October is my favorite month to talk about with clients. Not because everyone wants the same thing, but because they really, genuinely do not. One person wants to be screaming through a haunted house at midnight. Someone else wants to watch their kid meet Sally from The Nightmare Before Christmas in a light-up costume. And then there are the people who want to be standing on Sixth Avenue in Greenwich Village surrounded by 50,000 humans in the most committed costumes you have ever seen.
All of those are correct. All of those are options. And all of them are worth planning early because Halloween travel has become genuinely competitive. The events fill up. The hotel prices move. The tickets that were available in June are gone quickly.
Here is my breakdown of the a few Halloween travel experiences I recommend most, who each one is actually for, and what you need to know before you book.
~What It Is
Disneyland Resort hosts the Oogie Boogie Bash, and it takes place at Disney California Adventure, not the main Disneyland park. This is a separately ticketed after-hours event running on 33 select nights from August 18 through October 31, 2026. Your ticket includes early park entry three hours before the event begins, which is a genuinely useful bonus that gets underused by people who don’t know about it.
The experience centers on villain-themed trick-or-treat trails. Eleven trails are spread through the park in 2026, each presided over by a Disney villain on a throne who oversees candy distribution while characters pose for photos and meet guests. Oogie Boogie himself hosts, with additional appearances from characters including Maleficent, Ernesto de la Cruz, Mother Gothel, and new for 2026, Yzma from The Emperor’s New Groove. The entertainment lineup includes Villains Grove at Redwood Creek Challenge Trail, a new Haunted Mansion-inspired street party called Madame Leota’s Swinging Wake, and all the Halloween overlays layered into regular park attractions.
Adults in costume are absolutely welcome and very much present. This is not exclusively a small-children event, though it works beautifully for families with kids who are Disney-engaged.
Picture shared with client permission
~Who is this for?
Families with children, Disney adults who take villain meet-and-greets seriously, and anyone traveling with a mix of ages who needs one evening that works for a six-year-old and a 36-year-old at the same time. The event is not frightening. It is whimsical, theatrical, and genuinely fun.
~The ticket warning
Tickets sell out. Many nights sell out within hours of going on sale. General public ticket sales for 2026 opened June 18. For future trips, mark the June pre-sale calendar and be ready. My client and I were both online the morning tickets went on sale to see which one of us could purchase tickets the quickest. She had specific dates in mind, and we didn’t have much “wiggle room.” Our coordinated effort was a success! We got the date she wanted.
~Tips for getting the most out of It
Enter the park during the early-entry window three hours before the event officially starts. This is when wait times are lowest, and the park has not yet reached event capacity. Plan which treat trails you want to prioritize before you arrive since some character lines move slowly and the night goes faster than it feels. Costumes are encouraged and taken seriously. Wear something you can walk several miles in comfortably.
Picture shared with client permission
If Disneyland Is Not in Your Plans
Walt Disney World in Orlando runs Mickey’s Not-So-Scary Halloween Party at Magic Kingdom during the same season. Same concept, different park, different characters and entertainment. The Orlando version tends to be slightly less competitive for tickets than Oogie Boogie Bash but is worth booking early regardless.
~What It Is
Halloween Horror Nights is the standard by which all theme park horror events are judged, and it has been running at Universal Studios Florida for 35 years. In 2026 the event is titled Infernal Carnival of Nightmares, runs from August 28 through November 1 on 49 select nights, and includes 10 all-new haunted houses, multiple scare zones throughout the park, live entertainment, and most of the park’s regular rides operating after dark.
The haunted houses are the centerpiece. Universal builds them from scratch every year, committing significant resources to set design, costuming, and professional actors whose entire job is to find the moment you let your guard down. Houses in 2026 include themed experiences built around Stranger Things 5, the Evil Dead franchise, Sinners, and the event’s signature original house featuring Jack the Clown and Dr. Oddfellow as twisted ringmasters of the Infernal Carnival. An Ozzy Osbourne tribute house is also on the lineup. This is not a family-friendly Halloween experience. It is designed for adults and older teenagers who want the actual uncomfortable, adrenaline-producing version of fear.
~Who Is This For
Adults and older teenagers who genuinely enjoy horror. People who want to walk through a professionally designed haunted house with actors trained to make them scream. Groups of friends who want an experience to talk about. Anyone who has done enough theme park visits that they want something with real edge to it.
This is explicitly not for younger children or anyone sensitive to horror imagery, sudden scares, strobe lights, or graphic content.
~Practical Things Worth Knowing
Event nights run from approximately 6:30 PM to 1 AM on weeknights and as late as 2 AM on peak weekends. Express passes are available and genuinely worth the cost if you want to see multiple houses in one night without spending half your time in lines. Premium Scream Night, a limited-capacity preview event on August 27 and October 19, 2026, offers earlier access and shorter waits for an additional premium. The final two weekends and Halloween night itself are the busiest and most expensive nights of the entire event run. Weeknights in September offer the best combination of lower prices and manageable crowds.
