Halloween season is going strong in Austin, with plenty of time left for haunted houses, pumpkin trails, scary movies, and family-friendly costume outings before the month is over.
The weather even started cooperating this week, with temperatures dropping enough to make fall feel a little less theoretical. And even if the giant skeletons are a little less common on Austin lawns this year, never fear: the scares are still gathering around town.
This roundup focuses on three kinds of Halloween outings. First, we'll share family-friendly events for kids who want costumes without too much fright, then haunted attractions for people who actually want to be scared, and finally grown-up performances or screenings where the Halloween experience goes beyond the drinks.
Family fare with less scare
Halloween Children’s Concert
Long Center, October 18, 3 pm
The Austin Symphony Orchestra’s annual Halloween Children’s Concert brings costumes, storytelling, and spooky classical music to Dell Hall. This year’s program includes Saint-Saëns’ “Danse macabre,” Prokofiev’s “Peter and the Wolf,” and music from “How to Train Your Dragon,” with pre-concert activities for families. Tickets start at $25.
StrawFest
Umlauf Sculpture Garden & Museum, October 25, 11 am to 4 pm
Umlauf’s StrawFest is a free family day with pumpkin painting, art-making, a costume parade, caricatures, face painting, inflatable games, yard games, a magician, and a straw pit. The event also includes raptor and reptile shows, appearances by Austin Bat Refuge and Central Texas Pig Rescue, community partners, food trucks, and visits from Alice and the Mad Hatter. RSVPs are recommended, but walk-ups are welcome.
UMLAUF Strawfest is a free family event at the Umlauf Sculpture Garden. Umlauf Sculpture Garden/umlaufsculpture.org
Boo at the Zoo
Austin Zoo, through October 24, Fridays and Saturdays, 6:30-9 pm
Austin Zoo’s Boo at the Zoo invites kids to come in costume for Friday and Saturday night events throughout October. The event includes a haunted train ride, a haunted house, Halloween activities, and a chance to see the zoo after dark. Tickets are $25, with some nights already showing low availability.
Halloween Carnival at the NCHM
Neill-Cochran House Museum, October 25, 11 am-3 pm
The Neill-Cochran House Museum is hosting a free Halloween carnival on the lawn of one of Austin’s historic house museums. Kids can come in costume for Trunk-or-Treat, scavenger hunts, games, friendship bracelets, and paper-flower making for Día de los Muertos ofrendas. The lawn event is free, with free parking behind the museum; house tours will also be available.
The family-friend Neill-Cochran House Halloween carnival is a free event with free parking.NCHM House/nchmuseum.org
Pumpkin Nights
Pioneer Farms, through October 31, entry 6-9 pm weekdays and 6-9:30 pm weekends
Pumpkin Nights turns Pioneer Farms into an after-dark walking trail with nine immersive pumpkin "lands," a half-mile path, a Pumpkin Village, all featuring more than 10,000 hand-carved or custom-designed pumpkins. There will also be live fire shows, food, games, and vendors. October tickets range from $24-$38 for adults and $16-$28 for kids, depending on the night, with ages 3 and under admitted free. Parking is $10 per car.
Haunted attractions
House of Torment
2632 Ridgepoint Dr., through November 8
House of Torment, on the northeast outskirts of Austin, is back on select nights with three 2026 walk-through attractions, including an officially licensed Jason Universe experience. The long-running haunt also offers add-ons such as axe throwing, mini escape games, a zombie simulation, and a 21-and-up "secret" bar inside the attraction. Ticket prices vary by date and package.
Bat City Scaregrounds
14101 South Turnersville Rd., Buda, through October 31, 7:30-11 pm Fridays and Saturdays, 7:30-10 pm Thursdays and Sundays
Bat City Scaregrounds brings a full outdoor Halloween attraction to Buda, about 15 miles from Austin. One ticket includes three haunted attractions — Ritual, Castle Orlock, and Slaughter Mall 3D — plus stage performances, live music on select nights, seasonal treats, vendors, and photo ops. Tickets start at $27.81 on Thursdays and Sundays, $33.37 on Fridays, and $38.93 on Saturdays and Halloween. Group ticket prices are also available.
