Top 6 Reasons to Visit Count’s Spooktacular with Little Children at Busch Garden’s Howl-O-Scream!

spooktacular busch gardens kids

Top 6 Reasons to Visit Count’s Spooktacular with Little Children at Busch Garden’s Howl-O-Scream!

Saturdays and Sundays
Sept 23 – Oct 29, 2023
10 a.m. to 5 p.m.

Bring the kiddos to The Count’s Spooktacular! Kids 9 years old and younger can dress up in their favorite Halloween costum and enjoy the ALL-NEW Trick-or-Treat Trail in the Wild Reserve, a festive hay maze, a costume parade, and see their favorite Sesame Street® characters decked out in their new Halloween-inspired costumes.  But let us break it down for you …here are your top 6 reasons to take the little ones to The Count’s Spooktacular this year…

Top 6 reasons to visit the Count’s Spooktacular at Busch Gardens with your little ones:

1. Themed Weekends!  Your family will get to participate in themed Halloween fun weekends with your favorite Sesame Street characters.  That makes coming more than once during the fall, even more of an adventure! 

  • Countdown to Halloween Weekend, Sept. 23 – 24
  • Funny Bones Weekend, Sept. 30 – Oct. 1
  • Clowning Around Weekend, Oct. 7-8
  • Pirate Party Weekend, Oct. 14-15
  • Super Grover Weekend, Oct. 21-22
  • Halloween Weekend, Oct. 28-29
trick-or-treating-busch-gardens

 2. ALL-NEW Trick-or-Treat Trail : Trick or Treat throughout the Wild Reserve for kiddos aged 9 and under. Uncover a sweet treat around every turn. No peanut snacks/candy are being passed out.

3. Show: The kids will love the special Count von Count Halloween Show. Count goes on a journey on his favorite night of the year – Halloween! Children are encouraged to dance and sing along to the Count’s Countdown to Halloween. This is an interactive show with singing and dancing.  The outdoor show is located in England.  Free with park admission.

Trick-or-treat busch gardens england

4. Costume Party: Since the kids are all dressed up – why not join the costume dance party!  Children can join in the dance party with their favorite Sesame Street Characters or just watch from the sidelines…no pressure here! Saturdays & Sundays: times TBD

5. Hay Maze:  Your kids can wander through stacks of hay trying to find their way out.  This is just good outdoor fun. We hear that they will be even bigger and better this year!

busch-gardens-williamsburg-land-of-the-dragons

6.  Kid RIDES!!!:  Kids can still ride Grover’s Alpine Adventure and all the other fun rides in the Seasame Street Forest  plus Land of the Dragons is also open so make sure to walk over there too!

Best news? There are GROUPONS for tickets! For the latest Busch Gardens ticket discounts visit here.

So there you have it, kid-friendly rides, family activities and trick-or-treating will be offered for the littlest guests to celebrate the fall season. 

Last but not least, if you have little ones or easily frightened older littles, the Halloween decorations will be set up during the day and can be a little frightening, but the scare squad, dim lighting and fog will not start until 5:45 p.m.   

So keep this in mind when walking through the decorated England to get to Forest of Fun after entering the park, and then to get to the Land of the Dragons…go through Scotland by Loch Ness and take the stairs down to the bridge over the lake – back up the stairs and you are right at Land of the dragons…see map above. 

 Please also note that all kids attractions close at 5:00 pm in preparation for Howl-O-Scream.

So if that is not enough info for you,  sometimes a video is the easiest way to tell the story….

Frequently Asked Questions:

What can I wear to Busch Gardens?
Appropriate attire consists of shirts, pants and shoes for all guests.

Can I wear a costume?
For the safety of our guests and performers, guests ages 10 and older are prohibited from wearing costumes in the park during Howl-O-Scream. Children 9 and younger are encouraged and allowed to wear costumes only during The Count’s Spooktacular event, Saturdays and Sundays in October. Masks are not allowed for anyone. If your child’s costume has a mask or prop, we ask for you to kindly leave those at home.

Can I wear a mask for Halloween?
For the safety of our guests and performers, masks are prohibited in the park, especially during events such as Howl-O-Scream.

Are there scares during the day?
There is Halloween decor throughout the park, but our scare actors do not come out until 5:45 pm. 

When do the child play areas close?
During Howl-O-Scream, Land of the Dragons and Sesame Street Forest of Fun will close at 5 p.m. to allow families enough time to make their way toward the exit before the park transforms at 5:45 p.m.


Williamsburg Families is part of a blogger program with Busch Gardens.  Tickets are given to review ride and season openings.  There are affiliate links on this post and this site.

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  • Olivia Bada

    Marketing, communications, sales, writing, and web management all come together when working on published pieces for Localourist, The Burg Weekender, The Burg Weekly and Williamsburg Families.

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