In a FOX 17 report, Chandi Pape, executive director of the Grand Haven Main Street DDA, said, "It just gets people out and around downtown." The remark points to downtown activity during the weeks after the boats stop coming and the beach crowds thin out.
The event matters if you live here. Bones About Town looks, from the sidewalk, like a seasonal decoration contest. More than 150 five-foot skeletons show up in windows and doorways across Downtown and Centertown starting October 1, dressed as chefs, sailors, brides, whatever the shop owner dreamed up, and the public votes on Most Original, Funniest and Spookiest. The display also offers a reason to explore Downtown and Centertown between Labor Day and the holidays, with participating businesses adding their own costumes.
After the Summer Season
Grand Haven's summer calendar runs on visitors. The Coast Guard Festival draws crowds from across the state, the Musical Fountain runs nightly through Labor Day, and Washington Avenue fills with people who don't live here and won't be back until next July. After Labor Day, summer visitor activity eases and downtown enters a different seasonal rhythm.
Pape put it plainly to a Grand Rapids TV station last fall: the event does more than dress up storefronts, it gives local businesses an economic lift right as the busy season tapers off. The event dates overlap with this seasonal transition. Bones About Town starts the same week the beach traffic drops and runs a little over three weeks, long enough to matter to a shop's October revenue, short enough that it doesn't feel like a permanent installation. The display gives downtown a scheduled activity through October 24.
What the Calendar Actually Shows for 2026
Here's how the two anchor events line up this year, based on the current listings from Grand Haven Main Street and the area's event calendars:
| Event | When | Where | What it is |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bones About Town | October 1 to October 24, 2026 | Storefronts and streets, Downtown and Centertown | 150+ decorated skeletons, public vote for Most Original, Funniest, Spookiest |
| Chow Down Centertown | Saturday, October 3, 2026, starting 11 a.m. | 7th Street, Centertown | Food trucks, vintage clothing vendors, live music |
| Fall Fest and Downtown Trick-or-Treat | Saturday, October 24, 2026, 9:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. | Downtown | Costume contest, skeleton winners announced, trick-or-treating |
The pattern is worth sitting with. Chow Down Centertown isn't scheduled after Bones About Town wraps up, and it isn't scheduled before it starts. It lands squarely inside the display window, on the first weekend the skeletons are up. Grand Haven Main Street runs both events, and Chow Down Centertown gives visitors another event to enjoy downtown that weekend. If you're already planning to be out that Saturday, you're getting a fuller Centertown than the skeletons alone would deliver.
Voting Booths Are Inside Participating Businesses
Voting takes place inside participating businesses, so casting a ballot requires entering a shop. The display invites people to stop and look, and the voting booth offers another reason to go inside.
The display sprawls across two distinct retail pockets instead of concentrating on one strip. Downtown Grand Haven, centered on Washington Avenue, and Centertown, centered on 7th Street, are geographically close but function as separate shopping districts with their own mix of shops and restaurants. Spreading 150-plus skeletons across both areas means someone who normally only shops Washington Avenue has a reason to wander over to 7th Street in October, and vice versa.
Experiencing Grand Haven After Summer
Bones About Town and Chow Down Centertown offer October activities after the summer season. Pape described Bones About Town as giving local businesses a boost as that season winds down.
That shows up in how the month actually feels on the ground. Parking that's impossible to find in July opens back up. Restaurant tables you'd wait forty minutes for in August seat you immediately. The skeleton hunt gives residents a low-effort reason to use that space, whether that means:
- A weeknight walk through Centertown to spot new entries before the October 24 voting cutoff
- A Saturday stop at Chow Down Centertown for a food truck lunch and a look at the vintage clothing vendors on 7th Street
- Bringing kids downtown for the October 24 Fall Fest and trick-or-treat before the skeletons come down
These events offer ways to spend time downtown in fall, including for people who live within walking distance.
The Read for Anyone Near Washington Avenue or 7th Street
If you're already a Grand Haven resident, the takeaway isn't complicated: October's downtown calendar includes these events. The skeletons add seasonal decorations to storefronts across Downtown and Centertown. Participating businesses add their own designs, and walking the display before October 24 offers a look at part of the downtown business mix.
That opportunity to explore the display is there whether you've lived two blocks from Washington Avenue for twenty years or you're still learning which side streets connect Centertown to the waterfront. The Grand Haven neighborhood offers ways to enjoy the town after the Coast Guard Festival, as we noted when we looked at what happens the week after the Coast Guard Festival crowds clear out. October's version just happens to come with 150 skeletons attached.
If you're already living here, there's nothing to do with this information except enjoy it. But if a friend, a family member, or a neighbor down the street has ever asked you what makes year-round life in Grand Haven different from a summer visit, this is the kind of month that answers it better than any brochure could.
Emily and Dave at Emily Garcia Homes live and work in these neighborhoods year-round, not just in festival season. If you're weighing a move within Grand Haven, thinking about what your home might be worth in today's market, or just want a local's read on a street you're curious about, reach out for a personalized market plan.
