As spooky season falls upon America again, many park fans are flocking back to Universal Studios Florida for arguably the most popular industry event, Halloween Horror Nights. Throughout September, I’ve made numerous visits to the park to go through the mazes as many times as possible.
Courtesy of Universal Orlando Resort
After compiling my thoughts, I’ve created my official rankings for the ten houses of Halloween Horror Nights 33. Warning: spoilers ahead!
Halloween Horror Nights 2024 Haunted House Ranking
10. Major Sweet’s Candy Factory
It seemed many people were excited for this one, as the Major Sweet’s character has been in HHN lore for some time. But I felt the maze was a bit tame, lacking scares and uniqueness. Considering the story of the house, centered around kids consumed by evil sugary treats, it felt a bit off to have all of the actors played by adults. Without any special tricks, crazy costumes or fantastic set pieces, this is probably a skip for anyone only visiting a single night.
9. Universal Monsters: Eternal Bloodlines
Did anyone else understand the story of Van Helsing’s Daughter and Frankenstein’s Bride teaming up to fight the monsters? Or did that fly over your head, too? Either way, there were some cool set pieces and decent scares here. However, I think the costume characters like the Bride of Frankenstein and the Wives of Count Dracula were more calming than intimidating. Compared to past Universal Monsters experiences, this one felt a bit lackluster.
Courtesy of Universal Orlando Resort
8. Triplets of Terror
I had to double-check that this was an original house because I swear it seems like a Blumhouse film. Either way, it looks like this one got a little less of the budget. Some of the rooms were reused from mazes from previous years, and the costumes weren’t super terrifying. However, I must praise the actors who played the largest of the triplets. These large actors, usually standing over 6 foot 2, provided a terrifying scare with their intimidating presence.
7. Slaughter Sinema 2
This was a sequel to 2018’s Slaughter Sinema, which I did not experience, so this was a fun new concept for me. I liked having many mini-houses with different settings instead of one consistent theme. However, this one relied less on scares and more on fun goofs. The highlights included some cool robot zombies, an animatronic shark, a mummy stripper, and Santa Claus. Yes, Santa. Swinging an Ax at you. I liked the overall silliness of this one, but I think the lack of scares holds it back.
Courtesy of Universal Orlando Resort
6. Museum: Deadly Exhibit
Simply put, this one was in the middle of the pack. I like the original concept of a much more horrifying version of Night at the Museum. There were some decent scares here, but nothing too memorable. I really appreciated some of the sets and the unusual detour through the Simpson’s Ride queue on the way to the House’s entrance. Other than that, I honestly don’t have much more to say.
5. A Quiet Place
This maze ranked a lot higher after my first pass. Mainly because one scare almost gave me a heart attack. But upon returning, I’ll admit some others outshined it. The house features more generic settings from the movies rather than specific scenes, but I think for the better. While most of the human scare actors aren’t very intimidating—quite calming, actually—the alien creatures were indeed fantastic and terrifying. I noticed many of the aliens were moving props rather than people in costumes, which meant their lurches toward guests were more abrupt and violent. You’ll want to keep your distance in this house, as people in front of you will likely jump back onto your toes.
4. Goblin’s Feast
I think this one has been polarizing, and if I had to guess because many likely hit this house late in the night when actor numbers start to dwindle. However, this maze is definitely well above average in the middle of the event. I love the original theme, which features a lot of really nice set pieces. I also love the festive music playing throughout, creating more of a vibrant, creepy and eerie experience than a horrifyingly dark one. This maze has some great scares, lavish costumes and even a large animatronic at the end. With a grand entrance and an all-around festive setting, this house is just pure fun.
3. Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire
When this maze was announced, I could only think, “Will this feature silly ghosts like Slimer? How will this make this family-friendly franchise terrifying?” Well, in short, they made it terrifying. With Chilling Ghosts, the 2024 film of the same name, Frozen Empire, generates good scares inside some amazing set pieces. Yes, there were still some calming scares with the human characters and even a goofy scare with Slimer, but some ghosts and spirits here really got me. The highlight here was the multiple locations featuring the film’s antagonist, Garraka, a massive ice-wielding phantom. Like some other mazes this year, Garraka actors utilized stilts, making for some terrifying moments as actors standing a story overhead swipe down, making guests crouch in horror.
2. Monstrous: Latin America
This one has certainly been a sleeper for most as an original house. Paired with its entrance hiding at the front of the park, it doesn’t receive much attention once guests make their way in towards the other mazes. Yet, the scares and sets are some of the best combos I have seen. Set in a small Latin American village, guests travel through tight streets and small homes as they come face to face with excellent jump scares, well-designed original costumes and grueling effects. The star of the show for me was an original character named El Silbon, an evil spirit that would either jump out at guests or swipe at them from above. Silbon features a terrifying look, but he’s way more terrifying when he’s on stilts.
1. Insidious: The Further
This is my new all-time favorite HHN house, with great sets, costumes and terrifying characters. First, while this house will undoubtedly be a tremendous experience for anyone, those who have seen the movie will likely tell you it’s Halloween Horror Nights at its best. This maze has it all, from the oversized ominous red door leading you into The Further to the suspenseful rooms full of actors and dummies to nightmare-fueling demon costumes.
Courtesy of Universal Orlando Resort
Insidious: The Further takes guests through various scenes within the Insidious franchise, but elements from Chapters 2 and 3 are most prominent. The entire house was incredible, but there were two show-stealing sequences in particular. In one impressive scene, a slim winding hallway through dense red curtains created a heart-pounding experience as guests cautiously dodged swipes from the Lipstick-Face demon. But the most terrifying scene that admittedly made me close my eyes my second time going through was a series of rooms dedicated to the Bride In Black from the second movie. Whether you have seen the film or not, this older man dressed up as a demonic bride will certainly keep you from sleeping the rest of the week.
A quick note of advice: this house has featured the longest waits, usually ranging from an hour to 90 minutes throughout the entire night, and I have yet to see it drop below 50 minutes. I’d recommend hitting this in the middle of the event. That way, you can take advantage of other mazes, having minimal waits at the beginning and end of the night.
And that’s my ranking of Halloween Horror Nights 2024 haunted houses. To learn more, visit the Universal Studios Florida Halloween Horror Nights website.
If you’ve been to Halloween Horror Nights 2024, how would you rank the haunted houses? Let us know in the comments section below.
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