Orlando, FL — SeaWorld Orlando has confirmed Howl-O-Scream will return for its sixth year on 26 select nights from September 11 through October 31, 2026, with six haunted houses, seven scare zones, five all-new interactive bars, and two live shows. The separately ticketed event opens its gates at 6:30 p.m. with the event beginning at 7:00 p.m. SeaWorld has named three of the six haunted houses so far: “I Know What You Did Last Summer: The Final Catch,” “Everything Must Stay,” and “The Crawl Space.” It has also named the scare zones “Extermination Order,” “Nekrosis,” and “Just One More Chapter,” and the themed bar “The Rewind.”
Full franchise coverage: See HAN’s Howl-O-Scream 2026 guide to all five United Parks locations for the umbrella event, cross-park lineup comparisons, and the other properties’ 2026 status.
Last updated: August 9, 2026. SeaWorld Orlando has confirmed dates, pricing, and the event framework, and has named three houses, three new scare zones, two returning scare zones, one bar, a new Terror Tour, and both shows. Ticket pricing was re-verified against the live ticket page on July 31. Three houses (two all-new and one returning), two scare zones, and four bar concepts remain unnamed. SeaWorld has teased what it calls an “event-redefining” reveal still to come.
When is Howl-O-Scream Orlando 2026?
Howl-O-Scream Orlando 2026 runs on 26 select nights from September 11 through October 31, 2026 at SeaWorld Orlando. Gates open at 6:30 p.m. and the event begins at 7 p.m. Event nights are September 11, 12, 18, 19, 25 and 26. October 2, 3, 4, 9, 10, 11, 15, 16, 17, 18, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30 and 31.
How much do Howl-O-Scream Orlando 2026 tickets cost?
SeaWorld’s Killer Summer Sale is live. These prices were confirmed on the ticket page on July 31, 2026, with regular prices in parentheses.
- Any Night Ticket, minimum four: $38.99 each ($125.99). Valid on any event night
- Unlimited Scream Pass: $112.99 ($205.99)
- Unlimited Scream Pass with blockout dates: $102.99 ($182.99). Blocked: Sept 12, 19, 26 and Oct 3, 10, 17, 24
- Two-Park Unlimited Scream Pass, SeaWorld Orlando and Busch Gardens Tampa Bay: $164.99 ($308.99)
SeaWorld also sells a date-specific single-night ticket, a no-minimum any-night ticket, a two-park single-visit ticket, a group rate for parties of 15 or more, and a discounted Pass Member rate. Current prices on those tiers are on the official ticket page. Howl-O-Scream is separately ticketed and not included with daytime SeaWorld admission, and Fun Cards and Annual Passes are not valid for entry. Front Line Fear and Front Line Fear Extreme skip-the-line upgrades are sold separately.
What is confirmed for Howl-O-Scream Orlando 2026?
SeaWorld Orlando has confirmed a framework of 6 haunted houses (5 all-new storylines, 1 returning), 7 scare zones (5 new, 2 returning), 5 all-new themed bars, and 2 live shows. The event’s icon is Havoc, the Face of Fear, introduced in 2025, who is confirmed to return. On July 9, 2026, SeaWorld named the haunted house Everything Must Stay and the scare zone Just One More Chapter. On July 30 it added the scare zone Nekrosis and the bar The Rewind, and on July 31 the licensed house I Know What You Did Last Summer: The Final Catch. In early August it named the haunted house The Crawl Space and the scare zone Extermination Order. Two of the five all-new houses, the one returning house, two of the five new scare zones, and four of the five all-new bars are unannounced as of August 9, 2026. SeaWorld said in July that reveals would continue weekly, and has teased what it calls an “event-redefining” announcement still to come.
What is returning for Howl-O-Scream Orlando 2026?
Two 2025 scare zones are confirmed returning: Trailer Park Tragedy and Woodrot Hollow. Both live shows return: Throttle, featuring returning icon Havoc, and Monster Stomp, the Jack the Ripper percussion show, at Nautilus Theater. One returning haunted house from 2025 is confirmed but not yet named.
