Spooky Newquay: Zombie Crawl and Halloween Excitement
Newquay BID is bringing back Spooky Newquay, promising a frighteningly fun Halloween experience for families, visitors and businesses across the town during October half-term.
With free family entertainment, spooky workshops, Halloween activities and special offers from local businesses, Newquay is preparing to come alive with the dead!
The celebrations begin on Saturday 24 October, with the return of the much-loved Spooky Newquay Zombie Crawl, an event that has grown significantly over recent years and is now regarded as one of the UK's biggest free family Halloween events.
The Zombie Crawl is attracting increasing national attention year on year, including coverage across national press and television, showcasing Newquay as a destination for spectacular, family-friendly Halloween entertainment.
From 10:30am, visitors can enjoy a range of spooky activities throughout the town centre, including face painting, storytelling, wound workshops, banner-making, dancing, stilt walking, circus skills and pumpkin carving and more, participating businesses are getting involved across Newquay town centre from Fore Street through to Cliff road, including The new NICI Hotel on East Street who are excited to be part of the Halloween fun.
There will be plenty of opportunities for children and families to get involved, get creative and prepare for the main event.
TITAN THE ROBOT RETURNS
One of the highlights of the day will be a spooktacular appearance by Titan the Robot, performing at the Killacourt at 2pm.
Titan is expected to bring plenty of energy, entertainment and robotic mayhem to the festivities. In the event of wet weather, the performance will move to Newquay Cinema.
THE ZOMBIE CRAWL
The main Zombie Crawl will begin at 3pm, departing from Oakleigh Terrace, just off Cliff Road, before making its way through the town.
The parade is expected to finish near Sainsbury’s at approximately 4pm–4:30pm.
Families, children and adults are encouraged to dress up in their most imaginative, frightening and fun costumes and join the procession.
From zombies and witches to monsters and ghouls, the more creative the costumes, the better!
HALLOWEEN TRAILS ACROSS NEWQUAY
This year, Newquay BID and Visit Newquay are working together to bring families two Halloween trails during the October half-term celebrations.
One trail will take place throughout the town centre, encouraging families to explore participating businesses, collect stamps on their trail forms and discover the Halloween activities taking place across Newquay.
A second Halloween trail will take place at Trenance, giving families another opportunity to explore, enjoy the Halloween atmosphere and support local businesses.
The trails are designed to encourage families to visit different locations across the town. Once families have completed their trail, they will have the opportunity to win a Halloween gift.
The trails have become a popular part of the annual Halloween celebrations and are expected to provide plenty of spooky fun for families throughout half-term.
SPOOKY FUN ACROSS NEWQUAY
The Halloween atmosphere will continue throughout the town, with businesses getting involved through spooky discos, silent discos, Kids Karaoke, dress-up competitions, decorated shopfronts, spooky coffees, creepy cocktails, themed offers and more !!
Newquay businesses are being invited to provide their own offers, events and activations through an exclusive link, allowing them to add their activities to the Spooky Newquay programme.
This will help create an interactive experience for visitors, with multiple locations across the town involved in the Halloween celebrations. An interactive map on the Spooky Newquay website will allow visitors to discover the different workshops, events, offers and activities taking place.
The initiative is designed to encourage visitors to explore more of Newquay, enjoy the entertainment and support local businesses throughout the Halloween period.
Newquay BID works throughout the year to increase footfall, support local businesses and create experiences that bring residents and visitors into the town.
Spooky Newquay is an important part of that work, helping to create a vibrant atmosphere while giving businesses the opportunity to take part in one of the town’s most popular seasonal celebrations.
NEW ZOMBIE CRAWL MERCHANDISE
For the first time, Newquay BID is partnering with Hunters on Bank Street, a local family run high-street business to introduce brand-new Zombie Crawl merchandise. A new, family-friendly Spooky Newquay Zombie Crawl logo has been created and will feature on T-shirts and hoodies
The new imagery is an exciting development for the event, providing families, visitors and Zombie Crawl fans with the opportunity to purchase merchandise celebrating the growing Halloween event. The Spooky Newquay team believes the new logo will be particularly popular with families and those who return to the event year after year.
The new logo and merchandise form part of the wider marketing development for Spooky Newquay and the Zombie Crawl, helping to build the event’s identity and reach.
MORE THAN A LOCAL EVENT
Spooky Newquay is not just an event for local residents. The Zombie Crawl and wider Spooky Newquay celebrations are increasingly encouraging people to change their travel plans and visit Newquay during October half-term specifically to experience the event.
Over recent years, Newquay BID has heard from visitors travelling from locations including London, Cardiff and other parts of the country, who have made Spooky Newquay part of their annual holiday arrangements.
