Fright Nights is back for 2026, and this year marks a huge milestone as Thorpe Park celebrates 25 years of Fright Nights.

For 2026, the park has introduced one brand-new maze, Tenement, alongside returning favourites Trailers, Stitches, DeadBeat and Survival Games. There are also new shows, returning scare zones and plenty of entertainment happening around the park throughout the night.

Fright Nights runs from 2nd October until 1st November 2026. Maze tickets can be purchased on the day, but we highly recommend booking before your visit for the best deals and to make sure you don’t miss out.

Tenement - New For 2026

Tenement is the big new maze for Fright Nights 2026 and takes place inside Nova Lux Senior Living, an old people’s home where the lights have gone out and everyone appears to have disappeared. You enter as engineers sent in to investigate the power failure, but it quickly becomes clear that something has gone very wrong inside, with the sinister LUXIVORA waiting within.

Unlike the other Fright Nights mazes, your group is guided through the attraction by two people carrying torches. The torches switch on and off throughout the experience, controlling what you can see and helping build tension as you make your way deeper into Nova Lux. Your first stop is the reception of the care home, where you quickly come face-to-face with one of its residents.

There are some fantastic effects inside Tenement, including a moving door corridor which reminded us a lot of Halloween Horror Nights, fake lifts, vibrating floors and even an optional crawl tunnel. The fact that the crawl tunnel is optional appears to mean there are two possible routes at that point, which adds another interesting element to the experience.

One thing we really liked is that photos and videos are strictly prohibited inside, even during the press night. It means the maze remains a genuine surprise for everyone experiencing it for the first time and stops some of its biggest moments being spoiled online.

The ending is another highlight, taking guests into a mirror maze where actors use the reflections to their advantage. It’s genuinely difficult to work out where the exit is while scares are happening around you, and it finishes the attraction on a really strong note.

The effects, actors and costumes throughout Tenement feel like a big step up for Thorpe Park Fright Nights. It has a much more premium feel than many previous mazes and, at points, genuinely feels closer to the style of attraction you would expect at Halloween Horror Nights.

Our biggest criticism is the group size. For a premium maze that isn’t included within the standard maze bundles and requires its own ticket, the groups feel too large. Some of the effects are only really visible to those towards the front, meaning guests further back can miss some of the biggest moments.

Thorpe Park does try to solve this halfway through the experience by turning the group around. The two guides swap positions, meaning guests who were previously at the front end up towards the back and those who started at the back get a chance to experience the maze from the front. It’s a clever idea, but smaller groups would still improve the overall experience considerably.

Even with that criticism, Tenement is a fantastic new maze and one of the most ambitious attractions we’ve seen at Fright Nights. We came out wondering what Thorpe Park could possibly do next.

We’re also very interested to see what is revealed during the behind-the-scenes tour and whether photos will finally be allowed inside!

Rebel Ball - New For 2026

Located at Launch Pad, Rebel Ball is a new scare zone and entertainment area combined into one. Rather than being a traditional scare zone where guests simply walk through and encounter actors, the idea is that there should almost always be something happening in the area.

The dancers, known as The Rebels, perform on the stage while fire effects go off around them, with a small fire show and DJ set also forming part of the entertainment. Actors roam around the area interacting with guests, making Rebel Ball feel much more alive than a standard stage show.

The costumes immediately reminded us of the original Lucifer’s Lair fire dancers from a few years ago, and the dancing itself is fantastic. Posters around Launch Pad have also been changed to fit the Rebel Ball theme, helping the whole area feel like a proper takeover rather than simply a stage dropped into the existing space.

There are plenty of food and drink units around the area too, giving guests somewhere to sit down, enjoy the atmosphere and take a break. Lucifer’s Lair attempted something similar in previous years, but Rebel Ball feels like it uses the space and the idea much more effectively.

Our main criticism is the video content playing behind the dancers and around the area, which has a very obvious AI-generated look. It doesn’t feel as original as the rest of the entertainment and is a shame considering how much effort has clearly gone into the performers and costumes.

