One Of The World’s Scariest Haunted Houses To Open Soon In Duluth – What To Know

Fresh off being named one of the scariest haunted houses in the world, a popular Halloween attraction is getting ready to kick off its 2025 season in Duluth.

I'm talking, of course, about the Duluth Haunted Ship. If you didn't hear the news, last year's Haunted Ship was named one of the 7 scariest haunted houses in the world by Forbes.

The publication included Duluth's most iconic Halloween attraction on a list that also includes places in New Zealand, Florida, Colorado, California, and Illinois. Forbes highlighted the uniqueness of this haunted attraction being aboard a real ship, also noting the real stories of haunted sightings by staff aboard the vessel housed in a slip in Duluth's Canal Park.

How scary is it? The team behind the Duluth Haunted Ship proudly boasts that over 100 people didn't make it to the end of the tour, while 37 tour-takers admitted to peeing their pants while on the frightful journey through the ship last year.

Off the ghoulishly exciting news that Duluth's Haunted Ship is among the scariest in the world, the attraction is preparing for a big season this year.

READ MORE: Iconic, historic Duluth landmark has new owner with big plans

2025 marks the 30th year of the Duluth Haunted Ship, which got its start in 1992 as a partnership between the University of Minnesota-Duluth drama department and the ship's management team.

Aside from a pause for dry dock maintenance of the ship from 2017 to 2019 and the 2020 pandemic, the Haunted Ship has been an annual tradition since it first started.

The 2025 Duluth Haunted Ship will be "going into the waaaaay back machine", revisiting ideas from the very beginning of the Haunted Ship's legacy for this year's design.

In addition to the month-long spooky fun at the Haunted Ship, the DECC (which operates the William A. Irvin) will also be adding a new fall event in October. Similar to the annual Winter Village, Gourd Days will offer fall shopping and vibes next to the DECC in Canal Park for the Haunted Ship's opening weekend, October 3-5.

The 2025 Duluth Haunted Ship kicks off at 6:30 pm on Friday, October 3, running Thursdays-Saturdays through October and wrapping up on Halloween Night. The one exception in that schedule is Wednesday, October 15, open a day early for MEA Week. You can see the full schedule here.

Get our free mobile app

General admission tickets are $25, with $20 discount days opening weekend and every Thursday of the 2025 season. College students can also get in for only $10.

In addition to the general admission tickets, there is a $35 fast pass to skip the line and a $75 VIP experience ticket, which includes access to additional spaces and "special spooks" along with N/A and adult beverages.

You can learn more about tickets and buy them online via the Duluth Haunted Ship website.