Los Angeles is the best spot in Southern California for Halloween-themed activities. Whether you’re looking for something slightly macabre, utterly terrifying, or safe for the whole family, you have a wealth of options to choose from — spanning from North Hollywood to Culver City, and from the San Fernando Valley to downtown LA. Here are 10 of the best frightful selections that are sure to get you in the Halloween spirit.
1. Halloween Horror Nights in Universal City
100 Universal City Plaza, Universal City, CA 91608
Are you looking to experience real terror? If so, Halloween Horror Nights at Universal Studios Hollywood is a legendary local attraction. Experience realistic horror mazes themed after popular films and TV shows like Halloween, The Exorcist, The Walking Dead, and Haunting of Hill House — each terrifying maze is more immersive than the last. Halloween Horror Nights also features live events, thrilling rides, and access to all that Universal Studios and the Universal City Walk have to offer. Don’t go alone.
2. The Haunted Hayride at Griffith Park
4730 Crystal Springs Dr, Los Angeles, CA 90027
The famed Los Angeles Haunted Hayride rolls through Griffith Park from September through Halloween. Take a traditional hayride into Midnight Falls, and try to avoid the Witch of the Woods as she summons the spirits of the underworld and terrorizes you at every turn. It’s like being in your own horror movie. This annual event offers grown-up attractions as well as trick-or-treat stations and live entertainment for the family, so you can bring your whole crew to enjoy this festive outdoor experience.
3. Haunt O’Ween in Woodland Hills
6100 Topanga Canyon Blvd Woodland Hills, CA 91367
If you’re seeking something spooky but family-friendly, Haunt O’Ween doesn’t disappoint. Open throughout the month of October, Haunt O’Ween is an immersive Halloween-themed town complete with trick-or-treating, face painting, pumpkin carving, eerie tunnels to explore, and much more. Grown-ups can enjoy the Malibu Wines tasting garden while younger guests explore all of the safe but chilling haunts. The attraction is open daily from 5 p.m. to 11 p.m.
4. Quest Room’s Thrill Theater in Los Angeles
5517 Santa Monica Blvd, Los Angeles, CA 90038
1815 Hawthorne Blvd, Redondo Beach, CA 90278
It’s one thing to visit a maze that’s modeled after scary movies. But an escape room gives you the same high stakes as a would-be victim in a horror film. Quest Room, with locations in Hollywood, Downtown LA, and Redondo Beach, wrote the book on immersive horror-themed escape rooms. Their Thrill Theater escape rooms feature intricately designed environments that make the terror all too real. If you want the best escape room in Los Angeles, look no further than Project Minotaur (Los Angeles), Cannibal’s Den (Los Angeles), or the ghostly Resurrection (Redondo Beach).
5. Knott’s Berry Farm in Buena Park
8039 Beach Blvd, Buena Park, CA 90620
During the month of October, the Knott’s Berry Farm theme park completely transforms into a Halloween wonderland. For teens and adult guests, there’s Knott’s Scary Farm, an evening horror attraction filled with haunted houses and mazes, terrifying live shows, and grisly horrors hiding in the shadows around every corner. For younger guests aged 3 to 11, there’s Knott’s Spooky Farm, a daytime attraction that includes trick-or-treating through Ghost Town and enjoying a selection of breathtaking Halloween-themed shows that are suitable for all ages. Kids can take part in a fun costume contest, explore a not-so-scary haunted maze, and much more. Knott’s Spooky Farm is valid with a regular park admission, but Knott’s Scary Farm requires its own pass.
6. Halloween Road at Heritage Square Museum
3800 Homer St, Los Angeles, CA 90031
Halloween Road was established to kick off Freeform’s 31 Nights of Halloween. This event transforms L.A.’s historic Heritage Square into a colorful Halloween town complete with costumed characters, movie-themed home decor, cemeteries, lights, and more. Fans of movies like Hocus Pocus, The Addams Family, and Tim Burton’s The Nightmare Before Christmas will find plenty of realistic scenes to enjoy and characters to interact with.
7. Mr. Bones Pumpkin Patch in Culver City
10100 Jefferson Blvd, Culver City, CA 90232
Another family-friendly attraction, Mr. Bones offers a complete pumpkin patch and Halloween amusement park in one. Families can enjoy games and rides, face painting, fun photo ops, costumed characters, live shows, music, and more. There are also thousands of real pumpkins that you can purchase during your visit. Be sure to buy advance tickets, as space is limited and tickets aren’t guaranteed at the entrance.
8. Halloween Organ Concert and Film Screening at the Walt Disney Concert Hall
111 S Grand Ave, Los Angeles, CA 90012
Looking to kick back and relax after all of the creepy mazes and trick-or-treating? On Halloween night, the Walt Disney Concert Hall does an annual silent film screening with live musical accompaniment. For 2021, the venue is screening the 1920 adaptation of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde with live organ accompaniment from esteemed organist Clark Wilson. Note that, in light of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, proof of vaccination is required to attend this event.
9. House of Spirits in Highland Park
4908 York Blvd, Los Angeles, CA 90042
If you’re looking to avoid the costumed actors and connect with real spirits this Halloween, you’ll want to pay a visit to historic York Manor in Highland Park. This Tudor-revival manor house was abandoned for decades before recently being restored and declared a historic landmark. Now you can visit the manor during the Halloween season and partake in the House of Spirits, a one-of-a-kind cocktail party complete with seances on a giant Ouija board and other creepy rituals — maybe you’ll even connect with a restless spirit or two.
10. Carved at Descanso Gardens
1418 Descanso Drive, La Cañada Flintridge, CA 91011
Carved offers a fun and lighthearted stroll through the Camellia Forest and Oak Grove, covering about a mile of trails in total. Along the way, you’ll pass hundreds of pumpkins, a hay maze, a pumpkin house, and Halloween-themed sculptures made from sticks and other natural materials. Enjoy food and drinks, a multicolor illuminated forest, and other scenic attractions.
Other Halloween Activities in Los Angeles
If you’re looking for even more immersive experiences to enjoy, you can find Halloween-themed fun at Disneyland and Disney California Adventure Park in Anaheim, the Underwood Family Farm in Moorpark, and the Cinespia Cemetery. There are countless activities going on not just in LA but in Orange County, Ventura County, Riverside County, and throughout the Inland Empire. Check online for fun events in your neighborhood, and make this Halloween an occasion to remember.
