Spooky season is creeping up on us which means this year’s Universal Halloween Horror Nights is upon us and some students are ready to experience the terror that it brings.
Halloween Horror Nights is an annual event Universal hosts at their theme parks from September to November. This event includes terrifying scare zones, spine chilling haunted houses, thrilling live entertainment, spooky merchandise, and themed food & drinks!
Every year those into spooky terror set dates and purchase tickets ranging from $79.99 to $299.99. In addition, Universal offers early entry, which allows guests to enter the park before gates open to get a head start on the fun, as well as express passes to cut down the wait time in lines.
“This year I’m planning to go soon,maybe in the next few weeks, but last year I went with my sister and a friend, and we bought the tickets in October closer to Halloween to have a better experience,” junior Claraliz Made said.
The main attraction of the night is the vast selection of haunted houses. Every year Universal puts out the themes for their ten notorious houses. One of this year’s must-see houses is inspired by the popular video game“The Last of Us”. It is best to stay silent as you step into the world of “The Last of Us” and avoid clickers, hunters, and more. Another fan favorite is the “Stranger Things” house where guests must band together to try to escape Vecna’s curse.
“I thought it was cool that they made Stranger Things a house. When I entered the house, it felt like I was in the movie and my favorite part was walking through the area where Vecna was at. My favorite part of Halloween Horror Nights is definitely the haunted houses,” junior Yanelli Ortiz shared.
Adding to the excitement are the horrifying themed scare zones in every corner. They feature scare actors dressed in their best costumes to terrorize guests walking by. Some of this year’s themes include Dr. Oddfellow’s Collection of Horror, Production Central, and Vamp ‘69: Summer of Blood, New York.
“The scare zones are interesting to walk through like the vampire hippie one. It’s also pretty funny watching my family and girlfriend get scared by the actors,”junior Godric Rivera mentioned.
Want to catch a bite? Well luckily for guests some of the featured haunted houses have their own selection of themed food and drinks. Some popular choices this year are the not so sweet “Fried ’til the End Chicken” inspired by everyone’s favorite little guy Chucky. If you are in the mood for something sweet, check out “Stranger Things” twists on deserts with the” Hellfire Mini Cake.”
“I ate the Chucky popcorn chicken and I really liked how they packaged the chicken since it was Chucky themed. I also had the Stranger Things Surfer Boy Pizza,” Rivera said.
You can also wear your terror with Universal’s themed merchandise, which ranges from the must have apparel and backpacks to buttons and keychains. Walking around the park you will come across Universals Studios Halloween Horror Night’s annual Tribute store, where you can find a selection of all the essentials to complete your look.
“I bought a Micheal Myers hoodie and it had him swinging his knife on the front. I thought it looked really cool and I wore it around the park, and I wear it all the time now,” sophomore Rinaldo Rivera said.
Universal’s Halloween Horror Nights is one of the top Halloween activities of the year and is definitely an experience worth having if you are into the thrilling terror it brings.
“It’s fun and it gives you a real scare if you’re into that kind of stuff. I definitely am so I go almost every year to have fun and waste time,” Rinaldo Rivera said.
