While Trick-or-Treating children wear costumes.
A Renaissance fair , Renaissance faire , or Renaissance festival is an outdoor weekend gathering , usually held in the United States , open to the public and typically commercial in nature , which purportedly recreates a historical setting for the amusement of its guests . Trick-or-treating . Children in costumes travel from house to house asking for treats such as candy ( or , in some cultures , money ) with the phrase `` Trick or treat '' . In 19th century Britain and Ireland , there are many accounts of people going house-to-house in costume at Halloween , reciting verses in exchange for food , and sometimes warning of misfortune if they were not welcomed . The Scottish Halloween custom of `` guising '' -- children disguised in costume going from house to house for food or money -- is first recorded in North America in 1911 . While going house-to-house in costume has remained popular among Scots and Irish , the custom of saying `` trick or treat '' has only recently become common .