Sometimes dreams do come true. Such is the case with Halloweentown , which Buzzfeed kindly reminded the world is a real place. That's right, '90s kids, Halloweentown is real and gearing up for its annual festival of Halloween goodness set to kickoff on the weekend of Oct. 8 to Oct. 9. The real Halloweentown is actually St. Helens, Oregon where the first movie was filmed back in 1998, and St. Helens has embraced their claim to fame in a major way.
Not many towns would be willing to go all in and create a magical Halloween experience to delight fans of a cult classic kid's movie, but St. Helens has made a tradition out of turning their town into Halloweentown for the month of October. The kickoff weekend is always full of festivities, which this year includes a Severed Head Tractor Ride, a Mad Hatter's Costume Party, and the Pumpkin Lighting Ceremony, but the entire month is one long celebration of all things Halloween. Grandma Aggie would totally approve.
Even cooler? Marnie herself is known to join in the fun. Kimberly J. Brown who played Marnie in the first three movies will be on hand once again this year to celebrate Halloween on the opening weekend. Brown clearly loves the event: All it takes is one look at her Instagram feed to see she delights in getting the chance to channel her inner Marnie again, at least once a year.
If you ever want to feel like a kid again on Halloween then you owe it to yourself to plan a pilgrimage to the very real Halloweentown in St. Helens. Spend a weekend carving pumpkins, admiring your fellow honorary witches and wizards, and maybe even get the chance to meet Marnie herself. It is not often movies come to life, especially not ones with small (but devoted) fan bases like Halloweentown .
While you won't bump into Grandma Aggie working her magic in person, the spirit of the movie is alive and well in St. Helens — they even have a haunted cab! Halloweentown fans, you should bask in the knowledge Halloweentown is really out there waiting for you. If your fondest wish was to stumble into a world of magic and year round Halloween awesomeness, then rest easy knowing the wonderful place you visit every year in your annual rewatch of the movies exists in the real world too.
Happy Halloween, Halloweentown fans. Now make like Marnie, fire up your broomsticks, and head to Oregon.
Images: Disney Channel
