With traditional Mexican parades, cemetery tours, spooky club nights, escape rooms and more, the Belgian capital is the ideal place to celebrate Halloween.
No need to worry if you haven't made Halloween plans yet: The Brussels Times has put together a guide of last-minute activities that will send shivers up your spine. And you will have tomorrow's public holiday to rest and recover!
Día de Muertos Festival, Marolles, until 4 November
The entire Marolles neighbourhood will be celebrating el día de los muertos (Day of the Dead) this week, with an explosion of colour, Mexican altars, vibrant parades, brightly coloured flowers, fireworks and Latino music.
Credit: Día de Muertos Marolles-Bruxelles / Facebook
Hosted by the Bruegel Cultural Centre, there will be a large altar lit with candles to honour deceased relatives with messages, photos, candles, flowers and souvenirs, where everyone is invited to make an offering.
There will also be a musical inauguration and the opportunity to enjoy a glass of mezcal or hot chocolate with the living and the dead.
Find more information here.
Madame Moustache - Back from the dead, The Viage, Tuesday 31 October
The legendary Madame Moustache club has risen from the ashes after going up in flames last September. It is now taking over The Viage for what promises to be a historic Halloween night with a pop, soul and disco DJ set to please the masses.
Credit: Madame Moustache Brussels / Facebook
The programme includes eclectic music and visuals, themed cocktails, burlesque, circus performers, a fortune-teller, and more. There will also be free shots upon arrival for anyone dressed in costume.
Find more information here.
Horror film screenings, Cinéma Aventure, Tuesday 31 October
Independent and alternative Cinéma Aventure will be offering a horror double bill on Tuesday evening, celebrating Halloween and cult classics. 'The Tingler' (1959) will be screened at 20:10 and 'Witchfinder General' (1968) at 22:10, both starring Vincent Price.
Credit: visit.brussels
'The Tingler', directed by William Castle, is an immersive cinematic experience which tells the story of an insidious creature that lives inside the human spine. It feeds on fear, but can be stopped with a scream.
'Witchfinder General', directed by Michael Reeves, is inspired by real events committed by the witch hunter Matthew Hopkins amidst the civil war in 17th-century England: a horror classic that explores human cruelty and abuse of power.
Find more information here.
Get Out escape rooms, City Centre
Get Out offers a wide range of adrenaline-fuelled escape rooms under different themes in Brussels. Teams are locked in a room and have just 60 minutes to find clues, decipher codes and use objects to solve a riddle to escape.
Credit: Get Out
Some of the escape rooms are sure to send a shiver up your spine such as Hantises ('Hauntings') – only for over 16s – in which players receive a mysterious message with a clue and have to decipher it to complete the game and make it out in time.
Find more information here.
Halloween Party, Jardin Hospice, Tuesday 31 October
Jardin Hospice is once again throwing an epic Halloween party on Tuesday night. With free entry, electronica beats and killer DJs RAMSES IV and Eriiog, this is not one to miss.
Credit: Jardin Hospice
Both DJs will perform sets with a mix of chart-toppers, classic anthems, and the latest bangers – the best way to have a mid-week boogie with friends and dance like there's no tomorrow!
Find more information here.
Cemetery adventure trails, various locations in Brussels
Take a journey through time at one of Brussels' necropolises this Halloween: tranquil places of remembrance but also a fascinating way to discover Belgium's funerary heritage.
Credit: Belga / Tom Goyvaerts
The cemeteries of Brussels-Evere, Laeken, Neder-Over-Heembeek, and Haren all have a distinctly unique character and will open their gates to visitors on Halloween and All Saint's Day for an atypical stroll between the gravestones with adventure trails and game booklets for all the family.
Find more information here.
'Tim Burton's Labyrinth' exhibition, Tour & Taxis, until February 2024
'Tim Burton's Labyrinth', an immersive exhibition in the form of a maze which explores the fantastical world of American director, screenwriter and producer Tim Burton, opened at Tour & Taxis on 20 October and is the perfect Halloween activity for all the family.
Credit: Tim Burton's Labyrinth
Behind the many doors will be rooms displaying the artist's creations: sets, costumes, original drawings and life-size statues, such as that of Edward Scissorhands.
The exhibition aims to remind visitors of the man behind numerous illustrations, paintings and photographs. It takes the public on a journey through 15 rooms, with each room corresponding to one of the artist's favourite themes, such as animals, death, or monsters.
Find more information here.
'Pumpkimania', Grand-Bigard castle, until 5 November
'Pumpkimania' festivities have been celebrated throughout September and October with a variety of events, including competitions to find the biggest pumpkin in Belgium, carving, creating a 200 litre pumpkin soup, pumpkin regattas and more.
Credit: Pumpkimania / Floralia
Artists from the Swiss Jucker Farm are also putting on an exhibition until 5 November, this year with a dinosaur theme. With impressive wooden and wired sculptures decorated with thousands of colourful pumpkins in the shapes of the T-Rex, Triceratops, Diplodocus, and Parasaurolophus, this promises to be a great autumnal activity for young and old alike.
Find more information here.