Scare for a Cure
14219 Littig Rd., Manor, select dates through October 31
Scare for a Cure is a volunteer-run interactive haunted adventure that raises money for the Breast Cancer Resource Center and other local causes. The 2026 production, TerrorToys!, sends guests into the world of a fictional toy company where something has gone wrong. Ticket prices vary by date.
Haunted ATX
South Congress pickup, tours available through October 31
Haunted ATX takes the ghost-tour format off the sidewalk and into a vehicle, with public and private hearse tours, public van tours, and Saturday-night paranormal investigations on its October calendar. The locally operated company bills itself as Austin’s only ghost tour on wheels, with three-hour tours starting at $59. Mobile tours are BYOB.
By van or hearse, Haunted ATX will take you to some of the spookiest sites around Austin.Instagram/Haunted ATX
Horror-themed performing arts
The Bloody Ball: Creatures of the Night
The Vortex, October 24
The Vortex turns into a dark carnival for this Halloween fundraiser, featuring live music, burlesque, pop-up performances, and a Blade Rave dance party. Guests can explore interactive quests in the Siren’s Grotto, try their luck at carnival games, or enter a costume contest for creatures of the night and dark carnival characters. Themed cocktails, “blood bags,” and a shot luge add to the atmosphere, while hot dogs, popcorn, cotton candy, and desserts are included with admission. The party runs from 8 pm to 1 am for ages 18 and older, with proceeds supporting the theater and improvements to its Garden Stage. Tickets are $45 general admission or $80 VIP, plus fees.
Ventana Ballet’s Undead: Haunted House of Dances
East Side Performing Arts, October 22-31, 6 pm, 7:30 pm, and 8:30 pm showtimes
Ventana Ballet’s immersive Halloween show sends audiences into the “Undead Woods,” where pre-show haunts begin at the time listed on each ticket and the performance starts about 30 minutes later. The production features local professional performing artists as classic Halloween creatures, with suspense, comedy, and ballet woven through the adults-only show. Tickets range from $35-$55, before taxes and fees.
Dwayne Cook Jr. performs as Dracula in Ventana Ballet’s “UNDEAD: Haunted House of Dances,” an adults-only Halloween show where mischief unhinges the mortal realm.Instagram/Ventana Ballet
Welcome to Terror Terrace
Fallout Theatre, October 29-31 and November 1, times vary
Welcome to Terror Terrace is a live Halloween-themed comedy production in downtown Austin, built around a group of monsters and a token human trying to save their fictional apartment building. The show mixes original songs and sketches, burlesque, drag, dancers, and a full cast of Austin performers. The October 30 performances include live ASL interpretation. Tickets are $20 online, plus fees, or $25 at the door. Costumes are encouraged, and the venue is BYOB.
Panic at the Paramount
State Theatre, Bullock Museum IMAX, and Bass Concert Hall, through October 28
Panic at the Paramount brings horror films to several Austin venues while the Paramount Theatre undergoes renovations. The lineup includes Train to Busan, Nope, Dracula, Frankenstein, The Lost Boys, Monster House, The Witch, Little Shop of Horrors: The Director’s Cut, Sinners, and Hereditary. The series wraps with Behind The Scream: A Live Conversation with David Arquette at Bass Concert Hall on October 28. The night includes a 7 pm 30th anniversary screening of Scream, followed by a moderated interview and Q&A. Most regular film tickets are $15, with discounts for Film Fan Club members.
Essential Cinema: Roots of J-Horror
AFS Cinema, through October 31, times vary
Austin Film Society is tracing the roots of Japanese horror with an October series that moves from ghost stories to moral horror and manga-inspired weirdness. The lineup includes Kwaidan, Jigoku, Onibaba, and The Snake Girl and the Silver-Haired Witch, with Onibaba screening on 35mm. Tickets are generally $15 for evening shows and $12 for matinees, with AFS member discounts.
