This year, we're going to spend over $3,000 on tickets, food, and merch.
No matter how much it costs, I think HHN is the best Halloween event in Central Florida.
As a journalist who covers theme parks and lives in Central Florida, I often joke that the spooky season is my Super Bowl.
From family-friendly Halloween parties at Disney World to jump-scare-filled haunted houses at SeaWorld, my family starts making its seasonal rounds in late August. But there's one event that stands above the rest: Halloween Horror Nights, or HHN, at Universal Studios Florida.
This year alone, my family will spend over $3,000 attending the scary but fun event — and that's not even the most we've spent in a single season.
Here's why we invest so much in HHN and why I think it's the best theme-park Halloween event.
HHN runs for nine weeks throughout the Halloween season.HHN typically runs from late August/early September until late October/early November.
Terri Peters
The 2024 Halloween Horror Nights season is Universal Orlando's longest yet, running on select nights from August 30 through November 3.
The nine-week run leaves plenty of time to experience the spooky event, so my family knew going into the season we wanted to be there as many nights as possible — regardless of the expense.
We've already visited HHN twice this year and plan to attend a few more times in October.
Tickets range depending on the night you visit but average around $100 each. Since HHN takes place from around 6:30 p.m. to 2 a.m., you need a separate admission ticket if you're also going to the theme park that day.
The event isn't suitable for all ages.The Halloween event is definitely on the scarier side.
Terri Peters
Universal recommends that kids wait to attend HHN until they're 13. There's blood, gore, jump scares, and more, so it may not be the best spot for little kids, especially ones who are sensitive to scary or chaotic scenes.
My kids both waited until they were 13 to experience HHN. My 16-year-old son loves going each year, but my 14-year-old daughter decided it was a bit too scary for her.
One of the reasons we have annual passes is to get a free event ticket each season.We each get one free HHN ticket with our annual passes.
Terri Peters
I've often touted the benefits of being an annual-pass holder at Universal, from the affordable price (compared to Disney) to the significant discounts on food and merchandise. But my favorite benefit is probably that pass holders receive a free ticket to HHN on select nights each season.
We still have to purchase additional tickets once our pass-holder night has been used up, but the savings are helpful when you're planning to visit several times during the season.
There are 10 haunted houses to explore this year.One of this year's haunted houses is called Eternal Bloodlines.
Terri Peters
HHN has 10 haunted houses. This year, the houses range from one based on the "Quiet Place" film franchise to Slaughter Sinema 2, a campy original haunted house that lets guests walk through funny-but-imaginary B-list horror films.
Lines for the haunted houses can get long, so we've learned it's worthwhile to purchase an express pass for the night. The add-on costs about $150 a person and offers one chance at a shorter line at each house.
There's also a higher-tiered express pass that offers unlimited line-skipping, but we've found that getting through each house in one night takes up plenty of time.
The scare zones provide even more thrills. There are five different scare zones, including the Torture Faire.
Terri Peters
There are also five scare zones in the park. This year, they're themed around concepts like a zombie-filled swap and the Blumhouse library of horror films.
A Halloween-themed show runs a few times throughout the night if you're looking for even more entertainment.
My family’s biggest HHN expense is always a VIP tour.My son and I did a public RIP tour this year.
Terri Peters
There are private and public RIP tours (a spooky play on VIP) at HHN, and my family always likes to do at least one.
This year, my son and I did a public RIP tour for about $400 a person. We were paired with other guests and led through the park by a guide who shared HHN knowledge. Plus, it included a buffet-style dinner.
More importantly, the guide also took us straight to the front of the lines at the haunted houses.
Last year, we spent about $4,000 on a private RIP tour with my friend group, which was lots of fun. But if you don't mind hanging out with strangers, the public version is more affordable and comes with the same perks.
We always splurge on the exclusive themed food and beverages.There were some fun "Ghostbusters" treats this year.
Terri Peters
From $9 corn-and-shrimp chowder to a $14 walking taco, we love trying all the seasonal food items available exclusively at the after-hours event.
Kiosks throughout the park sell treats themed around each of the haunted houses. This year, there's a "Ghostbusters"-themed Stay Puft Marshmallow Man s'more and a red pastry samosa that looks like the infamous red door in the "Insidious" film franchise.
We could spend an entire night walking through the scare zones and trying the food.
We’re also suckers for each year’s HHN merchandise.We always splurge on a little bit of HHN merch.
Terri Peters
Each year, fans of HHN await the release of the seasonal merchandise.
So far, we've already bought T-shirts with all the haunted houses on the back ($33 each) and cozy hoodies with some of the scary characters from this year's event ($60 each).
It's a good thing annual passholders get a 10% to 15% merchandise discount because we have a long list of things we plan to purchase this season.
Staying at a Universal hotel is a must for us.The Cabana Bay Beach Resort had some cute fall decor.
Terri Peters
We live about 90 minutes from Universal and often stay in a hotel on the property, so we don't have to drive home late at night.
Staying on the property is the perfect way to extend the creepy vibes. All the Universal hotels decorate their lobbies for HHN, plus there are photo ops and themed bars with limited-edition drinks.
Perhaps more importantly, the hotels provide easy access to buses and water taxis to the theme parks. It's a big perk when you're exhausted at the end of a good night at the event.
Between pass-holder and Florida-resident deals, I've snagged rooms for between $100 and $200 a night.
If you can only go to one theme-park Halloween event, make it HHN.My family will keep returning to Universal's HHN for years to come.
Terri Peters
Provided everyone in your travel party is old (and brave) enough, Halloween Horror Nights is, in my opinion, the premier Halloween event in Florida.
I recommend it to all of my friends and have gotten many of them hooked on visiting every single year.
Like anything at a theme park, a night at HHN can be expensive. One private RIP tour last year cost more than our entire HHN budget for this year.
We tend to go all out, but you could easily tailor the event to your budget. It's completely possible to go in with just a $100 ticket and have a wonderfully scary time.