Hotel guests at Universal Orlando properties get early event entry at 6:30 PM, which is a real advantage worth factoring into where you stay.
~A Note on Universal Studios Hollywood
Halloween Horror Nights also runs at Universal Studios Hollywood from September 3 through November 1, 2026. The Hollywood event has fewer total nights and a slightly different house lineup. If you are on the West Coast or building a California trip around this, it is a strong option. The Orlando event is the larger production, but Hollywood is excellent.
~What It Is
Halloween in New York City is not an event you book. It is a city-wide phenomenon that happens around you, and the energy of it on October 31 specifically is unlike anything I have experienced in any other American city.
The anchor event is the Village Halloween Parade, which has been running since 1974 and in 2026 marks its 50th anniversary. On October 31, starting at 7 PM, the parade runs up Sixth Avenue from Canal Street to West 15th Street through the heart of Greenwich Village. Approximately 50,000 costumed participants march with giant puppets, dozens of marching bands, performance groups, and community floats. Watching from the sidewalk is free. Participating requires only a costume. There is no registration, no ticket, no velvet rope. You show up in something good and you join.
Beyond the parade, October 31 in New York means the East Village and Williamsburg are running full Halloween bar crawls and private venue parties. Ghost tours run through Greenwich Village, the Meatpacking District, and down into historic church catacombs in Manhattan.
Beetle Juice themed Bar *Picture shared with client permission
The Jack O’Lantern Blaze at various Hudson Valley locations within 90 minutes of the city draws people who want a more contained but visually extraordinary carved pumpkin experience. If you are looking for a spectacular Halloween experience just outside New York City, The Great Jack O’Lantern Blaze in the Hudson Valley is an absolute must-see. Held on the grounds of the historic 18th-century Van Cortlandt Manor in Croton-on-Hudson, this immersive, walk-through event features over 7,000 hand-carved, illuminated pumpkins. Rather than relying on haunted house jump scares, this family-friendly trail operates as a massive piece of seasonal art that appeals to travelers of all ages. As you explore the grounds, you will encounter jaw-dropping installations like life-sized dinosaurs, a glowing Pumpkin Planetarium, a working carousel, and a pumpkin dance party, all perfectly synchronized to dynamic lighting and an original soundtrack. For an extra dose of autumn magic, you can even upgrade your ticket to include VIP stops at the Gourd & Goblet Tavern or the Headless Horseman’s Hideaway for themed cocktails, savory bites, and a surprise visit from the famous rider himself. Because it is one of the top-rated Halloween events in the country, advance tickets are strictly required, so be sure to secure yours early to make this iconic fall tradition part of your New York itinerary!
*Picture shared with client permission
~Who Is this for
Adults who want Halloween as a cultural experience rather than a ticketed product. People who enjoy the energy of a city doing something enormous together. Anyone who values the spontaneity of a night that is not planned down to the minute. Couples, groups of friends, people traveling solo who want to be around other humans in a great mood.
New York Halloween is genuinely accessible. The parade is free. The bar scene is the bar scene. The ghost tours run $20 to $40 per person. You do not need to plan months ahead the way you do for Disneyland or Universal, though hotel rooms for the last weekend of October in New York fill up early and cost accordingly.
~Practical Things Worth Knowing
Late October in New York means temperatures typically in the low 50s Fahrenheit. Whatever your costume is, build a layer situation underneath it. The subway is your best friend on Halloween night. Parking and rideshare wait times around the parade route get genuinely bad. Position yourself along Sixth Avenue around West 4th Street for a strong viewing spot with easy subway access.
Halloween 2026 falls on a Saturday, which means the city has a full weekend to commit to it. This is the best possible version of New York Halloween and the 50th anniversary of the parade makes it worth treating as a real destination trip.
WHICH ONE IS RIGHT FOR YOU?
Here is how I think about this when a client is deciding.
If you are traveling with children, especially younger ones who love Disney, Oogie Boogie Bash at Disneyland or Mickey’s Not-So-Scary Halloween Party at Walt Disney World are the answer. Book early and do not wait.
If you want something that will actually scare you, Halloween Horror Nights at Universal Orlando is the most produced, most immersive horror experience available at a theme park anywhere. It earns its reputation.
If you want a city fully committing to a night out and you like the energy of being around a lot of people who are all in on the same thing, New York City on Halloween weekend is extraordinary, and the 50th anniversary of the Village Halloween Parade in 2026 makes it a genuinely once-in-a-generation night.
All are worth doing. Let me help you figure out which one is yours.
READY TO PLAN YOUR HALLOWEEN TRIP?
Tickets for Oogie Boogie Bash and Halloween Horror Nights can sell out before the events. Hotel pricing around all four of these destinations rises sharply as October approaches. The time to plan is now.
Reach out and let’s build something worth dressing up for.
— Jennifer Klingner