The fire effects also feel slightly tagged onto the stage show at times, almost as though they’ve been moved here simply because they’re no longer being used at Lucifer’s Lair. We would have loved to see the full fire show return in some form because that was always one of the highlights of Fright Nights.

Even so, Rebel Ball is a really fun new addition and feels like an area with plenty of potential over the next few weeks.

Creature Campus: Reunion Reckoning - New For 2026

Creature Campus is back for 2026 with Reunion Reckoning, bringing together familiar faces from previous versions of the Stealth Plaza show. Amity High, Lycanthorpe High, the Sorcerers and Witches, Medusa and the Franks all return for what feels like one huge Fright Nights reunion.

The show begins with the different groups fighting against each other to prove who is the most powerful, before eventually coming together at the end for a huge party. It feels like a celebration of everything Creature Campus has become over the past few years and, in many ways, almost feels like one final big reunion before something new eventually takes its place.

The music, costumes and dancing are stronger than ever, and seeing Amity High and Lycanthorpe High return is particularly good. The stage remains largely the same as it was in 2025, although there are a few changes, including new graffiti referencing older characters, more smoke effects and the removal of the pole actors previously used on the left-hand side of the stage.

Interestingly, the higher section of the stage isn’t used very much this year apart from towards the beginning of the show. That doesn’t hurt the performance, but it does make the staging feel slightly different from previous versions.

We would also love to see some of these characters roaming Stealth Plaza before the performances. We didn’t see them outside of the show during the press night, although that may simply have been down to the nature of the event.

Reunion Reckoning feels bigger and more celebratory than previous versions of Creature Campus, but it also leaves us wondering what could possibly replace a show of this scale in the future — and whether Stealth Plaza will continue to be its home.

The Conjuring 4D Experience - New For 2026

The 4D theatre on Big Easy Boulevard finally has a new Fright Nights film for 2026 with The Conjuring 4D Experience.

Unfortunately, we didn’t get the chance to see it during the press night, but we’re looking forward to going back and giving it a watch. It’s also the perfect place to hide from the huge Fright Nights crowds for a little while!

Trailers

Trailers returns for 2026 with another new room.

The section immediately after Dolls, which featured The Hollow Veil from Roots of Evil last year, has now been replaced by Blood Red Roses. The new scene references the former My Bloody Valentine maze and brings another piece of Fright Nights history back to life for the 25th anniversary.

It’s great to see another old attraction referenced inside Trailers, although this particular part of the maze appears to be slightly cursed, as the rooms placed here only seem to last for one season.

This year’s cast is very strong and, despite Trailers having been around for several years now, we still got plenty of jump scares throughout. The costumes and make-up remain really good, and the actors make excellent use of a maze that most returning guests will now know fairly well.

We do still miss the original pre-show. It was removed last year and replaced with more of a safety speech, but the old introduction helped set up the attraction and made entering the maze feel like more of an experience.

We’re also interested to see what the future holds for Trailers. Individual scenes have been updated over the years, but the overall story and structure have remained largely unchanged. We’d love to eventually see the maze receive a bigger refresh while keeping its clever concept of celebrating Fright Nights attractions from the past.

DeadBeat

DeadBeat returns for 2026, bringing its sinister club back to life.

The maze remains largely unchanged from previous years, with pounding music, heavy bass, colourful scenes and some great costumes throughout. It still makes excellent use of a relatively small space, but it’s starting to feel a little old compared with some of the newer attractions.

Unfortunately, the flying actor effect towards the end of the maze wasn’t working during our visit. When it is operating properly, it’s one of the attraction’s biggest moments, so its absence was noticeable.

However, we did see some effects working that we’ve rarely encountered before, including drop doors in some of the scenes. It feels as though RWS, the new entertainment company working on Fright Nights, has looked closely at the existing mazes and questioned why certain effects haven’t been used more often.

That’s a really positive change. Even small effects can completely transform a scene when they’re working properly.

There were still some very good jump scares throughout DeadBeat and the cast made excellent use of the space. We just left wanting a little more from the maze overall.

