Yet another spooky season is upon us with all the requisite haunted house, pumpkin fest and other trick-or-treat action. Here’s just a sampling of ways to play around the Bay Area in October.
‘Unhinged: Hotel’ at Winchester Mystery House: Select nights through Nov. 2, 525 S. Winchester Blvd., San Jose. Winchester Mystery House presents a new and chilling haunt chapter, Unhinged: Hotel. Step into the darkened halls of the Winchester Mystery House and navigate a hauntingly immersive maze. And let’s just say… some doors should stay closed. $80 to $90. winchestermysteryhouse.com/unhinged/
The Winchester Mystery House, photographed in 2018, will open its new Halloween event, “Unhinged: Hotel,” on Sept. 13, 2024. It will run through Nov. 2, 2024. (Sal Pizarro/Bay Area News Group)
The Bernal Scream – ‘Soul Shredder’: Through Nov. 3, Almaden Plaza, 5353 Almaden Expressway, San Jose. Father and son duo Mike and Abel Barrera started The Bernal Scream as a free show in their backyard in 2013. Since then, this DIY haunted house has evolved into a spectacle seen each year by thousands of people. Are you brave enough to see what all the hubbub is about? $0 to $45. thebernalscream.com/
Fear Overload Scream Park: Through Nov. 2, 2086 Newpark Mall, Newark. Prepare yourself for an adventure filled with mystery, adventure and horror, as you step into the fourth dimension at Fear Overload Scream Park complete with two Bay Area-centric haunted houses: Darkmoor Penitentiary and Slotch Sanatorium. New this year: Eerie Essentials, a captivating emporium of chilling keepsakes. $20-$32 admission. fearoverload.com/
Fright Fest at Six Flags Discovery Kingdom: Through Nov. 3, 1001 Fairgrounds Drive, Vallejo. Six Flags will be transformed this spooky season with a frightful array of haunted attractions, scare zones, entertainment shows and Halloween themed rides. Prices vary. www.sixflags.com/discoverykingdom/
Tricks and Treats at California’s Great America: Select days through Oct. 26, 4701 Great America Parkway, Santa Clara. On top of the usual rides and attractions, everyone in the family is sure to have a boo-last with California’s Great America’s spooky, kooky Halloween activities, live shows, costume contests, seasonal food and drinks, and, of course, candy. Prices vary. www.cagreatamerica.com
LEGOLAND ‘Brick-or-Treat’: Through Oct. 31, 870 Great Mall Drive, Milpitas. Scary fun awaits as monsters take over LEGOLAND Discovery Center Bay Area. Get into the Halloween spirit for some monsterrific activities and an exclusive 4D Halloween movie, “The Great Monster Chase.” $27 to $30. www.legolanddiscoverycenter.com/bayarea/
Pirates of Emerson Haunted Theme Park: Through Nov. 2, Alameda County Fairgrounds, Pleasanton. Ahoy! This classic walk-through Halloween experience will leave you trembling with fear as you navigate your way through four terrifying attractions: Demented Dolls, Pirates of Emerson, Halloween Hell and See Sawz Circus. $40 to $100. piratesofemerson.com/
Berkeley’s Claremont Club & Spa is hosting spooky tours of its historic halls. (Jane Tyska/Bay Area News Group) (Jane Tyska/Bay Area News Group)
Halloween Haunted History Tours at the Claremont: 6 to 7 p.m. Thursday through Saturdays Oct. 3-31, Claremont Club & Spa, 41 Tunnel Road, Berkeley. These walls have seen many things over their 108-year history, and legend has it, some guests have never checked out. Enjoy an exclusive look down some of the Claremont’s legendary halls and restricted areas… including its most haunted room. $40. www.claremont-hotel.com/events/
Into the Dark – ‘Fatal Abduction’: Oct. 3 to Nov. 3, SF Mint, 88 Fifth St., San Francisco. This year, the infamous SF Mint’s Terror Vault invites you to discover that the phenomenon is real and our planet is in peril! Are you the one chosen to save humanity from an unspeakable horror? $60 to $125. intothedarksf.com/
Pug-O-Ween: Oct. 4-5, various Bay Area venues. This Halloween, Tiny Paws Pug Rescue is hosting hundreds of pug lovers and their furry friends for a weekend of spook-tacular fun. Come out for a Friday night brews and laughs event at Scotts Valley’s Steel Bonnet Brewery. On Saturday, head over to Felton’s Roaring Camp Railroad for all-day Pug-O-Ween festivities including games, lunch, a raffle and the highly-anticipated costume contest. Prices vary. https://www.tinypawspugrescue.org/pug-o-ween
Halloween at Jellystone Park: Weekends Oct. 4 to Oct. 27, 14900 Highway 12, Lodi. Celebrate Halloween at the haunted pavilion and magical pumpkin patch, complete with trick-or-treating, costume contests and spooky campfire stories under the stars. Prices vary. towerparkresort.com/halloween
