Free This Weekend: Día de los Muertos in Mesa, Pumpkins in Gilbert, and Trunk-or-Treats Everywhere
By Tricia Manara
Gilbert to Apache Junction
Verified on organizer calendars
Weekend
Oct 24-25, 2026
Cities
5 Eastside towns
Cost
100% free
Great for
Families, foodies, car buffs
This weekend's Free This Weekend guide covers Saturday, October 24 and Sunday, October 25, 2026, with fully free events in Gilbert, Chandler, Mesa, Queen Creek, and Apache Junction. Every date, time, venue, and free status below was verified against the organizer's own calendar or listing, and each event links to its source so you can confirm before you head out. The headline is Mesa Arts Center's 20th annual Día de los Muertos Festival, free both days with a Saturday-night concert from Grammy winner Lila Downs, while Gilbert's Heritage District hosts live pumpkin carving and Chandler, Mesa, and Apache Junction all lean into trunk-or-treat. Family-friendly picks are flagged with a heart so you can spot them at a glance.
Gilbert's Heritage District is the heart of the town's Harvest celebration, and Saturday morning brings a famous pumpkin carver to Water Tower Plaza. No tickets anywhere in this section, just a blanket and a stroll.
Saturday, Oct 24 9 a.m. - 1 p.m.
Live Pumpkin Carving with Ray Villafane & the Great Gilbert Gourd Hunt
Family Friendly
Water Tower Plaza, 45 W Page Ave, downtown Gilbert All ages, family-friendly
Ray Villafane, the celebrity pumpkin carver, sculpts giant pumpkins live at Water Tower Plaza while the Great Gilbert Gourd Hunt scavenger hunt runs through the Heritage District. It is all free to watch and join, and the carved pumpkins stay on display as part of Harvest in the Heritage District.
Saturday, Oct 24 and Sunday, Oct 25 All weekend; tower lighting at dusk both nights
Harvest in the Heritage District & Water Tower Lighting
Family Friendly
Heritage District, downtown Gilbert All ages, family-friendly
Gilbert's townwide autumn celebration runs through November 1 with free seasonal activities, fall décor, and the farmers market, and the Water Tower lights up in harvest colors at dusk on both Saturday and Sunday. Grab dinner in the Heritage District and make an evening of it.
Chandler's Saturday runs from a free family open house in the morning to a free trunk-or-treat at night, with a peek inside the Chandler Center for the Arts in between.
Saturday, Oct 24 9 - 11 a.m.
Community Services Open House
Family Friendly
Tumbleweed Recreation Center, 745 E Germann Rd Families, all ages
Chandler throws open the doors of Tumbleweed Recreation Center for a free family open house featuring fall recreation programs, library info, fitness center tours, and giveaways. A low-key way to see what your hometown rec center offers before signing up for anything.
Chandler Center for the Arts, downtown Chandler All ages, arts lovers
A free community open house at the Chandler Center for the Arts, with behind-the-scenes peeks at the stages, the season ahead, and the creative community that makes downtown Chandler hum. No ticket required, just walk in.
A free trunk-or-treat hosted by MUV Martial Arts, with decorated trunks full of candy and a kids' costume contest at 7:30 p.m. Come in costume, collect candy, and let the little ones show off their Halloween looks a week early.
Mesa owns the weekend. The 20th annual Día de los Muertos Festival fills the Mesa Arts Center campus and Main Street for two free days, and the morning kicks off with a free car show and trunk-or-treat at Bass Pro Shops.
Saturday, Oct 24 and Sunday, Oct 25 Sat noon - 10 p.m. | Sun noon - 5 p.m.
Día de los Muertos Festival, 20th Anniversary
Family Friendly
Mesa Arts Center, 1 E Main St, downtown Mesa All ages, music lovers
The Eastside's signature free festival returns for its 20th year with ofrendas (altars), live music, dance, art activities for kids, and food. Saturday night turns into a street party with Quetzal Guerrero at 7 p.m. and Grammy-winning singer Lila Downs at 8 p.m. Free both days; bring a blanket for the evening set.
Bass Pro Shops, 1133 N Dobson Rd, Mesa Families, car enthusiasts
A free car show and trunk-or-treat event at Bass Pro Shops in Mesa, honoring veterans and giving kids a chance to trick-or-treat car-to-car in broad daylight. Classic rides, friendly owners, and candy for the littlest goblins.
The Plaza at Mesa City Center, 56 E Main St, Mesa Sun Devil fans, all ages
A free big-screen ASU Sun Devil football viewing party on The Plaza at Mesa City Center, right off Main Street. Game time is set by ASU's schedule, so check the city calendar before you go, then claim a spot on the plaza with the rest of the neighborhood.
Queen Creek keeps it simple this Saturday with its monthly family market under the fall sun, free to enter with free parking.
Saturday, Oct 24 9 a.m. - 2 p.m.
Queen Creek Family Market
Family Friendly
S Ellsworth Loop & Aldecoa Dr, Queen Creek (22301 S Ellsworth Loop) All ages, family-friendly
Queen Creek's monthly family market is free to enter with free parking, bringing local vendors, fall produce, handmade goods, and food stalls together at Ellsworth Loop and Aldecoa Drive. Stroll, snack, and support small local makers on a cool October morning.
Apache Junction pulls out all the stops Saturday evening with its free Halloween Festival at Superstition Shadows Park, one of the Eastside's best small-town costume nights.
Saturday, Oct 24 4 - 8 p.m.
Apache Junction Halloween Festival
Family Friendly
Superstition Shadows Park, 1091 W Southern Ave, Apache Junction Families with kids, all ages
Apache Junction's free Halloween Festival features a costume contest at the stage at 5 p.m. split by age group, a pumpkin carving contest, inflatables, kids' games, a trunk-or-treat sponsored by a local realty company, and non-profit vendors. Park admission is free, so bring the whole crew in costume.
Free means genuinely free: every pick above has no entry fee, no ticket, and no wristband. Events that charged admission, like Gilbert's Paws in the Preserve craft workshops, were left off the list.
Trunk-or-treats and the costume contest at Apache Junction draw big neighborhood crowds, so arrive a little early and bring your own candy expectations: most of these hand out goodies until they run out.
October nights on the Eastside cool off fast after sundown. The Día de los Muertos evening show and the Water Tower lighting are outdoor events, so toss in a light jacket.
Street markets and festivals are free to enter, but the vendors still take cash or card. Bring a little spending money if you plan to snack or shop.
Peek at next weekend
Next weekend is Halloween itself. Chandler's family-friendly Halloween Spooktacular is scheduled for Friday, Oct 30, Gilbert's Harvest in the Heritage District wraps up Nov 1, and Schnepf Farms' Pumpkin and Chili Party in Queen Creek closes out its season Oct 31 (that one is ticketed).
Every event above was verified against the organizer's own calendar or a live event listing in the week of Oct 23, 2026. Details like set times and locations can shift, so tap the source link on any event before you head out.
Where This Weekend's Picks Come From
Each event above links to its official listing. Here are the organizer and city calendars we checked this week.
This guide is part of our weekly Free This Weekend series, researched and verified fresh every Friday for the days ahead. Know a free East Valley event we should include next week? Send Tricia a note.
The free stuff is how you really get to know the Eastside. If these towns are starting to feel like home, let us talk about finding your own spot in one of them, from Gilbert to Apache Junction.
