When it’s October in Atlanta, you can count on plenty of spooky destinations to usher in Halloween. Many have become annual stops for residents looking for seasonal fun, whether it’s a family-friendly event or an elaborate haunted house with movie-worthy frights.
The Little Five Points Halloween Festival + Parade, for example, attracts large crowds and bills itself as the largest Halloween celebration in the Southeast. The popular parade is filled with crazily costumed marchers and creepy floats that make their way down Moreland Avenue as children fill their buckets with candy from parade participants.
The festival includes an artist market, some good old-fashioned pumpkin smashing, three stages of nonstop music and talented street buskers. Artist Shane Morton has also created Halloweenville, which features eerie art installations and more in a collaboration with the High Museum of Art.
Credit: Photo courtesy of 360 Media
Credit: Photo courtesy of 360 Media
Another staple of Atlanta Halloween frights, the iconic Netherworld Haunted House, has provided top-level scares since 1997. This year’s attraction has a Wake the Dead experience as well as Mr. Grendel’s Birthday Party of Horrors, adding lots of crazy fun and characters, said Ben Armstrong, co-creator of Netherworld.
“Attractions are longer and full of even more stuff,” he said. “Basically, every year we add new features to both of our haunts.”
Armstrong describes Wake the Dead as being in a war-torn type of environment.
“You have the undead, you have the vampires and all kinds of gigantic monsters that are new,” he said. “The whole thing is just this absolute adrenaline rush.”
Mr. Grendel’s Birthday Party of Horrors has medieval monsters disguised as clowns as Mr. Grendel and his fellow jesters rampage through a secret facility to eat Cryptids and battle the Boogeyman.
The following are some destinations for Halloween frights and fun:
Credit: Courtesy of Atlanta Botanical Garden
Credit: Courtesy of Atlanta Botanical Garden
Great Pumpkin-Carving Festival
If you need some inspiration for your Halloween jack-o’-lanterns, check out the works of talented amateurs and get some pro tips from a sculptor and pumpkin-carving expert at the Atlanta Botanical Garden. Live music will also be offered, as well as a chance to create a monogram pumpkin and more.
5-9 p.m. Oct. 24. $45 nonmember adults, $18 children. $35 Harvest Box of shareable chef treats available as an add-on. Atlanta Botanical Garden, 1345 Piedmont Ave. NE, Atlanta. 404-876-5859. atlantabg.org/calendar/great-pumpkin-carving-fest.
Little Five Points Halloween Festival + Parade
Little Five Points is well known for its annual festival and parade, and USA Today has named the procession as one of the best 10 in the country. Although the parade is a definite highlight, the festival also features lots of other creative and fun activities, including Halloweenville at the Little 5 Points Community Center.
11 a.m.-7 p.m.+ Oct. 19-20. Little Five Points Business District. l5pbiz.com/halloween.
Credit: Photo courtesy of Six Flags Over Georgia
Credit: Photo courtesy of Six Flags Over Georgia
Six Flags Over Georgia is celebrating its 30th year of Fright Fest with plenty of scares and thrills. Go through a haunted house, experience scary stage shows such as Bad Bob the Bone Butcher, get spooked by creepy characters in scare zones and more.
Select dates and times continuing through Nov. 3. From $70 for one-day ticket plus haunted maze pass bundle, $115 for one-day ticket plus express haunted maze pass. Six Flags Over Georgia, 275 Riverside Parkway, Austell. 770-739-3400. sixflags.com/overgeorgia/events/fright-fest-2024.
Kids have their own daytime Boo Fest at Six Flags Over Georgia, where they can collect some candy, decorate a mini-pumpkin, make their way through an inflatable corn maze and more.
Saturdays and Sundays through Nov. 3. $45 and up. Six Flags Over Georgia, 275 Riverside Parkway, Austell. 770-739-3400. sixflags.com/overgeorgia/events/kids-boo-fest.
Credit: Handout
Credit: Handout
Buy a ticket for the Wake the Dead haunt or get a combo pass for access to Mr. Grendel’s Birthday Party of Horrors, as well. For an extra $5, you can visit the Monster Museum to see some cool movie props and Netherworld memorabilia and get some fun photos.
Continues through Oct. 14, 16-20, 22-31 and Nov. 1-3 and 8-9. $25 and up. 1313 Netherworld Way, Stone Mountain. fearworld.com.
Choose to go through Winters Estate: The Manor, the Maze of Madness or both for the biggest thrills and chills at this Acworth attraction. Additional attractions are also available, such as a claustrophobic coffin simulator ride and horror-themed carnival games.
Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays through Nov. 2, plus Thursdays from Oct. 17-31. $25 and up. 5389 N. Main St., Acworth. folklorehauntedhouse.com.
The Underground Thriller Escape
At this Southeast Atlanta scary spot, arm yourself with a SplatRBall rifle with a flashlight attachment and 550 gel bead rounds as you find and solve riddle boxes that contain the skulls you’ll need to escape. Avoid zumans, who will be on the hunt for you and trying to tear off your flag football “life” flags.
Continuing select days through Nov. 3. $40 per person. Emma Millican Park, 490 Deckner Ave. SE, Atlanta. 678-400-2591. atlcampcore.ticketspice.com/thrillerescape.
Credit: Photo courtesy of Paranoia Haunted House
Credit: Photo courtesy of Paranoia Haunted House
Visceral is the main haunted attraction at Canton’s Paranoia, which is described on its website as an “in-your-face intense sensory overload experience.” If you’d like a second walk-through activity, you can buy a combo pass to include Possession, which has a different theme.
Continuing on select dates (including Thursdays-Sundays) through Nov. 2. $25 and up. 2075 Marietta Highway, Canton. 404-387-3203. paranoiahaunt.com.
The basic experience at this Newnan center of scares lets you take an immersive walk through the 13 Stories Haunted House, the Vertigo Haunt and Clown Haus Returns. If you spring for a Black Ops Pass, you’ll get to battle the Wasteland Horde with an advanced laser rifle in Project Wasteland. The scares are designed to be intense, but the attraction provides “chicken doors” if you need to duck out.
Select dates including Fridays-Sundays through Nov. 2. $35 and up plus fee. 320 Temple Ave. West, Newnan. 770-251-9911. 13storieshauntedhouse.com.
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