The best things to do on Halloween in London

With its story revolving around the witches in The Wizard of Oz and thematically spot-on set pieces, the massively successful Wicked musical has been a mainstay of Halloween since first opening in London in 2006. The production’s splashy musical numbers are entertaining for adults and kids alike. The musical is permanently at home at the renowned Apollo Victoria Theatre, a stunning Art Deco venue with over two thousand seats.

Hoxton Street Monster Supplies is a unique London store offering an array of spooky products, from bottled smog to marshmallow brain food, catering to both the living and undead since 1818. Behind its traditional façade lies a trove of quirky items appealing to both adults and children. More than just a shop, Hoxton Street Monster Supplies also operates as a charitable venture for the Ministry of Stories.

South London's Horniman Museum will be hosting a Spooky Fun Day this Halloween. Parents and kids will have the chance to show off their costumes, win a prize in a spooky dance-off, go on a witchcraft-themed tour of the World Gallery, and enjoy bubbles on the Bandstand in the museum gardens, complete with a Halloween playlist.

The luxurious Royal Lancaster hotel next to Hyde Park is giving its afternoon tea a Halloween makeover. Patrons can enjoy a themed twist on the timeless British tradition, featuring a selection of classic savoury sandwiches, scones, and beautifully crafted sweets such as the Coffin gateaux or the pumpkin cheese cake. The experience is available daily for a limited time only.

London's famed Natural History Museum is open after hours on Halloween, letting visitors explore the dark side of its skeleton-filled galleries. You'll be able to learn about the more misunderstood members of the natural world, sip on a cocktail and shake, rattle and roll in the silent disco beneath Hope the blue whale. For an extra creepy experience, tack on a tour of the museum's tank room, which holds millions of wet specimens stored in alcohol.

The Brent Cross branch of the Flip Out indoor adventure parks is hosting its Famous Pumpkin Party for Halloween. The main arena will be transformed into a mysterious land full of ghosts, spectres, ghouls, and other scary beings. There will be lots of prizes to win as well, including for best costume and best carves pumpkin, along with various other games and competitions.

Throughout October, the West End's only remaining independent cinema shows a selection of classic Halloween films from all of cinema's history. Timeless classics such as "The Thing" and “Suspiria” will be screened alongside newer features such as “Mandy” and “Longlegs”. They're also hosting a classic horror all-nighter. Check out the programme online and find the right fright night for you.

Decades on, the gruesome crimes of Jack the Ripper continue to fascinate and horrify. The Jack the Ripper Tour takes you to each of the murder scenes, providing insight into the bloody crimes. Taking you back to Victorian-era Whitechapel, the walking tour has a particularly sinister note to it in October. The tours run twice daily.

This year, Kew Gardens are getting in on the Halloween game with a brand-new trail designed by the same folks as their acclaimed Christmas at Kew event. As you walk the grounds, you'll be able to see a fiendish fire garden, brave fire artists, glowing pumpkins, neon cobwebs, and other ghostly displays, with warm seasonal treats on hand to help warm you up despite all the chills.

For Halloween, the imposing Tower of London fortress by the Thames digs deep into its bloody history to bring its many scary stories to life. During the family-friendly adventure, you'll wander the grounds, encountering the roaming ghosts of this former prison's inmates, while eerie projections and sound effects provide glimpses of the spirit world.

In both name and deeds, Henry VIII sure does sound like the villain of a long-running horror film franchise. His royal home, Hampton Court Palace, leans into the scariness in October, setting up atmospheric projections and creepy sound effects throughout its dark winding corridors and courtyards to bring its infamous ghosts to unlife. The family-friendly adventure finishes off with some scary stories and a finally a comforting treat in the café.

ZSL London Zoo is calling all little monsters for a variety of fun, family-friendly Halloween events and workshops this October. Little ones can try their hand at decorating a pumpkin, navigate a graveyard of extinct species, explore the pumpkin patch and search for the Golden Pumpkin, attend talks and demonstrations about terrifying animals, and more.

One London's last remaining 1950s-style ballrooms, the Rivoli Ballroom features a majestic preserved interior and exterior, and regularly hosts all sorts of events, from live music to salsa classes and more. For Halloween, it's setting up as a pop-up cinema and screening classic spooky films such as “The Shining” and “The Lost Boys”, as well as more family-friendly movies like “Hocus Pocus”.

The Honey & Co. café and deli venue in Bloomsbury also hosts weekend supper clubs by Honey & Co.'s chef owners and assorted guests. For Halloween, they'll be hosting a special themed supper club. Expect three courses of seasonal Honey & Co. delights, along with a cosy, familial atmosphere. Kids are welcome, as is fancy dress.

The debauched Israeli restaurant Kapara in Soho is hosting a bottomless drag brunch for Halloween, inspired by Beetlejuice. The event promises ghoulish performances, Beetlejuice-themed cocktails like the Lydiarita, and devilishly tasty food, all suffused in eerie elegance.

Bounce, the popular neon-lit ping pong palaces, are hosting Halloween-themed bottomless brunches this year. Those brave enough to attend will be greeted by with playlist of scarily good hits courtesy of the resident DJs, ghoulish games, unlimited pizza, beer, prosecco, and cocktails, and more. You'll also be able to try out Bounce's latest hit – AI-enabled ping pong tables with different interactive games to choose from.

