Theme Parks Adopt Halloween Events to Attract Visitors; Costumes, Emphasis on Safety Promoted to Draw Families

By Miyu Okada / Yomiuri Shimbun Staff Writer

15:47 JST, October 29, 2024

As drinking bans and other strict measures to keep Halloween crowds away are adopted in more and more popular places across the nation, theme parks have begun using the holiday to bring in visitors. With people finding it harder to go out in costume in cities, these parks have adopted a strategy of promoting themselves as safe places to bring a family.

At Immersive Fort Tokyo, an indoor theme park, visitors can enjoy an immersive experience that makes them feel like they are characters in a movie. The theme park is holding a Halloween-themed participatory event from mid-September to Nov. 30.

During the event, advertised by the park as creating a “new Halloween mecca,” visitors are, in principle, free to wear whatever they want to disguise themselves; the price of admission for adults is also temporarily reduced from ¥6,800 to ¥4,800. The park has implemented strict security measures, including searching all bags upon entry.

Inside, performers dressed as zombies roam the facility, and visitors don masks and dance, creating an atmosphere of fun and excitement.

“Even with a child, I can safely enjoy something out of the ordinary,” said a smiling 31-year-old female office worker from Tsuchiura, Ibaraki Prefecture, who visited the facility with her elementary school-age son.

Since opening in March, the facility has been particularly popular with visitors in their 20s and 30s. “By creating a place where people can dress up and have fun without worrying about anything, we are expanding our customer base, attracting new groups such as families with children,” an official with the facility said.

Tighter restrictions

The number of people going out in costume to bustling city areas on Halloween has increased rapidly in recent years. About 40,000 people are estimated to have gathered in the Shibuya district of Tokyo on a single night during the 2019 Halloween season, causing a lot of problems such as making noise and leaving trash behind.

The backlash against these activities has grown stronger. “They get together and cause big disturbances, make a mess of the town and go home,” said Shinjuku Mayor Kenichi Yoshizumi. Shinjuku Ward has banned drinking alcohol on the streets on Halloween. Shibuya Ward has banned drinking alcohol on the streets at night throughout the year, starting this month.

At the same time, Halloween is becoming established as a seasonal event. According to research firm Intage Inc., the number of people who said they had something they wanted to do or somewhere they wanted to go on Halloween this year increased 20% from last year. Of these, half of respondents who said they would go out into a bustling city area said that safety would be very important for them.

“With restrictions being tightened, theme parks that seem to meet needs like the demand for safety are seen as a positive option,” one analyst with the company pointed out.

The number of visitors to theme parks has recovered quickly from the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic. In order to attract more customers, theme parks are trying to capture demand from people who have no place to go on Halloween.

Every day through early November, Tokyo Disney Resort is allowing visitors to come to either of its parks dressed as movie characters, something which is normally prohibited. Yomiuriland is also offering a discount on admission to visitors in even partial costume. Universal Studios Japan held a special all-night Halloween event one night this month. “Throughout the whole year, this has become the event that attracts the most visitors,” a Universal Studios Japan official said.