Sensory Friendly Trick-or-Treat

Carnegie Museum of Natural History is hosting a Sensory Friendly Trick-or-Treat on Friday, October 23, from 5:30 to 8:30 PM. It's part of the Carnegie Museums of Pittsburgh's Sensory Friendly Hours, which they design for families with members who have sensory processing needs and for anyone who just prefers a more relaxed setting.

Here's how it works: select galleries reopen after the museum closes to the general public, but with the audio and visual elements dialed down. They also set up calming spaces stocked with support materials like single-use earplugs, sunglasses, and fidget toys, so you can take a breather whenever you need one. The evening is built around a few simple traditions: you come in your favorite costume, listen to Halloween stories told around a faux campfire, and enjoy apple cider and other treats. Museum experts are on hand throughout the night to talk dinosaurs, rocks, gems, animals, and bugs, so if you've got questions about what you're seeing, there's someone there to answer them.

It's a good chance to spend some time in the museum without the usual crowds. The Carnegie Museum of Natural History houses the Kamin Hall of Dinosaurs, with skeletons including Apatosaurus and Diplodocus, and draws on 22 million objects and specimens—one of the world's great archives of biodiversity, the history of life, and human relationships to nature. Between the stories and the treats, you can wander through the galleries at your own pace.

Tickets are $16, or $12 for Carnegie Museums members. Advance registration is required, so you'll want to sign up ahead of time rather than just showing up. The museum is at 4400 Forbes Avenue, Pittsburgh, PA 15213-4007.