I Know What You Did Last Summer: The Final Catch
Announced July 31, and opening September 11 at Orlando, San Diego and San Antonio at once. Licensed from Sony Pictures and built on the 1997 film, the house takes guests through what United Parks calls “horrifying recreations of several unforgettable movie scenes and into the events that unfold during the original Southport massacre.” United Parks says it is the first time the film has been adapted for a major Halloween event. Our full coverage of The Final Catch.
Everything Must Stay
An all-new, original concept centered on a haunted open house. The park’s description reads: “For six years, one suburban home has sat unsold while every open house ends the same way: terrified buyers fleeing from things they can’t explain. Tonight, those unseen forces awaken, and you’ll find yourself trapped inside for the worst showing imaginable.”
The Crawl Space
The newest all-new house, announced in early August. SeaWorld’s description reads: “Hidden beneath the city lies a forgotten network of tunnels abandoned after a catastrophic containment failure. When curiosity leads you through a broken fence and into the darkness, you’ll discover the truth wasn’t buried—it was left to grow. Every twisting corridor pulls you deeper underground…and closer to something that’s become far larger, far hungrier, and far too close to escape. Some places are sealed for a reason.” The setup points to a sci-fi, creature-driven build rather than a slasher, and it pairs with the new Extermination Order scare zone below.
Of the six houses in this year’s framework, two more are all-new with their storylines still under wraps, plus one returning house that has not yet been identified.
Nekrosis
Announced July 30, Nekrosis is a seaside town stopped at midnight on January 1, 2000. The park’s description reads: “This once-thriving seaside town has been abandoned to decay, frozen in the final moments of the millennium. The streets are littered with remnants of a decade long gone—but the people who celebrated Y2K never truly left.” The zone includes a video store called Howl-O-Flix, and SeaWorld’s copy frames the year as the event’s organizing idea rather than one zone’s theme, calling it “Howl-O-Scream 2026, where the party ended forever when the clock struck midnight on January 1, 2000.”
SeaWorld named a bar to match on the same day. The Rewind is the first of the five all-new interactive bars to be revealed, and it runs the same hook: per the park, “stacks of VHS tapes, ringing landlines, glowing arcade lights and the unmistakable screech of dial-up.” Building a zone and a bar on one period means guests can sit inside the theme instead of walking through it, which is the practical difference between a scare zone and a scare zone with somewhere to spend money in it.
Nekrosis also puts SeaWorld on a hook several operators are working this season. Netherworld is running its 30th season on its own back catalog, Halloween Horror Nights 35 built a scare zone called Sideshow of Decay around the event’s past, and national retail has spent the summer on the same instinct.
Just One More Chapter
The first named scare zone is an all-new gothic garden themed to cursed romance, where, per the park’s description, “irresistible temptation creates deadly intentions.” It joins two returning zones already confirmed on the official page: Trailer Park Tragedy and Woodrot Hollow. Two additional new scare zones remain unannounced.
Extermination Order
An all-new scare zone built on a swarming infestation. Per the park’s description: “The exterminators have been called in—but they may be too late. Something is crawling, buzzing and multiplying through the streets of Howl-O-Scream. From skittering insects to swarming horrors, the infestation has taken over…and it doesn’t plan on giving the territory back.” Extermination crews are hunting anything that does not belong, and, per SeaWorld, “there’s just one problem: you’re on the list.” It reads as the street-level companion to The Crawl Space.
The five interactive bars are all new for 2026. Only The Rewind, described above, has been named.
Shows, Night Rides, and the Howl-O-Sprint 5K
The official attractions page lists two live shows: the returning Throttle, featuring the villain Havoc, and Monster Stomp, the Jack the Ripper-themed percussion show at Nautilus Theater that the park labels a fan favorite. FOX 35 Orlando has reported a third production, Hellzapoppin Presents: The Grave Danger Thrill Show. SeaWorld’s official framework still lists two shows and the production does not appear on the event page.
