TAMPA, Fla. The annual Howl-O-Scream event at Busch Gardens Tampa Bayis is getting ready to unleash fear.
This year’s edition, which opens on select nights beginning September 5, offers 25 horrifying experiences, including three new fear zones, two new haunted houses, and performances.
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M.A.R.S. (new):
The Elysium, a spaceship, has crashed on Mars during a routine mission. Survivors face freezing temperatures, failing life support, and aggressive insect-like aliens. Visitors must enter the ship, reach its core, and destroy it before the threat spreads or become part of the doomed crew.
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Raven s Mill
– Lambs to Slaughter: Once a farming community, Raven s Mill is now a nightmare where scarecrows stitched from missing townspeople roam. The mill grinds flesh and bone, and every visitor becomes part of the sinister ritual.
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The Pestilence (New):
While the world moved on, one town never recovered. The Mob Doctors gas-masked figures in black coats roam the streets at night, dragging victims to the Ashen Furnace. No one knows why they re chosen, and no one escapes. Just a whisper before the needle: It s only a precaution.
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Breadcrumbs to Nowhere (New):
Deep in Havenwood Forest, a rotting cottage lures the lost with the scent of sugar and the lies of a forgotten fairy tale. Hansel and Gretel never escaped and now, they lead others to the Crone s festering lair, where the woods twist, the walls decay, and no one ever leaves.
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Murders at Buckshot Ridge (New):
They built a logging camp deep in the woods, but the forest pushed back. Now, the cabins rot, the axes drip red, and the men who once worked here have become something else entirely. The trees shift, the paths deceive and the forest keeps what it takes.
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Ragnar s Wrath:
The icy winds of Niflheim howl as you approach a charred Viking longhouse, its stench of death is a prelude to the horrors within.
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Shadows of Wonderland:
Step back into Wonderland, but not as you remember it. This warped dreamscape has come from years of torment under the Queen of Hearts reign of terror. Once playful characters have become bitter shadows, their anger fueled by Alice s abandonment. Now, you must confront this distorted reality and face a vengeful Queen who wants both Alice (and you) gone.
In addition, Howl-O-Scream includes ominous programs like Cirque X-Scream, an exhilarating stunt show that delights audiences with audacious exploits, and The Reckoning, a fight between good and evil that takes place in the depths of Hell.
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Busch Gardens Howl-O-Scream 2025 is expected to be the scariest festival yet, complete with new haunted houses, fear zones, crowds, and entertainment. Prepare yourself for screams, surprises, and a terrifying experience that will stay with you long after you’ve left.
On some nights between September 5 and November 2, after 7 p.m., Howl-O-Scream is available as a separately ticketed event.
Currently, during the Monster Sale, tickets are $34.99.
Front-of-line admission to all five haunted houses is available with Front Line Fear passes, which start at $69.99. Ten roller coasters at Busch Gardens are now front-of-line accessible with the Front Line Fear Extreme pass.
The Howl-O-Scream VIP Tour, which starts at $299.99 per person (two-person minimum), offers the best experience possible, including limitless front-of-line access, a lunch, private refreshments, and preferred parking.
Given the graphic material, parental discretion is urged. Costumes are not permitted.
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