The 27^th Annual Salem Chamber of Commerce Haunted Happenings Grand Parade will take place, as always, on the first Thursday of October, October 3rd, 2024. The parade will follow the normal route from Prime Group Shetland Park to Salem Common.

The theme for this year’s Parade is “Out Time on Earth”, referencing the exhibit that will open at the Peabody Essex Museum on February 17, which should give parade participants a wide array of costumes and stories to tell!

“Our Time on Earth” is part of PEM’s Climate + Environment Initiative. The traveling exhibition from the Barbican Centre in London celebrates the power of global creativity to transform the conversation around the climate emergency. The structures and design featured in the exhibition are sourced from biodegradable, sustainable materials to minimize carbon footprint. And the exhibit challenges the audience to imagine the ideal future world. What will it look like? How will we use the precious time we have here on earth?  What will it take to live together in harmony? And that’s exactly what the Salem Chamber hopes all students and schools will do this year: use everyone’s creativity to talk and educate about the climate crisis. And if people are looking for ideas, please visit the PEM exhibit; entry to the museum is free to all Salem residents!

The Parade is a special nighttime tradition for the city of Salem and visitors alike to officially kick off Salem’s Halloween season. The evening should be a night full of color, pageantry, music, and the enthusiasm of thousands of Salem’s students from kindergarten to college plus many local business owners. Over 15,000 spectators (children, adults, and those in between) are expected to attend.