Trick or Treat? This is How European Theme Parks Celebrate Halloween

(eap) With pumpkins, ghosts and spooky costumes: While some parks are still in the final stages of their preparations for the Halloween season, most venues are already welcoming their visitors since the beginning of October in a delightfully eerie atmosphere with a range of spooky offerings. Twinkling lights, pumpkins and spooky decorations are said to transform parks everywhere into a very special Halloween mood – with most European venues offering both family-friendly spooky activities and horror experiences for the brave-hearted. The following provides an overview of selected highlights (randomly chosen):

© Disneyland Paris At Disneyland Paris^®, the “Disney Halloween Festival” is taking place again until November 2, offering families in particular a delightfully spooky mix of thrills, fun, and surprising novelties. While the park’s “Main Street” is transformed through ghostly projections, the “Lucky Nugget Saloon,” inspired by the legend of “Phantom Manor,” becomes the “Unlucky Nugget Saloon,” where an immersive dining experience brings the wedding celebration back to life. With “Mickey’s Halloween Celebration Parade”, the park offers a daily highlight for young and old alike, featuring popular Disney characters such as “Daisy,” “Goofy,” and “Chip & Dale,” and for the first time this year, “José Carioca” and “Panchito” from the Disney film “The Three Caballeros”.

October 31 marks the culmination of the celebrations at Disneyland, with extended opening hours until 11 p.m. On this day, adults have the unique opportunity to dress up in costumes together with their children. The festivities will conclude with “A Nightfall with Disney Villains” at Sleeping Beauty Castle, followed by the illuminated night sky show “Disney Tales of Magic”.

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© Plopsaland Deutschland At Rhineland-Palatinate’s Plopsaland Germany, the family-friendly “Kids Halloween” celebration is taking place throughout the park daily until November 2, including the new “Plopsa Halloween Parade” featuring beautifully decorated floats and numerous Plopsa characters. During “Holly’s Halloween Party” young and old guests embark on a fun ghost hunt. True horror fans can attend the “Halloween Fright Nights 2025” on selected days from 6 p.m., where they can experience five new horror attractions (including the two haunted house premieres “Academy of Freaks” and “LOST: Mission Camp Sonnenschein,” as well as the new scare zone “Woifeschd”) and 100 live scarers.

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© Familypark At Familypark in Austria, visitors can get into the spooky spirit until November 2 – a varied stage program featuring international artists is on offer: In the children’s show “Filippo und die Vogelscheuche,” slack wire acrobatics, daring rolla-bolla tricks, and jumps from a springboard provide entertainment for all ages. In the evening, a 40-minute show combining acrobatics, singing, and dancing creates a lively atmosphere for guests. For the particularly brave, Familypark offers two haunted houses: the popular “Nightmare Manor” and the 2024 addition “The Underground,” a labyrinthine darkness filled with dead ends, noises, and unexpected encounters (recommended for ages 14 and up).

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On two remaining weekends (October 24 & 25 and October 31, 2025), Magic Park Verden invites visitors to its popular “Kinder Halloween” event, which is intentionally designed under the motto “Spook without Fright” for children up to twelve years old. In addition to a varied program including face painting, wand crafting, and a large Halloween fashion show, the Lower Saxony amusement park is offering a new ghost ride this year: “Spukschloss,” a scare-free attraction specifically designed for younger Halloween fans.

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© Energylandia “HYSTERIA” is the name of the new horror zone created for this year’s Halloween season at the Polish amusement park Energylandia, described as an “especially intense” experience. In addition, horror fans can explore a total of six haunted houses. The park’s big Halloween season finale will take place on the weekend of October 24–26.

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At Erlebnispark Schloss Thurn in Bavaria, this year’s Halloween spectacle can, for the first time, be combined with an overnight stay at the newly opened “GlampingPark”. For families, two interactive mazes – including the new “Hexenhaus” – will be available on October 25 & 26 and from November 1 to 9, 2025, between 11 a.m. and 6 p.m. Visitors aged 16 and over can look forward to the “Scary Nights” (October 18, 24 & 25 and Halloween night on October 31, each from 6 p.m. to 1 a.m.), featuring four reworked horror mazes, among other experiences. A highlight is said to be the spectacular motocross show by the “Mad Flying Bikes”, known from Circus Flic Flac.

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© Heide Park Resort/Maren Martens Fotografie Heide Park Resort is also offering Halloween experiences for both families and horror fans this year, running until November 1. In the park’s scare zone, guests aged 16 and older will find eerie characters and three horror mazes. New this year is “Parasomnis – The Nightmare Therapy” described as an extreme experience for adrenaline junkies. Additionally, “SubTerra – das Erntebankett” has received a new storyline. For the youngest visitors: In the magical enchanted forest, the good fairy urgently needs the help of brave children, and “Peppa Pig” and “George” have dressed up for a Halloween meet & greet in “Peppa Pig Land.”

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© LEGOLAND Deutschland Resort “Monster Trail” is the name of the family-friendly Halloween experience introduced this year at LEGOLAND^® Deutschland Resort, located in the redesigned hall of the “Power Builder” attraction. Halloween is being celebrated in the park in Günzburg until November 9. Preschool children can also enjoy “Peppa’s Halloween Party”.

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Over four event days (October 24, 25, 31 & November 1), the Sauerland-based Fort Fun Abenteuerland will once again present its “FORT FEAR Horrorland”, which this year returns with the story “Dream Something Evil – Part III.” The event is said to explore the intrusion of the dream world into reality through live entertainment in scare zones, haunted houses, horror shows, and rides in the dark. New this year are the integrated horror maze “EGO:MORPH” and the fire show “The Soul Door”, which will be featured during the exclusive “Hallow Eve SPECIAL” on October 31.

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Two new offerings are featured this Halloween season at PortAventura World, which runs until November 11: “1,2,3…iYa es Halloween,” a new family show, brings “Count von Count” and other beloved characters from “Sesame Street” to the park’s themed area. The new “Halloween Birthday Parade” celebrates the park’s 30th anniversary and serves as the grand finale of the daily festivities.

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Pleasure Beach Resort in Blackpool (England) is also celebrating Halloween (until November 1), offering a special attraction for the occasion: In the newly added and fifth scare zone “Abyss” visitors can experience “Journey to Hell” a “hellish ride” inside the historic dark ride “River Caves”. Guests will also be able to discover various Easter eggs referencing the storyline of “Aviktas”, the attraction announced by the park for 2026. ■