Looking to give yourself a good fright? Here are dozens of ways to celebrate Halloween in Ottawa, Eastern Ontario and beyond in 2023. In many cases, times, days of the week and ticket prices vary, and many attractions require you to buy tickets online in advance, so DO check the linked websites before heading out.
Happy haunting!
The Haunted Walk of Ottawa provides all sorts of ghoulish fun in October (and the rest of the year), including separate tours of the former jail on Nicholas Street, Beechwood Cemetery and the Mackenzie King Estate.
On Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays throughout October, you can visit JoeBoo Evil Events’ collection of haunted attractions at 373 Leggett Drive in Kanata. They include the Asylum, the Field of Dreams and the Wormhole.
Broadway Nights Ottawa is presenting A Halloween Extravaganza at Overflow Brewing on Friday, October 13. This adults-only event will include singalongs, loot bags, craft beer, prizes for the best costume and more.
The Ottawa Haunted Walk can take you on an eerie tour of the Mackenzie King Estate in Gatineau Park.
In Chesterville, you can get a good scare at Extreme Fear Hauntings (Fridays and Saturdays, and select other days, from September 22 to October 31). This haunted attraction includes cemetery, hospital, morgue and other scenarios, enlivened (is that the right word?) by costumed actors. Not advised for children 12 and under; they can still come, but they must be accompanied by an adult. The attraction is wheelchair accessible, and advance booking is recommended. A portion of the proceeds will support Camp Quality, a camp for children with cancer and blood disorders.
Saunders Farm in Munster is hosting FrightFest (various days, September 23 to October 31, 6pm to 11pm). This super-poplar Halloween attraction features the Barn of Terror, the Cemetery Scare Zone, a new Circus Macabre and other sites designed to scare teens and adults silly. FrightFest is too intense for kids, but Saunders also offers a tamer daytime event called Pumpkin Days (Saturdays and Sundays, September 23 to October 31, 10am to 5pm). Families can explore hedge mazes, take a gently scary haunted wagon ride, ride a zipline and more.
Pumpkins After Dark is a new walk-through attraction at Wesley Clover Parks in Nepean. It features some 6,000 carved pumpkins arranged to look like everything from dragons to pop stars, and there are special effects and music, too. It runs from September 29 to October 31.
Pumpkinferno at Upper Canada Village. Photo by Laura Paquet, Ottawa Road Trips.
The always-spectacular Pumpkinferno is back at Upper Canada Village in Morrisburg on select nights between September 29 and October 29. Stroll around the outdoor living history museum to see 7,000 carved artificial pumpkins combined into fantastical shapes with an eerie musical backdrop. Here’s my take on what it’s like. Advance tickets required.
Also in K’town, the Haunted Walk of Kingston offers a wide range of ghostly tours, including its original tour and a ghost walk at Queen’s University, on dates throughout October and November.
The Haunted Walk also runs paranormal investigations at various Eastern Ontario sites. This fall, they include the Mill of Kintail in Almonte (September 15 and 16, and October 13 and 14); the Historic SDG Jail in Cornwall (October 20, 21, 27, 28 and 29); and the L’Orignal Jail (November 3 and 4).
The Billings Estate National Historic Site is hosting an event called Halloween Heist aimed at children 10 and younger (October 28 and 29). Kids explore clues throughout the museum to figure out how a ghoul managed to steal all the party treats. Before or after their detective outing, they can also see animals from Little Ray’s Nature Centre. Advance registration required for all activities.
Near Crysler, the frightening fun at Acres of Terror at Cannamore Orchard includes a spooky wagon ride, a fog maze, a House of Terror and a spooky village. It’s open various days and evenings from September 29 through October 30; check the website for details. Advance ticket purchase required.
Pumpkin Fest is a huge Halloween playground at Proulx Farm in Cumberland, open weekends (and weekdays with advance reservation) from September 17 to October 31. Also open Thanksgiving Monday (October 9).
Proulx Farm is also home to sKreamers, a terrifying-looking haunted house experience organized by the Kiwanis Club of Eastern Ottawa. It runs on Friday and Saturday nights throughout October. Buy tickets online.
