Spooky season has officially begun, and we’re already gearing up for the big event: Halloween! No matter what describes you best—studious spirit, partying paranormal, musical monster, or fearless phantom—the District is hosting a Halloween event that’s perfect for you! Below, check out some of the best haunts D.C. has to offer:
1. Dining in the Dark: A Unique Blindfolded Dining Experience
While D.C.’s Dining in the Dark experience takes place year-round, there is certainly an element of spookiness to it as you step into a darkened restaurant. Once blindfolded, you will be left with your remaining senses to experience your meal through an entirely different lens. Brave enough to put your taste buds to the test? Snag tickets here for this one-of-a-kind dining experience.
2. Return to the Land of Skulls at The Midlands Beer Garden
On October 31st, The Midlands Beer Garden is hosting an exciting pop-up art gallery with skull-themed creations from 24 different artists. Admission is free and all art proceeds will go directly to the artists! This spooky gallery will also feature snacks, tunes, fortune telling and tarot readings, tintype photography and, of course, plenty of drinks!
While RSVPs are now closed, walk-ins will be welcome per capacity. Learn more here!
3. Golf gets spooky at Swingers – The Crazy Golf Club
Swingers – The Crazy Golf Club has big plans for the spooky season, and it goes beyond Halloween-themed mini golf. The adult crazy golf courses will be getting a Halloween makeover! From October 27th to October 31st, players will have a shot at the Trick-or-Treat prize wheel and can indulge in bespoke Halloween cocktails, as well as a Spooky Sunday Brunch. Costumes are encouraged!
4. Dinner With Dracula: A Virtual Murder Mystery Clue Chase
Gather a group of friends and give this fun murder mystery activity a go in right the comfort of your own home! The spooky dinner party commemorating Dracula’s demise takes a turn when one of the dinner guests starts to show signs of turning into a vampire!
Throughout the evening, you will play a particular character (assigned to you beforehand) and work together with your fellow diners to help the vampire regain humanity or seal their fate!
5. D.C. Ghost Tours: The Haunted Side of The District
With rich history comes mysterious and inexplicable happenings, so there have been whispers that D.C. is plagued with ghosts and spirits of the past! If you dare, this walking ghost tour will show you the haunted side of the District you never knew!
6. The Museum of Failure
Some of the inventions at D.C.’s Museum of Failure are straight up spooky! From a Michael Myers-like electric face mask to the “Little Miss No Name” doll featured above, many of the 150-plus inventions on display at Georgetown Park will really have you wondering what these companies were thinking. Plus, those who purchase tickets to the Museum of Failure from now until October 31st can enjoy 20% off tickets with the code SCARYMOX!
7. Celebrate Halloween at the Hirshorn
The Hirshhorn Museum is offering a number of autumnal activities for children this year, and one with a particularly big Halloween focus. Stop by on November 1st for Storytime: Boos, Books and Blankets for DIY scary sculptures, a read-aloud of Itsy Bitsy Spider by Emily Bannister, and more!
8-10. Don your best costume for a Halloween bar crawl
Halloween isn’t just for kids—and what’s better for adults than trick-or-treating for booze?! D.C. has a number of Halloween-themed bar crawls this month, encouraging you to dress up and do the “Monster Mash” until you wake the dead!
11. Enjoy a Halloween-themed scavenger hunt
Hidden D.C. gem, the O Street Museum, is celebrating Halloween all month long! A mansion and hotel teeming with kitschy objects and collectibles for sale, themed hidden rooms, and more than 80 secret doors—the O Street Museum is giving itself a spooky spin by making its scavenger hunt Halloween-themed! But be careful—who knows what’s behind each door!
12. Get into the spooky spirit with Boo at the Zoo
It’s a dream come true! You can now reserve tickets for October 20th to 22nd for Boo at the Zoo—a family-friendly event filled with spooky activities and Jack O’Lantern adorned animal habitats at the National Zoo! The event is sponsored by Mars Wrigley Confectionery, so it’s safe to say that there will be plenty of treats in store.
13-14. Take in a classical rendition of your favorite Halloween haunts
Taking in the sounds of classical renditions of your favorite Halloween haunts amidst soft candlelight? Spooky season just got better! The Fever Originals Candlelight series is the perfect way to get into the Halloween spirit (or spirits). With multiple genres and musical themes to choose from, there’s bound to be a creepy concert that’s perfect for you!
- Candlelight: A Haunted Evening of Halloween Classics at The Howard Theatre
- Candlelight Halloween: The Phantom of the Opera (1925) Film Screening with Live Organ