The most fun time of the year is spooky season! In addition to Salem, Massachusetts, there is no better place to get into the Halloween spirit than visiting the beautiful New York state to check out all the thrilling attractions.
Whether you’re traveling into the heart of New York City or enjoying a road trip around the state, you’ll have plenty of things to do this Halloween season! From walking through The Great Jack O Lantern Blaze to watching the Halloween parade in Manhattan, there is something for all ages to enjoy in the Empire State!
To discover some of America’s most spooky and unique Halloween attractions, I have outlined my must-see New York Halloween activities to inspire your upcoming holiday travels.
**Please note that this blog post uses affiliate links meaning that if you make a purchase via my affiliate link, I receive a small commission at no additional cost to you. I only promote and talk about products and services that I have used and like.
Pin the Below Image to Keep Handy
The Best Halloween Attractions in New York:
From haunted houses to theme parks, New York State will get you excited for the month of October. Below are the best Halloween attractions in NY:
The Great Jack O Lantern Blaze:
One of my all-time favorite Halloween attractions in New York is The Great Jack O Lantern Blaze in Croton-on-Hudson! Situated on the premises of Van Cortlandt Manor, which is a 17th Century historic house, The Blaze is a walk-through experience where you can view 7,000 illuminated hand-carved pumpkins.
Each glowing Jack O Lantern is placed meticulously in magnificent displays. At The Blaze, you can also enjoy fall-themed snacks like apple cider donuts and drinks like pumpkin beer. Overall, this is a picture-perfect event you cannot miss in New York and it’s one of my favorite Halloween things near me in the Northeast.
The Great Jack O Lantern Blaze also takes place on Long Island, New York! There are a lot of epic haunted houses on Long Island as well. Please note that you must purchase tickets ahead of time to attend The Blaze.
Legend of the Headless Horseman:
After becoming amazed by all the incredible Jack O Lanterns at The Blaze, you must explore the historic town of Sleepy Hollow.
As the setting place for Washington Irving’s famous gothic literature, Sleepy Hollow is the perfect destination to get into the spooky mood for Halloween in New York. Throughout the month of September and October, you can purchase tickets to tour Washington Irving’s Sunnyside House. During a visit to this spot, you can enjoy a great performance from a storyteller who will tell the tale of the Headless Horseman.
A Sleepy Hollow, New York Halloween wouldn’t be complete without a visit to The Old Dutch Church and Sleepy Hollow Cemetery. You can explore these places on your own during the day or brave the guided night tour. During your time in Sleepy Hollow, you must also check out the Headless Horseman sculpture.
Another one of the most epic Halloween attractions in New York State is the Headless Horseman Haunted Attractions in Ulster Park, NY. Named Number One in America for haunts, the Headless Horseman Haunted Attractions is both a unique and immersive experience for people to enjoy during the Halloween season.
From haunted houses to escape rooms and corn mazes to haunted hayrides, the Headless Horseman features monsters, illusions, animation and frightening details. It will be sure to give you spooky dreams at night!
Halloween on the Harlem Meer:
Central Park is incredible all year long, but during the Halloween season, you can enjoy family-fun activities at Harlem Meer. It’s great if you’re looking for a free and not-so-spooky Halloween experience.
Halloween on the Harlem Meer is most famous for its annual Halloween Pumpkin Flotilla, where hand-carved pumpkins are served as a formation of ships (flotilla) floating in the Harlem Meer waters. During this NY Halloween event, you can also enjoy all the fall foliage around Central Park!
New York Halloween Parade 2022:
One of New York City’s most historic and exciting events during Halloween season is the NYC Village Halloween Parade! Known as one of the best Halloween events in NY, you can watch talented dancers and bands perform. There are also artists and thousands of creative costumes to admire at this awesome New York Halloween attraction.
Recognized as one of the most popular NYC Halloween attractions, you will love the excitement and fun this parade brings. After the parade, check out the awesome restaurants and bars in and around the Village.
Things to do this Halloween in New York:
From all the activities on Halloween day in NYC to creepy things to do in New York State, such as all the haunted houses and hayrides, the below attractions will leave you in chills during the month of October.
Blood Manor New York City:
Blood Manor is one of the best NYC Halloween haunted houses! If you’re looking for a good thrill on Halloween day in NYC, or throughout the month of October, I recommend purchasing a ticket and braving this walk-through experience.