Photo by Susan Moss courtesy of Tourism Montreal.
Throughout October, the Montreal Botanical Garden is hosting Halloween Shivers, a multi-faceted event that includes all sorts of spooky fun. Attend a potions workshop, thrill to traditional scary folktales in the Japanese Pavilion, visit a Sorcerer’s Haven and more.
Prince Edward County is holding its Pumpkinfest on Saturday, October 14, in Wellington. One of the highlights is a giant pumpkin weigh-off.
Carleton Place is also hosting a Pumpkinfest on Saturday, October 14, from 1pm to 7pm. The festivities live music, big slides, haunted walks, beer tastings, markets and more. You can hop aboard a vintage double-decker bus to shuttle among sites.
The Brockville Railway Tunnel becomes a spooky, half-kilometre Tunnel of Terror, complete with lights and music, on select nights from October 19 to 29.
Pumpkinferno photo courtesy of the St. Lawrence Parks Commission.
The Sawmill Lansdowne (select nights, October 13 to 31) is a terrifying way to mark Halloween in Ottawa. This scary attraction at Lansdowne Park based on the idea of rescuing a bunch of millworkers who’ve been trapped underground on the site for a lonnnng time. Once you’ve had a good scream or two, you can relax with food truck fare, Saunders Farm cider and live entertainment.
Katarina’s Coffee Shop in Prescott is hosting A Haunting in Downtown Prescott on Tuesday, October 24, from 6pm to 8pm. Astral Light Paranormal will be releasing the findings of its recent investigation into all things spooky at Katarina’s. Register in advance by Friday, October 20.
The Smiths Falls Heritage House Museum is transforming itself into a haunted house on October 20, 21, 27 and 28, from 7pm to 9pm. You can pre-book tickets online (online sales close 12 hours before each event) or take your chances and get tickets at the door. The museum is also running ghost tours on October 11 and 12.
In Kemptville, Bubba and Bugs Coffee Bar is holding a Spooky Club night for queer kids and allies aged 14 to 18. The café ad notes: “Costumes encouraged, dancing shoes a must.”
For those who like their Halloween celebrations on the mystical side, there’s a Halloween Bazaar at Cornerstone Organics in Long Sault on Saturday, October 29, starting at 4pm, where you can meet fortune tellers, mediums and healers, shop for candles and crystals, enjoy live music and food truck goodies, and more.
At the Diefenbunker, the Toddlers’ Halloween Hunt is back! From 9am to 12:30pm on October 25, 26 and 27, little ones can hunt for treats, make crafts and enjoy special activities in the decommissioned Cold War bunker. Admission is by timed ticket, and advance ticket purchase is strongly recommended.
There’s lots going on in Perth for Halloween, including a Perth Ghost Walk led by historian Susan Code McDougall (nightly, October 26 to 28, starting at 7pm); a Zombie Walk, where you’re invited to wear your best undead costume and compete for prizes (Saturday, October 28, starting at 5pm); games and a corn maze during Pumpkin Season at Scotch Line Farm (Fridays and Saturdays, 10am to 5pm, starting September 15); and a Pumpkin Parade at Stewart Park (Wednesday, November 1, with voting starting at 7pm).
On October 27 and 28, Parc Omega in Montebello will be presenting a vintage circus-themed Halloween event with old-timey fairground games, creepy clown movies and more. You can also visit the wolf observatory and learn about nocturnal birds of prey.
Day of the Dead celebrations will be happening throughout the weekend (October 27 to 29) before Halloween in Ottawa’s ByWard Market. The fun will include cooking classes a fashion show, dance competitions, live Latin music and other Mexican fun. The organizers are also offering a Family Fun Day at St. Laurent Shopping Centre from 11am to 4pm on Saturday, October 21, and a cultural knowledge exchange workshop focusing on Indigenous traditions in the By/ward Market on Tuesday, October 24.
