Crowd-Sourced Map Highlights the Best Halloween Decorations in Town

Ever wonder where the spookiest Halloween decorations are? Look no further, because the Halloween in Burbank map lets you plan a route to visit the best local haunts. 

In Burbank, a town where many work at nearby movie studios and in entertainment, it’s no surprise that local residents go all out with their Halloween decorations. From creepy clowns and makeshift haunted houses with actors to scare you, to an Alice in Wonderland and a Beetlejuice theme, there is much to see.

In 2020, during the COVID-19 pandemic, local resident Jennifer Spincic began mapping out which houses showcase the best Halloween setups in town. 

“All the houses here were really, really decorated. My family would drive around as something fun to do, and I was just thinking, how cool would it be for other families to be able to have a map of the houses?” said Spincic. “It gave a way for people to be out having fun in the community and not being stuck in their house, but still being safe.”

The map is free to access and viewers can even request for their own house to be added or plan their route – the map functions as a crowd-sourced Halloween directory for Burbank and surrounding areas. 

“It’s amazing because it’s inclusive for everybody,” said Spincic. “Parents who maybe can’t afford to take their family to Universal, can give their kid that really awesome, fun night out, Halloween experience.”

The map has evolved and expanded over the years. When Spincic started, around 50 to 80 homes wanted to be added to the map. Now she gets anywhere between 200 to 300 homes requesting to be listed. 

“We just have such a cool community here,” said Spincic. “The houses are over the top here. You can’t see houses like these here in Burbank anywhere else.”

These are not ordinary Halloween decorations. People spend thousands of dollars building full sets on their front lawns and begin creating these displays months in advance. 

Dan and Susan Hoy have been “haunters” going all-out during Halloween for the last 20 years. They built an entire pirate ship from upcycled materials in their yard, fully equipped with lights, a fog machine and 15-foot animatronic kraken tentacles that emerge from the ground. 

Dan Hoy said starting in July, he would spend his spare time – after teaching full-time at the Art Center in Pasadena – finding materials like discarded wood pallets, windows and carpet tubes that he used to build the massive structure.

He continues to put the work in every year, to create “a little bit of mystery and enchantment” and “give somebody a memory,” hoping to spark a kid’s interest or creativity.

A New Look and New Features

This year’s map got a whole new look with updated features, including categories that let you filter searches for scare factor, live actors at Halloween houses, pumpkin patches, kid events, parades, haunted hayrides, spooky shopping boutiques, costume stores, ghost hunting and more. You can also search by date, map out your route and mark off visited locations. 

For the first time, residents from neighborhoods outside of Burbank can also add their house to the map. 

One City of San Fernando home – “Skeleton Manor,” boasting a towering oversized skeleton – is already on this year’s map. 

However, a Halloween decoration contest is exclusive to Burbank homes. 

On Oct. 25 and 26, drive around the neighborhood and vote for your favorite homes in the categories of “Most Over the Top,” “Most Scary,” “Best Family Friendly,” “Best Movie Homage,” “Most Original,” “Best Use of Lighting” and “Burbank Top Haunt.”

Winners are announced on Oct. 27 and will receive randomly drawn prizes from local businesses. Top Haunt wins four tickets to Disneyland. 

“I’m just the curator of telling people where to go,” said Spincic. “It’s all the different local houses who were the ones doing the amazing work.”

The Halloween Spirit

Spincic said her map “blew up” on social media this year, and some local homeowners have noticed the difference. 

“There have been more people this year than ever before,” said Tom Vice, who has been creating a different movie-themed decor in his front yard for the past 11 years. 

Beetlejuice plastered the front of his home, with flashing lights, a moving grave and a skeleton dressed in the icon black and white suit. Vice’s son acted as Beetlejuice, conversing with the approaching children through a microphone and speaker system.

Vice wasn’t sure if the crowds grew mainly due to the map, but a few mesmerized onlookers said they discovered the home through the “Hollywood in Burbank” map on social media. 

Most of the elaborate decorations are spread out across Burbank, but some blocks have a concentration of spooky homes. In one of those neighborhoods, the infamous Burbank Clown House – decorated with dozens of killer clowns extending into the alley next door – is around the corner from a 20-foot UFO and down the street from a full-fledged haunted house. 

What started as Halloween-themed birthday parties for her daughter, has led Diane Meyer and her husband to building the free haunted house for the last 33 years. 

“It’s a way to give back to the community,” said Meyer. “I grew up where I didn’t have a lot of money. So this way anybody can have fun.”

People wait in line for up to two hours to enter the winding maze in their front yard. Nine people dress up every weekend and spend three hours jump-scaring visitors.   

Their operation has grown so much that Meyer said they have video cameras and fire insurance for liability reasons. Volunteers from the Burbank Animal Shelter also help direct pedestrian traffic, manage the line and keep order outside, in return for collecting any donations given to the operation.

Some take advantage of the crowds, selling bacon-wrapped hotdogs or giving tours around the neighborhood on a small train. 

But not everyone in town is in the Halloween spirit.

“There was a petition this year to try to get us shut down because they panicked over all the people that were here last year,” said Meyer, adding that neighbors have “tried for years to shut us down.”

With the all-out decorations come people, noise, trash and a lack of parking. 

One neighbor – with more typical gravestone, spiderweb and skeleton decor – said he used to be annoyed at the increase in activity around Halloween, but now partakes in the experience. The people who recently bought a house across the street even had to sign a document disclosing the holiday mayhem, he said.

Spincic reminded visitors to be respectful of people’s homes, and visit during the designated hours of 7 p.m. to 10 p.m.

“One of the things that I love about Halloween, is it’s magical in its own different way,” said Spincic, adding that the map is “a way to get the community out and about, having fun together.”

For more info visit: halloweeninburbank.com