Fall travelers building a Hong Kong itinerary now have a dated scare product to plan around: Ocean Park Halloween Fest 2026 runs September 5 through November 1 with a first collaboration from Jackson Wang’s horror IP, Under the Castle.
The official festival page locks the multi-week window, names a gothic castle zone at The Summit, and tells guests to start planning early, even while full October scare calendars and final ticket packages are still incomplete.
- Festival dates: September 5 to November 1, 2026 at Ocean Park Hong Kong.
- Headline partner: Jackson Wang’s original fantasy IP, Under the Castle.
- Where it sits: A new gothic castle zone at The Summit of the park.
- Traveler decision: Lock Hong Kong fall hotel and park days against this window now.
- Still open: Full October scare schedule and final ticketing details remain incomplete.
According to Ocean Park’s Halloween Fest 2026 page, the park is framing the season as a “groundbreaking collaboration” with Under the Castle, the original fantasy IP created and creatively directed by global music star Jackson Wang. The park says a dark force is landing at The Summit, where a mysterious ancient castle rises as the anchor for a gothic, photo-heavy scare zone.
Independent trade coverage matches the same core facts. Marketing Interactive reports that Ocean Park is partnering with Under the Castle for the upcoming Halloween season, placing a dark gothic-themed zone at The Summit with a newly constructed castle setting, themed food and beverage, interactive game booths, exclusive merchandise, and planned off-site encounters across Hong Kong.
What is actually confirmed for fall 2026
The dates are the first hard traveler fact. Ocean Park lists Halloween Fest 2026 as September 5 to November 1. That is a multi-week seasonal overlay, not a single Halloween night, so hotel inventory and flight choices for late September and all of October now have a park-side calendar peg.
The creative partner is the second hard fact. The official page names Under the Castle as a popular original fantasy IP created and creatively directed by Jackson Wang, and it presents the collaboration as a debut at Ocean Park. Marketing Interactive quotes Ocean Park marketing head Franklin Law saying the park is excited to announce the collaboration as part of Halloween Fest and that more details would follow in August as the park builds a fresh immersive Halloween experience.
The place identity matters for day planning. The Summit is not the lower Waterfront entry cluster. Guests who want the castle zone need to budget cable car or Ocean Express transfer time into the highlands half of the park, then plan return light for night shows or lower-park dining. That is a different pacing problem than a Main Street haunt that sits beside the gates.
Ocean Park also says selected October dates will unlock additional thrills beyond the base festival layer. The page does not yet publish a full house-by-house calendar for every scare, which is normal this early, but it is a planning gap. Treat September 5 to November 1 as the booking frame and treat peak October nights as the likely densest scare inventory until the park posts exact dates.
Why Under the Castle changes the Hong Kong park decision
Hong Kong already has two major themed parks that can fill a short city break. Deep Arrival’s Hong Kong Disneyland park guide remains the planning base for the Disney side of a multi-park trip. Ocean Park’s move is a bid to make its own fall season feel like a must-book product rather than a secondary daytime animal and coaster park.
Jackson Wang’s name is the distribution hook. Music fans who would not otherwise research Ocean Park now have a searchable celebrity and IP tag attached to a dated festival. The park’s own language about broadening Halloween Fest “beyond Hong Kong” signals that it wants regional and long-haul attention, not only local repeat visits.
Marketing Interactive reports that Ocean Park sees Under the Castle as a creative partner with a distinctive world, strong visual identity, and immersive storytelling potential. The same report says the activation aims to integrate high-fashion gothic aesthetics with seasonal horror experiences, and that local creative agency Uth Creative is involved in the campaign. Those details explain the look travelers should expect in marketing stills: dark, stylish, castle-forward, and merchandisable.
The limited-edition characters Pumpkie and Spookie, named on the official festival page, are another practical tell. Character merch and photo ops often drive early sellouts of souvenir lines even when ride capacity is fine. If someone in your group cares more about the IP collectibles than the scares, plan an earlier visit inside the festival window rather than waiting for the final October nights.
How to plan a trip around the festival window
Start with the city break math. A visitor flying into Hong Kong International for a three- or four-night stay can now place Ocean Park on one day or night inside September 5 to November 1 and keep Hong Kong Disneyland on another day without inventing fake event dates. Use the published Ocean Park festival window for hotel hold dates before peak October rates harden.
Then separate daytime and scare priorities. Ocean Park is still a full marine-life, animal, and thrill park by day. Halloween Fest layers scares and themed zones on top. Families with young children may want a daytime ticket for the animals and coasters and skip late scare inventory. Teen and adult groups chasing the castle and October unlocks should prefer dates the park later marks as full scare nights.
