Halloween 'bigger than Christmas', say businesses

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

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

At Avon Valley Adventure Park near Bath, Halloween activities now generate around a third of the site's annual 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 at Chaplins fancy dress shop in Bristol.

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

Chaplins has been a staple in the city centre for 35 years, back 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 saw its busiest October to date, with customers individually spending an average of £40 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.

Halloween's growing popularity is also benefiting supermarkets and retailers selling sweets, decorations and party supplies.

In a survey carried out in March by market researcher IGD, 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 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.

And some like to start 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 is mostly on decorations and thrill events.

Vieira said feeling scared about monsters is a "fun escape" from the stresses 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.

But it is not just retail. Many farmers have found ways to diversify their land, by turning it into lucrative family attractions on Halloween.

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

Farms often charge an entry fee which can vary significantly, from around £2 to £15 per person, for children and adults alike.

With the biggest whoppers selling for upwards of £15 a piece, a fun family day out pushing wheelbarrows full of pumpkins can become costly, 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 around 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 mitigate 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 generate a third of their yearly 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 sits 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.

Now Douglas runs family activities during school holidays and seasonal events, including for 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 are expecting around 30,000 visitors but Douglas said the event is not "massively profitable" due to 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."

In addition, they run a popular pumpkin event which attracts 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."

At HMP Gloucester, it is zombies that visitors must try and escape from as they walk past old prison cells, facing all sorts of scary encounters.

The post-apocalyptic zombie experience 'Salvation-Z' is run by Gloucester Prison Events at the defunct prison and employs around 30 actors from the local area, 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 are taught 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," talking about the visitors.

"We've noticed they want to come in fancy dress now, they want to become characters themselves."

Follow BBC Bristol on Facebook, X and Instagram. Send your story ideas to us on email or via WhatsApp on 0800 313 4630.