Located on Broadway, Blood Manor allows you to face your darkest fears. With just a glow stick, you will find spooky creatures lurking the halls of Blood Manor during the Lights Out Nights. It is one of the best attractions in New York during Halloween time.
Double M Haunted Hayride:
The Double M Haunted Hayride attraction features a unique and horror-filled haunted hayride and various walking experiences. Located in Ballston Spa, NY, you’ll begin your journey on a hayride through haunted woods that are full of surprises and horror.
Scary Harry is a ghost cowboy who will follow you along, bringing fear and terror. After the hayride, you must explore the Blood Moon Farm, which is also one of the best Halloween attractions in New York State!
Frightworld, America’s Screampark:
Frightworld in Buffalo, New York is a popular and terrifying Halloween haunted house in NY. At this spooky spot, you can experience several walk-through attractions and be horrified by every single one!
Surrounded in complete darkness with chainsaws, butchers, the undead and more, there is no wonder why Frightworld is one of the scariest haunted houses in the United States!
Frightmare Farms Haunted Scream Park:
Situated in Palermo, NY is Frightmare Farms Haunted Scream Park. This frightening Halloween theme park has four different horror-themed attractions to walk through and experience. It will definitely give you the jump scares!
Frightmare Farms also has “Adrenaline Rooms”, which are seven-minute-long haunted gaming experiences that you can play collaboratively with friends and family! This Central New York Halloween spot is a blast.
Nightmare Manor:
One of the best haunted houses in Rochester, NY is the terrifying Nightmare Manor. Throughout the month of October, you can purchase a ticket in advance to experience their scary haunted houses. The costumes and characters are realistic looking and will leave you petrified.
Peace, Love & Pumpkins:
From my personal experience, one of the best Halloween attractions in New York State is Peace, Love & Pumpkins at Bethel Woods Center for the Arts in Western Catskills.
Located 90 miles from New York City, Bethel Woods is where the 1969 Woodstock festival took place. Nowadays, it’s a concert hall, museum and exhibit gallery that hosts great shows and events.
Overall, Peace, Love & Pumpkins is a great way to get into the Halloween spirit with friends! It features garden trails where you can admire hand-carved Jack O Lanterns, glowing pumpkin art and fun Halloween displays. During Halloween weekend, Peace, Love & Pumpkins offers a spookier experience for adults only.
Yaphank Trail of Terror:
If you are looking for great scary Halloween trail ideas, the Yaphank Trail of Terror in Yaphank, NY is the perfect half-mile, horror-filled journey through the dark woods. Here, you’ll wander through the dark and encounter all kinds of evil along your pathway.
Hopefully, if you escape alive, you can enjoy the trail’s fire pits where you can roast marshmallows and warm up to delicious hot cocoa or mulled cider.
Zombie Zips:
If you’re not one for haunted houses and haunted corn mazes don’t excite you, I recommend visiting Zombie Zips in Schenectady, NY. This downright terrifying Halloween attraction in New York is a haunted zip-line experience.
During Zombie Zips, you’ll follow a trail into the woods and zip-line 70 feet in the air, through complete darkness. As you zip-line, you’ll see serial killers, zombies and all sorts of scream-inducing terrors for Halloween.
Ghost Tours during Halloween Season in New York City:
New York City is one of the most haunted cities in the world! Some of the best haunted attractions in NYC are found on ghost tours. Below are the best ghost tours to do during a New York City Halloween:
Boroughs of the Dead:
With guided walking tours in Manhattan, Brooklyn and Queens, Boroughs of the Dead will leave you horrified as you visit some of New York City’s most haunted spots. What is cool is that you can choose from a variety of spooky haunted tours from visiting a creepy Victorian-era cemetery in Brooklyn or discovering Roosevelt Island’s former asylum, penitentiary, almshouse and smallpox hospital.
Greenwich Village Ghost Tour:
Greenwich Village is New York City’s most charming neighborhood, but it is also the most haunted, featuring some of the creepiest Halloween attractions. You can either tour this area by yourself or experience a ghost tour led by an expert guide who will fill you in on the deaths and chilling ghost sightings in this area.
Some of the most bone chilling highlights of Greenwich Village are touring Washington Square Park’s Hanging Tree and possibly catching a celebrity ghost sighting or two.