Mockingbird Lane – A Halloween Market: 12 to 5 p.m. Oct. 6, Elks Lodge, 2255 Santa Clara Ave., Alameda. The ghosts of Mockingbird Lane invite you to the seventh annual Halloween Market filled with oddities, art and macabre makings. Free admission. https://sites.google.com/view/mockingbirdlanemarket/home
Blind Scream Haunted House – ‘Reflections of Terror’: Select nights Oct. 11-31, 98 Santa Rosa Plaza, Santa Rosa. Blind Scream’s 2024 haunted house, Reflections of Terror, is set in a dilapidated old house in the woods. $25 to $35. www.blindscream.com/
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Downtown Martinez Zombie Brew Crawl: 1 to 4 p.m. Oct. 12, Main Street, Downtown Martinez. The un-dead are descending upon downtown Martinez, and they’re on a quest for craft beer! This spooktacular event will see zombies roaming the downtown corridor, sampling 30+ craft beers from various breweries stationed at participating small businesses. Prices vary. https://tinyurl.com/ZomCrawlDM
Halloween at Filoli: 5:30 to 9 p.m. Wednesday through Sunday, Oct. 16 to Nov. 3, Filoli Historic House & Garden, 86 Cañada Road, Woodside. This captivating experience invites visitors to explore the Filoli estate under the cover of darkness, where history and mystery intertwine. Brave a candlelit walk through the house’s haunted halls, take in the flickering lights of jack-o’-lanterns in the Meadow, try your hand at Halloween games and savor seasonal drinks and treats at Jack’s Bar. $0 to $45. https://filoli.org/halloween/
Hammer Presents National Theatre Live – ‘Frankenstein’: 7 p.m. Oct. 17 and 2 p.m. Oct. 20, Hammer Theatre Center, San Jose. Directed by Academy award-winner Danny Boyle, Frankenstein features Benedict Cumberbatch and Jonny Lee Miller alternating between the roles of Victor Frankenstein and his creation. Scientific responsibility, parental neglect, cognitive development and the nature of good and evil are embedded within this thrilling and deeply disturbing classic tale. $13 to $20. https://hammertheatre.com/
Halloween Jam at Children’s Fairyland: Oct. 19-20 and Oct. 25-27, 699 Bellevue Ave., Oakland. This Halloween season, Fairyland will be decked-out with sets and rides, spook-tacular performances and activities, costumed characters, bouncy houses, treat stations, scavenger hunts and puppet shows. $0 to $20.17. https://fairyland.org/events-and-performances/halloween-jam/
Haunted Hangar at Hiller Aviation Museum: 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Oct. 19-31, 601 Skyway Road, San Carlos. Visit the Hiller Aviation Museum this October for a ghoulishly good time at the Kids’ Carnival and Haunted Hangar Festival and Pumpkin Drop. Enjoy craft checkouts, cockpit exploration, glider and helicopter construction. $0 to $22. https://www.hiller.org/event/haunted-hangar/
FUNtazmagoria: 9 a.m to 5 p.m. Oct. 25-37, Children’s Museum of Sonoma County, 1835 W. Steele Lane, Santa Rosa. Step into the Mad Scientist Lab for a walk-through adventure filled with potions, creepy critters, and electrifying experiments. Venture into the Ghostly Glow Lab, where everything is aglow with eerie, luminescent effects. The event’s grand spectacle is the PG&E Pumpkin Plop, where pumpkins are dropped from heights of 50 to 100 feet to explode on impact. $0 to $20. www.cmosc.org/events/funtazmagoria/
Howl-O-Ween Yappy Hour & Costume Parade: 4 to 6 p.m. Oct. 25, Hayes Mansion, 200 Edenvale Ave., San Jose. Dress your pup up in their best costume and let them strut their stuff in the costume parade. Plus, enjoy a Yappy Hour filled with treats and fun activities for humans and pets alike. Free admission. https://tinyurl.com/HayesHalloween
Mountain View Monster Bash: 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Oct. 26, Rengstorff Park, 201 S. Rengstorff Ave., Mountain View. Don your favorite costume and enjoy a fall festival loaded with a treat trail, spooky games, enchanting performances, a stilt walker, inflatables, a creepy crawly gooey zone, a lil ghouls corral and a bike circus. Free admission. https://tinyurl.com/MVmonsterbash
Downtown Martinez Halloween Spooktacular: 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. Oct. 26, Main Street, Downtown Martinez. Explore creatively themed and decorated car trunks lined up for a spooktacular Trunk-or-Treat experience, plus a variety of kid-friendly crafts and games. Free admission. https://downtownmartinez.org/trick-or-treat
