How Many Nights Are Needed at Halloween Horror Nights Hollywood?

A common question when planning a trip to Universal Studios Hollywood’s Halloween Horror Nights is how many nights are necessary to experience the event, and that’s a solid question to ask. Halloween Horror Nights has a lot to offer. With so many things to do and scares to receive, it may be difficult to determine how many nights you’ll need. We believe that question is best answered based on a few factors: your budget and what you plan to experience. To help you plan out your trip, we broke this guide down into scenarios/sections so that you can select which one best matches your case.

Experience it All: At Least 2 Nights

Universal Studios Hollywood’s Halloween Horror Nights features over half a dozen haunted houses, numerous scare zones, and live entertainment offerings. A number of rides & attractions are also open during Halloween Horror Nights, but they are not the highlight of the event as they are available during regular park operating hours.

To experience everything the event has to offer, we recommend at least 2 nights. This is because the haunted houses can see extended wait times, making it a challenge to visit them all in one night. And if you plan to watch any shows at the event, you’ll need to ensure you arrive ahead of the scheduled show times, which can be difficult to achieve if you’re in line for a haunted house. Moreover, you may not have a good walk-through experience in some houses due to missed scares, so you may want an additional walk-through for an improved experience. On top of that, because many of the haunted houses, scare zones, and shows at Halloween Horror Nights are different each year, you may not be able to experience the same offerings in the future. Therefore, it’s best to get the most out of the event before it’s over. By visiting for 2 or more nights, you’ll have more time to do it all.

If you choose to purchase Halloween Horror Nights Universal Express (this differs from the park’s regular Universal Express), the event’s express line system, we still recommend visiting for at least 2 nights. Although you will spend significantly less time in lines, allowing you to do more throughout the night, you may want to revisit the many offerings available since they’re only available for a limited time.

Halloween Horror Nights has so much to do and see, which is why we recommend spending at least 2 nights, but you can easily extend your visit to the event beyond that. Depending on when you visit, a multi-night pass, if available, may be a better value for you versus purchasing multiple single-night tickets. We advise comparing the costs to determine which option is the most cost-effective. Please note that single-night tickets may be made available for purchase before multi-night passes. If multi-night passes are not yet available, you may have to revisit them at a future date. If the event has already begun and multi-night passes are not available, they may be sold out already.

To further enhance your trip, you can use our free Halloween Horror Nights Hollywood planning guide, equipped with planning resources, information about the event, and more.

The Quick Trip: 1 Night

With the many haunted houses, various scare zones, and live entertainment offerings at Universal Studios Hollywood’s Halloween Horror Nights, it’s difficult to see and do everything at the event in just a single night. If you visit on a quiet night, typically a weekday (excluding Friday nights), it may be possible to visit a decent number of haunted houses in one night, but it’s not guaranteed you’ll experience everything the event has to offer due to extended wait times. If you only have the time to visit the event for one night, we highly recommend purchasing Halloween Horror Nights Universal Express to get the most out of your night. This will allow you to spend less time waiting in lines and experience more haunted houses. If your budget allows for it, purchase the R.I.P. Tour. As part of the tour, you’ll get direct access to the haunted houses without waiting in line as well as other benefits.

It’s important to note that many of the haunted houses, scare zones, and entertainment at Halloween Horror Nights are different each year, so you may not have another chance in the future to experience the same offerings. With this in mind, if it’s within your budget, it’s best to extend your trip and visit for multiple nights, regardless of whether or not you purchase Halloween Horror Nights Universal Express or the R.I.P. Tour.

You can enhance your visit to the event with our free Halloween Horror Nights Hollywood planning guide, which features predicted crowd levels, a touring plan, information about the event, and more.