Lakewood Ranch Main Street will fill with costumed families on Friday, Oct. 30, when BooFest returns for another year of free Halloween festivities.

The event runs 6 to 9 p.m. and draws 30 to 40 local businesses, merchants and nonprofits, according to Nicole Hackel, events and resident experience manager for Lakewood Ranch Communities. Food trucks, free crafts, games, inflatables and photo opportunities line the street, as first reported by Your Observer.

BooFest has run on Main Street since 2007. Veteran Air is the presenting sponsor. Grace Community Church sponsors a Kids' Zone with face painting, balloon twisting and inflatables, according to the Lakewood Ranch event listing. The first 2,500 attendees can pick up a free trick-or-treat pumpkin tote at the Veteran Air booth.

Hackel said she hopes BooFest becomes a tradition that children grow up remembering and families look forward to each year.

Four bands from local music school Music Compound perform on the main stage throughout the evening. Pins and Needles open at 6 p.m., followed by Solar Apocalypse, Heartbreaker and Funke, which closes the stage at 9 p.m.

The event has built loyal followings. Terry Eagle, a Lakewood Ranch resident who described himself as a "foot dragger" when it comes to costumes, has attended with his wife, Madeleine, and neighbors Tara and Mike Warmuth since 2022. The two couples have shown up as ostriches and a zookeeper, as the Addams Family and, their first year, as Teletubbies after a trip to Spirit Halloween.

"I refused to be an ostrich, so that's where the zookeeper came into play," Terry Eagle told Your Observer. "I said 'I am not bending over all night.'"

Tara Warmuth said the Teletubbies costumes were a big hit, especially with adults because it was more their generation. The group missed 2024 after Hurricane Debby flooded their neighborhood but returned in 2025.

Pulse of Manatee reported in early October that this year's BooFest carries a Scooby-Doo theme. The official Lakewood Ranch event page does not mention a theme.

BooFest is free and open to all ages. Lakewood Ranch Main Street is located off Lakewood Ranch Boulevard.