Entertainment
Your Halloween to-do list in Pittsburgh
Ready or not, Halloween is just around the corner. And if you haven’t yet made the most of spooky season here in Pittsburgh, never fear — there’s still plenty of time to celebrate, whether you prefer bone-tingling scares, family-friendly fun, costume parties, horror films, or a completely unique experience.
Below, we’ve compiled a list of Halloween events and attractions arahnd tahn, and tips to help you make the most of the end of October — starting with haunted dining then moving along to local Halloween attractions, a yinzer costume quiz, and tons of frightfully fun events.
Eat, drink, and be spooky
Dine with ghosts
Fall has arrived, and that means it’s spooky season. Legend holds that as nights grow longer, the veil separating the material and spiritual worlds thins, bringing haunted happenings and unseen forces. For whatever reason, the veil in Pittsburgh has always been extra permeable, and the region boasts a preponderance of places believed to be haunted. For this year’s Fall Guide, Pittsburgh City Paper zeroed in on some of our favorite haunted restaurants and bars (and the list we offer is by no means complete). From a ghost lady in white to a haunted railroad station to a lurid Biddle brothers connection, these eerie establishments are sure to make your hair stand on end — or at least offer a storied place to grab a beer.
Read more: Some of Pittsburgh’s restaurants come with unexpected guests: ghosts
Enjoy a Dia de los Muertos celebration, a Halloween bar crawl, and more delicious autumnal treats
The Pittsburgh Cultural Trust kicks off a week of Día de Los Muertos celebrations with a special Ofrenda Happy Hour. Taking place at the Greer Cabaret Theater on Thu., Oct. 24 from 6-9 p.m., the event and cultural celebration is hosted in collaboration with the Pittsburgh Metropolitan Area Hispanic Chamber of Commerce. Create ornaments for two “mural-like” community ofrendas, altars that commemorate loved ones. Enjoy a taco bar, signature Mexican- and Latin-inspired cocktails, and “lively beats” from DJ Mateo Mattos. The event page notes that the happy hour is “more than just a gathering” and invites the community to “share stories, and toast to life, memory, and connection” in appreciation of Día de Los Muertos.
If you can’t make this celebration, never fear — there are more Dia de los Muertos celebrations all around Pittsburgh!
Halloween falls on a Thursday this year, but Bar Crawl Nation stretches the festivities into the Day of the Dead with a Boos Fest Halloween Bar Crawl. On Sat., Nov. 2 from 5-10 p.m., Pittsburghers are invited to “a Halloween party spanning multiple themed bars” promising spooky cocktails, prizes, a haunted red carpet, and “hundreds” of costumes.
Read more: Day of the Dead parties, tendies with a side of Post Malone, and more Pittsburgh food news
Drink a toast at the haunted “they bar”
City Paper recently highlighted Harold’s as one of the region’s many haunted bars and restaurants. But few establishments are quite like Harold’s or have embraced their apparitions quite like the Millvale bar, whose name is even a dig at a local ghost.
Pittsburgh paranormal investigators Bump in the Night Society also reported seeing specters in a room in Harold’s basement. Harold’s owner and others had previously tried to walk into the same room only to see the lightbulb inside shatter.
Read more: Harold’s Haunt celebrates two years of ghosts, fun, and inclusion in Millvale
Attractions
Scarehouse — a Pittsburgh Halloween staple
Few haunted attractions have garnered as much attention as ScareHouse. Every year, the Pittsburgh Halloween staple has lured crowds with high-quality frights executed by dedicated, professional scare actors and crew members. Oscar-winning horror filmmaker Guillermo del Toro and actor Elijah Wood gave ScareHouse their approval and, in 2023, it earned the title of Top Haunt by the Haunted Attraction Association.
ScareHouse returned this year on an appropriately spooky date (Fri., Sept. 13) with three concepts — The Basement, an extreme haunted attraction brought back after several years, the ongoing Stalked By A Serial Killer escape room, and the new, vampire-themed Chipped Fang immersive mocktail pop-up bar. Each experience runs through Oct. 31.
Read more: ScareHouse heads back to the basement after several difficult years
Let them eat worms
Kennywood’s Phantom Fall Fest is a Pittsburgh staple as well. Fall Fest is packed with actors dressed to the nines ready to scare parkgoers. These spooky attractions are perfect for yinzers and out-of-towners ages 13 and over. Kennywood has extended their hours now through Oct. 27.
Last week, several contestants devoured mealworm-garnished Potato Patch fries for a chance to win season passes. But we promise you won’t have to eat any worms to enjoy the festival.
See more: Phantom Worm Eating Challenge at Kennywood
Last-minute costume ideas
Imagine you’re just waiting to be invited to a banger of a Halloween party, and then you get the call. Of course, you want to go — they’ll be serving up a Primanti’s platter, IC Light, candy corn, and colorful Jell-O shooters. But what will you wear?
This year, we created a quiz to help you find a last-minute costume. Two of these Yinzer-themed costumes are quick, easy, and cheap. One is quick and easy to order online. The last may take some creative thinking and craftiness, but you can do it!
Take our Pittsburgh-inspired Halloween costume quiz
Photo: Photo courtesy of Young Adult Survivors United
Photo: Photo courtesy of Young Adult Survivors UnitedWig Out at Rivers Casino
Events
Top events
Pittsburgh is never short on things to do! So if you’re looking for some fun events during spooky season, this list offers a variety of fall festivals, sensory-friendly experiences, costume parties, and more in the last week of October.
Read more: The big, spooky Pittsburgh event guide
An immersive Halloween experience
Since Oct. 2, the bar has welcomed guests to The Nightmare Before Mixtape, a new iteration of the immersive experience that started it all. A giant, inflatable, neon-green version of Oogie Boogie from The Nightmare Before Christmas hovers over Mixtape’s signature sign, and inside, murals of Jack Nicholson’s Joker from the 1989 Batman film, black-and-white Beetlejuice striping, and other Burton-esque touches are meant to delight revelers looking for Halloween fun.
October promises more spooky happenings in Mixtape’s decorated space, including a Burton Ball on Sat., Oct 26, followed on Wed. Oct. 30 by a pre-Halloween sober disco night co-hosted by The Open Road, a non-alcoholic bottleshop that recently moved from Allentown to Garfield.
Read more: In a world of scam immersive experiences, Mixtape delivers legitimate delights
Photo: Courtesy of Mixtape
A mural depicting Jack Nicholson’s Joker from the 1989 Batman movie, part of The Nightmare Before Mixtape
Live music featuring songs about female serial killers
RealTime Arts presents ANGELMAKERS: Songs for Female Serial Killers, a musical production described in a press release as exploring “the moments and motives of female serial killers throughout history,” from the 1500s to the present.
The show, which takes place from Thu., Oct. 24-Thu., Oct. 31, features various local female-identifying talent, including musical theater performers Julianne Avolio, Drew Leigh Williams, and Jacquea Mae, Vietnamese pop star and activist Mai Khôi, Pittsburgh rocker Liz Berlin, and others.
Read more: Female serial killers are granted a musical appeal in RealTime Arts’ ANGELMAKERS
More events
If you’re ever looking for something to do around Pittsburgh any time of year, check out our crowdsourced events section. You’ll always find live music, fun fundraisers, outdoorsy gatherings, and the haps at local breweries and restaurants.
You can find the queued-up Halloween events here. And don’t forget to sign up for our newsletters to get local events listings directly to your inbox!
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