Halloween Horror Nights review: The lady is most definitely a vamp
When exactly does ‘Spooky Season’ begin? Some Halloween aficionados would have you believe preparation for the holiday starts directly after Independence Day. Others suggest it’s the day events in The Texas Chain Saw Massacre occurred, 18 August, or more horrifying still, when Starbucks begins selling pumpkin spice lattes. But for many hardcore fans around the globe, the start of annual event Halloween Horror Nights at Universal’s theme parks means it’s acceptable for the screams to begin.
In full flow since the end of August this year – the earliest they’ve opened so far – forget anything you think you know about haunted houses or mazes, or haunt events in general: Halloween Horror Nights is on a level that’s yet to be challenged. This is not just a theme park, or a few scares, this is live theatre. It’s deeply immersive, hugely extravagant and you’re effectively walking onto a film set each time you step through the doors into a house.
The simplified version is that, after dark, Universal Orlando – and also Universal Hollywood, Singapore and Japan – becomes a stomping ground for horror nerds and fans of frights and it’s filled with people who just absolutely love it, making the atmosphere incredibly intoxicating. There are 10 haunted houses around the park, linked by five ‘Scare Zones’ which guests must brave before reaching them.
HOUSE WINS
Some of these houses you’ll recognise as franchises, or Intellectual Properties/IPs to give them their official term, while others are brand new creations with backstories and lore deserving of their own series. It would be reductive to rank the houses – it’s all subjective, and because it’s live, each walk through can be a very different experience. But for those wanting to head into familiar scare-atory (sorry), this year has four iconic brands to experience.
A Quiet Place, based on the first two movies, brings an entirely new type of house to the event given that the entire premise is not to be heard. So while there’s no identifiable score as such, there’s a soundscape of ambient noises that’s deeply unsettling as you walk through key scenes in chronological order. Of course, coming face to face with multiple Death Angels – the monsters from the series – means you’re not exactly going to be quiet yourself.
Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire has some of the tallest and most ambitious set pieces in HHN history, stretching to 24ft high, as you step through icy scenes and encounter classic creatures and characters from the history of the films.
Insidious: The Further (above) blends elements of ‘the other side’, aka The Further, from the Insidious movies. It focuses on the jump scares from the franchise, which means the house is utterly relentless. It’s absolutely terrifying, and that’s before you get the theme tune, ‘Tiptoe Through The Tulips’ stuck in your head, let alone when you encounter the Lipstick-Face Demon repeatedly from multiple angles. (We know you’ve had nights like that before, let’s not pretend.)
Universal Monsters: Eternal Bloodlines is making history for HHN Orlando, given that it’s an all-female house – including characters, show runner and musician – as The Bride of Frankenstein, She-Wolf, the Brides of Dracula and more face off against Saskia Van Helsing in a gothic battleground where it even snows indoors. It’s a huge part of wider representation and a definite feeling of girl – or ghoul – power at HHN this year, but more on that shortly…
HOMEGROWN TALENT
Arguably even more inventive, simply because they’re not bound by what’s gone before, are the original content houses created by the sick and warped minds at Universal – and we mean that as a compliment. There’s also an official podcast with scripted stories for the original houses if you simply can’t get enough scares.
Monstruos: The Monsters of Latin America has been imported from last year’s HHN Hollywood and it’s not hard to see why. A huge hit for them – with a sequel house running there this year – it brings together monsters of folklore in a story that ultimately sees you face your own mortality in an encounter with Death at your graveside. Of particular note is a giant bird-like creature, La Lechuza, who you’ll find sitting in her foul-smelling nest. And we really do mean foul.
Slaughter Sinema 2 (above), another sequel, pokes fun at the video nasty era with each room in the house representing a different horror movie – including a giant shark, stripper mummies (!) and punk skeletons. It’s a blast, packed with great scares and sure to spawn future houses at the event.
The Museum: Deadly Exhibits is a dark excursion through a museum infected with a deadly ancient evil, while Major Sweets Candy Factory takes you through the planning stages of a Halloween massacre involving confectionery.
