Once upon a midnight query, the blog series,
Over a quaint and curious page of well-loved lore –
While I nodded, keyboard tapping, suddenly there came a rapping,
As some one mapping, mapping their adventure
“Tis some visitor,” I muttered, “mapping their adventure –
Only this and nothing more.” – Edgar Allen Poe…if he worked in tourism
Welcome to Boo City! A land where urban legends run wild, where ghoulishly good times are just around every corner and where, if you look out of the corner of your eye at just the right moment, you may catch the shadow of a specter by your side. So, with Halloween right around the corner and only a month to celebrate, from fright hikes and movie nights to runs in a cemetery and fun with other species, here’s where you need to go to make the most of spooky season in Milwaukee.
Fright Night Hikes: The Hill Has Eyes
September 27 - October 27, 2024
It’s a classic. It’s a staple; if you didn’t go to a haunted house in October, did you really celebrate Halloween? Well, at The Hill Has Eyes in Franklin, how about four terrifying haunts for one low price? On weekends, plunge into the Halloween spirit head-first for 60 minutes of screaming good fun as you make your way through 45 acres of scares, from the Failed Escape to the Dead End.
For those with little goblins, there is also a Not So Scary Halloween Party on Sundays, which includes trick or treating, guided tours and a find the creature scavenger hunt that’s fun for the whole family and, importantly, suitable for children 8+.
Horror Flicks
Yeah, okay, maybe a haunted house is a little too immersive of a fright for some. Or maybe you want to double down on the adrenaline and thrills with a movie night to keep the spooky vibes rolling.
Milky Way Drive-In
October 17 - 27, 2024
Next to The Hill Has Eyes is a throwback, the Milky Way Drive-In, featuring a slate of Halloween-themed movies all October long. Most nights, the drive-in theater shows doubleheaders with a family-friendly flick at 6:30 p.m. before the bone-chilling scary movies at 10 p.m.
Bite Club at The Oriental Theatre
October 3 - 27, 2024
For spine-tingling thrillers in a storied setting, head to the Oriental Theatre on the East Side for Milwaukee Film’s Bite Club. The first rule of Bite Club is to tell all your friends about Bite Club. The film series offers a collection of some of the best cult vampire flicks that have ever graced the big screen to have you watching your favorite movie monster all month long with favorites like “Blade,” “Dracula,” and “Vampire’s Kiss.”
Primo Pumpkins
Scaring yourself senseless is one way to do Halloween, but there’s a more wholesome, family-friendly side to the holiday than running for your life as a masked figure chases you with a chainsaw through the woods.
Great Pumpkin Festival
October 23-26, 2024
For four days in October, the North Shore suburb of Whitefish Bay gets in the spirit of the season and turns Old Schoolhouse Park into Ghoulhouse Park for the Great Pumpkin Festival. From October 23-26, head just 10 minutes north of downtown for this display featuring hundreds of carved pumpkins, from cleverly cut pumpkins to larger-than-life ornate carvings. Throughout the weekend, the festival will also have live music, themed food and drinks and photo ops for the fam.
Jack-o-Lantern Jubilee
October 26, 2024
Did someone say free pumpkins?! At Milwaukee Downtown’s Jack-O-Lantern Jubilee, the first 400 guests will be able to pick out a pumpkin for free and a free trick-or-treat goodie bag (while supplies last). Taking place this year in Baird Community Commons outside Baird Center on October 26, from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m., this family-focused event is completely free. Pop on your Halloween costume and head to Baird Commons for an afternoon of fun for your whole crew.
Do It Yourself: Elegant Farmer
September 7 - October 27, 2024
You’ve gotten your inspiration from the Great Pumpkin Festival, and now the orange muse is calling you to do it yourself. Let’s pick out a pumpkin as the subject for your artistic experiments. At The Elegant Farmer, you can take a tractor-pulled hayride up to the pumpkin patch and then rove the rows of pumpkins to find the perfect one.
You can also find your ideal carving canvas at Peck & Bushel and several of Milwaukee’s farmers markets.
A Not-So-Scary Halloween
Spooky sights and thrilling frights are great for some, but how about a little less bump in the night with something light for the family?
Boo at the Zoo
October 19 & 20, 2024
No Heffalumps or Woozels here! Find your favorite creepy crawly critters or cuddly friends at the Milwaukee County Zoo at Boo at the Zoo. From October 17-20, bring the whole family for an evening of trick-or-treating around the zoo, live pumpkin carving demonstrations, “Creatures of the Night” talks and so much more!
Species Spooktacular at Schlitz Audubon
October 20, 2024
Sometimes, things we think are really scary are just misunderstood. At the Schlitz Audubon’s Species Spooktacular in Fox Point, you can learn about some of nature’s spooky animals, like snakes, tarantulas, turtles and raptor ambassadors, as they do away with myths about these critters and show the role they play in nature. You can also vote for your favorite taxidermy animal costume, hike the trails and make arts and crafts.