The Horticulture Building at Lansdowne Park in Ottawa will also host a Day of the Dead event on Saturday, October 28, from 4pm to 10pm. Highlights include a parade, face painting, an exhibition of altars from Mexico and Central America and a screening of the family movie Chupa. You can nosh on tacos, tamales and churros, too.
On Saturday, October 21, the Carleton County Junior Farmers are hosting a Halloween Dance at the Greely Legion. Doors open at 7pm and admission is $15 ($10 for Carleton County Junior Farmers members).
Here’s one for readers who were teenagers in the 1980s: Do you miss the days when you could really let your hair down in a theatre while watching The Rocky Horror Picture Show? Well, you’re in luck. The Imperial Cinema in Montreal is holding six very interactive screenings of the 1975 cult classic from October 26 to 28. Costumes, squirt guns, light sticks and spontaneous amateur performances of the Time Warp are all encouraged (but leave the rice at home—it’s banned because it’s a pain in the neck to clean up).
On Saturday, October 28, kids can trick-or-treat with the mayor at Ottawa City Hall (5pm to 8pm). Attractions include treats and roaming costumed entertainers. Admission is a non-perishable donation (such as diapers, formula or baby food) to the Ottawa Food Bank’s Baby Basics Program.
Photo courtesy of the Log Farm.
The Log Farm on Cedarview Road in Nepean is offering wagon rides, a corn maze, loot bags, a hay mountain and lots of animals to pet during the Halloween Costume Party on the Farm on October 28 and 29. Advance ticket purchase recommended.
Little ones can trick or treat their way around downtown Kemptville businesses during Kreepy Kemptville on Saturday, October 28, from 10am to 1pm. The scary fun includes a scavenger hunt and a photo booth.
A bat cave, a spooky barn, storytime, pumpkins, a barn dance and more are in store for families at A Barnyard Halloween at the Canada Agriculture and Food Museum (October 28 and 29).
Photo of kids enjoying a past Barnyard Halloween in Ottawa courtesy of the Canada Agriculture and Food Museum.
The Cumberland Heritage Village Museum is hosting a Halloween Hijinks day for families on October 28 and 29. Costumes are encouraged, treats will be available, and illusions and pranks will be celebrated. Advance reservations required.
On Saturday, October 28 (10am to 4pm), Vintage Pop-up 613 is hosting the Ottawa Mystic Market at the Churchill Seniors Centre in Westboro, with crystals and tarot card readers, along with jewellery, clothing and more.
The Optimist Club of Lancaster is hosting a Haunted Drive-Thru at Charlottenburgh Park in Lancaster on Saturday, October 28. The first hour (5pm to 6pm) is for young children; the experience is scarier from 6:30pm to 10pm. Tickets are $20 per vehicle, payable at the gate. Cash only.
Mont Tremblant is offering free Halloween fun for families, including music and treats, on Sunday, October 29.
Palapa Tours wraps up its season of fun tiki-boat trips along the Ottawa River on Tuesday, October 31. On select tours between October 15 and October 31, the company invites passengers to wear Halloween costumes and to prepare for some spooky thrills along the way. Theses tours leave from Ozile’s Marina at the north end of Trim Road (Petrie Island) in Orleans.
As the owner of Ottawa Road Trips, I acknowledge that I live on, work in and travel through the unceded, unsurrendered territory of the Algonquin Anishinaabeg Nation. I am grateful to have the opportunity to be present on this land. Ottawa Road Trips supports Water First, a non-profit organization that helps address water challenges in Indigenous communities in Canada through education, training and meaningful collaboration.
[…] fun happening in the region this week that I wrote a whole separate post listing all of the local Halloween activities I could find—everything from haunted houses and pumpkin displays to virtual ghost story […]
[…] pumpkin displays than you can shake a broomstick at! Check this separate post for details on local Halloween happenings in Ottawa and across Eastern […]
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[…] fun happening in the region this week that I wrote a whole separate post listing all of the local Halloween activities I could find—everything from haunted houses and pumpkin displays to virtual ghost story […]
[…] pumpkin displays than you can shake a broomstick at! Check this separate post for details on local Halloween happenings in Ottawa and across Eastern […]