Goblin’s Feast is another highlight in a standout year of productions, where goblins lure unsuspecting humans into their version of Thanksgiving. Only it’s the humans that are on the menu. It’s gory, terrifying and extremely camp. Which really sums up the entire event…
There’s usually a slasher movie in the mix at HHN, so with this year missing an IP of that genre, new house Triplets of Terror sees three siblings reunite every 10 years to recreate the birthday party where they killed their parents. Who says birthdays can’t be fun!
ICONIC BEHAVIOUR
Every year the event has at least one ‘Icon’ as the figurehead, this year it has two female-presenting Icons in SINIST3R, the manifestation of visceral horror and SURR3AL, the incarnation of unearthly terror. What can we say? They’re fierce. If you like your Drag Race, well, this is just the start. They’ll greet you in an opening ceremony at the gates as part of Duality of Fear, then appear in different Zones throughout the evening. Of particular note is Demon Queens which, as the title might suggest, leans heavily into a supernatural runway experience – except you’re right in the centre of it.
Swamp of the Dead is a more traditional Scare Zone, with zombies rising from the depths to avenge their deaths, but Enter the Blumhouse is a modern take, with social media-friendly stages representing different characters from their horror movies. You want a selfie with M3GAN while she dances? You got it. Fancy being stalked by Millie and the Blissfield Butcher from Freaky? Weird, but they’ve got you covered. You can try and avoid the Purge participants, but you’ll hear The Black Phone ringing from across the park…
Yes, of course it’s scary. Duh, that’s the point. But it’s fun scares – the actors can’t touch you and the natural high you get after falling foul of someone jumping from their ‘boo hole’ (yes, we swear that’s the official term) means not only are you hoarse from screaming, you’re actually aching from laughing.
On top of all this, HHN has a high-octane live show – Nightmare Fuel: Nocturnal Circus (think rock music, flames and people flying in the air), a themed tribute store with camp icon Batilda, a female bat woman, ruling the roost, a smorgasbord of themed food across the park (you’re going to want the Stay Puft Marshmallow S’mores below, if only for the Instagram opportunity) and a glut of merchandise that you’ll say you don’t need and then suddenly you’re filling your arms with. Event mascot, Lil’ Boo, a cute, wide-eyed pumpkin, will find their way into your suitcase in some form.
As well as all that, every hotel on the property has unique Halloween theming and photo opportunities and the Universal Citywalk venue Red Coconut Club has been transformed into Dead Coconut Club, a neon-filled vampire hangout with a Blumhouse exhibition housed upstairs. Chilling in the club with M3GAN and listening to Madonna? We’re so down. It’s pretty much as gay a club as you can get without actually saying so, even before you throw a killer robot into the mix.
The resort-wide event is basically a non-stop celebration of things that go bump in the night, running for longer than ever before. Almost like Halloween isn’t just for October and is a state of mind…
Oh, and did we mention Universal Monsters-themed land Dark Universe coming to the new Orlando park Epic Universe, plus Universal Horror Unleashed in Las Vegas, both opening in 2025? Why not plan for all three?
If you’re a fan of horror then attending Halloween Horror Nights at least once should be a right of passage. Just be warned, it’ll very soon become an annual pilgrimage…
Halloween Horror Nights runs at Universal Orlando until 3 November 2024. For more information visit halloweenhorrornights.com.
****
Seven nights at Loews Sapphire Falls in Orlando with Virgin Atlantic Holidays, including scheduled Virgin Atlantic flights from London Heathrow direct to Orlando, accommodation in Standard Queen room on a room only basis starts from £1,576 per person. Price also includes a Universal 3 Park Explorer Ticket and Halloween Horror Nights single night ticket. Price is per person based on two adults sharing a room and includes all applicable taxes and fuel surcharges which are subject to change. Virgin Atlantic flies direct to Orlando twice a day from both Manchester and London Heathrow.
Virgin Atlantic Holidays is a member of ABTA and is ATOL protected. To book visit virginholidays.co.uk or call 0344 557 3859.
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