Surviving Halloween Horror Nights as a Scaredy Cat

By:  Chelsea Hart, a Marvelous Mouse Travels agent

This month I attended my first-ever Halloween Horror Nights! I have visited Universal plenty of times during HHN season but never attended. Why? Because I am a total scaredy cat! No, seriously. The queue for Kong…terrifying! The Halloween tribute store...I usually run straight through. Anyone that's been on any ride with me now likely has permanent damage to their eardrums from my incessant screaming. But this year I decided I needed to see what it was all about and I am SO glad I did!  I've got some tips for not only surviving Halloween Horror Nights, but having a little fun, too!

I was on a RIP Tour which is HHN's version of a VIP tour. It is worth every penny! While we were getting acquainted with our AMAZING RIP guide (in the lounge upstairs, I looked out and could see the lines just to get in stretching well into CityWalk. The RIP tour allowed us to head right into all of the houses, special RIP lounges throughout the park, priority seating at the INCREDIBLE show "Nightmare Fuel" (which honestly is worth the cost of HHN admission alone), and a meal at Cafe La Bamba.

Let's start at the beginning. I'm not gonna lie, I was stressing for WEEKS leading up to this. We went to check in at the VIP lounge for our RIP and I decided I was going to do at least one house just to do it and if I really hated it I would just wait at the exits. So as we headed towards our first house, my heart was racing. I made sure I had someone in front of me that I could grab onto and one person behind me so I was basically a scaredy cat sandwich. I went through the house with one eye open, and screamed A LOT, but made it! I was so proud of myself. My heart rate was pretty high but I was pumped and without thinking headed right into house number 2. Not having that time to think and freak out was huge for me and a big reason why I would recommend a RIP tour or at least express passes if you're scared. The houses are over fairly quick but those long lines can give you plenty of time to get in your own head.

After those two houses, we headed to Cafe La Bamba to grab a bite and some drinks before continuing on with the night. They have scare actors in there and while I almost ran out of my shoes when I saw the first one (our agency TikTok has the footage haha), by the time we left I was taking selfies with one! We headed over to the next houses and I was pumped! Yes, I still made sure to be sandwiched between people and walked with one eye open but I was having fun, which is something I never thought I would have at HHN! I quickly learned that if there was some type of opening, a doorway, curtain, or hole in the wall, it was likely someone would be popping out. So, if I saw something like that coming up on my right, I would just walk past and look to the left.

After house number 5 we went to see Nightmare Fuel. Because of our RIP tour, we had reserved seats and they were the best seats in the whole stadium. Even if you do not want to step foot inside any house, this show is 1000% worth the admission to HHN. It was beyond incredible. I was truly amazed by the performers and all of the stunts they were doing. Plus the show runs multiple times per night! This was not a scary show but was extremely entertaining! It's a must-do, so even if you are so scared that you know HHN is just not for you, give it a chance to check out the shows.

We continued through some scare zones, and some more houses and stopped for some drinks at some RIP exclusive locations. The scare zones can be a little creepy but what I liked is that they are spread out enough so you don't have to get too close to anything. If all else fails, you can always run through.

By the time we went through our final two houses, Dead Man's Pier & Halloween, I no longer had to clutch on to anybody. I'm sure my friends appreciated that. I still wanted to be in the middle of the pack but I was able to walk through and after a couple of hours of houses (and a few cocktails) I was laughing with my friends about how scared some of us were going through. I am so happy that I pushed myself because even though I still can't watch a TV commercial for a scary movie without changing the channel, I am now a big HHN fan and will be going back next year!

Top 5 Tips for Surviving Halloween Horror Nights

If you're a scaredy cat like me but might want to try it out next year, here are my top 5 tips for surviving Halloween Horror Nights.

1. Go with a group! Going with a group allows you to sandwich yourself in the middle and will help calm your nerves.
2. Go with a tour or express. You can tour the houses with the lights on during the day and it can be a good way to familiarize yourself with them before going at night when they are at their spookiest. The Unmasking the Horrors tour can be purchased separately. Otherwise, go with a RIP or Express passes. As I mentioned earlier sometimes the anticipation can be the scariest thing.
3. Don't just focus on the houses. The houses are not the only thing to do at HHN. The shows are incredible and they have exclusive HHN food & drinks that are SO good.
4. You can read up on the houses beforehand and even watch some videos if it helps you to know what to expect.
5. Have fun and only do what you're comfortable with!

I hope this makes you a little less nervous about attending Halloween Horror Nights and maybe even inspires some of you to try it out for yourselves!

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