Thirteen of the Spookiest Events Happening In and Around Brisbane for Halloween 2022
From doing the monster mash at rave bingo and hitting up eerie markets to scary movies under the stars and spooky mini golf, here’s where to get your frights (and candy) this Halloween.
Thirteen of the Spookiest Events Happening In and Around Brisbane for Halloween 2022
From doing the monster mash at rave bingo and hitting up eerie markets to scary movies under the stars and spooky mini golf, here’s where to get your frights (and candy) this Halloween.
There's something for everyone to get around when it comes to Halloween, whether it's eating nauseating amounts of lollies, flexing your arts and crafts skills and fashioning yourself a costume, or pulling that five-piece (mask included) Batman get-up out of storage and donning it to feel like the superhero you really are.
Trick or treating isn't as big here as it is in the US, but we'll be damned if we won't use the occasion as an excuse for a spooky time. And, thankfully, there are plenty of eerie events and horror-themed nights happening around town for you to dive into.
Here's a list of some of the best things going on in and around Brisbane for Halloween this year, ranging from the not-so scary (night markets and a spooky-themed game of mini golf) to the truly unsettling (an old favourite: eerie movies) — and including the wild (rave bingo) and wonderful (Halloween music gigs), too.
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Putt putt fans of Brisbane — so, everyone in Brisbane — it’s time to do the monster mash while you’re tap, tap, tapping your way around a mini golf course. Until Monday, October 31, Victoria Park is getting into the Halloween spirit. The venue’s greens have had a spooky makeover and, no, missing a hole in one isn’t the most terrifying thing about your next stint on the course.
Creepy clowns, zombies, witches, spiders, toxic waste barrels, bones, pumpkins — they’re among the frightening things that’ll be improving or scaring your short game. If a haunted house was to meet up with a mini golf course, this is what it’d look like.
Bookings are essential, with the course open from 6am–10pm Sunday–Thursday and 6am–11pm Friday–Saturday. Also, making a visit between Friday, October 28–Monday, October 31 is particularly recommended. That’s when Victoria Park is hosting a Wicked Weekend, complete with Altos Tequila slushie margaritas or a non-alcoholic versions, plus added augmented-reality scares.
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Thought bingo was for your nan? Think again. It’s also for you — or perhaps, if she’s a groovy gran, for the both of you. Hijacking the traditional format of bingo with raves, conga lines and lip sync battles, Bingo Loco is 50-percent one of those strange dreams you get after eating too much cheese and 50-percent just a walloping good time.
Come Friday, October 28 at Mansfield Tavern, the MC will keep the night rolling, while confetti showers and smoke cannons will go off throughout the evening (perhaps wear your glasses). Bingo ravers will compete for ultimate glory (and prizes) over the course of multiple rounds. Given the timing, this night is all about Halloween, too. That means spooky effects, scary hosts and maybe even breaking out the ‘Monster Mash’.
Obviously, dressing to meet the spine-chilling occasion is also on the agenda. In between the traditional bingo games, you’ll be expected to groove to classic 90s rave bangers, partake in dance-offs and battle others for lip sync queen titles. Basically, be prepared for many high-octane, energetic activities — gone are the days of simply raising your hand when you’ve got a full sheet of numbers.
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West End is now home to a new Friday night market, spanning all the food, drinks and stalls you’d expect, plus live music as well, and also fire twirlers, stilt walkers and fortune tellers — and a neon forest. The destination for all of the above: Westoria, which takes place weekly from 4–10pm on Jane Street next to the regular West End Markets site.
Getting weird, wild and wonderful is the vibe here every single week; however, with Halloween upon us for 2022, the Westoria crew is ramping things up a few notches. So on Friday, October 28, it’s hosting a special Halloween edition, complete with spooky stalls, street food and sips.
Also on offer: games to fit the theme, decorations, a Halloween-inspired jumping castle, glitter face painting to help you look ghoulish, roving goblins, and other music and entertainment to suit. Entry costs $4 as usual, and the event runs through until midnight.
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If dressing up in costume is your favourite part of Halloween, then your wardrobe is getting a workout right now. And, you clearly already know one of the ace (and related) standout things about this time of year: it’s perfectly acceptable to wear those costumes anywhere and everywhere.
On Friday, October 28 from 8pm, that includes kitting up to head to iconic Brisbane music venue The Zoo. Just over a month out from its big 30th-anniversary celebrations, the venue is marking Halloween by hosting Creepshow — a one-night-only music fest that’s all about live tunes and eerie vibes. Yes, dressing up is encouraged, and heartily. There’ll even be prizes, including for best solo costume and best group.
