BEST HALLOWEEN ATTRACTIONS IN L.A.
For those seeking the Best Halloween Attractions in Los Angeles, we present this eclectic selection of creepy mazes, haunted hayrides, scary movies, terrifying theatrical experiences, and more.
The Best Halloween Attractions in Los Angeles can be divided into two groups. The first are what might be called “Perennials,” which have established a reputation and maintain a level of quality that makes them worth revisiting year after year. The second group are “One-Shot Wonders,” Halloween Attractions that pop up for a single year and then disappear, either because they were not profitable or because they could not secure a location; also included in this group are plays, which usually appear for only a single season.
Perennial Halloween Haunts have pages dedicated to them on our website, housing reviews, videos, and photographs spanning their careers; these will be linked below. One-Shot Wonders do not usually receive this treatment; instead, they are reviewed on the blog section of our website. You will find links to both types of events below.
- Updates, Reviews & Videos includes the most recent posts about the Best Halloween Haunts in the Greater Los Angeles Area. Here you can find One-Shot Wonders that never lasted long enough to enter our permanent listings.
- Categories itemizes the different kinds of Best Halloween Haunts in Los Angeles, followed by links in each category.
Note: Due to the Covid-19 pandemic, many of the Best Halloween Attractions were closed in 2020, so our assessments are based on their work in previous years. We will update our selections as we visit Halloween 2021 events.
Best Halloween Attractions: Updates, Reviews & Videos
Find reviews and videos of our favorite Los Angeles haunts and one-shot wonders in our archive of Halloween Recommendations.
Best Halloween Attractions: Categories
The Best Halloween Attractions come in various forms, and we try to avoid comparing rotten apples to bloody oranges. To help haunt-seekers navigate the labyrinth of choices, we have divided our favorite Halloween events and attractions into categories, according to where they are normally listed on our website:
- Theme Parks
- Haunted Houses, Mazes & Rides
- Home Haunts
- Museums, Galleries & Tours
- Festivals & Fun
- Movies
- Theatre
We have selected most of these events as the Best Halloween Attractions in Los Angeles, because they maintain consistently excellent quality from year to year, frequently earning nominations and wins in our annual Halloween Haunt Awards. Consequently, you will find few if any one-off events, such as plays or exhibitions that ran during only a single season; those can be found by scrolling through Updates, Reviews & Videos above. Nor will you find attractions on hiatus or defunct below – those are listed in the Hollywood Gothique Hall of Fame or Graveyard of Halloween Haunts.
Click the links below to get more information on each Halloween attraction.
Best Halloween Attractions: Theme Parks
Halloween Theme Parks are year-round venues refashioned for the scary season, typically offering rides, shows, and other entertainment besides walk-through mazes.
The quality of these events remains fairly consistent from year to year, so you can get a good sense of what to expect by checking out these two articles, which compare the major theme park Halloween events in the Greater Los Angeles area:
- Best Theme Park Halloween Attractions in Los Angeles
- The Best Haunted Theme Park Events in Los Angeles
Unfortunately, one of our favorite theme park-type haunts did not survive the 2020 pandemic: Dark Harbor is no more, since the Queen Mary is closed till further notice for repairs. However, a new event is taking on the surrounding grounds, Shaqtoberfest.
Below are listed the three Halloween Theme Park Attractions that are consistently worth seeing every October.
Queen Mary Dark Harbor
Halloween Horror Nights at Universal Studios Hollywood
Six Flags Magic Mountain Fright Fest
Knott’s Berry Farm Halloween Haunt
Best Halloween Attractions: Festivals & Fun
Halloween Festivities is a broad category, including block parties, street scenes, pub crawls, and immersive experiences. These events do not get as much attention as the scary haunted houses, but many are worth of ranking among the Best Halloween Attractions in Los Angeles.
Dia De Los Muertos Festival
Haunted Little Tokyo
Macabre Manor Halloween Speakeasy
Nights of the Jack: A Halloween Jack O’Lantern Experience
West Hollywood Halloween Carnaval
Best Halloween Attractions: Museums, Galleries & Tours
Halloween Museums, Galleries, and Tours have some advantage over the other Best Halloween Attractions in Los Angeles: they are well-suited to timed entry, which can keep crowd levels low and allow for the social distancing necessary during a pandemic.
Haunted Haddonfield
Best Halloween Attractions: Haunted Houses, Mazes & Rides
Halloween Mazes and Rides typically “pop up” in October, running for a few weeks. These stand-alone events may feature only a single attraction, though some are more like mini-theme parks, with multiple mazes and rides.
All Saints Lunatic Asylum
Reign of Terror Haunted House
Best Halloween Attractions: Theatre
Halloween Theatre, particularly immersive/interactive productions, were hard-hit by the 2020 pandemic. Fortunately, most are coming back for Halloween 2021.
Delusion Interactive Theatre
House of Spirits: A Haunted Cocktail Soirée
Urban Death: Tour of Terror
Best Halloween Attractions: Home Haunts
Halloween Home Haunts, though non-profit amateur events, often showcase professional quality work that ranks them among the Best Halloween Attractions in Los Angeles. Distinctions are fluid, but “yard haunts” are typically decorated displays; “home haunts” and “garage haunts” often include walk-through mazes with actors in costume, for a stronger scare experience. After a turn toward front yard displays during the 2020 pandemic, we expect a return toward walk-through mazes this Halloween. These amateur efforts usually operate only for a few days at the end of October.
Beware The Dark Realm
Haunt at Hellizondo
Haunted Rose
Holiday Fantasies Come To Life
Reichland Asylum Home Haunt
Rotten Apple 907
Best Halloween Attractions: Cinema
Street Food Cinema usually offers a good selection of horror films in outdoor locations, plus occasional Slasher Cinema screenings at the Million Dollar Theatre (including a spooky walk through the haunted basement. Other annual Halloween events include Halloween Film with Organ at Walt Disney Concert Hall and The Montalban’s Roofstop Screams.
Still can’t find what you want? Time Out lists some of the Best Halloween Attractions in Los Angeles.
