Halloween Horror Nights 35 is locked for 48 select nights at Universal Studios Florida, running Aug. 28 through Nov. 1. The anniversary year has a clear frame already: an Infernal Carnival of Nightmares, 10 all-new haunted houses, Jack the Clown, Dr. Oddfellow, Sinners, scare zones, live entertainment, food, merch, and the usual argument in your group chat about whether Express is worth it.
This is a living guide. Universal will keep adding houses, scare zones, food, merchandise, and operational details as the season gets closer.
Dates and season shape
HHN 35 starts Friday, Aug. 28 and runs through Sunday, Nov. 1. That gives the event its usual late-summer opening stretch, heavy September build, peak October weekends, and a post-Halloween closing night.
Opening weekend is for fans who want to be first. September can be the sweet spot if your group wants the full event without the deepest October crowds. The closer you get to Halloween, the less forgiving the calendar becomes.
Tickets and upgrades
Universal has single-night tickets, Halloween Horror Nights Express, R.I.P. Tours, Behind the Screams: Unmasking the Horror Tours, Scream Early, and vacation packages in motion for 2026.
Scream Early lets guests enter Universal Studios Florida at 2 p.m. before HHN, with access to park attractions and select haunted houses before the event fully starts. It is useful if you are not using a daytime park ticket, but it is not a magic button. You still need a plan for food, holding areas, and the first houses.
Express is the big budget decision. On lighter nights, a good plan can do a lot. On peak October nights, Express can be the difference between a full house count and a lot of standing around while your phone battery slowly gives up.
Premium Scream Night
Premium Scream Night returns for two nights: Thursday, Aug. 27 and Monday, Oct. 19. It is a limited-capacity version of the event with lower attendance than regular HHN nights.
The ticket includes shorter haunted-house waits, select all-you-care-to-enjoy food and nonalcoholic drinks, a souvenir credential and lanyard, and free self-parking with valid Premium Scream Night admission. Alcohol is sold separately for guests 21 and older with valid photo ID.
Premium Scream Night is also the only HHN option where guests can wear costumes, subject to Universal’s costume policy. Costume masks are still out. The August date is especially tempting because it lands before the regular event opens. If you want first looks and lower crowds, that is the cleanest play. If you want the full October atmosphere with a little breathing room, Oct. 19 is the one to watch.
Houses, scare zones, and entertainment
The Orlando event will have 10 all-new haunted houses, scare zones, street experiences, and live entertainment. Universal has not finished revealing the lineup, which is normal for this point in the season.
Do not wait for the entire house list before thinking about dates. The best nights and hotel packages can get expensive or thin while everyone is still arguing over speculation maps.
Jack and Oddfellow
The anniversary year brings Jack the Clown and Dr. Oddfellow together as the event’s ringmasters. Their house, Jack & Oddfellow: Chaos & Control, digs into the rivalry between the two icons and drops it inside the carnival theme.
Universal using both characters is a loud signal to longtime HHN fans. This is not a random anniversary label. The event is leaning hard into its own history, which is usually when Orlando gets weird in the best way.
Sinners joins the lineup
Sinners is the first major film-based house announced for both Universal Orlando and Universal Studios Hollywood. The house takes guests to Club Juke in the 1930s Mississippi Delta, with vampires Remmick, Bert, and Joan breaking the night open.
The film gives Universal a fresh horror title with music, atmosphere, period detail, and a villain setup that should translate cleanly into a house. The early merch is already out, including a shirt, hat, and collectible display pieces.
Hotels and vacation packages
Universal is selling vacation packages that bundle one night of HHN admission, daytime theme park admission, and a Universal Orlando hotel stay. Packages can include daytime access to Universal Epic Universe, which makes this a very different resort trip than a pre-Epic HHN weekend.
Hotel guests also get useful event perks, including complimentary transportation, a dedicated HHN entry gate, and seasonal hotel experiences. For HHN, proximity is not glamour. It is the difference between a quick ride back and a late-night parking-lot march after six houses and too much fog.
Food and merch
HHN food and merchandise details will grow as summer moves along. The first merch wave already has Jack and Oddfellow items plus Sinners pieces online and in park retail.
Expect food to pull its own crowd. HHN food booths have become a full side quest, and anniversary years tend to give Universal plenty of room for character desserts, themed drinks, and oddball snacks that photograph better than they probably should.
How to plan HHN 35
Choose your night first. September weekdays usually give the most room to breathe. October weekends bring the biggest atmosphere and the roughest waits. Opening weekend is fun if you like being part of the first wave and do not mind operational wrinkles.
Pick your first three houses before you enter. If you are using Scream Early or a stay-and-scream holding area, the first hour can carry the night. After that, work by area instead of ping-ponging across the park every time wait times twitch.
If you are not buying Express, eat before the event, pack patience, and stop chasing perfection. HHN is better when your plan has a spine and enough room for the night to get strange.
Image credit: Universal Orlando Resort Media Site and NBCUniversal.
Official sources
- Universal Orlando: Halloween Horror Nights
- NBCUniversal: Halloween Horror Nights 35 dates and tickets
- Universal Orlando Resort Media Site: Jack and Oddfellow details
- Universal Orlando Resort Media Site: Sinners haunted house
- Halloween Horror Nights Orlando official X post
- Universal Orlando: Annual Passholder Event Perks