Budget the Summit transfer. The castle zone is not a walk-in from the taxi drop-off. Build at least one extra transit hop into any itinerary that treats Under the Castle as the headliner, and recheck last cable car or Ocean Express times on the day you visit. A brilliant haunt is useless if you are still queueing for the uphill ride when the scare cycle peaks.
Watch ticketing channels rather than social screenshots. Ocean Park’s page tells guests to stay tuned for more details and to start planning early. Marketing Interactive likewise points horror fans, music fans, and families to official Ocean Park channels for updates and ticketing information. Do not buy from unofficial resellers claiming exclusive Under the Castle night access until the park publishes package names and inclusions.
If you are already building an autumn Hong Kong trip around water as well as parks, Deep Arrival’s earlier note on Star Voyager’s Hong Kong autumn sailings is useful chronology for the same September to November city window. A park day and a short cruise can share one hotel base if embarkation sits near the harbour, but they are separate booking products with separate cutoffs.
What is still unknown, and what is not
Unknowns remain real. The official page has not yet published a full matrix of which haunted attractions run every night, exact adult versus family ticket SKUs for Under the Castle, age guidelines for the scare zone, or whether the castle is a walk-through included with park admission or a paid add-on. Marketing Interactive notes that more details were expected in August, so the next operator update is part of the product story, not a reason to ignore the dates already posted.
Confirmed facts are enough for a first booking decision. Festival dates, partner name, Summit location, gothic castle framing, character merch, and the park’s public invitation to plan early are all on the record. That is enough to hold flights and hotels and to keep Ocean Park on the shortlist of dated fall products in Hong Kong.
Do not confuse this with Hong Kong Disneyland seasonal overlays. Disneyland remains a separate ticket, map, and hours product. A traveler who wants both parks needs two day budgets, two transport plans, and two sets of app downloads. The Jackson Wang collaboration does not transfer any entitlement across the harbour to Lantau.
Also do not treat entertainment-trade summaries as ticket rules. Trades correctly report the collaboration and zone concept. Only Ocean Park’s own ticketing and operating pages can settle price, height or age rules, and last-entry times once those pages update.
| If you | What to do |
|---|---|
| Are booking Hong Kong hotels for fall 2026 | Hold nights that cover at least one day inside September 5 to November 1 so Ocean Park Halloween Fest stays possible. |
| Want the Jackson Wang castle zone as the headliner | Plan Summit transit time, prefer later official scare nights once posted, and watch for paid add-on rules. |
| Travel with young children who skip intense haunts | Use a daytime Ocean Park visit for animals and rides, and treat scare inventory as optional, not required. |
| Are splitting the trip with Hong Kong Disneyland | Keep separate day budgets and tickets; use the Disneyland guide for Disney logistics and this festival for Ocean Park fall nights. |
| Need final prices before purchasing | Wait for Ocean Park’s published ticket packages rather than resale claims about exclusive Under the Castle access. |
- Book the city window first: Protect September 5 to November 1 hotel and flight holds before peak October rates lock.
- Reserve Summit time: Treat The Summit castle zone as an uphill commitment, not a gate-side walk-through.
- Split park days: Do not try to stack full Ocean Park Halloween and Hong Kong Disneyland on the same exhausted day.
- Follow official tickets only: Buy when Ocean Park posts packages; ignore unverified third-party scare night claims.
- Recheck October unlocks: Selected October dates will add thrills, so re-open the official page before finalizing scare-focused nights.
For most travelers, the useful move this week is not a blind ticket purchase. It is freezing a Hong Kong stay that still allows an Ocean Park Halloween Fest day once the park finishes the scare calendar and price table. The collaboration is real, the dates are real, and the Summit location is real. The remaining unknowns are operational details, not a reason to pretend the festival is undecided.
When is Ocean Park Halloween Fest 2026?
Ocean Park lists the festival from September 5 to November 1, 2026. Treat that full window as the planning frame until the park posts denser October scare night calendars.
What is the Jackson Wang collaboration at Ocean Park?
It is a first Ocean Park partnership with Under the Castle, Jackson Wang’s original fantasy horror IP, anchored by a gothic castle zone at The Summit.
Is the Under the Castle zone included with regular park admission?
Ocean Park has not yet published final inclusion rules on the festival page. Wait for official ticket packages before assuming free or paid access.
Should I book Hong Kong Disneyland and Ocean Park on the same trip?
Yes if you have at least two park days. They are separate tickets and maps; use one day for each rather than forcing both into a single rushed itinerary.
Where should I check for ticket updates?
Use Ocean Park’s official Halloween Fest page and park channels. Trade articles confirm the collaboration but do not sell tickets or set operating rules.
