Whether your favourite part about Halloween is the mass amounts of candy, playing dress-up, freaky horror films, or spooky haunted houses, there’s something for everyone in Edmonton. Get ready to boo-gie!
FAMILY-FRIENDLY FUN
Haunted Pumpkin Festival
When: Through Oct 31
Where: Prairie Gardens & Adventure Farm
About: This seasonal favourite has spooked over 1 million guests in its 60-year history. Take your kids out to Prairie Gardens & Adventure Farm for endless Halloween fun! Cool activities include the infamous pumpkin cannon, pumpkin carving, scarecrow building, and a haunted house!
Pop-Up Witches Market
When: Oct 20-21
Where: Prairie Gardens & Adventure Farm
About: Shop more than twenty witchy vendors with a variety of handmade jewellery, home goods, and themed treats. Have your future told with tarot card readings, palm readers, and fortune tellers.
Spooky Saturday
When: Oct 27
Where: Strathcona County Museum Sherwood Park
About: You’ll need your flashlight to navigate the museum halls and walls—they’ll be spooked out to delight all ages! Follow ghostly clues through the exhibits to discover where the ghosts are hiding. Explore Spooktacular indoor and outdoor activities, create a ghoulish craft, and enjoy fantastic Halloween treats.
Boo! At the Zoo
When: Oct 28
Where: Edmonton Valley Zoo
About: Come dressed in your best costume, and participate in spooky Halloween-themed activities. There will be creepy demonstrations, a Witches’ Den, hands-on science experiments, crafts, an extinct animal graveyard, and loads of fun for trick-or-treaters of all ages.
Edmonton Ghost Tours
When: Through Nov 7
Where: Walterdale Playhouse, Strathcona Streetcar
About: Get an educational and spooky tour of Edmonton to learn about some of its dark and supernatural history. Discover true stories of ghosts, hauntings, and murders on the Old Strathcona Ghost Tour (Sep 25–Nov 7), or ride the rails on the Haunted Trolley Tour (Oct 12–Oct 31) while hearing the most gruesome stories of Old Strathcona.
Night of Fear Festival
When: Oct 19–20
Where: German Canadian Cultural Association
About: Once you make it through the terrifying haunted house and graveyard filled with evil spirits, shop spooky product vendors, have your future told by a tarot card reader, enjoy live music, Halloween treats, and special guests! Saturday afternoon is family-friendly, but evenings are geared towards those who enjoy a scare.
TEST YOUR BRAVERY
DEDfest
When: Oct 19–21
Where: Metro Cinema
About: This year celebrates the tenth anniversary for the annual festival of terror and gore. Expect a selection of blood-curdling, suspenseful independent feature-length and short horror, cult, and sci-fi films from around the world.
DARK
When: Oct 18-27
Where: Fort Edmonton Park
About: The entire village of Fort Edmonton Park is haunted and the DARK streets provide no solace. Fight to survive a hungry cult, be haunted by a dead wedding party, and chased down by a pack of revenous warewolves. Sound too scary? The DARK Circle will have food, beverages, entertainment, and a little less scare. This event is recommended for those 14 and older.
Deadmonton House
When: Through Nov 4
Where: 7031 Gateway Blvd.
About: Face your darkest fears at one of the creepiest experiences in Edmonton. You can never be too sure whether you imagined that hand on your shoulder or if it was really there as a team of scare specialists do their best to chill you. Read the warning on the house’s website before visiting, as this event is not for the faint of heart.
The VOID
When: Select days starting Oct 16
Where: The Rec Room, West Edmonton Mall
About: Try something new with The VOID’s fully immersive and supernatural VR experience that will elevate every sense with unmatched realism—not just visually, but physically and emotionally. Get ready to travel back in time to the abandoned site of the Chicago’s World Fair. But beware and escape the wrath of Nicodemus.
Edmonton Festival of Fear International Film Festival
When: Oct 25–27
Where: Princess Theatre
About: Enjoy three whole days of guts, gore, and hair-raising fear at this annual festival featuring films from China, Belgium, Australia, Iran, Chile, and more. Celebrate making it through the whole festival at the official After Party at the Old Town Pub.
Phantom of the Opera
When: Oct 31
Where: Winspear Centre
About: Attend this spooky showing of the original 1925 silent horror film Phantom of the Opera as it is projected above the Winspear stage. Renowned organ player Dennis James will accompany the viewing on the Davis Concert Organ.
ADULTS-ONLY EVENTS
Halloween Howler
When: Oct 26
Where: Shaw Conference Centre
About: Sport the wackiest and scariest costumes you can imagine to party with The Bear 100.3 at the annual Howler featuring Stone Temple Pilots, Seether, Default, and Age of Days. This is an 18+ event.
Are you Afraid of the Dark?
When: Oct 27
Where: Reynolds-Alberta Museum, 6426 40 Ave. Wetaskiwin
About: Walk the museum to meet monsters from the past including Count Dracula, Frankenstein, the Mummy, and more. Watch a scary flick at the Drive-In, play “twisted” games, and compete for the chance to win best costume! There will be a cash bar and snacks available. This is an 18+ event.
