Universal Orlando Resort Opens The Gates To Halloween Horror Nights 2026, Celebrating 35 Years Of Fear With A Sinister New Lineup Including10 Haunted Houses, Chilling Street Experiences, Live Entertainment And More

The World’s Premier Halloween Event Invites Guests to Step Right Up into the Infernal Carnival of Nightmares, where Legendary Event Icons Jack the Clown and Dr. Oddfellow Reign as the Ringmasters of Terror

Click HERE to Download Images of Some of This Year’s Experiences and HERE to Purchase Tickets

Universal Orlando Resort’s Halloween Horror Nights 2026 kicks off tonight at Universal Studios Florida, marking its 35 ^th anniversary with a killer new collection of 10 haunted houses, chilling scare zones and street experiences, sinfully delicious food and beverages, exclusive merchandise and immersive shopping experiences, and other haunting surprises. Guests can experience the terror for 49 select nights through November 1.

What began as a three-night event with one haunted house called “Fright Nights” in 1991 has evolved into the global phenomenon of Halloween Horror Nights, the World’s Premier Halloween Event. In honor of its 35 ^th anniversary, this year’s lineup is one of the most expansive yet, blending some of the biggest names in horror and pop culture, twisted original tales, and notorious characters from Horror Nights past into a terrifying collection of unforgettable experiences. All of it unfolds within the Infernal Carnival of Nightmares, a decrepit, fear-fueled carnival overseen by Halloween Horror Nights icon Jack the Clown and his legendary rival, Dr. Oddfellow.

See below for a complete overview of the terrifying experiences that await guests at Halloween Horror Nights 2026:

10 HORRIFYING NEW HAUNTED HOUSES

This year’s event will feature 10 new haunted houses inspired by iconic horror and pop culture heavy-hitters along with disturbing original stories crafted by Universal’s award-winning entertainment team. As guests brave this year’s lineup, they will:

• enter the fifth and final season of Netflix’s “Stranger Things 5,” as the barrier between reality and the supernatural is collapsing to unleash an ominous darkness over the town of Hawkins
• step back in time to the popular Club Juke from Warner Bros. Pictures “Sinners,” where a night of music and celebration turns to panic as a troupe of unrelenting vampires crash the opening night, threatening to violently curse guests in a brutal battle for survival
• descend into the iconic Lament Configuration puzzle box and enter a dimension inhabited by the ritualistically torturous beings, the Cenobites, and their leader, the iconic Pinhead, in “Hellraiser,” based on the original horror trilogy
• climb aboard the Crazy Train for a terrifying trip through Ozzy Osbourne’s disturbing world of rock and roll in “Ozzy Osbourne: Prince of Darkness,” as Halloween Horror Nights pays tribute to the pioneer heavy metal icon
• take a terrifying firsthand journey through the most frightening moments of “Evil Dead Burn,” where they’ll encounter ferocious Deadites around every turn before succumbing to the evil forces themselves
• come face-to-face with Halloween Horror Nights icons Jack the Clown and Dr. Oddfellow in “Jack & Oddfellow: Chaos & Control,” where their twisted rivalry unfolds in a battle between chaos and control that ultimately leads to the two adversaries joining forces
• witness a terrifying encounter with an aggressive, unseen alien craft that has abducted a family and its livestock from a remote homestead…and now is plotting to tear everyone apart in “INVASION: Alien Abduction”

• enter the twisted world of H.R. Bloodengutz as the fan-favorite creature feature host returns to WKNB Television Station for a final Halloween Special of gruesome proportions in “H.R. Bloodengutz Presents: A Halloween Fright-Tacular!”
• navigate a post-apocalyptic wasteland where almost all life is nearly extinct, causing humans to feast on each other for survival in “MADLANDS: Caged Cannibals”
• enter “Cybergoria,” a cold, dead world where humans have awakened from a cryo-sleep to find that the machines built to make them immortal and invincible have been harvesting human flesh and replacing with synthetic parts

TERRIFYING SCARE ZONES AND STREET EXPERIENCES

The terror spills onto the streets of Universal Studios Florida with four new, elaborately themed scare zones where guests face unimaginable horrors, such as:

• “Downtown Clowntown,” where a troupe of maniacal clowns have taken over the New York area and converted it into Downtown Clowntown in honor of Jack. Guests will encounter a variety of clowns of different kinds and origins, including the Killer Klowns from Outer Space, Art the Clown, and returning Horror Nights characters Chance and Eddie Schmidt
• Fortnitemares, where fans will enter Freaky Fields, a Halloween-inspired living battleground overcome with a threatening force. Throughout the scare zone, fans will encounter the Battle Bus along with familiar Fortnitemares characters – plus a few new additions exclusive to Halloween Horror Nights – as they work to escape and claim victory
• “Infernal Carnival of Nightmares,” where Jack and Dr. Oddfellow invite guests to step right up and discover a sinister spectacle decades in the making featuring past event icons, including The Usher, The Storyteller and more, who have returned to wreak havoc
• “Sideshow of Decay,” where Cindy Caine (daughter of legendary icon, The Caretaker), with the aid of Dr. Oddfellow, has opened a portal to resurrect decayed nightmares from the past and unleash them upon guests

