Where are the full-size chocolate bars? Let CBC's map help maximize your Halloween haul

Seasoned trick-or-treaters know there are only a few short hours to get the most out of Halloween night.

Some want the experience — garages turned into haunted houses, decked out front yards and movies projected onto the sides of walls.

For others, it's about candy maximization: How to knock on the most doors in the shortest amount of time. And of course, the search for the ever-elusive full-size chocolate bar.

But where in Metro Vancouver does one go to find all these things?

• Treat count 2019: Report the number of trick-or-treaters you got here

CBC British Columbia and the SFU City Program, which promotes citizen participation in civic issues, have teamed up to find the answers.

We took the data from our crowdsourced 2017 trick-or-treat map and analyzed it to find answers to some common questions.

Which neighbourhoods are the most fun?

Every year, the same few neighbourhoods consistently report receiving hundreds of trick-or-treaters, with some houses topping out at over a thousand. 

This is usually because the houses in these places are the best decorated. So, if you're looking for an overall experience, you might want to try:

Trinity Street, East Vancouver

Trinity Street is known for its extravagant Halloween and holiday displays. Houses on Trinity reported anywhere from 600 to 1,200 candy seekers in 2017.

Douglas Park, Vancouver

This neighbourhood, roughly bordered by West 16th and King Edward avenues and Cambie and Oak Streets, was home to the place that reported the highest number of trick-or-treaters, at 1,256, in 2017.

Other decked out, high-volume neighbourhoods are Queen's Park in New Westminster and Surrey's Clayton area.

Where can I find the most candy?

Houses in the most decorated neighbourhoods tend to run out of treats.

Areas with less foot traffic tend to have more candy to offload, and 2017 data revealed some places where residents commented mournfully on the lack of trick-or-treaters in their area. They include:

Apartment or condo buildings. Several apartment dwellers wrote that they hoped kids in their building would come by, but none did. One Kitsilano apartment dweller even had specially decorated cookies but got no takers.

Streets near busy areas.  If you do happen to be in one of the busier areas, try going a block or two away where the houses aren't as decorated. A number of people commented that while streets nearby were overrun, no one came to their doors.

Specific neighbourhoods where multiple residents reported single-digit trick-or-treat counts and wished for more included East Vancouver's Grandview-Woodlands and Burnaby's Montecito. One person on Alexander Street in Railtown said we've "never had a kid in 12 years."

Where are the full-size chocolate bars?

It's impossible to say for sure. We can only say that, in 2017, houses in the following areas reported handing out full-size candy bars:

Vancouver

• Porter Street
• Fairview Slope
• 2700-block Dundas Street ("Five trick or treaters and I was giving out full-sized chocolate bars ... so sad!") 
• 600-block East 22nd Avenue
• 2900-block East Fourth Avenue
• 3000-block West Seventh Avenue

Burnaby

• 7800-block Joffre Avenue
• Hastings and Duthie
• 8800-block 16th Avenue

Port Moody

• 2300-block St. Johns Street

New Westminster

• 200-block Ash Street
• Surrey Street

Surrey

• 168 Street and 109 Avenue
• 18th Avenue and 144th Street

North Vancouver

• 900-block Clements Avenue
• 900-block Viney Road

Maple Ridge

• Edgedale Avenue

Coquitlam

• Durant Drive and Johnson Street

Abbotsford

• 34000-block Old Yale Road