Halloween Horror Nights Dining Pass is back once again at Universal Studios Hollywood and epicurious horror-seekers looking to sink their teeth into everything there is to offer during the event will find plenty of items to tempt the palate — and the wallet. The special lanyard offers the chance to save money as you chomp and sip your way through all the themed fare they’ve cooked up for this year.
Is it worth it? Here’s everything you need to know about Halloween Horror Nights Dining Pass during Universal Halloween Horror Nights 2026 at Universal Studios Hollywood.
In essence, the Halloween Horror Nights Dining Pass is a prepaid option that gives you a physical card that you can use to redeem for select food and drink items from select locations around the park. The pass is on a lanyard and features a barcode that can be scanned to redeem eligible menu items.
There are dozens of exclusive food and drink options to choose from that are themed exclusively for Halloween Horror Nights and the good news is almost all of it (excluding alcoholic beverages) is eligible with the Halloween Horror Nights Dining Pass. Additionally, many regular non-themed menu items at most establishments are also available to redeem. Here’s a rundown on how it all works.
What to Expect
Each Dining Pass includes a total of six item redemptions:
- 2 eligible Entrée Items which typically includes a meal-sized portion of food
- 4 eligible Select Items which typically include sides, snacks, desserts or beverage items.
How Much?
- Cost: $65 plus tax per person
Where To Buy?
- Dining Pass is available for purchase at kiosks located in the theme park as well as at participating theme park restaurants.
- You can also pre-purchase the dining pass online.
Know Before You Go
- All eligible menu items are designated by a Halloween Horror Nights Dining Pass logo on the restaurant menu boards.
- There are two different icons to differentiate Entree Items vs. Select Items.
- It’s important to note that menu boards that do not feature prices also do not indicate dining pass eligibility. Sometimes you will have to look at menus closer to the registers to verify which items are Dining Pass eligible.
- The Halloween Horror Nights Dining Pass can only be used during the Halloween Horror Nights event and must be fully used on the night purchased.
- Any remaining entitlements on a Halloween Horror Nights Dining Pass are forfeited at the end of the event on the day of purchase. That means you cannot save redemptions for another visit.
- Menu items are limited in number and are subject to availability. Popular menu items can and do sell out on a nightly basis.
Is it Worth It?
At $65 a pop, this is not a cheap upgrade to your evening so the value of it is dependent on your priorities for your evening. Halloween Horror Nights is about 6-7 hours of play time so if you’re willing to devote time to enjoy everything the pass has to offer, this could be a very worthwhile option.
To make sure you get the most value out of your six tabs, you want to try to redeem them on anything that’s going to be more than $10.83. Generally speaking, you’re looking at an Entree Item price range of $10.99 to $18.99 all of which makes choices of what to eat pretty easy. However, you’re also looking at a Select Item price range of $6.99 to $12.99 which makes it just a little tougher to clear depending on what you order. But as long as the average of the six items you get still comes out to at least $10.83, then you’re definitely saving some money.
Below is a look at how we fared. Note that the below a la carte item prices do include sales tax.
How we used our Dining Pass
Burnt Ends Walking Taco (20.84)
Road Scrapin’s ($18.65)
The Final Peel ($9.87)
The Prince of Darkness Cake ($9.87)
Pecan and Whiskey Bread Pudding ($9.32)
One Wish Churro ($9.87)Total Entrees: $39.49
Total Select: $38.93TOTAL: $78.42 ($13.07 per item)
TOTAL SAVINGS: $13.42
So you can see our total average on the Dining Passes was above the $10.83 target average which means vs paying a la carte prices, we DID get some value out of the Dining Pass.
It’s important to note that If you are an Annual Pass member, depending on your pass level, you could potentially score an equal or better deal by simply purchasing items a la carte and using your annual pass discount instead. With that said, our savings of $13.42 per item was better than we would have fared paying for the items a la carte and using an Annual Pass discount.
We were able to make the pricing of the Halloween Horror Nights Dining Pass work to our advantage but this is still a numbers game. To say this is an easy value would not be accurate as you definitely have to pre-game your night to ensure you’re maximizing your value. You also want to be prepared with backup solutions as some items are very popular and will sell out. Ultimately, you have to look at your interest level in the menu items available and weigh your… appetite! Perhaps the biggest unexpected cost in the whole experience will be the price of your time as the more time you spend waiting in line for food and drink, the less time you will have for seeing all of the evening’s attractions and entertainment.
The easiest way we can recommend to make this worth your while is to check out if the most expensive entrees are appealing to you. As a pro tip we also recommend checking if any of the specialty (non-alcoholic) drinks are also of interest as those carry the highest price tags and will help get the most bang for your buck. If at least one non-alcoholic drink and a few of the most expensive items are of interest to you then you should be in a good place to ensure you are getting your money’s worth from the pass.
Our recommendation is that the Dining Pass works best if you share one pass between two people. The two entrees and four snacks split amongst two (or even three or four) people is a great way to stretch your dollar while still getting to sample a wide assortment of the event-specific offerings.
Food and Drink Options
Ready to take a look at the menus and see if the pricing works to your advantage? We’ve got a full list of all the Halloween Horror Nights themed food and drink for this year listed not only with the price but also if they are Dining Pass eligible.
The good thing is that the Halloween Horror Nights Dining Pass is available for almost ALL of the themed food and non-alcoholic specialty options PLUS you can also use it for many regular items all around the park, not just on the special event-themed items.
Full Menus
MORE INFO: MENU: All Food and Drink (with prices) at 2026 Halloween Horror Nights Hollywood
See it for Yourself
Halloween Horror Nights returns this year to Universal Studios Hollywood (Thursday, September 3, 2026) and to Universal Studios Florida (Friday, August 28, 2026) and both events run select nights through Sunday, November 1, 2026.
DON’T MISS: Get details and ticket information!
Craving More Terror?
Don’t miss any of our in-depth guides and coverage with everything you need to know!
MORE INFO:Â Check out all MouseInfo coverage for Halloween Horror Nights