Haunted Manhattan:
Described as one of the “most accurate and interactive” haunted attractions in NY, Haunted Manhattan is the perfect ghost tour to experience during the Halloween season in the Big Apple.
Haunted Manhattan includes four locations to tour – the East Village, West Village, Greenwich Village and Five Points. Each tour is led by a character with a distinct personality, which provides you with all the gruesome and terrifying history of the area in a humorous and entertaining way!
NYC Gangsters & Ghosts Tour:
If you are interested in learning more about NYC’s gangster-filled past during the 1920s and 1930s, then you need to experience the Gangsters & Ghosts Tour!
This fun tour is led by historians, who walk you through various haunted locations, such as The Five Points in Lower Manhattan, West Village, Little Italy and Chinatown. On this tour, you will explore and learn about the city’s past murder and chaos during a 1.2-mile stroll that either takes place during the day or at nighttime.
Discover other awesome places to visit in New York during fall:
Fall Vacations on the East Coast
Planning a memorable USA trip? Find more USA travel tips here.
There are countless Halloween attractions in NY to get you into the spooky season this year! I hope you all enjoyed discovering some of my favorite Halloween attractions in New York. If you have any questions, please email me at info@browneyedflowerchild.com.
Basic Facts of the United States:
Currency: United States Dollar, Capital: Washington D.C., NY State Capital: Albany, Time Zone: Eastern Standard Time
Looking for the best agency to book your next bespoke travel experience? Contact Crawford Concierge!
*Anything could happen during your travels. Always make sure you are insured in case there are unforeseen circumstances such as lost luggage/theft, natural disasters, personal liabilities and more. Click here to get insured for your next trip.
Below are the top travel companies I use for convenience and cost:
Shop my Spooky Season Look:
Click here to shop my Poshmark closet!
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12 Amazing Things to do in NJ for Free this Summer
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2 Comments
Leave a Comment
The most fun time of the year is spooky season! In addition to Salem, Massachusetts, there is no better place to get into the Halloween spirit than visiting the beautiful New York state to check out all the thrilling attractions.
Whether you’re traveling into the heart of New York City or enjoying a road trip around the state, you’ll have plenty of things to do this Halloween season! From walking through The Great Jack O Lantern Blaze to watching the Halloween parade in Manhattan, there is something for all ages to enjoy in the Empire State!
To discover some of America’s most spooky and unique Halloween attractions, I have outlined my must-see New York Halloween activities to inspire your upcoming holiday travels.
**Please note that this blog post uses affiliate links meaning that if you make a purchase via my affiliate link, I receive a small commission at no additional cost to you. I only promote and talk about products and services that I have used and like.
Pin the Below Image to Keep Handy
The Best Halloween Attractions in New York:
From haunted houses to theme parks, New York State will get you excited for the month of October. Below are the best Halloween attractions in NY:
The Great Jack O Lantern Blaze:
One of my all-time favorite Halloween attractions in New York is The Great Jack O Lantern Blaze in Croton-on-Hudson! Situated on the premises of Van Cortlandt Manor, which is a 17th Century historic house, The Blaze is a walk-through experience where you can view 7,000 illuminated hand-carved pumpkins.
Each glowing Jack O Lantern is placed meticulously in magnificent displays. At The Blaze, you can also enjoy fall-themed snacks like apple cider donuts and drinks like pumpkin beer. Overall, this is a picture-perfect event you cannot miss in New York and it’s one of my favorite Halloween things near me in the Northeast.
The Great Jack O Lantern Blaze also takes place on Long Island, New York! There are a lot of epic haunted houses on Long Island as well. Please note that you must purchase tickets ahead of time to attend The Blaze.
Legend of the Headless Horseman:
After becoming amazed by all the incredible Jack O Lanterns at The Blaze, you must explore the historic town of Sleepy Hollow.
As the setting place for Washington Irving’s famous gothic literature, Sleepy Hollow is the perfect destination to get into the spooky mood for Halloween in New York. Throughout the month of September and October, you can purchase tickets to tour Washington Irving’s Sunnyside House. During a visit to this spot, you can enjoy a great performance from a storyteller who will tell the tale of the Headless Horseman.
A Sleepy Hollow, New York Halloween wouldn’t be complete without a visit to The Old Dutch Church and Sleepy Hollow Cemetery. You can explore these places on your own during the day or brave the guided night tour. During your time in Sleepy Hollow, you must also check out the Headless Horseman sculpture.
