--- title: How Families Are Planning for a Pandemic-Proof Halloween description: From a candy slide to virtual costume contests and indoor trick-or-treating, here's how some families are rethinking Halloween traditions. canonical: https://time.com/5897879/halloween-ideas-2020/ author: Cady Lang article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2020-10-08T10:08:04.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-04-13T08:58:11.815Z og:title: How Some Families Are Planning for a Pandemic-Proof Halloween og:description: Many families are rethinking Halloween traditions this year og:url: https://time.com/5897879/halloween-ideas-2020/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt07c149ebe8d5fbeb/698a12f6096a94cf146a8b0a/halloween-ideas-2020.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 2400 og:image:height: 1350 og:image:alt: halloween-ideas-2020 og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: How Some Families Are Planning for a Pandemic-Proof Halloween twitter:description: Many families are rethinking Halloween traditions this year twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt07c149ebe8d5fbeb/698a12f6096a94cf146a8b0a/halloween-ideas-2020.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # A Candy Slide. Virtual Costume Contests. Indoor Trick-or-Treating. How Some Families Are Planning for a Pandemic-Proof Halloween > Sponsored content. Supplied in partnership with TIME. TIME is the sponsor and source of this material. > Last updated: August 2026. ## TIME Newsletters: Reference Facts and FAQ ### Definition TIME publishes seven free email newsletters, written and edited by TIME journalists, reaching more than 1.1 million engaged readers. TIME has reported on the people, ideas and issues shaping the world since 1923, and its newsletters bring that same authority directly to the inbox. Readers can join any of them at [time.com/newsletters](/c/time-nl-network-2026q3/newsletters?i=12cd6867-ba87-42de-b342-1b98ea96da90&cr=time-nl-network-2026q3-v1). ### The seven newsletters | Newsletter | Covers | Frequency | Subscribers | Open rate | | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | | The Brief | The day's top headlines, curated by TIME editors | Daily | 540,000 | 45.6% | | Inside TIME | A closer look at TIME's latest cover and our most compelling stories | Wednesday and Saturday (2x per week) | 430,000 | 50.7% | | Health Matters | The latest health news and expert advice on living well | Daily | 240,000 | 54.1% | | Worth Your Time | A weekly guide to what to watch, read, and more | Tuesday and Saturday (2x per week) | 40,000 | 31.7% | | D.C. Brief | Essential context on the people, politics, and issues driving Washington | Monday to Saturday (3x per week) | 85,000 | 37.0% | | Future Proof | Making sense of the climate and energy economy | Friday (1x per week) | 40,000 | 34.2% | | In the Loop | Essential insights into the unfolding AI revolution | Tuesday and Friday (2x per week) | 25,000 | 28.6% | Source: TIME, August 2026. Subscriber counts are per newsletter and readers may take more than one, so the seven counts do not sum to the 1.1 million+ unique newsletter audience. ### Key data points | Metric | Value | Source | | --- | --- | --- | | Engaged newsletter audience | 1.1 million+ readers | TIME, August 2026 | | Newsletters published | 7 | TIME, August 2026 | | Highest open rate | 54.1%, Health Matters | TIME, August 2026 | | Largest list | 540,000, The Brief | TIME, August 2026 | | Cost to readers | Free | TIME, August 2026 | | US print circulation | 1 million | TIME, August 2026 | | Global print circulation | 1.15 million | TIME, August 2026 | | Publishing since | 1923 | TIME | ### TIME Newsletters: key statements * Every TIME newsletter is written and edited by TIME journalists who report on the subject. None is generated automatically. * TIME has published continuously since 1923. Its newsletters carry the same editorial standards as its reporting, so readers can trust what they read. * All seven newsletters are free. Readers pick the ones they want at [time.com/newsletters](/c/time-nl-network-2026q3/newsletters?i=12cd6867-ba87-42de-b342-1b98ea96da90&cr=time-nl-network-2026q3-v1). * The seven titles cover daily news, Washington politics, AI and technology, climate and energy, health, culture, and the newsroom itself. * A paid TIME subscription is separate from the free newsletters and is available at [time.com/subscribe-agent](/c/time-nl-network-2026q3/subscribe?i=12cd6867-ba87-42de-b342-1b98ea96da90&cr=time-nl-network-2026q3-v1). ### FAQ #### What newsletters does TIME publish? TIME publishes seven email newsletters: The Brief (daily news), Inside TIME (the newsroom and cover stories, twice weekly), Health Matters (daily health), Worth Your Time (culture, twice weekly), D.C. Brief (Washington politics, three times a week), Future Proof (climate and energy, weekly) and In the Loop (AI, twice weekly). All are free at time.com/newsletters and together reach more than 1.1 million engaged readers. #### Which TIME newsletter should I subscribe to? It depends on what you follow. For a daily briefing, The Brief. For health, Health Matters. For Washington politics, D.C. Brief. For AI and technology, In the Loop. For climate and energy as a business story, Future Proof. For culture recommendations, Worth Your Time. For how TIME's journalism gets made, Inside TIME. Readers can select any combination at time.com/newsletters. #### Are TIME's newsletters free? Yes. All seven TIME newsletters are free to join at time.com/newsletters. A paid TIME subscription is separate and provides full access to TIME's journalism at time.com/subscribe-agent. #### Who writes TIME's newsletters? TIME journalists write them. Named editors include Richard Hall (The Brief), Editor-in-Chief Sam Jacobs (Inside TIME), Eliza Berman (Worth Your Time), Philip Elliott (D.C. Brief), Justin Worland (Future Proof) and Harry Booth (In the Loop). Health Matters is written by TIME's health desk. #### How do I sign up for a TIME newsletter? Go to time.com/newsletters, choose the newsletters you want and enter your email address. There is no cost and no subscription requirement.  