NYC-style bar The 411 is hosting a number of Halloween-themed events in 2024. Two different bottomless brunches will get you in the mood on 25 and 26 October before the big hitters – three different themed Halloween parties with shocking deals on drinks, fancy dress, spooky decor, and more.

Covent Garden Market brings scary Halloween vibes to the very heart of the capital. At the Halloween Boo-Bash at the end of October, there will be free treat bags and cookies for the kids in the best costumes, along with live music, a bouncy castle, a colouring corner, photo opportunities, and more. You can also grab a Halloween-themed snack from one of the many restaurants in the area, or even stop by a day early for the Fall Food Fair, with fun autumnal events such as pumpkin bowling and gourd checkers.

Between the Bridges, the fun all-day destination in South Bank, is hosting a number of different events for this year's Halloween festivities. You can start with a special Joker-themed edition of UKG Bingo on 25 October and a spooky version of Between the Bridges' monthly drag brunch the next day. A week later, round things off with Ogrepalooza, the ultimate Halloween party featuring the UK's #1 Shrek tribute band.

One of London's favourite outdoor cinemas will be screening frighteningly fantastic films throughout October. At the Rooftop Cinema in Peckham, you'll be able to watch classics such as “American Psycho” and “Halloween” alongside modern-day releases such as “Beetlejuice Beetlejuice” and “Maxxxine”. They're also throwing a big Halloween bash on 26 October.

Popular event organizers Perplex are hosting their biggest Halloween party to date. They're taking over the One Marylebone venue for three successive days, bringing a jam-packed DJ line-up to the grand Grade-I listed church. The festivities are themed after the Mexican Day of the Dead, so you can expect a lot of fascinating fancy dress.

Contemporary gastropub The Parakeet in Kentish Town is throwing a Halloween party this year, with some of their favourite DJs coming down to play house, disco, RnB, and party bangers until late. They'll be sure to move the tables aside so there's room for dancing, and there's free entry all night long.

Midnight Apothecary is a garden hideaway serving cocktails atop the Brunel Museum, but more than that, its name sounds like something straight out of a Halloween story. Held across two nights, their Halloween Spooktacular promises incredibly carved pumpkin lanterns, firepits to hire, s'mores kits and sparklers for sale, batty bar staff, and the best Halloween potions in London. Tickets include an optional guided descent into Brunel's very spooky underground chamber.

On Halloween proper, Beetlejuice, the titular scamp from Tim Burton's hit movies, will be taking over the Gravity Max venue at the Westfield Stratford mall. The urban theme park is getting into the Halloween spirit with themed decor, family-friendly fun, and various spooky surprises throughout the October half term.

Bringing a touch of Cote d'Azur elegance to St James's, Riviera is a lavish dining outlet with an indulgent menu and a carefully curated wine list. They're celebrating Halloween with a Gothic Parisian Masquerade, adding a touch of haunting sophistication to the proceedings. You'll get your mask at arrival, and a DJ and saxophonist will make sure to keep the eerie enchantment going late into the night.

This Halloween, kids can dive into an exciting adventure at the Sea Life London Aquarium with Serafina the Sea Witch. They'll help protect her ocean home by taking on magical challenges and proving themselves worthy of joining her army of ocean defenders. Families can enjoy a spooky yet fun experience while learning about marine conservation.

The All Star Lanes bowling alley in Stratford is hosting a spooktacular Halloween Frigh-Tai Party with 2-for-1 rum cocktails, rum pitchers, live DJs, and prizes for the best costumes on 1 November. Its White City sibling, on the other hand, is hosting the Bowl Halloween Special, featuring live DJs, karaoke, and shocking live entertainment.

A reconstruction of the original Globe Theatre from William Shakespeare's times, Shakespeare's Globe is following up last year's sell-out success with a new edition of ghost stories. “More…Ghost Stories” sets the stage in the Sam Wanamaker Playhouse with candlelight and haunting music before unleashing gruesome tales from the “Haunted Counties” of East Anglia.

The lavish Italian restaurants in Central London are doing mysterious and magical things for Halloween. Bocconcino Mayfair is hosting “Venetian Shadows”, a night of mystery and elegance featuring Venetian decor, masks, a magician, and more, while its Soho sibling will have an illusionist and DJs setting the vibe on Friday 1 November, followed by a Haunted Bottomless Brunch the next day.

Stylish karaoke venue BAM Karaoke Box in Westminster is celebrating the Day of the Dead with a three-day extravaganza including open mic and bandaoke, make-up artists, fancy dress competitions, and more. You can warm up for the festivities with a Halloween brunch the Saturday before the main event.

There are several Little Door venues around London, each designed as a flatshare that's been turned into a lively bar. Each one is hosting its own themed Halloween party inspired by cinema, from “Beetlejuice” and “Mean Girls” to creature features. There will be a best-dressed competition, but you can join in on the fun even if you don't have a costume – there'll be a fancy dress box so that anyone can gear up.

Join the spooktacular Halloween Bingo night at Nico's Bar in Hackney Bridge on Thursday, 31 October, hosted by the fabulous Miss Joelle and Aidan Orange. Enjoy an evening of bingo, live singing, dancing, and eerie fun, with six exciting prizes and a complimentary drink on arrival. Costumes are encouraged, so come dressed to impress.