Where to Celebrate Halloween in the US: Top Places & Events

Where should you celebrate Halloween in the US? If you want the classic spooky experience the answer is Salem, New York City, New Orleans, and Sleepy Hollow. But if you are after haunted houses and real scares, theme park events like Halloween Horror Nights, Disney’s Halloween parties, Six Flags Fright Fest, and Knott’s Scary Farm are hard to beat.

Halloween is always celebrated on October 31 and in 2026 it falls on a Saturday. So expect bigger crowds and higher hotel rates that weekend. 

Keep reading for the best Halloween destinations, theme park events, family-friendly picks, and last-minute booking tips.  

Where Are the Best Places to Celebrate Halloween in the US?

Salem, Massachusetts

Salem is the town most people picture when they think of Halloween in the US. It is best known for the 1692 witch trials (a series of hearings that led to the execution of 20 people accused of witchcraft), and the town leans into that history every October with Haunted Happenings, a month-long lineup of events, tours, and markets. The Salem Witch Museum and the Witch House (the only building still standing with direct ties to the trials) are the two stops most first-timers start with.

Tip: Parking in Salem on October weekends is very hard to find. So, if you are coming from Boston, take the MBTA Commuter Rail from North Station (Newburyport/Rockport Line) instead of driving.

New York City (Village Halloween Parade)

If you want the biggest Halloween party in the country, it is the Village Halloween Parade. The 53rd annual parade is on Saturday, October 31, 2026, at 7:00 PM, running north up Sixth Avenue from Canal Street to 15th Street. Watching is free, and you can technically join in too. Only people in costume are allowed to march, and this year’s theme is Body & Soul if you want your costume to fit in.

Keep in mind that viewing areas get crowded early, especially around Greenwich Village, so plan to arrive well before 7:00 PM. Organizers recommend taking the subway since parking is difficult on parade night.

New Orleans, Louisiana

New Orleans is the best pick for adults who want costumes, live music, and nightlife over haunted houses. On Halloween weekend, the French Quarter and Frenchmen Street fill with people in costume, and ghost and voodoo tours run throughout the season. 

The city’s official Halloween parade, Krewe of BOO!, rolls on Saturday, October 24, 2026, starting at 6:30 PM, with floats, costumed riders, and marching groups moving from the Faubourg Marigny through the Quarter to Canal Street and the Warehouse District. The parade is free and open to the public.

Note: St. Louis Cemetery No. 1 is only open to visitors on a licensed guided tour so book one in advance if it is on your list.

Sleepy Hollow, New York

Sleepy Hollow is the setting of Washington Irving’s “The Legend of Sleepy Hollow,” so the Headless Horseman shows up just about everywhere in October. The headline event is the Great Jack O’Lantern Blaze, which technically takes place in nearby Croton-on-Hudson at Van Cortlandt Manor. 

It is running for 44 nights from September 18 through November 8, with more than 7,000 individually hand-carved, illuminated jack-o’-lanterns. Tickets start at $24 on select evenings. However, dates sell out every single year, so book before you plan anything else.

Which Theme Parks Have the Best Halloween Events?

Halloween Horror Nights (Universal Orlando and Universal Studios Hollywood)

Halloween Horror Nights is the biggest theme park Halloween event in the US, and both Universal parks run it. In 2026, it runs 48 nights at Universal Orlando and 42 at Universal Studios Hollywood, with the Orlando season covering select nights from August 28 through November 1 and Hollywood running between 3 September and 1 November 2026. Expect haunted houses, scare zones, and live shows.

It is a separately ticketed event, so regular daytime Universal Studios Hollywood tickets don’t grant access to the event, and your Halloween Horror Nights ticket doesn’t include daytime park admission. 

Keep in mind that there is no minimum age at either park but both officially recommend against bringing children under 13. Costume rules also differ: Universal Orlando allows no costumes on regular event nights while Universal Studios Hollywood allows them.

Tip: Weekend nights get the longest haunted house lines, especially close to Halloween. If you are going on a Friday or Saturday, look into an event-specific Express pass since standard daytime Express Pass access does not automatically cover Halloween Horror Nights.

Disney Halloween Parties

Disney runs two Halloween parties: Mickey’s Not-So-Scary Halloween Party at Magic Kingdom in Florida, and Oogie Boogie Bash at Disney California Adventure in Anaheim. Both are separately ticketed and come with trick-or-treating, character meet-and-greets, and Halloween-themed entertainment. They are the most kid-friendly theme park Halloween events on this list, and guests of all ages can wear costumes. Keep in mind that both parties sell out early and this year is no exception.

Six Flags Fright Fest

Fright Fest runs at Six Flags parks across the country, so it is often the easiest theme park Halloween event to reach by car. The setup is similar at most parks: scare zones, live shows, and rides in the dark after sunset. At Six Flags Great Adventure in New Jersey, for example, scare zones, live shows, and rides in the dark come with regular park admission or a season pass, while haunted mazes are premium attractions that require a separate Haunted Attractions Pass.