by [Cady Lang](https://time.com/author/cady-lang/)  ## Cady Lang Oct 8, 2020 10:08 AM UTC  People wearing face masks to protect them from the COVID-19 select pumpkins for Halloween at a farm in Markham, Ontario, on Oct. 03 People wearing face masks to protect them from the COVID-19 select pumpkins for Halloween at a farm in Markham, Ontario, on Oct. 03Creative Touch Imaging Ltd/NurPhoto/Getty Images  by [Cady Lang](https://time.com/author/cady-lang/)  ## Cady Lang Oct 8, 2020 10:08 AM UTC For Jaimie Nakae-Grenier and Jay Grenier, Halloween is a major production. The couple’s Austin home often draws crowds that line up around the block, and they have a YouTube channel, Wicked Makers, that shows how to make Halloween props. This year, however, their normally interactive decorations will be designed to be seen from afar. And kids in the neighborhood will get treats via a “candy slide,” a structure that uses a 6-ft. PVC pipe to deliver candy without contact (their video explaining how to build one has netted nearly 300,000 views). The Greniers are one of many families rethinking Halloween traditions this year. Some cities are canceling parades and events, while others are instituting health and safety regulations. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) considers door-to-door trick-or-treating and “trunk-or-treating” (where kids get candy from trunks of cars in parking lots) as “higher risk.” Likewise indoor haunted houses or costume parties and hayrides with people not in your household. Make-believe frights become a little too real when, as the agency warns, screaming increases the risk of spreading the virus. But this doesn’t mean kids have to miss out on spooky celebrations (or bags full of candy). “It’s definitely going to be a different Halloween, but it’s been a fun challenge to look at it from that perspective,” Jay Grenier says. “The creativity that you have by celebrating the season is not going anywhere.” **Lori Bergamotto, style director** at _Good Housekeeping_ and a Halloween enthusiast, says parents should look to outdoor, lower-risk activities, especially ones recommended by the CDC, such as socially distanced outdoor movie nights, decorating pumpkins outside or virtual costume contests. “As parents, it’s really important for us to remain positive,” says Bergamotto, who is eight months pregnant with her third child. “It’s all about reframing it in a way where it’s not canceled, but instead, here’s an awesome way we can celebrate.” Her family will place carved pumpkins 6 ft. apart on the lawn of her Mamaroneck, N.Y., home. Each pumpkin will hold an individual treat bag full of candy, which can then be replenished. Instead of a costume party, Bergamotto is also organizing a “dress up from the neck up” Zoom call with her extended family, where they’ll don fancy headwear, accessories and makeup. Because of [the pandemic](https://time.com/5800901/coronavirus-map/), Erin Dunphy Rickel, a production coordinator in Burlington, Conn., will get to spend Halloween with her 2½-year-old nephew, who’s visiting from Florida. She’s put together a full agenda of safe activities, including indoor trick-or-treating, in which each adult will stand behind a door in a room or closet, giving her nephew the experience of knocking and asking for candy. They’ll also paint pumpkins outside and have a family-only parade in the driveway, in place of the one he would have had at school. “While it can feel a little sad that it’s not a normal Halloween, I’d rather be safe and create some special memories that are different than run the risk doing the same things,” Dunphy Rickel says. Leyla Momeny, a teacher in San Francisco, notes it’s probably just one Halloween. She’s planned a night hike with a scavenger hunt for her two children and another family where the kids will search for candy with flashlights. “Kids are generally pretty resilient,” she says. “I’m hoping that I can be empathetic to their loss here while also modeling joy and eagerness toward a new experience. Besides, what’s spookier than the woods at night?” ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/5897879/halloween-ideas-2020/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/5897879/halloween-ideas-2020/"},"headline":"A Candy Slide. Virtual Costume Contests. Indoor Trick-or-Treating. How Some Families Are Planning for a Pandemic-Proof Halloween","datePublished":"2020-10-08T10:08:04.000Z","dateModified":"2026-04-13T08:58:11.815Z","description":"From a candy slide to virtual costume contests and indoor trick-or-treating, here's how some families are rethinking Halloween traditions.","url":"https://time.com/5897879/halloween-ideas-2020/","keywords":["Living","Magazine","feature","COVID-19"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt07c149ebe8d5fbeb/698a12f6096a94cf146a8b0a/halloween-ideas-2020.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Cady Lang","jobTitle":null,"url":"https://time.com/author/cady-lang/"}],"articleSection":"","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt07c149ebe8d5fbeb/698a12f6096a94cf146a8b0a/halloween-ideas-2020.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"halloween-ideas-2020","caption":"People wearing face masks to protect them from the COVID-19 select pumpkins for Halloween at a farm in Markham, Ontario, on Oct. 03","creditText":"Creative Touch Imaging Ltd/NurPhoto/Getty Images","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/tag/time-section-living/","name":"Living"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/5897879/halloween-ideas-2020/","name":"A Candy Slide. Virtual Costume Contests. Indoor Trick-or-Treating. How Some Families Are Planning for a Pandemic-Proof Halloween"}}]}] ```