PHILADELPHIA – Thinking about letting the kids stay out a little later this Halloween? You might want to check the clock first.
Philadelphia’s youth curfew still applies on Halloween night, and several South Jersey towns have added Mischief Night and Halloween curfews of their own.
What we know:
In Philadelphia, the youth curfew doesn’t take Halloween off. The law states that kids 13 and under have to be off the streets by 9:30 p.m., and teens 14 to 17 by 10 p.m. Both curfews run until 6 a.m. the next morning.
There are exceptions that include kids who are with a parent, heading to or from work, running an errand, dealing with an emergency or taking part in a supervised activity.
In New Jersey, the rules change town by town:
- In Camden County, Merchantville’s Borough Council set an 8 p.m. curfew on both Oct. 30 and Oct. 31, running until 6 a.m. the next morning, according to a resolution adopted last month.
- Voorhees has a 9 p.m. curfew on Mischief Night for kids 17 and under, and trick-or-treating on Oct. 31 runs from 2 to 9 p.m., according to local reports.
- Haddon Township has a standing curfew in its code. Kids under 17 have to be off the streets by 10 p.m. on both Mischief Night and Halloween, according to township police.
Other South Jersey towns have posted trick-or-treat hours for Saturday. Haddon Heights and Mantua Township are going from 3 to 8 p.m., Gloucester City from 2 to 7 p.m., and Haddonfield’s mayor’s office recommends 3 to 6 p.m.
In the Pennsylvania suburbs, it’s mostly trick-or-treat hours, not curfews. In Bucks County, Perkasie is set for 6 to 9 p.m. Saturday and Richland Township for 6 to 8 p.m., according to FrightMaps, a site that tracks posted times. Haverford Township in Delaware County doesn’t set official hours. Statewide, 6 to 8 p.m. appears to be the most common window this year.
What we don’t know:
A lot of towns haven’t posted their 2026 hours or curfews yet. In South Jersey, that includes Cherry Hill, Moorestown, Mount Laurel and Deptford. In Pennsylvania, it includes West Chester, Downingtown, Phoenixville and Pottstown.
Some may add curfews at the last minute, especially with Halloween on a Saturday.
What’s next:
This list may grow. Towns are still announcing curfews ahead of Mischief Night on Friday.
One more thing to keep in mind: clocks fall back an hour at 2 a.m. on Sunday, Nov. 1, as daylight saving time ends.
The Source: Information in this story comes from the Philadelphia Code, Haddon Township Police, a Merchantville Borough Council resolution, the Courier-Post’s South Jersey Halloween guide and FrightMaps.
