If you love a good scare, get excited for Universal Orlando’s Halloween Horror Nights 2017! The Halloween event made its opening debut Friday, Sept 15 and runs through November 4th. If you know us, you know we love Halloween Horror Nights! This is our 6th year in a row going, and before we became bloggers, we attended just like you. As a result, we know that upgrading to a HHN 2017 express pass or taking a RIP tour isn’t always in the budget [but if you can swing it, it will save you a ton of time!] Before we get started, check out the HHN 2017 houses map which also includes information about the HHN 27 scare zones.

There are strategies to seeing all of the Halloween Horror Nights Houses in one night without an express pass and if you comment below we will tell you ours! If you don’t think you will have time to see everything, we put together this list of the top Universal Studios Halloween Horror Nights 27 houses and scare zones you should make sure to put on the top of your list. Get your tickets here and get started planning your frightful trip to Halloween Horror Nights 2017!

We obviously think you should try your best to make it to all of the houses at Universal’s HHN, but if you can’t make it to all of them, our suggestions are below. (And no, there is no Halloween Horror Night’s IT house this year…maybe in the future!) [Please forgive the quality of the photographs..taking photos inside Haunted Houses while walking can be difficult!]

Halloween Horror Nights 2017: The Best Haunted Houses You Shouldn’t Miss

The “American Horror Story Volume 2” House

This is the second year that Universal Orlando has an “American Horror Story” house at Halloween Horror Nights and it was just as fantastic as last year! Make sure to put this house at the top of your list, especially if you are a fan of the series. The American Horror Story House is the longest house at HHN27 so you get a lot of scares all in one place. It features three themes, the first is AHS Asylum, followed by AHS Coven, and finally, AHS Roanoke.

There is a clear TV screen indicator to tell you when you are moving between themes in the American Horror Story House at Halloween Horror Nights so there is no confusion at all! Many people are obsessed with either AHS Asylum or AHS Coven, so seeing these episodes brought to life was really fantastic! This house is located near the entrance of the park. If you arrive early, head to it first, and if you arrive late and there is already a huge line, head there at the end of the night.

The “SAW: Games Of Jigsaw” House

If you head to Halloween Horror Nights often, you know the houses can sometimes be more fun than legitimately scary. The thing we loved about the SAW house at Universal Studios Horror Nights was that is was truly and actually disturbing and scary! The imagery used and “traps” set were horrifying in a way that makes you feel like you were actually trapped in a SAW movie.

The coolest part of this house is that some of the scenes showcased are actually scenes from the brand new upcoming SAW movie. So if you head to Halloween Horror Nights Orlando and visit the SAW house, you will get a literal first-hand peek into a movie that hasn’t been released yet. How cool is that?

The “Dead Waters” House

The Dead Waters House is a Halloween Horror Nights Orlando original. Fun fact: the “Voodoo Queen” who is the main villain featured in Dead Waters actually used to be a member of one of Universal’s scare zones. Attendees liked the character so much that she finally got her own house!

The reason Dead Waters is on our list of top houses to visit at Universal’s Halloween Horror Nights is that it is different. If you are looking for something to break up the zombies, and serial killers, and creepy ghost children, Dead Waters transports you to a hellish swamp. You enter the house through a huge wooden riverboat and spend some of the house navigating the inside of the riverboat! It really does feel like you are walking around on a sinking ship. It came on top as one of the best halloween houses at HHN 2017! Just make sure you don’t become the Voodoo Queen’s next sacrifice!

The “Horrors Of Blumhouse” House

Like the American Horror Story Houses, there is something fun about a HHN House that blends multiple themes in one house. It seems like you get more “bang” for your time standing in line! The Horrors Of Blumhouse blends “Insidious,” “The Purge” and “Sinister” into one Halloween Horror Nights House because they were all directed by Blumhouse himself.

Although the scenes were much shorter than American Horror Story: Volume 2, Horrors Of Blumhouse offered the same cinematic action as you moved into different movie scenes in the house! All of the movie representations were very accurate, so if you are a fan of any or all of these movies, we highly recommend. If you have never seen them before, you will still enjoy the diversity that Horrors Of Blumhouse brings to Universal Horror Nights 2017.

The “Scarecrow: The Reaping” House

We highly recommend making time for this Universal Orlando Halloween Horror Nights Original! While the house is visually interesting, it makes our list for two fantastic scenes near the end of the house that feature crows. Of course, in a scarecrow house, you have to have crows, and the way Universal Orlando created these two neighboring rooms is horrifying and fantastic all at the same time!

We don’t want to give anything away, but Scarecrow: The Reaping utilizes both visual, audio, and tactile effects to transport you from one of the Universal Orlando HHN houses to a farm during the depression. Whatever you do, look out for the birds….and you may want to cover your head!

Halloween Horror Nights 2017: The Best Scare Zones You Shouldn’t Miss

The “Trick Or Treat” Scare Zone

Honestly, this scare zone is more visually stunning than scary! While there are many scare actors roaming about, you need to head to this zone to see the calming aesthetics and beautiful get up! If you are a fan of the movie “Trick Or Treat” or just love traditional Halloween in general, you need to make time to visit this scare zone during your visit to Halloween Horror Nights Orlando. Our RIP tour guide said it is basically her dream wedding venue! This is one of the best Universal scare zones to date!

The “Altars Of Horror” Scare Zone

If you don’t have time to make it to all of the houses, make sure to spend some time in the Altars Of Horror scare zone! If you love Universal Studios Halloween Horror Nights scare zones, you won’t want to miss this one. It is located at the beginning of the park so you pretty much have to pass through it, but be sure to take time to interact with the characters and take photos! This zone features the main villains from all of the Univeral Orlando Halloween Horror Nights houses! You will get to interact with characters from “The Shining” and SAW right on the streets of Universal Orlando making it one of the best Halloween scares at HHN 27!

Do you plan on heading to Universal Orlando’s Halloween Horror Nights this year? If you go or have already gone, we want to hear your favorite houses in the comments! Did you like our suggestions or do you think we missed the mark?

Please note: This post was written in collaboration with Universal Orlando Halloween Horror Nights. All opinions and statements are true and our own and do not reflect Universal’s views.