26 ways to celebrate Halloween in and around Victoria this October
Haunted houses, frightening films and devilish drag!
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Rory DickinsonThursday, October 15th, 2026 · 13 min read
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It’s dark Octoberist’s favourite time of year again!
As the nights get longer, the pumpkins come out and Spirit Halloween becomes more crowded, fall fiends everywhere start to get a tingle in their stomachs.
With so many events going on in the city, it can be hard to decide what to do.
With haunted houses, scary screenings, costumed cabaret, devilish drag, mad markets and good old-fashioned pumpkin patches, there’s something going on for everyone this scary season.
But be warned: while this list may start out lighthearted and family-friendly, the events get scarier and more shadowy the further it goes on. Continue, if you dare!
Here are 26 ways to celebrate Halloween in and around Victoria this October:
Looking for some Halloween fun without all the scares? Galey Farms is bringing back Pumpkinfest for another season of family-friendly fall festivities!
Visitors can hop aboard a train ride, explore the corn maze, take a wagon ride and wander through the pumpkin patch in search of the perfect pumpkin.
There’s also a Ghost Town, a children’s haunted house and plenty of opportunities to soak up the Halloween atmosphere.
Tickets are available online, and children aged two and under get in free!
Where: Galey Farms, 4150 Blenkinsop Road
When: Weekends through November 1st, plus Friday, October 23rd
Get into the spirit of Halloween with a fun, family-friendly movie morning at Cineplex Westshore Town Centre and Hotel Transylvania!
The 2012 film features Dracula, who operates a high-end resort away from the human world, goes into overprotective mode when a human boy discovers the resort and falls for the count’s teenaged daughter.
The film will be playing on Saturday, October 24th at 10 a.m., with ticket prices set at only $7.50. Purchase yourshere!
Visit the nature house on Halloween for this family-friendly event.
Learn that bones and skulls are not so scary and enjoy some hands-on learning with these specimens offered by Nature Educator and Stewardship Assistant Ruby.
There will also be a colouring station available with classic scary creatures featured.
The nature house welcomes costumes of all kinds!
Admission is free or by donation.
Where: Swan Lake Nature Sanctuary, 3873 Swan Lake Road
Get ready for a frightfully fun underwater adventure as the Shaw Centre for the Salish Sea transforms into a spooky aquarium for Halloween!
The sixth annual Halloween Spectacular invites families to dress in their favourite costumes and enjoy trick-or-treating among the marine exhibits.
Visitors can search for sunken jack-o’-lanterns, explore eerie underwater displays and enjoy face painting.
Admission is by donation, with proceeds supporting the New Marine Centre Society and the Saanich Peninsula Lions Food Bank. A donation of $5 to $10 per person is suggested.
Where: Shaw Centre for the Salish Sea, 9811 Seaport Place, Sidney
When: Friday, October 23rd – from 4:30 p.m. to 8 p.m.
Dress in costume and explore the Gardens decked out for Halloween!
Enjoy complimentary face painting, discover fascinating insects at the Spooktacular Species keeper table and enter to win a Halloween prize package valued at $175!
The first 100 children in costume to complete the scavenger hunt will receive a full-sized chocolate bar, and mini candies will be available for the remainder of the day while supplies last.
Admission prices vary, tickets can be purchasedhere.
Where: Victoria Butterfly Gardens, 1461 Benvenuto Avenue
Get your costumes ready! One of Victoria’s favourite Halloween celebrations is returning to downtown for another day of spooky, family-friendly fun!
The 12th annual Thrifty Foods Wicked Victoria will transform Government Street into a Halloween wonderland, complete with live entertainment, costumed characters, trick-or-treating, local vendors and plenty of activities for the little ones.
Families can enjoy spooky storytelling, music, dance performances, face painting and Halloween crafts throughout the day.
Best of all, this community celebration is completely free to attend!
Where: Government Street (between Yates and Broughton Streets) and Bastion Square, downtown Victoria
Where: When: Sunday, October 25th – from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m.
This event is a comedy show featuring sexy and scary themes with Headliner Danielle Florence, Carilynn Nicholson, Luke Jonathan, Sarah Carol, Mike Deitering, opener Yukaliptis and comedy duo Keithsonic and Lucia.
Tickets are $20 advance or $25 at the door and can be purchasedhere.
Set against a backdrop of shadowy barns and moonlit churches, this original site-specific theatrical show plunges the audience into a remote wild west town where around every corner something hungry and hairy awaits you.
