A Very Potter Weekend (with video review)

It’s a BIG weekend in these parts (weather, be kind!), so hold onto your masks and check out this basket o’ goodies!

Northwest Philadelphia Family Fun:

Harry Potter Weekend & Quiddich Tournament Returns! 

Chestnut Hill transforms into Hogsmeade when the Chestnut Hill Business Association  and Chestnut Hill College host the annual Chestnut Hill Harry Potter Weekend! October 26-27, 2012.   The opening ceremony is Friday at 6pm when Dumbledore kicks off the festival with Quiddich players, costumed characters, music and fun.  A showing of “Harry Potter & the Sorcerer Stone” and the (adult only) Harry Potter Pub Crawl and Scavenger Hunt start at 7pm.

 

Look out for the Snitch all day on Saturday when 16 colleges and universities participate in the 3rd Annual Brotherly Love Quidditch Tournament at Chestnut Hill College.  Thousands of Harry Potter fans are expected to attend, many in costume.   

 

In Chestnut Hill’s business corridor, kids will enjoy the “Hunt for the Horcrux” free scavenger hunt,  Defense Against the Dark Arts workshop and Sorting Hat class led by Dumbledore and Care of Magical Creatures class.  Restaurants and retailers are transforming…be sure to check out Madame Puddifoot’s Tea Shop (The Night Kitchen), Diagon Alley (Farmers’ Market).    

 

Commencement Ceremony will be held at Norwood-Fontbonne Academy and feature Professor Dumbledore as Commencement speaker.  Muggles, wizards and other Harry Potter fans will  get “Potter Beans” and certificates and prizes will be awarded to those who successfully completed the Harry Potter Scavenger Hunt.  

 

On Saturday evening, Teenagers, Inc. offers a family-friendly Ghost Walk featuring eerie tales told by professional storytellers.  

 

For a full schedule of events, visit: http://www.chestnuthillpa.com/happenings-on-the-hill/harry-potter-day-and-halloween-in-chestnut-hill   Most events, but not, are free. 

 

Halloween on the Hill

 

On Sunday, October 28th Chestnut Hill celebrates Halloween!   There is a costume parade at 1pm, starting at every kids’ favorite place – O’Doodles Toy Store.   Visit over 40 merchants for trick-or-treating along Chestnut Hill’s business corridor from 1:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m.  End the afternoon with a “Orcs, Ogres and an Organist”, a free Halloween concert with parade and ghoulish treats to follow at St. Martin’s in the Field church. 

  

Downtown Philadelphia Family Fun 

 

Boo at the ZOO! 

 

Come to the Zoo in costume on Saturday and Sunday, 9:30-5:00pm and enjoy a creepy, crawly celebration!  They will be music, treats, games and more.  Be sure to take a stroll through the not-so-scary Extinction Graveyard to learn more about extinct species and the ones that could be extinct in the next few decades!  Families will enjoy a Little People Live Show, Spookie stories in the Primate Reserve every 30 minutes and a costume parade around Bird Lake!   Free shuttles to the zoo from 30th Street Statin and the Mann Music Center are available all weekend.  Boo at the Zoo! is free with zoo admission. www.philadelphiazoo.org

 

Healthy Halloween at Smith Memorial Playground

On Saturday, October 27th from 10am-Noon.  Healthy Halloween is for children ten and under to celebrate Halloween in costumer with healthy treats, goodies bags, balloon artists, scary story time, mask making, fun with clay, games and activities, face painting and fun in the playground and famous Ann Newman Giant Wooden Slide!

Free for Smith Members or $10/child. Family memberships to Smith are available for $25.   

2012 Rittenhouse Row Halloween

On Saturday, October 27th from 10a-5pm, the businesses on Rittenhouse Row invite you and your children to a prized costume contest, mini brunch buffet and Halloween-themed activities. Tickets are $15 for adults / $10 for children.

NW Philly Parents is a partnership between Newsworks and Germantown Avenue Parents.