Beach Huts – Celebrate October

October Celebrations at your Beach Hut

Trafalgar, Hallowe’en & Jane Austen’s 250th

October might conjure up images of falling leaves and cosy firesides. For those lucky enough to have a beach hut, it can be one of the most atmospheric months of the year. The sea is wilder, the air is brisk, and the horizon seems to stretch into history and imagination.

In October 2025, three anniversaries collide: the Battle of Trafalgar, Hallowe’en, and Jane Austen’s 250th birthday. Each brings a reason to celebrate with family, friends, food, and stories by the shore.

1. Trafalgar Day (21 October) – A Toast to the Sea

The Battle of Trafalgar (1805) is one of Britain’s most significant naval victories. Commemorating it at your beach hut feels particularly fitting: the salty tang in the air, the seagulls wheeling above, and the sight of sailing boats out at sea all echo Nelson’s world.

Here’s a great way to celebrate:

Raise a Glass: Mix up a classic rum punch (a nod to the Navy ration), or keep it simple with hot spiced cider in enamel mugs to keep hands warm against the sea breeze.
Picnic Food: Pack hearty Cornish pasties or sausage rolls – portable, warming, and perfect for eating by the shore.
Activities: Share naval history stories with children, sketch ships in the sand, or fly a kite as a symbolic sail.

2. Hallowe’en (31 October) – Spooky by the Sea

Hallowe’en by the coast brings its own atmosphere: crashing waves, rattling shingle, the eerie call of seabirds. A beach hut transforms beautifully into a lantern-lit den for storytelling and games.

An easy way celebrate:

Decorations: String fairy lights and hang paper bats or shells painted black and orange. Carve pumpkins or squashes and line them up in front of your beach hut.
Food & Drink: Warm pumpkin soup in flasks, marshmallows to toast on a portable barbecue, and mulled apple juice for children.
Activities: Share ghost stories of shipwrecks and smugglers, stage a treasure hunt in the sand with glowsticks, or play “pumpkin boules” rolling mini squashes

3. Jane Austen’s 250th Anniversary (16 December 1775–2025) – A Literary Picnic by the Sea

Though Jane Austen was born in December, celebrations of her 250th anniversary are taking place throughout the year. October offers a golden opportunity to weave her world into seaside life. Austen loved the coast – Sanditon and Persuasion reflect seaside settings, holidays, and naval officers returning from sea.

Celebrate Austen’s legacy with:

Literary Beach Picnic: Serve delicate finger sandwiches, seed cakes, Bath buns, and pour tea from a flask into china cups brought especially for the occasion.
Reading List: Bring along beach-themed editions of Austen’s Persuasion (naval romance in Lyme Regis), alongside lighthearted coastal reads like Veronica Henry’s A Beach Hut Summer .
Activities: Invite friends and family for a seaside “book club,” each reading a favourite Austen passage aloud. Add a touch of Regency elegance by encouraging shawls, parasols, or even a mock promenade along the beach.

Making October Extra Special

Blending these three themes gives you a month of rich experiences at your beach hut. Trafalgar Day reminds us of courage at sea; Hallowe’en sparks imagination with spooks and shadows; Jane Austen’s anniversary lets us slow down with literature, tea, and thoughtful conversation.

Welcoming Friends & Family:

Plan one celebration for each weekend in October so everyone can join in.
Encourage guests to bring their own themed dish or drink to share.
Capture the moments – group photos in naval hats, Austen-style shawls blowing in the wind, or pumpkin lanterns glowing against the dusk sea.

Beach huts in October are about more than summer picnics; they’re places to make history, literature, and friendship come alive against the dramatic backdrop of the coast.

Do you have any recommendations about fiction or non-fiction books relating to sea or beach life? Let us know on instagram at ilovebeachhuts