Littleton's Halloween Runs Along Prince Street, and One Family Started Much of It

"I knew a bunch of ghost stories from around here, 'cause I grew up here," Greg Reinke told the Littleton Independent. "It was to get some activity down here."

He was explaining why he helped start Haunts of Littleton, the downtown ghost walk now in its 24th season. Reinke also co-owns the costume shop and haunted house that has anchored South Prince Street for more than 25 years. If you map this October in downtown Littleton, a lot of it runs along a short stretch of one street, and much of it traces back to the Reinke brothers.

A haunted house that started with a penny and a shopping cart

According to a 2019 profile in 303 Magazine, Greg and Chris Reinke trace the business to a 1968 fishing trip. After pulling a shopping cart out of the water, the brothers built a maze in a basement out of blankets and props and charged neighborhood kids a penny to ride the cart through it. Their first official commercial haunt opened at Cinderella City in 1984.

The Denver Post reported that the brothers moved the business to 5665 S. Prince St. in Littleton in 1999. Today Reinke Brothers lists its address as 5663 S. Prince St.

The milestone math depends on who's counting. Visit Littleton bills 2026 as the Haunted Mansion's "50th year." The Reinkes' own page calls it "a beloved family tradition with over 50 years of frightful fun." And in October 2018, Colorado Public Radio was already describing it as a 50th-anniversary tradition. However you count it, the tradition started in a basement in 1968. It has had a Prince Street address since 1999.

This year the mansion runs September 25 through November 1, 2026, according to the Reinke Brothers schedule. Hours are:

• Monday through Thursday, 6 to 10 p.m.
• Friday, 6 p.m. to midnight
• Saturday, 3 p.m. to midnight
• Sunday, 3 to 10 p.m.

The Visit Littleton listing shows slightly different dates, September 26 through November 2. The attraction's own schedule is the one to plan around.

The lights-on tour is the detail that sets this haunt apart for families. Every Saturday and Sunday from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m., guides walk visitors through the mansion with the lights up and most effects off. The Reinkes say they "send all the 'monsters' away to get lunch," and they describe the tour as a way to get young kids and first-timers used to a haunted attraction "without scaring them for life."

The ghost walk was built to bring people downtown

Haunts of Littleton began in the early 2000s. Greg Reinke started it with Brian Vogt of Denver Botanic Gardens and John Brackney of the South Metro Denver Chamber of Commerce, and the Littleton Independent reports the goal was to "get things going" downtown. The 2026 ticket listing puts the first season in 2002.

The tour has since changed hands. It's now run by the Friends of 444 Foundation, a Colorado 501(c)(3). The walk is its main fundraiser for Littleton's Scout Troop 444, and proceeds cover participation costs, camping, equipment and scholarships. Community volunteers run the tours, including young people. Costumed storytellers lead guests to each stop, and organizer Brian Cotter told the Independent that many of the scouts and families "have sort of acting backgrounds."

The 2026 nights are October 16, 17, 23 and 24. The Littleton Downtown Development Authority lists ten tours a night between 7 and 9:30 p.m., and each one lasts about an hour. The ticket listing says groups leave every ten minutes from 7 to 8:30 p.m. Tours start at the RTD Littleton/Downtown station on South Prince Street, a short walk from the Reinke storefront.

The newest skeletons on Main Street point back to Reinke

This year the downtown development authority added something new. Bones About Town put skeletons on lampposts along Main Street on October 1, and they'll stay through October 31.

Each skeleton wears a toe tag with a code you can scan to enter a drawing. You can enter up to 25 times a week, once per skeleton. A $100 Downtown Littleton gift card goes to a winner every Saturday in October, with drawings on October 10, 17, 24 and 31. On Halloween, one more winner gets a $250 grand prize.

LDDA executive director Jenny Starkey said the idea came from the skeletons her family stores in the garage. She also told the Independent that she felt Littleton already had close ties to Halloween, especially with Reinke Brothers being a mainstay downtown. Her stated goal echoes the reason Greg Reinke gave for starting the ghost walk two decades ago:

"Bones About Town felt like an endearing and playful way to celebrate the Halloween season while generating foot traffic throughout the district. At its heart, it's also a reminder that every local purchase helps keep your downtown 'alive'."

The skeletons join two merchant traditions that Downtown Littleton runs every year. The Pumpkin Poles are carved displays made by downtown merchants. They go up on Main, Alamo and Prince streets in early October and stay through Halloween, "depending on the condition of the pumpkins," so earlier in the month is better. Goblin Give Out lands on Sunday, October 25. Kids in costume trick-or-treat at participating shops and restaurants, which hand out candy through the afternoon.

What each one costs

One big ticket sits outside the Prince Street cluster. Magic of the Jack O'Lanterns runs select nights from September 18 to November 1 at Hudson Gardens, 6115 S. Santa Fe Drive, from 6:30 to 10:30 p.m. It's a returning production; a 2024 announcement called that year's Hudson Gardens edition the fourth annual. The features its site highlights were billed as new in 2024 and 2025: the synchronized light show, s'mores stations and an expansion called the Hollow.

Coupons and discounts don't apply to the Reinke lights-on tour. At the pumpkin trail, prices change by date. The 2026 ticket calendar showed $20.59 on listed weekdays and $23.68 on listed weekend dates, fees included.

The rest of October, date by date

As of October 10, here's what's left:

1. Saturday, Oct. 10: First Bones About Town drawing. 9NEWS also put the Hudson Gardens pumpkin trail in its weekend roundup.
2. Friday, Oct. 16, and Saturday, Oct. 17: First weekend of Haunts of Littleton. Second skeleton drawing is on the 17th.
3. Friday, Oct. 23, and Saturday, Oct. 24: Last two Haunts nights. Third drawing is on the 24th.
4. Sunday, Oct. 25: Goblin Give Out downtown.
5. Saturday, Oct. 31: Final weekly drawing plus the $250 grand prize. The skeletons come down after Halloween.
6. Sunday, Nov. 1: Last night for the Haunted Mansion on the Reinkes' own schedule, and the last night of Magic of the Jack O'Lanterns.

Between stops

The Reinke Brothers store runs extended hours through November 1. It's open Sunday 10 a.m. to 10 p.m., Monday through Thursday 11 a.m. to 10 p.m., Friday 11 a.m. to midnight, and Saturday 10 a.m. to midnight. That makes last-minute costume runs easy on a Haunts night.

Two shops that are new to downtown this year are a few minutes' walk away. Leaves on Main, an indoor-plant and gift shop at 2699 Main Street, opened September 5. Lewis & Cluck, the chicken-feed and supplies shop, has moved back downtown under new ownership at 5827 S. Rapp Street.

When October wraps, the next big night downtown is the Candlelight Walk on Friday, November 27, with hot cider, holiday music and reindeer on Main Street.

At Live.Laugh.Denver. Real Estate Group, we love hearing which Littleton traditions people plan their fall around, from the lights-on tour to a Haunts night with the scouts. If you're starting to wonder what owning a home within walking distance of Prince Street would look like, we'd be glad to talk it through with you. Start your home journey with us.