The event is helping to establish Newquay as a destination for Halloween breaks, with families choosing to visit the town during half-term to enjoy the Zombie Crawl, entertainment and wider attractions.
Mark Warren, Newquay BID Manager, said:
“I absolutely love organising this event. I’ve been involved for four years now, and every year it seems to get bigger and better.
“It’s fantastic to see people dressing up, smiling scary faces and enjoying themselves. The whole town really comes alive with the dead!
“What’s particularly exciting is that this is no longer just a local event. We’re hearing from people who are travelling from places such as London and Cardiff and planning their holidays around Spooky Newquay.
“People are making the decision to come to Newquay during October half-term specifically to enjoy the Zombie Crawl and everything the town has to offer. Some visitors have even told us that they now plan this as part of their annual holiday arrangements, which is fantastic news.
“The event has grown to such a scale that it is now regarded as one of the biggest free family events in the UK. The Zombie Crawl is getting noticed nationally, including through press and television coverage, and it’s a brilliant opportunity to showcase Newquay.
“We’re also really excited about introducing the new family-friendly Zombie Crawl logo and merchandise this year, its a fantastic opportunity to give people something they can take home and enjoy, while continuing to develop the identity of Spooky Newquay.
“The Halloween trails are another brilliant addition, giving families even more reasons to explore the town centre and Trenance, support local businesses and enjoy the celebrations.
“Spooky Newquay is all about creating a brilliant experience for families and visitors while supporting our local businesses. There’s something for everyone, and we’re looking forward to welcoming people back for another fantastic Zombie Crawl.”
A COMMUNITY EVENT
The event is being delivered by Newquay BID, with support from Newquay Town Council, Newquay Lions Club, Towan Blystra Lions, WAX Events and a host of other partners.
The Newquay Lions Clubs will support the event through marshalling, building on their ongoing involvement in the town’s community activities and monthly markets.
The RNLI will lead the parade, helping to bring the Zombie Crawl safely through the town.
The event organisers are working closely with partners to ensure the parade is delivered safely and successfully, allowing everyone to enjoy the celebrations.
Spooky Newquay is also supported by a wide range of returning partners and performers who help make the event such a special part of the town’s annual calendar.
These include:
Titan the Robot
Radio Newquay
WAX Events
Newquay Town Council
Newquay Lions Club and Towan Blystra Lions
RNLI
Blystra Arts
Hotch Potch
Bounce Dance Academy
4 Motion
Cornwall Theatre School
Newquay Samba Band
Cornwall Rock Choir
Many of these partners return year after year, helping to bring a wide variety of entertainment, music, performance and activities to the event.
Radio Newquay will be supporting Spooky Newquay both in the run-up to the event and on the day itself. The station will be providing entertainment during the celebrations, as well as promoting the event in advance to help spread the word and encourage visitors to attend.
The involvement of these partners is an important part of the event’s continued growth, helping to create a packed programme of entertainment for families and visitors.
NEW ZOMBIE CRAWL WEBSITE
WAX has sponsored the event with a free of charge, brand-new website dedicated to the Spooky Newquay Zombie Crawl: ZombieCrawl.co.uk
The website will include an interactive map showing workshop locations, event information, details of activities taking place at local businesses, live updates and opportunities for visitors to share their photographs from the day.
Businesses can also use an exclusive link to add their own events, activations and offers to the programme, helping to ensure that Halloween activity is spread across multiple locations throughout Newquay.
The website and new Zombie Crawl imagery have been introduced as part of the event’s wider marketing, with WAX providing this support free of charge through its sponsorship of the growing event.
Visitors are encouraged to check the website ahead of the event for the latest information and updates and download to their phones to guide them through the day.
PLAN YOUR VISIT
Visitors attending the event are advised that parking is available in Newquay town centre and at Trenance, which is approximately a five-minute walk from the parade starting point.
The key timings for Saturday 24 October are:
10:30am: Spooky workshops and activities begin
2pm: Titan the Robot at Killacourt
3pm: Zombie Crawl begins at Oakleigh Terrace
4pm–4:30pm: Parade expected to finish near Sainsbury’s
The town centre and Trenance Halloween trails will run throughout the October half-term period, with further details available through Visit Newquay.
With free entertainment, family activities, spooky surprises and plenty of opportunities to get involved, Spooky Newquay promises to be a Halloween celebration not to be missed.
The event offers something for everyone, whether visitors are attending for the Zombie Crawl, enjoying the workshops and performances, following the Halloween trails, exploring local businesses or making a full half-term holiday out of their visit to Newquay.
So grab your costumes, bring your family and prepare for a day of fun, frights and fabulous entertainment.
Come along and experience the fun, the frights and the fabulous atmosphere of Spooky Newquay, where the town comes alive with the dead.
