Celebrating Halloween will be a bit more tricky this year, but that hasn’t stopped Orlando from getting in the spirit! The city is adapting by modifying favorite events and adding an abundance of safety features, so bats and ghouls can still celebrate the spookiest time of year.
Trick-or-Treating
Halloween is filled with thrills and chills, but nothing captures the fun of this holiday quite like trick-or-treating. Wanting to keep the season sweet, many neighborhoods are taking precautions to keep trick-or-treaters safe! Neighborhoods that feel comfortable passing out candy are likely to use contactless delivery methods, such as leaving the treats out on porches and driveways. Others are opting for drive-thru trick-or-treating to limit exposure to large numbers of strangers.
If you’re manifesting a theme park Halloween this season, SeaWorld Orlando, Universal Orlando, and LEGOLAND Florida are offering socially distanced trick-or-treating filled with ghostly goodies and dreadful delights! Employees who have been screened and masked will pass out all kinds of delicious candy for guests to enjoy. Plus, the guest capacity at each park has been reduced, keeping you and your family safe, surrounded only by festive decor. Of course, no matter which option you choose, everyone must wear a mask!
Costumes
Halloween is truly brought to life when children and adults get in the spirit and materialize in cloaks and costumes! Some families even put in months of planning and prepping to coordinate their costumes for all to enjoy. If you are going to leave your house this year and celebrate amongst other mortals, you’ll need a mask for safety. Masks are no stranger to Halloween; however, a mask that covers your mouth and nose is mandatory this year. Why not get creative with it? Plan for your mask to be part of your costume, rather than something you throw on as you head out the door. Masks can work with makeup to create a look. They can be jeweled or textured to coordinate with your costume. Many costumes even involve masks, such as doctors, dentists, and other everyday heroes!
Those who choose not to trick-or-treat may want to show off their costumes with a neighborhood parade that is socially distanced. Look for such events to pop up around town.
Finally, children and adults are invited to wear their costumes in Disney’s Magic Kingdom every day through Oct. 31. In past years, adults were only permitted to wear any type of costume at Mickey’s Not-So-Scary Halloween Party. This year, adults can show off their costumes all day! Plus, Magic Kingdom has transformed into a fall wonderland filled with jack-o-lanterns, twinkling lights, gorgeous arrays of autumn leaves, and special Halloween cavalcades with your favorite characters. There are lots of great places to take a festive photo in the park, but be aware that masks must remain on at all times – even for pictures.
Haunted Houses
It is no secret that Haunted Houses are a popular part of Halloween celebrations. From homemade haunts to ultimate events like Halloween Horror Nights at Universal Orlando Resort, Orlando residents and visitors have made it clear they love to be scared! Given the world’s current state, Universal Orlando made the difficult decision to not move forward with typical Halloween Horror Nights programming– but have no fear (yet). All die-hard horror fans are welcome to experience a modified version of Halloween Horror Nights, where guests can experience two haunted houses during regular park hours.
The modifications include:
- All scare actors have masks built into their costumes. Most are so well disguised, you wouldn’t be able to spot them. (Of course, guests have to wear masks, too.)
- Each scene in the haunted house has a clear acrylic sheet between the actors and the guests.
- Guests are not allowed to form the “conga lines” of previous years by holding onto the people in front of them. Instead, a team member stops each group at each scene for distancing.
- Guests use a virtual queue to sign up for their times to enter the houses.
- Hand sanitizer is available and required to be used before entering the houses.
Although life looks different this year, Orlando isn’t ghosting Halloween. Orlando residents, theme parks, resorts, and more are all making sure we can safely celebrate our favorite spooky season. So, grab your mask and treat yourself to an Orlando Halloween!
