail party attire, but put a fun twist on it with creepy accessories like vampire teeth.
  • Food - Serve Halloween finger foods so everyone can mingle while they sip their mocktails.

Haunted High School Halloween Party

Let everyone know you're going to have a haunted high school theme party this year, and then play up those silly and classic high school themes. Think cheerleaders, jocks, nerds, skaters, emos, and every other stereotypical high school clique. Then give those groups a creepy twist by asking everyone to dress as the undead or zombie version of the traditional characters. These ideas can help make your party a screaming success.

Zombie Cheerleaders
  • Decor - Since you probably can't hold this party in an actual high school, bring in as many high school-themed decorations as you can. Posters and school pennants make great decorations.
  • Costumes - In addition to telling everyone to dress in classic high school Halloween costumes, give them some tips on zombie makeup.
  • Food - Serve lots of great Halloween finger foods, like creepy witch's eyeballs and zombie fingers.

Scary Movie Screening Night

A scary movie night is a traditional Halloween party idea for teenagers, but you can take it to the next level with a few extra touches. Start by picking some of the best horror movies of all time. Show one movie, and then take a break for snacks and a super-hard horror movie trivia quiz. Show a second movie that will creep all your guests out just in time to walk to their cars at the end of the night. Make it a party with these tips.

Girls in costumes watching scary movie together on Halloween
  • Decor - Roll out the red carpet - literally. Line your front walk with a red carpet and add skulls, fake weapons, and other creepy items along the way.
  • Costumes - Costumes can be optional for this, but it's fun to dress as your favorite horror movie villains.
  • Food - Serve lots of snacks you can eat while you watch, such as popcorn, pretzels, and snack mix. You can also serve sweet Halloween treats to go with the salty snacks.

Pumpkin Painting Party

Carving or painting pumpkins is a fun Halloween party idea for teenagers, just as it is for any age. You can give it a more teen or tween feel by using more sophisticated designs on the pumpkins. Copy favorite artworks, try to make pumpkin versions of your favorite celebrities, or just get super creative on your own. Have everything on hand that people will need to paint and carve their pumpkins. These party ideas will make it even more fun.

Young girl painting on pumpkin in Halloween
  • Decor - Make your decorating all about pumpkins. Scatter real and artificial pumpkins of all different sizes around your party space.
  • Costumes - You can do costumes for this party, but it might be easier to paint and carve in normal clothes.
  • Food - Make your menu pumpkin-themed! Think roasted pumpkin seeds, pumpkin desserts, and pumpkin pie.

Halloween Game Night

Games are always fun, but they're even better with a Halloween twist. Set up your ping-pong table, clear off the pool table, and break out the board games. Then add some Halloween fun by having everyone play in costume. Masks, in particular, can add an extra level of challenge to your game. You can also go beyond the standard games and play Halloween party games too. Either way, incorporate these cool ideas.

Friends dressed up in costumes for Halloween while playing games
  • Decor - Hang game boxes, fuzzy dice, and other game-related items amid black and orange crepe paper streamers.
  • Costumes - Tell everyone to come in costume, since costumes are a must for upping the challenge level of your games.
  • Food - Serve a selection of Halloween candy, plus salty snacks like pretzels and popcorn. Pizza is always a good choice too.

Creepy Cooking Party

Hold a cooking party where everyone gets to make (and eat) some amazing Halloween treats. You can even make an entire Halloween dinner with things like spiderweb pizza, carved pumpkin stuffed peppers, and more. Add in some cupcakes you can make and decorate for dessert, and everyone will leave feeling full and happy. Include the following for the best teen Halloween party ever.

Halloween spider web mini pizzas
  • Decor - Decorate your kitchen with black and orange crepe paper and place other Halloween decorations on counters and around the room.
  • Costumes - This teen party idea is even more fun with costumes. Ask everyone to dress up, as long as the costume is something they can cook in.
  • Food - This party is all about the food, so your menu should be all set.

Halloween Night Makeup Party

Have an early party on the afternoon and evening of Halloween to have everyone do their makeup together. You can have lots of stage makeup on hand, so people can get ready for the big night together. Hold this party before trick-or-treating or other Halloween events and use these ideas to make it a great time.

Girls preparing for Halloween party, doing make-up at party
  • Decor - You'll need places to sit and lots of mirrors, plus the standard Halloween decorations for a festive touch.
  • Costumes - Everyone can bring costumes to change into, since this is more of a pre-trick-or-treating party.
  • Food - It's a good idea to have pizza or other simple dinner options that you can eat before doing the makeup.

Vampire Bash

No matter what style of vampire you like, from Victorian classics like Dracula to awesome anime characters, a vampire party can be the ultimate way to celebrate Halloween. Give everyone a chance to show off their vampire makeup skills and enjoy the night with these tips.

Girl in vampire costume having fun on Halloween party
  • Decor - Set up some Gothic ambience with candles in holders, vases of dead flowers, and plenty of black accents.
  • Costumes - Encourage everyone to come in costume - either as a specific vampire of their choice or simply their own version of this classic Halloween costume.
  • Food - Serve red food people can sink their fangs into, including red gelatin, a red punch or mocktail, pizza or pasta with plenty of red sauce, and a red velvet cake for dessert.

Lots of Halloween Party Ideas for Teens and Tweens

Halloween is a great time to throw a party, and there are lots of teen Halloween party ideas to choose from. You don't need to limit yourself to this list either. Consider holding your party outside and using a great outdoor Halloween party theme. You can also mix and match your favorite ideas from different lists to create your own unique get-together.

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Halloween Party Ideas for Teenagers for a Fright-Night of Fun