Performances are recommended for those aged 12 and older. This is not a seated performance, and attendees should expect standing and outdoor walking on unpaved road and grass.
When: October 8th to 31st – Weekend evenings and select weeknights
Rocky Horror Picture Show at an Independent Theatre
There’s no better way to celebrate the scary season than with The Rocky Horror Picture Show!
The cult classic starring Tim Curry is likely to be an even bigger event this October after his passing earlier this year.
Several of Victoria’s independent theatres make an event of the film every year, with movie go-ers dressing as their favourite characters, singing and yelling alongside the characters and using props at select times throughout the movie.
Every fan of the films has a favourite place to watch in town, what’s yours?
UVic’s campus theatre,Cinecenta, will be playing the films on October 28th and 30th with two showings each evening.
The Vic Theatre has seven screenings of the film throughout October, many of which have already sold out.
Drag Sunday Productions will also be hosting their annualRocky Horror Drag Show, with performances throughout October.
How will you celebrate the cult classic this scary season?
Fright Fest is already in full swing at the Vic Theatre, with some classic slasher/horror films that paved the way for horror films playing on the big screen this October.
Remaining films include Suspiria on October 18th, The Exorcist: Director’s Cut on October 25th, and John Carpenter’s Halloween on October 31st.
Pick your favourite and head down to The Vic Theatre for scary season!
Think you know Victoria’s haunted history? Think again!
Ghostly Walks is bringing its popular Halloween tours back to downtown Victoria, offering a spine-tingling journey through the city’s darker past.
Led by knowledgeable guides, the walking tours explore historic streets and buildings while sharing chilling ghost stories, mysterious legends and tales of unexplained happenings.
It’s a chance to discover a different side of Victoria’s history while getting into the Halloween spirit!
Tickets and tour times vary.
Where: Downtown Victoria
When: Various dates and times through November 1st
FUN HOUSE is a large-scale, unruly collision of comedy, music, dance, drag, spectacle and theatrical chaos.
This year, audiences enter a warped fun house built for a world increasingly obsessed with frictionless living, virtual experience and keeping messy human bodies at a safe distance.
What begins as entertainment gets stranger, wetter and harder to control as a large ensemble of Victoria artists takes over Fellowship Hall with original music, clown, dance, satire and theatrical mayhem.
You have 45 minutes to uncover a mystery in detailed escape room sets, finding clues, solving puzzles, triggering high tech props and unlocking your way into multiple rooms!
Horror Escape offers three thrilling escape rooms.
Will you escape?
Admission is $27 per player and can be purchasedhere.
Vancouver’s Jayville returns to Victoria to headline the first-ever Halloween edition of RAKATA.
RAKATA Resident DJ and founder of Latin party brand Vibra’s, Jayville has spent years setting the standard for West Coast Latin nights.
His sets are built on packed floors, big moments and nonstop energy, and he’s been central to shaping the RAKATA sound and one of our favorite Latin selectors behind the decks.
Expect reggaeton all night, framed as old school versus new school, a full-capacity crowd, wall-to-wall energy and a costume-heavy dance floor.
Make sure to wear your costume!
Remaining tickets start at $18 and can be purchasedhere.
On Friday, October 30th, SUPER TASTE is taking over Capital Ballroom for a Halloween edition of the legendary 90’s DANCE PARTY.
They’ll be summoning the pop culture spirits of the decade that gave us Scream, Hocus Pocus, The Craft and Buffy the Vampire Slayer for one unforgettable night on the dance floor.
So grab your best Britney costume, dust off your Nirvana flannel or hop aboard the Vengabus for a haunted journey through the biggest pop, R&B, eurodance, alternative, grunge, hip hop and pop-punk anthems of the 90s.
All looks are welcome, but bonus points if they’re inspired by the era of Jim Carrey, Aqua and The Blair Witch Project.
Expect haunting visuals, nostalgic moments and prizes for the best costumes!
Remaining tickets are $28.30 plus fees and can be purchasedhere.
Start the Halloweekend off with a night of velvet and vampires at Pour and Famous! You can expect a fun and frightful variety show full of Burlesque, Draglesque and Drag!
The evening will feature performances from Vera Descent, Naughty Nixx, Oliver Clozoff, Cuntastrophe, Sappho Heart and Velvet Nymph.
Ticket prices vary and can be purchasedhere (this link is for the second of two shows).
Where: Pour & Famous, 757 Yates Street
When: Thursday, October 29th – 6 p.m. and 9 p.m.
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