Another one of the most epic Halloween attractions in New York State is the Headless Horseman Haunted Attractions in Ulster Park, NY. Named Number One in America for haunts, the Headless Horseman Haunted Attractions is both a unique and immersive experience for people to enjoy during the Halloween season.
From haunted houses to escape rooms and corn mazes to haunted hayrides, the Headless Horseman features monsters, illusions, animation and frightening details. It will be sure to give you spooky dreams at night!
Halloween on the Harlem Meer:
Central Park is incredible all year long, but during the Halloween season, you can enjoy family-fun activities at Harlem Meer. It’s great if you’re looking for a free and not-so-spooky Halloween experience.
Halloween on the Harlem Meer is most famous for its annual Halloween Pumpkin Flotilla, where hand-carved pumpkins are served as a formation of ships (flotilla) floating in the Harlem Meer waters. During this NY Halloween event, you can also enjoy all the fall foliage around Central Park!
New York Halloween Parade 2022:
One of New York City’s most historic and exciting events during Halloween season is the NYC Village Halloween Parade! Known as one of the best Halloween events in NY, you can watch talented dancers and bands perform. There are also artists and thousands of creative costumes to admire at this awesome New York Halloween attraction.
Recognized as one of the most popular NYC Halloween attractions, you will love the excitement and fun this parade brings. After the parade, check out the awesome restaurants and bars in and around the Village.
Things to do this Halloween in New York:
From all the activities on Halloween day in NYC to creepy things to do in New York State, such as all the haunted houses and hayrides, the below attractions will leave you in chills during the month of October.
Blood Manor New York City:
Blood Manor is one of the best NYC Halloween haunted houses! If you’re looking for a good thrill on Halloween day in NYC, or throughout the month of October, I recommend purchasing a ticket and braving this walk-through experience.
Located on Broadway, Blood Manor allows you to face your darkest fears. With just a glow stick, you will find spooky creatures lurking the halls of Blood Manor during the Lights Out Nights. It is one of the best attractions in New York during Halloween time.
Double M Haunted Hayride:
The Double M Haunted Hayride attraction features a unique and horror-filled haunted hayride and various walking experiences. Located in Ballston Spa, NY, you’ll begin your journey on a hayride through haunted woods that are full of surprises and horror.
Scary Harry is a ghost cowboy who will follow you along, bringing fear and terror. After the hayride, you must explore the Blood Moon Farm, which is also one of the best Halloween attractions in New York State!
Frightworld, America’s Screampark:
Frightworld in Buffalo, New York is a popular and terrifying Halloween haunted house in NY. At this spooky spot, you can experience several walk-through attractions and be horrified by every single one!
Surrounded in complete darkness with chainsaws, butchers, the undead and more, there is no wonder why Frightworld is one of the scariest haunted houses in the United States!
Frightmare Farms Haunted Scream Park:
Situated in Palermo, NY is Frightmare Farms Haunted Scream Park. This frightening Halloween theme park has four different horror-themed attractions to walk through and experience. It will definitely give you the jump scares!
Frightmare Farms also has “Adrenaline Rooms”, which are seven-minute-long haunted gaming experiences that you can play collaboratively with friends and family! This Central New York Halloween spot is a blast.
Nightmare Manor:
One of the best haunted houses in Rochester, NY is the terrifying Nightmare Manor. Throughout the month of October, you can purchase a ticket in advance to experience their scary haunted houses. The costumes and characters are realistic looking and will leave you petrified.
Peace, Love & Pumpkins:
From my personal experience, one of the best Halloween attractions in New York State is Peace, Love & Pumpkins at Bethel Woods Center for the Arts in Western Catskills.
Located 90 miles from New York City, Bethel Woods is where the 1969 Woodstock festival took place. Nowadays, it’s a concert hall, museum and exhibit gallery that hosts great shows and events.
Overall, Peace, Love & Pumpkins is a great way to get into the Halloween spirit with friends! It features garden trails where you can admire hand-carved Jack O Lanterns, glowing pumpkin art and fun Halloween displays. During Halloween weekend, Peace, Love & Pumpkins offers a spookier experience for adults only.
Yaphank Trail of Terror:
If you are looking for great scary Halloween trail ideas, the Yaphank Trail of Terror in Yaphank, NY is the perfect half-mile, horror-filled journey through the dark woods. Here, you’ll wander through the dark and encounter all kinds of evil along your pathway.