Stitches

Stitches is back for another year, with the Toymaker once again waiting to add guests to her collection.

Thorpe Park said there would be new characters for 2026, but unfortunately we didn’t encounter any of them during our run. Hopefully we’ll see them during another visit because new characters could really help freshen up an attraction that has now been running for several years.

That said, the maze was packed with actors during the press night. There were even two performers in the final corridor, which is impressive considering how small that section is, and we still got some genuinely good scares despite knowing the maze well.

Sadly, the bungee effect also wasn’t working during our visit. When operating properly it’s a great scare, but it takes up a huge amount of space inside the maze. We can’t help wondering whether that section could eventually be removed and replaced with one, or perhaps even two, completely new rooms.

Stitches is still a lot of fun and the 2026 cast is strong. We just hope we get to meet some of those promised new characters over the next few weeks.

Survival Games

Survival Games returns for 2026 with another revised storyline and new characters.

This year, an airborne virus called Harmony has been introduced. Guests learn about the outbreak at the start of the maze before entering the arena and fighting for the cure.

It’s good to see Thorpe Park continuing to refine Survival Games rather than simply leaving it untouched each year, although we’ll always miss the original free-flow version of the maze where guests could choose between multiple routes.

There are some really strong scares throughout, and the chainsaw run-out at the end remains one of the most entertaining finishes at Fright Nights — especially when you’ve got someone in your group who scares much more easily than everyone else.

The cast was once again excellent during our visit. In fact, that’s one of the biggest strengths across the entire event this year: there are some incredibly talented performers working throughout the mazes.

Survival Games remains a good attraction, but we would love to see the multi-route concept return one day.

Lucifer’s Lair

Lucifer’s Lair feels like it has taken one of the biggest cuts for Fright Nights 2026.

The stage has moved to Launch Pad, while the hugely popular fire show has disappeared completely. Lilith also appears to be missing from this year’s line-up, along with the high-danger performance acts that previously gave the area so much energy.

In previous years, Jamie & Charlee performed stunts including chainsaw juggling, fire swords and knife throwing as part of the Hell’s Angels Show.

Jamie & Charlee, we miss you!

There are still some familiar elements remaining. Confess Your Sins to Lucifer is back, alongside the Dammed and Dull cages, while Lucifer’s minions continue to roam around the area interacting with guests. Lucifer himself also comes down from the stage at points rather than remaining in one position all night, which is a nice touch.

Unfortunately, the loss of the fire dancers, live music, fire show and high-thrill circus acts has completely changed the atmosphere. One of the most noticeable things missing from the scare zone is simply the fire itself.

Lucifer’s Lair was once one of our favourite areas at Fright Nights, but this year it feels like the weakest. It leaves us wondering whether 2026 could potentially be its final year.

There’s also an unusual divide between Lucifer’s Lair and The Crows, with hay bales being used to separate the two areas. With the number of guests Fright Nights attracts, we’ll be interested to see how long those survive!

Purgatory Town

Purgatory Town returns for its second year and already feels noticeably stronger than it did in 2025.

There are more actors throughout the scare zone this year, which means more characters to meet and much more happening as guests walk through Big Easy Boulevard. The performers interact really well with visitors and make the whole area feel alive.

Last year, parts of Purgatory Town occasionally felt slightly rushed. This year it feels more established and more confident in what it wants to be.

We did notice that some pieces of theming and signage from 2025 hadn’t returned during the press night, including some lamp post signs and sticker overlays. It will be interesting to see whether those are added as the event gets fully underway.

A new Chupa Chups experience is also being installed within the area. It wasn’t open during our visit, but it sounds like it will be a photo experience where guests receive sweets at the end.

Purgatory Town was fun last year, but the extra performers and stronger overall atmosphere make it feel much better put together for 2026.

The Crows

The Crows are back and have moved into a brand-new home underneath the Nemesis Inferno lift hill.

The new location works incredibly well. The scare zone looks fantastic after dark and features two different routes through the space. The path towards the right is more open, while the left-hand route feels darker and more enclosed, allowing the actors to create different types of scares depending on where guests choose to walk.