Haunted Honey Creek
October 24 & 25, 2024
Head to the hollows of Honey Creek in West Allis for two nights of frights, delights and fun for all ages. On October 24, bring your crew to Honey Creek Park from 4-7 p.m. to carve your own jack-o-lanterns. The first 100 visitors will get an orange canvas in the form of a pumpkin to slice, dice and Frankenstein into their ideal creation. They'll provide you and the fam with everything you need to have a ghoulishly good time from carving supplies to spooky songs to get you in the spirit of the season. Then on October 25, return to see your pumpkin on display and enjoy sensationally spooky fun from 4-9 p.m. with flashlight cemetery tours, campfire ghost stories, a s'mores-making station, live music, and a free haunted hayride. Details here.
Haunting Tours
From encounters with the spirit world to historic tours that’ll hang with you for years to come, there’s no shortage of sights to see in Milwaukee. Here’s where to catch a tour and, just maybe, a ghost.
Hangman Tours
*See Website for Dates & Times
Once ranked as one of “America’s 5 Most Haunted Bars” by the Huffington Post, when you’re looking to commune with the netherworld, Shaker's and Hangman Tours is your local HQ. Now a bar and cigar lounge, the century-old building has a fascinating history linking back to prohibition and countless tales of visitors from beyond the grave.
Halloween Legends and Lore at Old World Wisconsin
October 11 - 26, 2024
Starting on October 11, each weekend of the month, Old World Wisconsin is hosting a Halloween event that takes you on a candlelit trip through time, with fun and excitement for everyone. Uncover folkloric traditions throughout Wisconsin’s past, witness the spine-tingling tales of tall tales come to life, listen to legends of the state’s haunted history and stumble upon the cryptids lurking in the shadows of the state’s less-traveled regions. In addition to immersive storytelling spaces, Legends and Lore has Halloween-themed games, silent films and an emporium of oddities.
Forest Home Cemetery
*See Website for Dates & Times
To be clear, we’re not saying that Forest Home Cemetery is haunted, but is there a better place to tour the winding headstones of a cemetery at night quite like this immaculate park while learning about its rich history? From 6-9:30 p.m. every weekend night, enjoy an illuminated 30-minute tour of the cemetery as you meet notable Milwaukeeans, from mayors to beer barons.
Haunts and Harvest in the Streets of Old Milwaukee
October 1 - November 4, 2024
While also not haunted, the Streets of Old Milwaukee are in the spirit of the season, and they’ve put on their Halloween costume to celebrate. This fan-favorite inside the Milwaukee Public Museum takes you on a trip through time to show you how Milwaukeeans of centuries gone by celebrated fall.
The Walking Dead: Crawls & 21+ Events
If you love to dress up, Halloween is a hallowed holiday on par with the Super Bowl. Get out there and show off your hard work and craftsmanship at these events that’ll have you doing the Monster Mash all night long.
Louie’s Resurrection
October 26, 2024
Hahaha, He’s Alive! HE’S ALIVE! They’re bringing Louie back. Milwaukee Brewing Company is turning 27, and they are throwing a party at their new Bay View location to celebrate, including the release of a witch’s brew, Louie’s Resurrection, a palate-pleasing fan-favorite beer. Stop by for a pair of firkin tappings, live music, a costume contest and drink specials all night long.
Haunted Pub Crawl
*See Website for Dates & Times
Milwaukee is fabled to have more ghosts per square mile than anywhere else in the country, so there’s really no better time to pay them a visit. Hop aboard City Tours MKE’s cruisers as you take a tour of the city’s haunted history and sample spirits of a different variety at three of the city’s most haunted bars.
2024 Trick-or-Treat Schedule
Trick-or-treating is a rite of passage, and an experience to remember for your little ones. Here are the dates and times of most of Milwaukee’s trick-or-treat stops.
- Bayside: Sunday, Oct. 27, 1-4 p.m.
- Brown Deer: Sunday, Oct. 27, 1-4 p.m.
- Cudahy: Saturday, Oct. 26, 5-8 p.m.
- Fox Point: Sunday, Oct. 27, 1-4 p.m.
- Franklin: Saturday, Oct. 26, 4-7 p.m.
- Glendale: Sunday, Oct. 27, 1-4 p.m.
- Greendale: Sunday, Oct. 27, 4-7 p.m.
- Greenfield: Sunday, Oct. 27, 4-7 p.m.
- Hales Corners: Sunday, Oct. 27, 4-7 p.m.
- Milwaukee: Sunday, Oct. 27, 1-4 p.m.
- Oak Creek: Sunday, Oct. 27, 4-7 p.m.
- River Hills: Sunday, Oct. 27, 1-4 p.m.
- Shorewood: Sunday, Oct. 27, 1-4 p.m.
- South Milwaukee: Saturday, Oct. 26, 5-7 p.m.
- St. Francis: Saturday, Oct. 26, 5-8 p.m.
- Wauwatosa: Sunday, Oct. 27, 1-4 p.m.
- West Allis: Saturday, Oct. 26, 4-7 p.m.
- West Milwaukee: Saturday, Oct. 26, 4-7 p.m.
- Whitefish Bay: Sunday, Oct. 27, 1-4 p.m.
Quoth Visit Milwaukee “Evermore”
Find More Halloween Fun Here!
Ghost Tour 2.0
- Hangman Tours
- Recurring weekly on Thursday, Friday, Saturday
Shakers Original Ghost Tour
- Hangman Tours
- Recurring daily