That said, whatever you’re wearing, obviously the music is the real star of the show. Get ready to listen to Girl and Girl, Radium Dolls, Citypiss, Talk Heavy and The Dandys, all taking to the stage in Creepshow’s second year.
Image: The Zoo.
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Someone somewhere has dressed up as one of IKEA’s coveted blue bags for Halloween, or fashioned an outfit out of them for the eerie occasion. This year, in the lead up to spooky day, you can do that too if you like. Or, you can just wear whatever frightening threads you prefer, or even your normal getup, to the Swedish chain’s three-course Halloween dining experience.
Yes, two faves are joining forces: IKEA and Halloween. No, you won’t just be eating those Swedish meatballs (take children along with you, however, and that is indeed what they’ll be tucking into).
Happening at the brand’s Logan and North Lakes stores in Brisbane, the Halloween feast costs $30 for adults and $25 if you’re an IKEA Family member. On the menu: mac ‘n’ cheese, crispy fried chicken and veggie burgers, as well as pancakes with berry compote and vanilla soft serve for dessert. You’ll want to book tickets ASAP — IKEA’s food events are always popular — for 5.30pm on Friday, October 28 at North Lakes, and the same time on Saturday, October 29 at Logan.
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When Oktoberfest rolled around, Fortitude Valley’s digital darts bar Oche got into the spirit of the occasion. That’s not the only thing the venue is celebrating this month, however. Bookending its festivities is Murder on the Dart Board, a Halloween-centric shindig running over three supremely spooky days.
Well, it’ll all get about as scary as flinging projectiles at an electronic board can — so not very — but being frightened isn’t all that Halloween is about. This is the kind of party for you if you’re more into dressing up in costume and knocking back eerie-themed cocktails, all of which’ll be on the menu from Friday, October 28–Sunday, October 30.
If you’re new to Oche (pronounced ockey), it originally launched in Oslo in Norway, and opened its first Australian digs in Fortitude Valley in 2019. Lining the walls are dart boards that look exactly how you remember — but they all have an electronic component.
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Find us an occasion that isn’t improved by pie, and we’ll find you a plate full of reasons why the dish should always be on the menu. Pie suits every day, date, theme and celebration, because there’s just so many different types of it — and that includes Halloween.
Pie Town agrees, clearly, and it’s doing more than just pumping out the food it’s known for. The West End eatery is cooking up edible delights, of course — and it’s also hosting pumpkin-carving sessions. On sessions across Friday, October 28–Sunday, October 31, you’ll be given everything you need to make your own jack-o’-lantern, covering a pumpkin, tools and a drink.
Tickets cost $30 and you have three options: from 5.30–7.30pm on the Friday, for after-work ghoulishness; from 2–4pm on Saturday; and a morning session from 9.30–11.30am on Sunday.
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A trip to Nolan Drive in Morayfield comes with a little something extra from 4pm on Saturday, October 29, because that’s when the BITE Markets Halloween Spooktacular is adding some scares to the place. This is a family-friendly affair with scavenger hunts and a monster-themed disco, but if you were thinking about hitting up a market anyway and you love Halloween, consider it a two-for-one kind of event.
Expect the usual array of food, and likely some Halloween-themed treats. Opting for the sweets lineup — cakes, doughnuts, churros and poffertjes and the like — will get your tastebuds in the right mood anyway.
A shipping container setup like Hamilton’s Eat Street — complete with landscaping and a dining precinct — BITE Markets showcases local talents, so prepare to feast on meals whipped up by the best producers, food creators and artisans in the area, too. Entry costs $3 for adults — and for those driving north, there’s more than 600 car parks onsite.
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Pumpkins, lollies and dressing up in costume: they’re the parts of Halloween that suit everyone, even if you’re not a fan of scary movies. Hitting up Victoria Park’s pop-up Halloween-themed outdoor cinema night actually falls into that category, too — because while these flicks suit the occasion, they don’t include spine-tingling frights.
On Saturday, October 29, just days before Halloween itself, this inner-city patch of turf is hosting two flicks — for free, out on the grass, and with picnics welcome. It all kicks off at 6.30pm with Pixar’s supremely family-friendly Monsters, Inc, which’ll also deliver a big dose of nostalgia. Then, come 8.15pm, Tim Burton’s Edward Scissorhands will unfurl its gothic fantasy — and a prime Winona Ryder performance.