Halloween Carnival with Día de los Muertos Celebration: 12 to 5 p.m. Oct. 26, Rohnert Park Community Center, 5401 Snyder Lane, Rohnert Park. Come out for Rohnert Park’s annual cultural Halloween celebration featuring live performances, exotic animals, carnival games, a haunted maze, a magic show and community altars. Free admission. https://tinyurl.com/RohnertParkHalloween
History Park’s Halloween Haunt: 2 to 6:30 p.m. Oct. 26, 635 Phelan Ave. San Jose. Witness magic mysteries as History Park transforms into a haunted, family-friendly haven this Halloween. Enjoy crafts, activities, trick-or-treating at historic houses and a spectacular light show. $0 to $11 admission. historysanjose.org/
Downtown San Mateo Boos on B Street: 3 to 5 p.m. Oct. 26, B St., Downtown San Mateo. Take your family for a spooktacular stroll through B Street in downtown San Mateo featuring carnival games, a live DJ, trick-or-treating and photo opportunities. Free admission. bit.ly/BoosOnBSt
Witches & Brews Sunset Sail: 4:15 to 7 p.m. Oct. 26, Schooner Freda B, Sausalito Yacht Harbor, Slip 465, Sausalito. Set sail for a bewitching experience on the Bay. Feel the wind in your hair as you watch the sunset, sip some hot cider and embrace the magic of this spellbinding evening. $107.48. https://tinyurl.com/WitchesSail
Sausalito’s classic 80-foot Schooner Freda B takes guests sailing into the sunset on San Francisco Bay. (Schooner Freda B)
SuperNatural Halloween at the California Academy of Sciences: 6:30 to 9 p.m. Oct. 26, 55 Music Concourse Drive, San Francisco. Shake your bones at a silent disco in Steinhart Aquarium. Satisfy your sweet tooth at trick-or-treat stations, marvel at mystical magic shows and create crafts to “DIY” for. Transform into living (or undead) art with face painting, and immortalize your spirit at a photo booth. And last but not least: Teens can rest in peace at an exclusive lounge with arcade games, snacks and more. $45 to $60. calacademy.org/supernatural
Bay Area Oddities & Curiosities Expo: Oct. 26-27, Cal Expo, 1600 Exposition Blvd., Sacramento. This spooky showcase features hand selected vendors, dealers, artists and small businesses selling all things weird, including mad clowns, taxidermy demonstrations, preserved specimens, handcrafted horrors and creepy clothing. $12. https://odditiesandcuriositiesexpo.com
Lafayette’s Spooky Walk: Oct. 26-27, Jennifer Russell Building, 500 St. Mary’s Road, Lafayette. Celebrate Halloween with this outdoor haunted house experience in Lafayette Community Park. This trail of terrors features a quarter-mile of bone-chilling encounters to leave you trembling with delight, available in both “Not Too Scary” and “Very Scary” options. $3 to $5. bit.ly/LafayetteSpookyWalk
Trick-or-Treat at the Ferry Building: 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. Oct. 27, Ferry Building Marketplace, San Francisco. Have your face painted, make a spooky craft with your family or watch a live pumpkin carving demonstration. Visitors are also invited to embark on a mushroom scavenger hunt as part of the Ferry Building Mushroom Festival, which coincides with spooky season. Costumes are encouraged. Free admission. www.ferrybuildingmarketplace.com/events/
Pacific Commons Halloween Spooktacular: 4 to 6 p.m. Oct. 30, Pacific Commons Shopping Center, 43440 Boscell Road, Fremont. Halloween enthusiasts are in for a spine-chilling treat as Pacific Commons’ Halloween Spooktacular promises live entertainment, a face painter, a balloon artist, seasonal decor and free goodie bags. Free admission. https://tinyurl.com/PCspooktacular
Downtown Pleasant Hill Halloween Spooktacular: 4 to 6 p.m. Oct. 31, the plaza near Jack’s Restaurant, Downtown Pleasant Hill. Downtown Pleasant Hill invites all goblins, ghosts and ghouls to a Halloween Spooktacular complete with face painting and balloon twisting, plus free goodie bags with treats (while supplies last). Free admission. https://shopdowntownpleasanthill.com/events/
Halloween on Old Fisherman’s Wharf: 4 to 7 p.m. Oct. 31, 101 Washington St., Monterey. Enjoy Monterey’s sixth annual Halloween on the Wharf, featuring spooky decorations, a Candy World, a costume contest, fun photo ops and a live DJ spinning spooky Halloween favorites. Free admission. www.montereywharf.com
Halloween Hoopla at Yerba Buena: 12 to 3 p.m. Nov. 2, 799 Howard St., San Francisco. Halloween Hoopla is the place to be for family-friendly frights and delights. The 24th annual fest returns with live music, spectacular performances, kids activities and a grand finale costume parade. Free admission. https://ybgfestival.org