Hopefully, if you escape alive, you can enjoy the trail’s fire pits where you can roast marshmallows and warm up to delicious hot cocoa or mulled cider.
Zombie Zips:
If you’re not one for haunted houses and haunted corn mazes don’t excite you, I recommend visiting Zombie Zips in Schenectady, NY. This downright terrifying Halloween attraction in New York is a haunted zip-line experience.
During Zombie Zips, you’ll follow a trail into the woods and zip-line 70 feet in the air, through complete darkness. As you zip-line, you’ll see serial killers, zombies and all sorts of scream-inducing terrors for Halloween.
Ghost Tours during Halloween Season in New York City:
New York City is one of the most haunted cities in the world! Some of the best haunted attractions in NYC are found on ghost tours. Below are the best ghost tours to do during a New York City Halloween:
Boroughs of the Dead:
With guided walking tours in Manhattan, Brooklyn and Queens, Boroughs of the Dead will leave you horrified as you visit some of New York City’s most haunted spots. What is cool is that you can choose from a variety of spooky haunted tours from visiting a creepy Victorian-era cemetery in Brooklyn or discovering Roosevelt Island’s former asylum, penitentiary, almshouse and smallpox hospital.
Greenwich Village Ghost Tour:
Greenwich Village is New York City’s most charming neighborhood, but it is also the most haunted, featuring some of the creepiest Halloween attractions. You can either tour this area by yourself or experience a ghost tour led by an expert guide who will fill you in on the deaths and chilling ghost sightings in this area.
Some of the most bone chilling highlights of Greenwich Village are touring Washington Square Park’s Hanging Tree and possibly catching a celebrity ghost sighting or two.
Haunted Manhattan:
Described as one of the “most accurate and interactive” haunted attractions in NY, Haunted Manhattan is the perfect ghost tour to experience during the Halloween season in the Big Apple.
Haunted Manhattan includes four locations to tour – the East Village, West Village, Greenwich Village and Five Points. Each tour is led by a character with a distinct personality, which provides you with all the gruesome and terrifying history of the area in a humorous and entertaining way!
NYC Gangsters & Ghosts Tour:
If you are interested in learning more about NYC’s gangster-filled past during the 1920s and 1930s, then you need to experience the Gangsters & Ghosts Tour!
This fun tour is led by historians, who walk you through various haunted locations, such as The Five Points in Lower Manhattan, West Village, Little Italy and Chinatown. On this tour, you will explore and learn about the city’s past murder and chaos during a 1.2-mile stroll that either takes place during the day or at nighttime.
Discover other awesome places to visit in New York during fall:
Fall Vacations on the East Coast
Planning a memorable USA trip? Find more USA travel tips here.
There are countless Halloween attractions in NY to get you into the spooky season this year! I hope you all enjoyed discovering some of my favorite Halloween attractions in New York. If you have any questions, please email me at info@browneyedflowerchild.com.
Basic Facts of the United States:
Currency: United States Dollar, Capital: Washington D.C., NY State Capital: Albany, Time Zone: Eastern Standard Time
Looking for the best agency to book your next bespoke travel experience? Contact Crawford Concierge!
*Anything could happen during your travels. Always make sure you are insured in case there are unforeseen circumstances such as lost luggage/theft, natural disasters, personal liabilities and more. Click here to get insured for your next trip.
Below are the top travel companies I use for convenience and cost:
Shop my Spooky Season Look:
Click here to shop my Poshmark closet!
2 Comments
Great ideas for haunted and fun Halloween events ~ I have to say the Great Jack o lantern Blaze display is extraordinary! Can’t wait to see it again this year! I will need to try some of the ghost tours in NYC too! Love getting ready for Halloween and look forward to visiting some of these places to make the Halloween season extra spooky ~ great suggestions, love you, mom 👩🏻 xoxo ♥️
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Great ideas for haunted and fun Halloween events ~ I have to say the Great Jack o lantern Blaze display is extraordinary! Can’t wait to see it again this year! I will need to try some of the ghost tours in NYC too! Love getting ready for Halloween and look forward to visiting some of these places to make the Halloween season extra spooky ~ great suggestions, love you, mom 👩🏻 xoxo ♥️
Yes, all so much fun! I love seeing The Blaze every year too. It’s so cool!