Entry doesn’t cost a thing but, if you don’t pack your own snacks and drinks, you’ll want your wallet to hit up the onsite food truck. They’ll be serving from 5.30pm. Also, this movie night is dog-friendly, but Rover will need to remain on a leash. And if you feel like getting tap, tap, tapping around a Halloween mini-golf course, too, you’ll be in the perfect place for it. That’ll cost you as well, however.
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Different people are scared by different things. Different folks can handle different levels of heat in their food, too. Do you get spooked by spice — but in a good way? If so, the Halloween Briz Chilli Fest is clearly for you.
Obviously, things will be getting hot in Rocklea at this returning fest — which is taking place around the most frightening day of the year in 2022. From 12–8pm on Saturday, October 29, everything will be tongue-tinglingly hot. Face-meltingly hot. Homer Simpson running, screaming and waving his hands around hot. That’s what happens when you spice up your weekend with a chilli festival, after all.
Adding some zest to the Rocklea Showgrounds, there’ll be plenty of stalls offering plenty of chilli — and not just in food form. Of course, there’ll be enough edible hot hot heat to help you turn several different shades, but that’s just part of the chilli fun. Chilli beer and chilli cocktails will all be on offer, and there’s usually a chilli fancy dress competition.
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Brisbane’s busy market scene loves an occasion. Mother’s Day markets, winter markets, Christmas in July markets, spring markets, festive markets — this city has seen them all, including in 2022, and will continue to do so. Accordingly, it should come as zero surprise that Halloween markets are a big thing around town, with several options popping up as October 31 approaches.
Only the Redcliffe Markets Festival of Frights will take you trick-or-treating by the Redcliffe jetty, however. Fancy a spooky theme and a killer waterside location? That’s on offer from 4pm on Saturday, October 29. Also on the bill: fireworks, a sideshow alley giving out prizes, Halloween-appropriate decorations all over the place, and music and live entertainment to fit the mood. And, a heap of food stalls serving up bites to eat, and drinks, also likely with a theme.
Entry is free, but you’ll want your wallet for all that browsing and buying — there’ll be more than 200 stalls to peruse. And yes, dressing up is welcome for this wander along Redcliffe Parade till 9pm.
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When you’re a bar that nods to all things spooky in your name, and you boast more than a couple of monster-themed pinball and arcade machines, then you’re going to like the end of October. Netherworld does, of course. Indeed, the Valley pub celebrates Halloween in the expected style each and every year.
So, what’s on the agenda, other than a few pumpkins around the place? The venue’s annual A Netherworld Halloween party is back, hitting on Monday, October 31 and getting into the spirit of the occasion on the appropriate date — on a day that the bar is normally closed, too. Expect a ghoulish night of scary fun, complete with those horror-centric pinball tables. Yes, you can call it a monster mash if you like. You know that the track will get a spin, and you know that you’re going to dance to it, creepy cocktail in hand.
The Salty Sirens will also help provide tunes, singing live onstage — and the Hellmouth Diner is catering its menu to suit the theme, too. And, there’ll be a karma keg for Bat Conservation and Rescue Qld Inc, so your drinks will help a good (and apt) cause. Plus, if you dress up for this evening of Halloween gaming goodness, you’ll score five free tokens for your trouble. You might also win the costume contest. Entry is free, with the spooky fun going down between 6pm till late.
Image: Sarah Ward.
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Sometimes, a horror movie tells everyone what they need to know about too much work and too little play. Sometimes, it wraps up a huge ongoing saga. And sometimes, a scary flick starts not only its own franchise, but sparks a US remake franchise as well. Those films? The Shining, Halloween Ends and Ringu, aka prime October viewing — and Halloween viewing, too. And yes, they’re the three features on Dendy Portside and Coorparoo‘s Halloween House of Horror lineup on Monday, October 31.
How do a couple of cinemas celebrate the spookiest day of the year? With a big-screen scary-movie takeover. This one-day fright fest spans flicks old and new at both of Dendy’s Brisbane locations. Because this is a one-night-only affair, these titles show at the same time, so you’ll need to pick your Halloween scary-movie viewing wisely.
Tickets cost $12 per film for Club Dendy members and $15 otherwise. Also, if you dress up in an October 31-appropriate costume and buy a ticket to any of the Halloween House of Horror sessions, you’ll score a free medium popcorn.
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