Four attractions will run during event hours: Mako, Ice Breaker, Pipeline: The Surf Coaster, and Expedition Odyssey: Fire & Ice.
SeaWorld has also added a Howl-O-Scream Terror Tour, which pairs guests with a VIP guide for the night. Pricing is not posted on the tour page.
The Howl-O-Sprint 5K returns on Friday, September 18. The nighttime race runs through the event’s scare zones. Registration is on SeaWorld’s Howl-O-Sprint 5K page.
Across the Howl-O-Scream Parks
On July 31 United Parks announced a second Sony Pictures license, Anaconda houses at both Busch Gardens parks, opening the same night as The Final Catch. All five Howl-O-Scream parks have posted 2026 dates. The event at Busch Gardens Williamsburg runs September 11 through November 1. It has named six haunted houses for 2026, including Anaconda: Dead on Arrival, covered in HAN’s Williamsburg coverage. Its terror-tories and shows are unannounced. The event is included with regular park admission. SeaWorld San Antonio also runs September 11 through November 1, with the event included with park admission. Busch Gardens Tampa Bay runs September 11 through October 31 across 27 select nights and is separately ticketed. It has named four houses for 2026: Anaconda: Fear Has No Escape, Stranglewood Estate: RePossessed, Circus of Fear: Killer Encore, and Raven’s Mill: Lambs to the Slaughter.
San Diego has named more of its 2026 lineup than Orlando: five of six haunted houses, five of eight scare zones, and three of five vile vignettes. See HAN’s Howl-O-Scream San Diego 2026 coverage. San Antonio has not announced a 2026 lineup, and the content on its page carries over from 2025. HAN has covered the chain’s Halloween brand since its expansion years, including Howl-O-Scream’s return to SeaWorld San Diego and the 2023 multi-park reveal cycle.
Corporate Context
Howl-O-Scream is a meaningful revenue line for United Parks & Resorts. On the company’s Q3 2025 earnings call in November 2025, CEO Marc Swanson told analysts: “Our Halloween events just concluded last week and we saw meaningful year over year growth from our separately ticketed Howl-O-Scream events including record attendance in Orlando and San Diego for these events.” United Parks’ Q3 2025 total revenue was $511.9 million, down 6.2 percent year over year, and total attendance was 6.8 million, down roughly 3.4 percent. Swanson said on the same call, “We are obviously not happy with the results we delivered in the quarter.” The Halloween business is one of the bright spots the company has explicitly called out for continued investment, which is the corporate context around the 2026 additions.
Frequently asked questions
Is Howl-O-Scream Orlando scary?
Howl-O-Scream Orlando is a mature-audience event and is not recommended for children under 13. It features haunted houses with intense theming, scare actors, strobe lights, fog, and open costume portrayal of horror themes. Costumes are not permitted for guests, and re-entry is not allowed.
Is Howl-O-Scream included with regular SeaWorld admission?
No. Howl-O-Scream Orlando is separately ticketed and is not included with daytime SeaWorld admission or with an Annual Pass. Pass Members receive a discounted rate.
How long is Howl-O-Scream Orlando?
The event begins at 7 p.m. on 26 select nights across the September 11 through October 31 window. Gates open at 6:30 p.m.
How does Orlando compare to other Howl-O-Scream parks?
San Diego has named more of its lineup, covered in HAN’s San Diego 2026 coverage. Williamsburg has named six houses, covered in HAN’s Busch Gardens Williamsburg 2026 coverage. See HAN’s Howl-O-Scream 2026 guide to all United Parks locations for the cross-park comparison and status at Tampa and San Antonio.
Event dates and ticketing
Howl-O-Scream Orlando 2026 runs select nights September 11 through October 31 at SeaWorld Orlando. Tickets and event details are at seaworld.com/orlando/events/howl-o-scream. This article will be updated as announcements are confirmed.