The horror extends beyond the scare zones and into other areas of the park as the streets teem with even more lurking frights, including:

• Mel’s Die-In: Zombies, where a hungry horde of zombie carhops have taken over Mel’s Die-In – and they’re ready to serve up guests on a platter
• Club Horror, locatedinthe streets of San Francisco, where the DJ is undead but the vibe is alive and well
• Chainsaw Hordes roaming the streets of Universal Studios who prey upon unsuspecting guests
• And for the first time ever, a creepy cute meet-and-greet with the infamous HamiKuma located inside the Five & Dime merchandise location

SCREAM-WORTHY NEW SHOWS, DINING AND SHOPPING

Between the screams, guests can enjoy additional Halloween Horror Nights offerings, including:

• Two mind-blowing live shows:

           - Stranger Things: Return to Hawkins, an all-new nighttime lagoon show honoring the legacy of Stranger Things that brings the global phenomenon to life in a spectacular new way. Featuring beloved scenes from the series projected across towering water screens, dynamic lighting effects and immersive audio — including iconic music from the series — this experience will take guests on an emotional journey in celebration of the series’ 10th anniversary.


         - Nightmare Fuel: Blood Noir, where guests can embark on a dark musical journey and resist temptation as death-defying stunts lure them deeper into a vampire-ridden metropolis.

 [p] 

• This year’s Halloween Horror Nights Tribute Store, which will return to the New York area and invite guests to shop exclusive, all-new merchandise inside this year’s themed experience, Sideshow Obscura – a haunting traveling sideshow that has mysteriously returned to town. As they navigate eerie oddities while venturing through the ticket entrance, backstage spaces and chilling midway, guests will discover that this once forgotten show still has dark secrets to uncover. Select items are also available online at ShopUniversal.com
• A selection of more than 50 killer food and beverage offerings inspired by this year’s scares, including Upside Down Chicken & Waffles (“Stranger Things”), Pinhead’s Skin & Meatballs (“Hellraiser”), Annie’s Juke Joint Catfish & Grits (“Sinners”) and more – along with returning fan-favorite culinary items.

 [p] [p]THE FOG EXTENDS BEYOND THE THEME PARK

Halloween Horror Nights’ fog creeps beyond the gates of Universal Studios Florida and throughout Universal Orlando Resort, transforming select hotels into an extension of the World’s Premier Halloween event. This year, guests can step into highly themed lounges across select hotels that transport guests into haunting environments. Plus, all hotels will offer specialty cocktail menus across their bars featuring wickedly crafted spirits, while select hotels will serve up late-night bites for guests to enjoy after a night of screams.

And in Universal CityWalk, guests can experience the Dead Coconut Club, which transforms into a Harvest Festival this fall season featuring spooky specialty beverages, light bites, interactives and more.

EVENT TICKETS, HOTEL PACKAGES AND MORE

Tickets and event-inclusive vacation packages for Universal Orlando’s Halloween Horror Nights are on sale now. Available products include single-night tickets, Frequent Fear Passes – which allow fans to experience the horror on multiple event nights (with access and benefits varying depending on the pass type), and event upgrades such as the Scream Early Ticket, Halloween Horror Nights Express Passes, the R.I.P Tour and the Behind the Screams: Unmasking the Horror Tour.

The best way to experience Halloween Horror Nights is with a stay at a Universal Orlando hotel, with hotel guests enjoying close proximity to the horror and exclusive benefits including Early Park Admission to the theme parks during the day, special access to a priority event entrance to Halloween Horror Nights from 6:30 – 7:30 p.m., complimentary transportation to the theme parks and Universal City Walk available before and after the scares, and more. Special hotel offers are available now, including the opportunity to save up to 30% when booking a stay of five nights or more at participating hotels.

Annual Passholders can also enjoy exclusive Halloween Horror Nights benefits, including discounts on event tickets, R.I.P. Tours, Premium Scream Night tickets and food and beverage offerings, exclusive giveaways and specialty menu items available only to passholders. Plus, Universal Orlando Passholders can also save up to 30% on stays at participating hotels.

For more information about Universal Orlando’s Halloween Horror Nights and to purchase tickets, visit www.universalorlando.com/halloween.