Another sad day for theme park (and Halloween) fans. Universal Studios Hollywood and Universal Orlando Resort have officially canceled Halloween Horror Nights events for 2020 due to the ongoing pandemic.
This news isn’t very surprising for Uni Hollywood where the event had never been officially confirmed for this year, but still a major disappointment for those in Orlando where tickets for the event have been on sale for two months with a special buy one get one free promotion. This season would have been the 30th anniversary for Halloween Horror Nights Orlando.
Universal Team Members were notified first via an email from Bill Davis, President & COO of Universal Orlando Resort, saying:
“This year has played out in ways that none of us have expected, and we have had to make some difficult decisions under these unprecedented circumstances. I wanted to let you know about another difficult decision we are announcing today. Universal Orlando Resort will not hold our Halloween Horror Nights event this year and will be focusing exclusively on operating our theme parks for daytime guests, using the enhanced health and safety procedures already in place. I know this news is disappointing especially since this year we would be celebrating HHN’s 30th anniversary. I am disappointed too, but this is the right decision for our Guests and Team Members.”
As disappointing as this news is, it’s hard to imagine how this event would operate under the current conditions. Singular parties would have to be sent through maze rooms at a time, making sure they were distancing themselves from the party in front of them … all while stumbling through the dark. Mask-wearing scare actors would need to stand 6+ feet away from guests. Mazes and scare zones would have to be more observatory than interactive.
Universal Studios Hollywood is in a more difficult position, as their park hasn’t reopened to guests just yet. Canceling their Halloween Horror Nights resulted from “ongoing business restrictions and uncertainty around their opening timeframe.”
Bill Davis expressed his gratitude for Universal’s Team Members, who put their blood, sweat, tears and passion into the event. (The moment Halloween ends, their teams start planning and building for the next year!)
Both attending Guests and Universal Team Members are learning to adapt to park operations in the middle of a pandemic which evokes feelings of a zombie apocalypse. As the teams behind the event focus their energies on next year, the goal is to make Halloween Horror Nights 2021 “the ultimate homecoming of horror.”
Let Us Help!
Our travel partners at Get Away Today are here to help you with your theme park shutdown concerns and rescheduling plans. Whether you are ready to travel again or not, there is no better time to lock in LOW RATES on future theme park travel. Give your family something to look forward to and put a vacation on layaway (and snap up those deals while you can) with Get Away Today- HERE
Let’s Hear From You
Are you disappointed that Halloween is unraveling, or is 2020 already scary enough for you? Did you take advantage of the buy one night get one free offer that Universal had been offering? We don’t have any official word on how they will handle refunds just yet. Disney has already canceled their Halloween events, let us know your Halloween thoughts and if you think Busch Gardens, SeaWorld and Knott’s will be next to cancel or if you think they may be able to pull off a socially distanced and safe event.
You must be logged in to post a comment.