Halloween Comes to Europe

European commerce markets Halloween despite criticism

Oct 5, 2006 Katrien Vander Straeten

The European commercial world is aggressively marketing Halloween.

Ten years ago, most Europeans knew Halloween as a typically American festival. But today Halloween is on most Europeans’ mind. And how could it not be? Just as in the United States, shops are already pushing the wares.

The outlets of supermarket giants Wal-Mart (which is big in Germany) and Carrefour (in France, the Netherlands and Belgium) are decorated in orange and black, with lavish displays of cheap costumes, toys and candy. After American companies like McDonalds and Toys’R’Us imported the holiday into Europe, European brands like Haribo (German candy) and Playmobil (Swiss toys) couldn’t afford to stay behind. Smaller retailers followed. In 2004, just in Germany, France and Italy alone, over US$800 million) were spent on candy, costumes and decorations, and the market has only grown since then. (A note of comparison: US$4.96 billion will be spent this Halloween season, in 2006, in the United States.)

The driving force has indeed been America. Disneyland Paris is “Halloweenland” during the month of October, drawing crowds. Other theme parks go along, which comes as no surprise as most of them have been taken over by the American amusement park giant Six Flags. Tourism must follow, like the Belgian coast, which holds a large Halloween beach party every year, eager to add to its summer revenues. Hotels, spas and restaurants offer Halloween getaways and menus, cafes and clubs throw Halloween parties. Television stations fill the evening with horror-movies.

This commercial assault of cheap mass-market goods still draws heavy criticism. Other complaints are that it kills the more traditional holidays, especially the beloved Sinterklaas, and that it disturbs the peace of All-Hallows’. Probably the largest factor against Halloween is simply that it comes out of America, that great bugbear of Europeans. Europeans know that the origins of Halloween are in Europe, and that this isn’t the real Halloween.

Still, the people have spoken. Many houses have pumpkins in front of their doors. On 31 October, most kids will consume great amounts of candy and get dressed up, not as Power Rangers, but as witches, ghosts, vampires, and the occasional Harry Potter or Ring Wraith. Door-to-door trick-or-treating will have caught on some more (slowly, because European children have many other occasions for that). The adults, who are less enthusiastic about the costume party, will skip straight to the real party. Halloween is back in Europe to stay.

Other articles on Halloween in Customs and Holidays:

• The Origins of Halloween
• The Fall Festivals of Death
• European Alternatives to Halloween

Articles on the Days of the Dead in Customs and Holidays:

• The Days of the Dead
• The Origins of the Day of the Dead

More articles on Halloween in Suite101:

• Another article on the History of Halloween
• A Discussion of Halloween as a Taboo
• And on the lighter side of things: Spend Money on Halloween, Ghoulish Halloween Drinks, Halloween Party Ideas, Halloween Make-Up Ideas, Halloween Computer Crafts, Pets at Halloween and explore Suite for many more features!

The copyright of the article Halloween Comes to Europe in W Europe Travel is owned by Katrien Vander Straeten. Permission to republish Halloween Comes to Europe in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.

photograph of lit jack-o-lantern

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