Dates, maze lineups, and prices vary by park, so check your nearest park’s Fright Fest page before you go. As a rough guide, at Six Flags Over Georgia a single-night Haunted Attractions Pass started at $30.

Knott’s Scary Farm (Buena Park, California)

Knott’s Scary Farm is the longest-running Halloween theme park event in Southern California, and 2026 is its 53rd season. It is known for its mazes and fog-filled scare zones. This year, it runs 26 select nights from September 17 through October 31 with 10 mazes, five scare zones, and three shows. Tickets start from $65, but late-October dates and Halloween itself are the priciest.

Like Halloween Horror Nights, Knott’s Scary Farm is not recommended for children under 13. If you are traveling with younger kids, the park also runs Knott’s Spooky Farm, a daytime Halloween celebration that is built for families (more on that in the next section).

Where Can Families Celebrate Halloween With Kids?

Daytime and Low-Scare Theme Park Events

If your kids are too young for haunted houses, daytime theme park events are the easiest way to celebrate Halloween. In California, Knott’s Spooky Farm is a family-friendly daytime celebration where kids can trick-or-treat around the town of Calico’s shops and buildings, and it runs on select days from September 24 to October 31, 2026. It is also included with regular daytime park admission, so there is no separate or additional ticket required.

At Six Flags parks, the daytime hours are also fine for younger kids, since the park only turns scary at dusk, with scare zones, live shows, and coasters running in the dark. So, plan to leave before sunset if your kids are easily spooked.

Pumpkin and Lantern Events

The Great Jack O’Lantern Blaze in the Hudson Valley is one of the best Halloween events for all ages. It is a walk-through trail of glowing pumpkin sculptures rather than a haunted attraction, and it runs nightly through the end of October.

Salem also has plenty for families beyond its witch history. Families visiting Salem during October can stop by Kids’ Fun Fest on Salem Common for kid-friendly activities and seasonal entertainment, and the Haunted Happenings Marketplace runs on weekends through November 1 at Salem Common, Derby Square and Charlotte Forten Park.

If you are there on Halloween night, the festival concludes with a spectacular drone show over the North River with 400 drones marking the 400th anniversary of Salem.

Doing the Village Parade With Kids

The Village Halloween Parade is technically family-friendly, but the crowds are the biggest challenge with kids. Arrive at least an hour before the 7:00 PM start so you can get a spot right at the barrier, where smaller kids can actually see.

Choose a meeting point before you arrive (a specific street corner or store works best) since phone service can be spotty in big crowds. It is also a good idea to write your phone number on a wristband or a piece of tape inside your child’s costume.

Tip: Always check each event’s own age or scare guidance before you book. “Family-friendly” means very different things from park to park, and some daytime events still have costumed characters that can frighten younger kids.

How Do You Book a Last-Minute Halloween Trip?

If you are planning a Halloween trip with only a couple of weeks to go, the order you book things in matters more than usual. Here is how to do it:

• Lock in your event tickets before you book flights: Sold-out event nights are the real bottleneck, not flights or hotels. Check that your event is actually running on your dates, too, since select-night calendars often skip midweek dates, so a hotel booked for a random October Tuesday can leave you outside the fog with no haunt to attend. Buy only from the official event website, since resale tickets for sold-out nights may not be valid at the gate.
  
  
• Stay one town over: Hotels closest to the big events fill up first and charge the highest rates on Halloween weekend. For Salem, look at Boston, Peabody, or Beverly. For Sleepy Hollow, Tarrytown or White Plains are both a short drive or train ride away. For Universal Orlando, International Drive has a wide range of hotels within a few miles of the park.
  
• Try alternative airports: If flights into the main airport are expensive, check nearby options. For Salem, Manchester-Boston Regional Airport (MHT) in New Hampshire and Providence’s T.F. Green International Airport (PVD) are both within driving distance. For Knott’s Scary Farm, Long Beach (LGB) and John Wayne (SNA) are closer than LAX. For Universal Studios Hollywood, Burbank (BUR) is the closest airport.
  
• Fly midweek and avoid arriving on Saturday, October 31: Since Halloween falls on a Saturday this year, Friday and Saturday flights will likely be the most expensive. So, if you can, arrive on Wednesday or Thursday and give yourself a full day before the biggest events.
  
• Book refundable rates: Event dates and times can change, and outdoor events like parades can be affected by the weather. A refundable hotel rate costs a bit more, but it gives you room to adjust your plans without losing money.

Tip: If you are flying in for Sleepy Hollow or Knott’s Scary Farm, a rental car makes things much easier, since both are harder to reach by public transit late at night.