Halloween 'bigger than Christmas', say operators

Halloween ‘bigger than Christmas’, say operators

Catarina Vieira spends £150 to £200 on Halloween decorations and events

Halloween has become so popular that some attractions now earn more from the spooky season than from Christmas, operators say.

From pumpkin festivals and haunted mazes to zombie experiences, businesses across the West say demand for Halloween events has surged as the celebration has expanded from a single night into a month-long attraction.

At Avon Valley Adventure Park near Bath, Halloween activities now bring in about a third of the site’s yearly income. Founder Doug Douglas said: “Halloween is really important for us, it has surpassed Christmas.”

“We make half of our turnover in October, and one third comes from the week of Halloween alone,” said David Gaze, owner of Chaplins fancy dress shop in Bristol.

Retailers, farm attractions and scare parks say people are spending more on costumes, decorations and immersive experiences, helping make October one of their busiest months of the year.

Chaplins has been a fixture in the city centre for 35 years, dating back to when people wore fancy dress on New Year’s Eve.

“People don’t do that so much anymore, now it’s mostly for Halloween,” Gaze said.

Last year, it recorded its busiest October yet, with customers spending an average of £40 each on fancy costumes and accessories.

“People are spending more and the week of Halloween is our busiest every year, we get queues outside the front door.”

“It’s usually what people are seeing on TV that sells well. Some years ago it was boiler suits from Squid Game, everyone wanted that,” he added.

Guard suits from the Netflix show Squid Game have been a popular Halloween costume since the series came out in 2021

Halloween’s rising popularity is also helping supermarkets and retailers that sell sweets, decorations and party supplies.

In a survey carried out in March by market researcher IGD, external, 36% of shoppers said they planned to celebrate Halloween this year, up from 27% in 2025.

Harvir Dhillon, lead economist at the British Retail Consortium, said that at this time of year “retailers will be competing hard” as they see “greater demand for sweets and chocolate, as well as decorations and costumes”.

“Halloween has become an increasingly popular occasion for people to enjoy,” he said.

Scare attractions like FEAR, near Bath, now operate throughout October

And some people begin the celebrations as early as possible, like Catarina Vieira, who lives in Swindon and started decorating her house last week.

“I spend between £150 to £200 every year on Halloween,” she said, adding that most of it goes on decorations and thrill events.

Vieira said being frightened by monsters is a “fun escape” from the pressures of her everyday life as an A&E doctor.

“I think having a holiday where you are scared about something that is ‘real’, instead of the usual daily mental pressures, touches me in a way.”

“It helps me escape reality for a bit, being scared about something that is tangibly scary, like monsters or bats,” she added.

Pumpkin patches are “a real festival”, says operator Avon Valley Adventure Park

But retail is not the only beneficiary. Many farmers have found ways to diversify their land by turning it into lucrative family attractions for Halloween.

In October, pumpkin patches where visitors can pick their own pumpkin are in high demand, with popularity largely driven by social media.

Farms often charge an entry fee that can vary widely, from around £2 to £15 per person, for both children and adults.

With the biggest pumpkins selling for upwards of £15 each, a family day out pushing wheelbarrows full of pumpkins can become expensive, yet some attractions sell out quickly.

Heather Parry, managing agent at National Farm Attractions Network (NFAN), said Halloween has become one of the biggest seasons of the year for some farmers.

“Ten years ago, a pumpkin patch was a field and a wheelbarrow. Now it’s a wonderful experience for the whole family,” she said.

The network has about 200 members and “almost all” embrace the spooky season with a mix of “maize mazes, after-dark trails, scare attractions and pumpkin festivals”.

“Diversification is key for many farms to thrive,” she added, saying it has helped them reduce existing challenges.

Parry said: “Farmers are coping with climate change, change in government support and requirements, high input costs, the changes to inheritance tax relief on farms along with many other things.”

“Halloween gives farms a short, high-footfall season,” she added.

Doug Douglas, founder of Avon Valley Adventure Park, said their Halloween events grow every year and now account for a third of their annual income.

“We turn over £2m from our activities in October,” said Douglas.

He added:

“Halloween is really important for us, it has surpassed Christmas.”

The park is on a 90-acre farm in Keynsham, near Bath, and was once a fruit farm after his dad bought the land more than 30 years ago.

Douglas now runs family activities during school holidays and seasonal events, including Halloween and Christmas.

FEAR Scream Park is their award-winning attraction, offering “immersive scare experiences” over 13 nights in October, with scare mazes and live actors.

This month, they expect about 30,000 visitors, but Douglas said the event is not “massively profitable” because of costs.

“It costs us about £750,000 to put on the event,” he said. “On staff wages alone, we employ about 200 staff, including around 120 actors.”

They also run a popular pumpkin event that draws around 120,000 people each year.

Douglas said: “Everyone thinks they’re easy [to put on], but we’ve got fire shows, stilt walkers, actors, we put in a big bar and we turn it into a real festival field.”

Clive Barzillia (right) helps run a zombie experience at Gloucester Prison

At HMP Gloucester, visitors must try to escape zombies as they walk past old prison cells and face all kinds of frightening encounters.

The post-apocalyptic zombie experience ‘Salvation-Z’ is run by Gloucester Prison Events at the former prison and employs around 30 local actors, according to actor manager Clive Barzillia.

“We get lots and lots of people apply for the acting roles. They have to audition and if they’re shy we have to shake it out of them,” he said.

He said actors receive welfare training and paramedics are also on site.

“Ultimately it’s a safe environment”, he said.

“Actors are trained to look out for people that might be vulnerable or sensitive, and they can adapt their acting.”

He added: “People get right into the spirit of it,” referring to the visitors.

“We’ve noticed they want to come in fancy dress now, they want to become characters themselves.”