The Little Five Points Halloween Parade. Image via Wikimedia Commons.

By Matthew Pharr, contributor

The time for telling spooky stories, costume parties, jack-o-lantern carving and convincing your friends you didn’t spell out b-u-t-t-s on the Ouija board is upon us, and Atlanta has no lack of fun, otherworldly activities to enjoy.

Little Five Points Halloween Festival and Parade

The Little Five Points Halloween Festival and Parade is a longstanding Atlanta tradition that brings thousands of ghouls and goblins into Atlanta’s arts/bohemian district every year.

At 4 p.m. on Saturday, Oct. 20 the parade will commence at the intersection of Austin and Euclid Ave., move up Euclid to Moreland Ave, where it will U-turn at Wrecking Bar Brewpub and proceed to Freedom Parkway, according event materials.

The event is kid-friendly, with plenty of artisans, live music and food vendors to keep everyone entertained.

Fernbank Fright Night

Fernbank Fright Night, held Friday, Oct. 26, from 7 to 11:30 p.m., is an adults-only (21 and up) event, with dancing, a costume contest and craft beer and food. Tickets are $21.95 per person, and admission grants patrons access to the new Woodland Spirits exhibit, an outdoor experience featuring ghostly apparitions lurking in the shadows and trees, created by Laura Lewis, an Atlanta Artist specializing in sculpture and outdoor installations.

Clermont Lounge – Shock and Roll Halloween Extravaganza

The world-(in)famous Clermont Lounge has long been a hot spot for Halloween revelry in Atlanta, and this year will be no different with the third annual Shock and Roll Halloween Extravaganza on Thursday, Oct. 25. This year’s theme is Beetlejuice and will hosted by sideshow couple Captain & Maybelle. There will be live performances by Elzig, The Casket Creatures and Pearl Bottom Radio. As always, Clermont Lounge is strictly 21 and up. Admission is $10.

Clermont Hotel – Here’s Johnny!

The newly renovated Hotel Clermont is allowing guests with nerves of steel to stay a night in a Shining and Stanley Kubrick-inspired room 237, the infamous room in the Overlook Hotel that finally drove Jack Torrence to his limit. “There are various decorations in the room that correlate with the movie, but we’re trying to keep [the experience] a surprise as much as possible,” says Laurel-Ann Robinson, a guest services agent for the hotel.

If you need a break from the horrors, Hotel Clermont has a bistro called Tiny Lou’s, a lobby bar as well as a rooftop bar. The price of the room, you guessed it, is $237 and is offered Sunday-Thursday throughout October. Can you survive a night in room 237?

Camp Slaughter Lake at Relapse Theatre

If you prefer your Halloween activities on the silly side, Relapse Theatre is putting on an improvised slasher musical based on the Friday the 13^th movie franchise. Jason Voorhees, played by Bob Wood, is a psycho killer who brutally dispatches campers with a machete, but also elevates his murders to high art with musical solos and interpretive dance.

“It’s a faux Emmy Award-winning musical,”  Josh Warren, one of show’s stars, said. “One patron who saw it described it as, ‘the show dreams are made of.’”

Warren added. “We’re [also] throwing a Halloween dance party for the show on Oct. 27. If you show up in costume, we’ll let you in for free.” Dates are Oct. 19, 20, 26, 27. Tickets are $10, and the shows are expected to sell out.

Dogtoberfest East Atlanta Village

Want some Halloween fun for your furry friends? Join the sixth annual family-friendly celebration of everything K-9. Humans get in free and it’s $5 per dog.

Festivities include a costume contest (an additional $5 to enter) and a parade through the East Atlanta Village. Officials request that all dogs in attendance be spayed/neutered and on a leash. They emphasize that retractable leashes are not allowed.

This year’s Dogtoberfest in to benefit W-Underdogs, a grassroots non-profit that pairs at-risk/underserved youth with an animal in need. In addition to the parade and costume contest there will be dogs and cats available for adoption, raffles, and a variety of vendors for all to enjoy. Dogtoberfest will be held on Oct. 21, from 12 to 3 p.m. at 572 Stokeswood Ave.

Got another Halloween event we should know about? Email our editor, Derek Prall.