The cast already seems to understand the new area incredibly well. Actors make good use of the layout, while the sacrifice scene from last year’s version has also returned towards the end.

The new scare zone mixes old and new sets, keeping some familiar elements of The Crows while adapting the experience to its completely different location.

The Crows have become one of Fright Nights’ most recognisable groups since being introduced during 2020. Their mask design worked particularly well during the Covid restrictions at the time, allowing performers’ face coverings to become part of the costumes rather than feeling out of place.

Six years later, they’re still here and remain a Fright Nights favourite.

We’re not sure what the future holds for The Crows, but we’re happy to see them return for the 25th anniversary. The strong cast, beautiful new setting and Crows Bar at the end of the scare zone all make this one of the better returning areas for 2026.

Merch

With 2026 marking the 25th anniversary of Fright Nights, we expected to see considerably more limited-edition merchandise and anniversary products.

Unfortunately, the range feels relatively small.

There is a new Fright Nights pin, magnet, top and hoodie, alongside a Tenement T-shirt featuring the maze logo. Something fans have been asking for over many years is a shirt featuring all of the mazes, and while Thorpe Park released one in 2025, we couldn’t find a 2026 version during our visit.

Hopefully one is still on the way.

One of the better additions is the new range of Fright Nights reusable cups available from bars around the park. Following the themed ride cups released during the summer, these new designs celebrate past and present Fright Nights attractions including Creek Freak Massacre, Experiment 10, Platform 15, Trailers, The Freezer and Tenement.

They’re a nice way of celebrating the event’s history, but for such a major anniversary we would still have liked to see a much bigger merchandise range.

Food

Fright Nights always brings huge crowds to Thorpe Park, meaning the park’s normal food outlets can get extremely busy.

As usual, a number of additional food units have been brought in for the event, giving guests plenty of extra options throughout the park. There’s a huge amount of food available this year, although a few prices were still missing during the press night.

One disappointing element is the signage on several of the temporary units, which has a very obvious and over-the-top AI-generated style. Considering the amount of theming and original artwork used elsewhere around Fright Nights, it’s a shame to see it appear so heavily here.

We’re looking forward to trying more of the food throughout the event and finding out which options are the best. From our first look, the area outside Tidal Wave and the Thorpe Mega Store appears to be one of the strongest food locations this year.

Overall

So, Fright Nights 2026: 25 Years of Fear — is it worth visiting?

Yes.

This year’s event feels like one of the freshest Fright Nights line-ups we’ve seen for a long time. Tenement gives the event the major new maze it needed for its 25th anniversary and delivers some genuinely impressive effects, strong performances and a level of immersion that feels much closer to something you would expect from Halloween Horror Nights.

The returning mazes also benefit from particularly strong casts this year. Even attractions we’ve experienced plenty of times before managed to catch us with some excellent scares, while smaller changes and effects that haven’t always been used in previous years help make them feel fresher.

It’s not perfect. Lucifer’s Lair has clearly been cut back significantly, and losing the fire show, live music, dancers and high-thrill acts is a major loss. Some of the older mazes could also benefit from more substantial updates over the next few years.

However, the new additions make a big difference. Rebel Ball is a really fun new area with plenty of potential, while Creature Campus brings back familiar characters for what feels like a huge celebration of its previous shows. Purgatory Town feels stronger in its second year and The Crows have adapted brilliantly to their new home underneath Nemesis Inferno.

The arrival of RWS as the new entertainment company working on Fright Nights also appears to have brought fresh attention to some of the smaller details throughout the event, particularly inside the mazes.

Overall, Fright Nights is back with a bang for 2026. There are areas we would still like to see improved, but the line-up feels strong, the performers are excellent and Tenement is exactly the sort of major new attraction the event needed for its 25th anniversary.

A huge thank you to Thorpe Park for inviting us along for the night.

Make sure you check out Fright Nights: 25 Years of Fear, running from 2nd October until 1st November 2026.