Get Your Halloween Frights Early With These Spooky Events In IL

Halloween is still more than a month away, but there are plenty of places around Illinois offering seasonal frights.

Our scary guide includes everything from haunted houses to Halloween balls, some better experienced for adults and others suitable for children.

We’ve rounded up five spooky happenings in Illinois that are worth getting on the calendar. And speaking of calendars: Are you planning an event this fall? Feature it, so nearby readers see it all across Patch — including in roundups like this!

Attend the Haunted Hotel Halloween Ball at the Congress Hotel, dubbed one of the most haunted hotels in the world by USA Today. The event takes elements from lavish VIP nightclubs and the exclusiveness of a luxury hotel gala and combines them with the terror and chills of a haunted house. The costume party will last from 9 p.m. to 2 a.m. Oct. 31, with tickets starting at $20.

Ride the Hayride of Horror in Dellwood Park, considered the most haunted place in Lockport. The Hayride of Horror "takes guests deep into the dark woods where spirits stir, creatures lurk, and every turn holds a new fright," organizers at the Lockport Township Park District said. Dellwood Park will also be home to an outdoor maze, the Curse of the Bayou, featuring twisting paths, hidden corners and terrifying surprises. Attractions are open from 7-10 p.m. every Friday and Saturday in October, as well as from 6-9 p.m. on the last two Sundays of the month.

Go on a haunted trolley tour of Alton, known as one of the country's most haunted small towns. The three-and-a-half-hour tour visits some of the town's most sinister haunts, including a hotel, a masonic temple, a mansion, and the burial place of hundreds of Confederate soldiers who died of smallpox. The tour operates Fridays and Saturdays throughout October, with an additional prohibition-focused event on Nov. 15.

"Pay to panic" at Six Flags Great America's Fright Fest, running through Nov. 2 at the park in Gurnee. For the 34th Fright Fest, the park will be transformed into one with scare zones, haunted mazes, live shows and rides. The "intensely scary" event is not recommended for children younger than 13 after 6 p.m.

Visit Montgomery's Massacre Haunted House, self-dubbed the "scariest haunted houses in Illinois," spanning 35,000 square feet, 40 rooms, an "intense" clown-themed attraction, and a basement where "nightmares come to life in the darkest spots." The haunted house is open every weekend in October, with hours varying by day. Tickets start at $35.99.

RELATED: Haunted Spots In Illinois: 11 Spooky Destinations To Visit In 2025