SeaWorld Orlando is full of Halloween fun this year with two events, Spooktacular by day and their inaugural Howl-O-Scream by night.  Spooktacular is geared toward children and families whereas Howl-O-Scream’s target audience are teenagers and adults looking to be frightened.  Either age group you fall into, you are guaranteed to have a great time during the Halloween season at SeaWorld Orlando.

Being that I went with my children, I will be tackling a review of Spooktacular.

Photo from Seaworld.com

Spooktacular is an event where children can trick or treat through various parts of the park along with other events geared toward children. There are team members dishing out candy and other treats like potato chips at multiple locations on the Trick or Treat Trail. 

Being that I have been to this event multiple times in the past, I have certain expectations for the event.

One criticism that I have for this event this year is that the signage was inadequate. 

There should’ve been signs at the entrance showing the way to the Trick or Treat trail. If there was some we missed it on the way in and the way out.  My family and I went to the area where the Trick or Treat trail has been held in previous years, and there was nothing in that area nor was there signage pointing in the direction of the event. 

We did ask several team members to direct us to the correct area, and we were definitely sent the long way round. Note: I noticed on their website that there is a map to the Spooktacular locations.

Photo from Seaworld.com

For reference, the area for the Trick or Treat trail and all the other Spooktacular events starts over by the entrance to StingRay Lagoon.

There were about ten booths with candy, chips, and gummy bears. 

Each booth was serviced by a team member who could drop candy from a chute into the bag of trick or treaters.  Apparently, SeaWorld Orlando requires guests to purchase one of their trick or treat bags to use, however, this was not enforced.  We had it mentioned to us by one of the team members handing out candy.  The bags are small and priced at $3.99.  We asked a team member at the front of the park, and he stated that we needed the bag. However, he mentioned that he wasn’t sure if they were enforcing the use of them. We tried without the SeaWorld bag, and we had no problem getting candy.  In years past, they would give small plastic bags to park guests for the event.

Photo from Seaworld.com

Other events to be enjoyed included meet and greets with colorful witches, mariachis wearing Sugar Skull make-up, Meet a Mermaid, and characters on stilts.  Additionally, there was a Pumpkin Story time where guests would be read stories in the pumpkin garden.  There was also a DJ who played a variety of music including “Can’t Stop the Feeling” from the Trolls movie to “Baby Shark.”

Overall, Spooktacular was an enjoyable time for my family.  The trick or treating and other events are great for families.  However, I believe that signage was a major issue in finding your way around the park to the event.  Furthermore, the clarity on whether or not guests need to buy a bag needs to be worked out.  I personally think that it is simply a $3.99 money grab by SeaWorld Orlando for the bag.  What’s the harm in bringing in your own bag?

You have one more weekend to enjoy Spooktacular with the addition of Thursday, October 28th and Friday the 29th. Kids can dress up in costumes for the event. Spooktacular is included into the price of a regular day admission ticket or with your Annual Pass.

Have you been to Spooktacular this year? What’s your favorite part? Comment below!