When the Paddle Boats Close: West Orange's Free and Cheap Late-Fall Calendar on Northfield Avenue

At the South Mountain Recreation Complex on Northfield Avenue, an outing gets cheaper from mid-October through New Year's Eve. The rides that charge by the person close down one at a time, and the evening events take their place. Those events cost less than a daytime zoo ticket, and the biggest of them costs nothing at the gate.

The summer price list just expired

The complex's warm-weather attractions are closing out 2026. Here is where they stand:

Essex County Parks' Waterfront page lists October 12 as the last paddle boat day of the year, with boats running from noon to 6 p.m. The TreeTop Adventure Course listing still shows weekend hours and adds combo rates of $35 for an adult course plus zip line and $27 for a junior course plus zip line. It gives no closing date, so check the county page before you plan a late-October climb around it.

The baseline for everything below is a regular daytime zoo ticket. The zoo is open daily from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., and admission is $22 for adults 13 and older and $19 for seniors 62 and older and for children 2 to 12. Children under 2 get in free. The posted rate list has no separate price for county residents. The one off-season rate on the zoo's plan-your-trip page is $15 per person, and it applies only to groups of 15 or more who reserve and pay ahead.

October's two zoo tickets that come with extras

The two events on the zoo calendar this coming weekend are priced against that $22 ticket.

ConserVISION, Saturday, October 17, 4 to 6 p.m. This conservation-themed fall festival starts as regular hours end. Admission is $15. Zoo members and children 2 and under get in free, and the listing includes food trucks and cocktails. That puts an adult evening ticket at $7 less than a daytime one.

Penguin Waddle, Sunday, October 18, 8:30 a.m. The course is 3 miles, with a 1.3-mile shortcut for anyone who wants it. Registration is $40 and includes zoo admission after the run. For an adult who was going to the zoo anyway, the race portion works out to $18 on top of the regular ticket.

Both events follow the pattern of the season. The zoo's daytime hours stay the same, and the new activity happens around them, either after 4 p.m. or before the gates normally open.

Halloween runs on a split shift

October 31 falls on a Saturday this year, and the zoo is splitting the day in two. Its modified hours notice puts it plainly:

The Zoo will be open from 10am – 1pm on Saturday, October 31st, 2026.

The gates close at 1 p.m. and reopen at 4 p.m. for Howl-O-Ween, a ticketed trick-or-treat that runs until 8 p.m. A morning visitor who plans to stay into the afternoon will find the zoo closed three hours early. A family that skips the morning and comes back at 4 pays far less.

Howl-O-Ween tickets are $5 general and $3 for members, and children under 2 get in free. Spooky Storytime is an optional add-on at $13 general or $11 for members, with sessions at 4:30, 5:30 and 6:30 p.m. The zoo's event page still lists show details as TBD, so the full lineup may change before the 31st.

At $5 for an adult, the Halloween evening costs less than a quarter of a daytime ticket.

Codey Arena keeps the weekend going indoors

Across the complex, the Richard J. Codey Arena picks up where the outdoor attractions leave off. The county's arena page lists October public skating at these times:

• Fridays, 4:45 to 6:15 p.m.
• Saturdays, 11:45 a.m. to 1:15 p.m. and 2 to 3:30 p.m.
• Sundays, 11:45 a.m. to 1:15 p.m. and 2 to 3:30 p.m.

Public sessions cost $14 for adults 16 and older and $10 for children 15 and under, seniors 62 and older, and military. Skate rental is $5. Reservations are taken online. The arena also sells discount cards online for pickup at the front desk, and skaters registered for a class can stay for the public session that follows at no extra cost.

The arena's posted calendar covers October 2026 and reaches only as far as November 1. If you plan to pair a skate with a Holiday Lights evening in late November or December, check the posted times that week, since the October schedule may change.

The free part starts November 20

The evening prices drop from $15 at ConserVISION to $5 at Howl-O-Ween, and Holiday Lights 2026 takes them to zero. The zoo's Holiday Lights page describes a winter walk among more than 50 lit winter and animal characters. Admission is free, and reservations are not required.

The calendar, with hours of 5 to 9 p.m.:

• Thursday, November 19: members-only Holiday Lights night
• Friday through Sunday, November 20 to 22
• Friday through Sunday, November 27 to 29
• Nightly, Friday, December 4 through Thursday, December 31, except December 24 and 25, when the lights are closed

The zoo also lists Santa meet-and-greets on selected dates from November 20 through December 23. Ice-carving demonstrations are scheduled for 6 p.m. on November 20, November 27, December 4, December 11 and December 18. All five carving dates are Fridays. The Grinch and princess appearances are still listed as TBD.

Some extras inside cost money. The Holiday Lights page puts a dollar sign next to the carousel, pony track, gift shop, face painting and food options. It lists the touch tank, Reptile House, farm and train without one. Families can keep the cost of a night close to zero if they skip the extras marked with a dollar sign.

The zoo is also asking visitors to bring non-perishable food, new toys and gently used coats as donations.

Parking on a December weeknight

Zoo visitors park free in the lots and garages across the complex, with no ticket or validation required. The exception is the Park 'n Ride garage closest to the main road, which is not free Monday through Friday. In November, the public Holiday Lights nights all fall Friday through Sunday, and the one Thursday is the members-only night on November 19. The December run is nightly, so several of those evenings fall on weekdays. On those nights, follow the staff and signs to the free areas instead of pulling into the first garage you see. The zoo says EV charging stations are in Parking Deck 2, and on busy days visitors may be sent to an off-site lot.

What's worth a daytime visit before the lights go up

The evening events are the bargains, but a few changes at the zoo are worth seeing in daylight while the grounds are quieter.

The lemur habitat. Patch reported that the new lemur habitat opened on July 7, 2026, with ring-tailed, red-ruffed and brown collared lemurs. It sits in the space that used to be Sea Lion Sound.

The capybara triplets. The zoo recently welcomed three capybara pups and held a public naming contest on October 10 and 11, according to Patch. The triplets are still young this fall.

The barn under construction. Village Green reported in August, republishing the county's announcement, that construction began in July on an African Adventure hoof-stock barn for zebras and bongos. Completion is scheduled for spring 2027. That date was a projection when it was reported, and no later status update has been published.

Put the whole season side by side and the prices fall in order. An adult daytime zoo ticket is $22, ConserVISION is $15, Howl-O-Ween is $5, and Holiday Lights is free, with free parking everywhere except one weekday garage.

If you live near Northfield Avenue and want to understand how the complex and its seasons affect daily life on the streets around it, Allison Ziefert Homes is glad to talk it through. We follow West Orange one season at a time, and a free local market consultation is a good place to start.