Guests are ready to buy Halloween in July. That's the takeaway from Mars' annual Tricks, Treats and Trends report, which put consumer numbers on trends we've been tracking all year: 57% of US adults now consider Halloween a full season, 71% want sensory food experiences, and half of Gen Z is discovering Halloween on TikTok and YouTube. This week's news shows operators building for exactly that: ScareHouse is returning to Pittsburgh with no haunted house at all, just the hangout, and SCREAM-A-GEDDON put $2.5 million, its largest capital project ever, into its midway.
In this issue:
- Halloween 2026 Trends: Season Creep, the Food Gap, & Discoverability
- HHN Roundup
- Universal's Q2: Orlando Softens
- ScareHouse Returns With Halloween Hangout
- SCREAM-A-GEDDON's $2.5 Million Midway Opens August 29th
- Fire Destroys Three Houses at Field of Horrors
- Freakling Bros. Pauses 2026 for a J.J. Abrams Film
- Delusion Returns to the Beckett Mansion
- Spirit Halloween's Flagship Opens Saturday
- How Much Do Professional Animatronics Cost?
- At Home Launches Its Biggest Halloween Assortment Ever
- Retail Roundup: Universal Monsters LEGO, Skullector, Lemax, Lenox, Monster Cereals, and More

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The theme park industry spent years training guests that September and October were worth a visit, and it worked so well that Halloween is now the anchor of the entertainment calendar. In this week's newsletter, we break down what that means for haunts, who's still spending, and why consumer retail is now building product for the semi-pro haunter.
In this issue:
- Plan Your Season with HAN's 2026 Halloween Haunt & Event Guides
- HHN 35 Opens a Portal to Its Own Past With "Sideshow of Decay"
- "Stranger Things: Return to Hawkins" Becomes HHN's First Single-Franchise Lagoon Show
- Universal Orlando Discontinues Fear With Express Pass Products
- HHN in Singapore and Japan
- "Blair Witch: No Signal" Mazes Coming to Six Flags
- Halloween at Tokyo Disney 2026
- HalloweenCostumes Debuts Its Biggest Animatronics Lineup Ever
- Freddy Fazbear Animatronic Comes to Spirit Halloween
- Scream 30th Anniversary Reunion at Midsummer Scream
- Legendary Haunt Tour 2026 Lineup

Read the news here

Welcome to the circus!
July 5th marks the official countdown to Halloween in the US, and the theme for 2026 is shaping up to be carnival. Bath & Body Works is the second national retailer to land on a haunted carnival theme, joining Michaels and Halloween Horror Nights' "Infernal Carnival of Nightmares." When two national chains and the world's largest Halloween event converge on the same aesthetic, consumers will feel it.

Read the news here. 

In this issue:
- Bath & Body Works Debuts Haunted Carnival Collection
- The Conjuring: Beyond Fear Returns to Four Six Flags Parks
- Hellraiser Comes to Halloween Horror Nights
- Stranger Things Comes to Netflix House Philadelphia
- FrightWorks Announces Indefinite Closure
- Why This Comcast Move Could Reshape the Entire Industry
- Niles Scream Park Adds Six Feet Under Bar
- Wicked Lit Returns After Eight Years
- Field of Screams Donates $23,000 to Community Organizations
- Spirit's Flagship Grand Opening Returns August 1st
- HAA Board Openings
- Midsummer Scream's SoCal Haunt Spotlight Panel
- LEGO Debuts Two Halloween Sets for 2026
- Spirit's Flagship Grand Opening Celebration Returns August 1st
- Haunters Toolbox Presents: Building Big Scares with a Tiny Budget
-Thirteenth Floor Hiring Ops Manager for Dark Harbor

Halloween is having a moment, and Universal is here for it. Comcast announced it will split into two companies, with the entertainment half, NBCUniversal, anchored by its growing theme parks division. Since Comcast has made horror a central part of its brand, Halloween is about to become a much more visible story on earnings calls, and a higher bar for HHN and Horror Unleashed to clear. That dovetails with everything else Universal announced this week, from four new HHN Orlando houses to a Resident Evil takeover in Las Vegas. We also look at Michaels betting big on Halloween nostalgia, and what that might say about the consumer.
In this issue:
- Comcast to Spin Off NBCUniversal Around Universal's Theme Parks
- Halloween Horror Nights Orlando Announces Remaining Original Houses
- Resident Evil Takeover Soft-Launches at Universal Horror Unleashed Las Vegas
- Michaels Bets on Nostalgia With Six 2026 Halloween Décor Collections
- House of Horror Haunted Carnival Moves to Tropical Park
- IAAPA Expo 2026 Registration Opens, Haunting Grounds Moves to West Building
- Run Your Own Dark Ride with "Scream Operator: Haunted House Manager" Game

