Halloween Horror Nights 2026 opens Friday, August 28 at Universal Studios Florida, marking the event’s 35th anniversary. Jack the Clown and Dr. Oddfellow preside as ringmasters over the Infernal Carnival of Nightmares, a decrepit, fear-fueled carnival Universal built around this year’s lineup.
The event runs 49 select nights through November 1. Ten new haunted houses, four new scare zones, and two live shows are in this year’s collection. In 1991 it was three nights and one house, called “Fright Nights.”
What are the 10 haunted houses at Halloween Horror Nights 2026?
The licensed houses pull from horror and pop culture. “Stranger Things 5” drops guests into the fifth and final season as the barrier between Hawkins and the supernatural collapses. “Sinners” recreates Club Juke, where a troupe of vampires crashes opening night. “Hellraiser” sends guests into the Lament Configuration puzzle box to face Pinhead and the Cenobites, based on the original trilogy.
“Ozzy Osbourne: Prince of Darkness” puts guests on the Crazy Train for a trip through the heavy metal pioneer’s world. Deadites fill every turn of “Evil Dead Burn.”
Then there are the originals from Universal’s entertainment team. “Jack & Oddfellow: Chaos & Control” plays out the icons’ rivalry until the two adversaries join forces. “INVASION: Alien Abduction” follows an unseen craft that took a family and its livestock from a remote homestead. “MADLANDS: Caged Cannibals” is a wasteland where humans feast on each other to survive, and “Cybergoria” wakes sleepers into a world where the machines built to make them immortal have been harvesting flesh. “H.R. Bloodengutz Presents: A Halloween Fright-Tacular!” brings the creature feature host back to WKNB Television Station for a final Halloween Special.
Which scare zones take over the streets?
Four of them are spread across the streets of Universal Studios Florida.
Downtown Clowntown hands the New York area to a troupe of maniacal clowns in Jack’s honor, including the Killer Klowns from Outer Space, Art the Clown, and returning Horror Nights characters Chance and Eddie Schmidt. Fortnitemares turns Freaky Fields into a living battleground with the Battle Bus and a few characters exclusive to Halloween Horror Nights. The Infernal Carnival of Nightmares zone resurrects past event icons like The Usher and The Storyteller. Sideshow of Decay belongs to Cindy Caine, daughter of The Caretaker, who opens a portal with Dr. Oddfellow’s help.
Outside the zones, zombie carhops have taken over Mel’s Die-In, Club Horror sets up in San Francisco with an undead DJ, and chainsaw hordes roam the streets. For the first time, a meet-and-greet with HamiKuma is inside the Five & Dime merchandise location.
What shows and merch are new this year?
Stranger Things: Return to Hawkins is an all-new nighttime lagoon show marking the series’ 10th anniversary. Scenes from the show project across towering water screens with lighting effects and music from the series. Nightmare Fuel: Blood Noir is the second show, a dark musical with death-defying stunts set in a vampire-ridden metropolis.
The Tribute Store returns to the New York area as Sideshow Obscura, a traveling sideshow that has mysteriously come back to town. Guests move through a ticket entrance, backstage spaces, and a chilling midway to shop exclusive merchandise inside. Select items are also available at ShopUniversal.com.
More than 50 food and beverage offerings are tied to this year’s houses, including Upside Down Chicken & Waffles (“Stranger Things”), Pinhead’s Skin & Meatballs (“Hellraiser”), and Annie’s Juke Joint Catfish & Grits (“Sinners”).
How far does the event run beyond the park?
Universal says the fog extends through Universal Orlando Resort. Select hotels get themed lounges, every hotel bar has a specialty cocktail menu, and select hotels serve late-night bites after event nights. In Universal CityWalk, the Dead Coconut Club becomes a Harvest Festival this fall.
Tickets and event-inclusive vacation packages are on sale now, including single-night tickets, Frequent Fear Passes, Scream Early Ticket, Halloween Horror Nights Express Passes, the R.I.P Tour, and the Behind the Screams: Unmasking the Horror Tour. Hotel guests get Early Park Admission during the day and a priority event entrance from 6:30 to 7:30 p.m. Universal lists a save of up to 30% on stays of five nights or more at participating hotels. Annual Passholders get discounts on event tickets, R.I.P. Tours, Premium Scream Night tickets, and food and beverage.
Source: Universal Orlando Resort
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