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Nanaimo celebrates Halloween

Downtown Nanaimo Business Improvement Association hosts the 2014 Downtown Halloween Howl.
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Downtown Halloween Howl takes places in various locations throughout the downtown area of Nanaimo.

There will be no shortage of Halloween-themed things to do in downtown Nanaimo this coming Saturday (Oct. 25).

The 2014 Downtown Halloween Howl, which kicks off at noon, features a number of events including a pet parade, trick or treating, extreme pumpkin carving, a massive pumpkin patch and a haunted hotel.

The event was organized by the Downtown Nanaimo Business Improvement Association and is a family-oriented daylong event.

“All of our stuff is family-friendly gore,” said Jane Venet, marketing and events coordinator for the DNBIA. “Nothing is extreme. It’s all geared towards children.”

This year’s Downtown Halloween Howl will feature a couple of new events, a haunted hotel and coal mine.

“The haunted coal mine is being put on by the Nanaimo Museum,” Vanet said. “They’re taking their coal mine and spooking it up. It’s already a little spooky, but they’re going to spook it up.”

The Queen’s Hotel will also become a little more spooky between the hours of noon and 2 p.m.

The DNBIA is encouraging people to show up dressed as zombies at Diana Krall Plaza.

“They can join in and we will be dancing to Michael Jackson’s Thriller at 3 p.m.,” Venet said.

The dance is part of a worldwide celebration called Thrill the World, where people around the globe simultaneously dance to the Jackson hit.

For a full list of events taking place during the 2014 Downtown Halloween Howl, please visit www.dnbia.ca.

arts@nanaimobulletin.comTwitter: @npescod