Read the stories here 

Two threads land on themes we keep circling back to: who you're selling to and what you're selling is changing.
Families are one of the three groups still spending on attractions, and the new Universal Kids Resort is a direct play for that demographic. But, it seems to suffer from the same issue as Universal Horror Unleashed: Universal positioned the product as premium, betting that the IP and brand would justify the price, and early reviews show it struggling to meet guest expectations.
The operators who get premium right don't lean solely on IP to do the work. They build a strong core product, evoke emotion, and let everything else extend it.
Ultimately, we all sell memories made of emotion, and increasingly, guests want to buy items that extend them. During IAAPA Expo Asia, Hong Kong Disneyland and Ocean Park explained how merchandise fits into that cycle.
For haunts, it comes down to one question: what's the moment in your attraction that guests already talk about, photograph, and remember? You're not just selling the scare. You're selling the moment they'll remember, and everything else extends it.
In this issue:
-Universal Kids Resort Opens For Previews
-Stranger Things Returns to Halloween Horror Nights
-H.R. Bloodengutz Returns to HHN Orlando with New Original House
-Dollywood Hosts Its First Separately-Ticketed After-Hours Halloween Event
-The Rocky Horror Picture Show Planned for Sphere in 2027
https://mailchi.mp/hauntedattractionnetwork.com/a-haunt-sells-memories-not-scares

Spirit Halloween announced it will hire over 52,000 seasonal associates, the largest hiring event in the company's history. Most Americans don't go to a haunted house, but nearly all of them first encounter Halloween through retail. Retail is the first wave of the season, and it primes guests for everything that comes after, including your attraction.
In this issue:
-Spirit Halloween to Hire 52,000 Seasonal Associates
-2026 Halloween & Costume Association Awards Open for Submissions
-Legoland Florida Expands Brick-or-Treat to 18 Days
-Knott's Scary Farm: Nightmares Revealed Returns August 18th
-Green Tagged's News Catch-Up
https://mailchi.mp/hauntedattractionnetwork.com/what-52000-halloween-hires-mean-for-your-haunt

Our job is to entertain people. How they want to be entertained, though, might be changing. New data from PGAV and Integrated Insight show that the audience for paid attractions is shifting, with visits down about 11% year over year, with the steepest declines among lower-income households, women, and families without kids.
This week, we break down who's still spending, what they want, and why Disney's new Oogie Boogie Bash street party might point to where entertainment is heading.
In this issue:
-Madame Leota's Swinging Wake Comes to Oogie Boogie Bash
-Monstropolis Celebrates H.U.M.A.N. Day at Disney's Hollywood Studios
-Six Flags Fiesta Texas Announces Werewolf Gorge Launch Coaster
-Nightmare Wharf Reveals Attraction Themes
-Midsummer Scream Announces Main Stage Theme Park Panels
-C.H.A.O.S. Training to Be Held on June 27th
- Midwest Haunters Convention Returns June 10th-13th, 2027
https://mailchi.mp/hauntedattractionnetwork.com/whos-still-spending-on-attractions 

Haunts and theme parks are facing similar challenges in entertaining guests: the connective tissue between the big moments is what makes the day (or night) work.
In this issue:
- Sinners Announced for Halloween Horror Nights Orlando and Hollywood
- Hersheypark Dark Nights Sets June Audition Dates
- Epic Universe Turns One: Takeaways
- Disney Faces Class Action Over Disneyland Facial Recognition
- Field of Screams Nixa Expands to Branson With New Indoor Haunt
- Hotel of Terror Reaches Purchase Agreement with City of Springfield
- Monsterpalooza Comes to Pasadena, CA This Weekend
- Get Ready for Midwest Haunters Convention, June 6th - 7th

Read more:
https://mailchi.mp/hauntedattractionnetwork.com/why-haunts-are-becoming-scream-parks 

Last week I attended IAAPA Honors, and my biggest takeaway was something I saw last year: F&B as narrative. From LA Haunted Hayride's Cider Mill to Scarehouse Windsor's dinner experiences, the expansion of food carts at HHN, and all the haunts with hidden bars, we're seeing more haunts weaving food into the story. Guests are buying experiences from us, and food has to be part of that, not separate from it. Also this week: United Parks posted a rough Q1 while peer parks grew, and the next Sphere is heading to Yas Island.In this issue:

1. F&B as Narrative: What I Saw at IAAPA Honors
2. United Parks' Dismal Q1
3. The Next Sphere Is Going to Yas Island
4. Derry Halloween to Adopt New Partner-Led Approach
5. First Look at Midwest Haunters Convention Exhibitor List
6. Haunters Toolbox: Inhuman Resources Hiring Session

https://mailchi.mp/hauntedattractionnetwork.com/why-haunts-are-weaving-food-into-the-story

Both Disney and Six Flags posted strong earnings this week, and while haunts are a few steps removed from the major theme park operators, it tells us something useful: guests are still booking, still spending, and still showing up. The two chains are taking different approaches to the same moment, with Six Flags leaning into value and regional passes while Disney leans into premium. For haunted attractions, the takeaways are the same ones we've been tracking since TransWorld. In this issue:

• Disney Q2 Revenue Up 7% as D'Amaro Pitches Disney+ as Everything App
• Six Flags Q1 Revenue Up 12% as Reilly Doubles Down on Pass Strategy
• Oogie Boogie Bash Returns for 33 Select Nights
• AEOStudios to Close in June After 30 Years
• ScareCON 26 Takes Place May 18-20
• Mars Unveils New Seasonal Treats for Halfway to Halloween

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