Decorative Halloween tradition spooks and delights on NYC's Upper East Side

Ghosts, ghouls and evil clowns on Manhattan's Upper East Side are no match for some of New York's smallest trick-or-treaters.

"He's always laughing. He can't wait to see it, see the decorations," said one Midtown mom of her toddler, Matheo.

Matheo got up close and personal with a haunted clown decoration outside of an apartment building near the corner of Lexington Avenue and East 78th Street, making faces and posing. His mom laughed and snapped videos as she recapped their days leading up to Halloween.

"We probably visit the same houses, probably a few times a week," she said.

From a trip down the rabbit hole to Wonderland with Alice, to a visit to a spooky asylum, to a skeleton dressed as a New York Knick, residents and businesses deck out their buildings with Halloween decorations, attracting visitors from near and far.

"We live in Utah, so people do their whole house, but it's so spread apart that you're driving to see it. But here you walk and it's just house after house after house or apartment," said a woman visiting from Utah for her birthday. "It's beautiful and I love being outside walking."

Longtime New Yorkers say the tradition is a reminder that even as "the big city," New York City is still made up of small, close-knit communities.

"New York is a great, you know, great town. Even though people think it's so metropolitan, it's really not," said one resident of more than 20 years. "This really brings community together and makes it not only Halloween, just makes it feel like fall. It makes it feel like a nice holiday." 

Visitors can check out the fright fest on East 78th Street between Lexington and Second Avenue.

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