Neighbourhoods that Gave Out the Most Candy

Science World lit up like a giant glowing pumpkin

Today people are recovering from their sugar highs from Halloween last night, while one academic has pored over the statistics to see which Metro Vancouver neighbourhood had the most trick-or-treaters.

Since around 2016, Andy Yan, director of the Simon Fraser University City Program has tracked which areas give out the most candy, and the winner like all previous years is... Douglas Park, around West 22nd Avenue and Heather Street near Cambie Village.

One child getting candy via a kiddie slide

One home reported handing out a whopping 2,853 candies, and another 2,475.

Other popular areas are New Westminster's Queen's Park, Surrey's East Clayton, Richmond's Steveston, and Victoria's Rockland.

Yan observed the popular areas for trick-or-treating are located near parks, making them walkable.

"[They have] a density, and yet at the same time, it's density through which I think people feel safe. They feel like they're part of a community," he said in a radio interview this morning.

"I think it's very much about the importance of green space and... this role of parks and how they kind of help anchor a community."

And despite the rising costs of candy this year, more than 80 percent of respondents said inflation did not deter them from buying candy to give out for Halloween.

Interestingly it's the wealthier neighbourhoods that have fewer trick-or-treaters like Shaughnessy, as Yan explains there is a lower "door-to-curb" ratio that forces kids to have to walk or run further to the next house, whereas if the houses are closer to each other, they can collect more candy in the same period of time.

Neighbourhoods near parks gave out lots of candy

It's all about the strategy.

Which includes more "destination trick-or-treating", a relatively new phenomenon where kids are driven around to other neighbourhoods to collect even more candy. 

Whatever happened to just being content with what they got in their own area?

There are also opportunities to trick-or-treat at neighbourhood businesses, as various BIAs or business improvement associations organise shops to give out candy during the day.

Another factor is new immigrants who may not have experienced Halloween before and are unfamiliar with the traditions involved, and hence didn't participate.

Nevertheless, with Metro Vancouver -- heck the province of British Columbia -- focused on densifying cities, will this mean even more candy for kids in the future?