Trick or Treating & Halloween Parties in West Michigan
Fun Halloween parties and trick or treating take place in West Michigan including Ludington, Scottville, Manistee, and Oceana County.
Photo by ArtPrize
Each year, Downtown Grand Rapids plays host to perhaps the world’s largest art competition- ArtPrize. It generally takes place from mid-September to October with many West Michigan artists submitting pieces which are displayed throughout Grand Rapids, Michigan, at public parks, museums, galleries, restaurants, etc.
A study by researchers at Grand Valley State University reveals that ArtPrize 2024 brought a remarkable $71 million economic boost to the Grand Rapids community. This represents a 30% increase from the $54.7 million impact reported in 2023, highlighting the expanding influence of the annual art competition on the local economy.
From it’s origins, it’s a city-wide art competition within a 3-square mile district in downtown Grand Rapids. It was open to any artist age 18 and up. During the first 11 days, visitors could view the entries and take note of the ones they wanted to vote for.
This was not to be a run-of-the-mill art competition. Some very creative minds back in 2009 invented ArtPrize, where any artist in the world could compete with no limitations. The venue would not be contained to one place- if a property owner in Grand Rapids wanted their storefront to become a “canvas,” it became one. And the public would vote to decide who would win the cash prizes.
So on September 23rd, 2009- 1,262 artists from 14 countries and 41 states entered their pieces for ArtPrize, and Grand Rapids wasn’t quite prepared for the 200,000 people that arrived for the two-week event. Over the past years, ArtPrize has featured thousands of artists artists, over $1.5 million prizes and brought over one million visitors to Grand Rapids.
In 2018, ArtPrize organizers announced that the event would occur every other year with a smaller, scaled-back event known as Project 1 held during the off years.
In 2022, the original organizers decided to turn all creative, technological, and communications platforms over to a new partnership between Downtown Grand Rapids Inc., the city of Grand Rapids, and Kendall College of Art and Design of Ferris State University.
Fun Halloween parties and trick or treating take place in West Michigan including Ludington, Scottville, Manistee, and Oceana County.
The Traverse City area has several arts and crafts fairs scheduled throughout the year, offering many unique handcrafted items.
Autumn is a great time in West Michigan, with fall festivals, corn mazes, Halloween parties and ghost ships.
There’s so much to do in Silver Lake! From hitting the dunes to camping out at the state park — it’s an outdoor adventure for everyone.
West Michigan is home to numerous artists with so many different talents. Groovy music, vivid paintings, gorgeous photography, and more!
The park remains open year-round for hiking, snowshoeing, activities to give those who love winter something fun to look forward to!
Pet live animals, enjoy fresh produce and dairy products, and more! Lots of experiences are available for the family when you visit the farm!
Manistee National Forest together with the Huron National Forest occupies almost a million acres of land in Michigan’s lower peninsula.
Standing tall and proud along the shores of Lake Michigan, Point Betsie marks the southern entrance to the Manitou Passage.