News Universal Horror Unleashed Chicago

D

DCBaker

Premium Member
Original Poster
Universal has announced a second location for Universal Horror Unleashed - Chicago:



Universal Destinations & Experiences, the themed entertainment division of Comcast NBCUniversal, announces its second location for Universal Horror Unleashed, the company’s year-round, immersive horror entertainment experience. The new, indoor venue will open in Chicago, chosen for its large population and reputation as one of the country’s leading destinations for tourism and entertainment.

Expanding the Universal Horror Unleashed brand is a key part of Universal’s broader growth strategy to reach new audiences, in new markets, through new and original concepts. The upcoming venue will be located on Chicago Avenue at the former Tribune Distribution Center, situated between the River North and West Town districts. This marks Universal’s first branded experience in the Midwest.

“Universal Horror Unleashed delivers on our promise to create highly immersive and terrifying horror experiences that connect with fans year-round,” said Page Thompson, President, New Ventures, Universal Destinations & Experiences. “We’re excited to bring this bold concept to life in Chicago, a city known for its vibrant culture. We’re grateful for the city’s support as we convert this dormant site into a unique attraction that showcases our storytelling expertise and ability to deliver mind blowing experiences that shatter guest expectations.”

This original concept combines Universal’s deep expertise in the horror genre with next-level storytelling to deliver a truly unforgettable experience. The year-round concept will deliver immersive, horror-centric entertainment that goes beyond the theme parks, bringing spine-chilling thrills, terrifying environments, and unforgettable scares to guests. The horror will also extend to the food and beverage offerings, with themed craft cocktails and bites, as well as a retail location with unique collectible merchandise and more.

The announcement comes on the heels of other key developments for Universal Destinations & Experiences, including the recent opening of Universal Epic Universe in Orlando, the first Universal Horror Unleashed Las Vegas, opening August 2025, the 2026 launch of Universal Kids Resort in Frisco, Texas, and plans for a new theme park and resort in the United Kingdom — Universal’s first in Europe, slated to open in 2031.  

The first Universal Horror Unleashed location was announced in January 2023 and is set to open later this year in Las Vegas on August 14, 2025. Tickets for Universal Horror Unleashed Las Vegas are now on sale now at UniversalHorrorUnleashed.com.
 
Animaniac93-98

Animaniac93-98

Well-Known Member
Now that the Vegas location is almost open, I was curious to see what pricing and hours are like

It's open 5 days a week, closed Tue and Wed, for 8 hours a day 2-10pm

Admission starts at $69...to go through each house once! As a comparison, admission to HHN at USH starts at $77

Want to have unlimited access to all of them? Starts at $99

Of course, VIP options are also available. No Express Passes
 
WDWFREAK53

WDWFREAK53

Well-Known Member
I don't get these. What makes HHN so popular is that it's limited to a particular time of year so everybody gets ramped up for it.
Having this be a yearly establishment seems like it would get stale very quickly. Vegas might do fine because it's such a tourist location and it's a unique offering but Chicago?
 
Andrew C

Andrew C

You know what's funny?
WDWFREAK53 said:
I don't get these. What makes HHN so popular is that it's limited to a particular time of year so everybody gets ramped up for it.
Having this be a yearly establishment seems like it would get stale very quickly. Vegas might do fine because it's such a tourist location and it's a unique offering but Chicago?
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Chicago gets more tourists per year than Las Vegas. I think third most in US last time I checked...
 
PiratesMansion

PiratesMansion

Well-Known Member
Andrew C said:
Chicago gets more tourists per year than Las Vegas. I think third most in US last time I checked...
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As someone who grew up nearby, there's absolutely no way Chicago gets more tourists than Vegas. Vegas has internationally famous tourist sites and experiences and a dedicated miles-long corridor for them to go, resort fees aplenty, while the only thing Chicago has with comparable international attention is....uh...maybe the Bean, I guess, if you like taking selfies?

Whereas Vegas has multiple huge convention centers, the cirque shows, the novelty architecture, is in countless movies and TV shows, and so on. Nor does Vegas have outdated and persistent statements made relatively commonly in the media about how dangerous the city allegedly is.

I don't see anything or anyone in Chicago freaking out about loss of tourist revenue the way anything that remotely covers Vegas is doing right now.

This link has Nevada and Las Vegas in the top five for state and city, respectively, while Illinois and Chicago are no where to be found. This link looking at domestic tourism likewise has Vegas far above Chicago.

I'm honestly baffled they picked Chicago for this and if it doesn't go the way of Disney Quest within a few years, I'll be shocked.
 
J

JT3000

Well-Known Member
PiratesMansion said:
As someone who grew up nearby, there's absolutely no way Chicago gets more tourists than Vegas. Vegas has internationally famous tourist sites and experiences and a dedicated miles-long corridor for them to go, resort fees aplenty, while the only thing Chicago has with comparable international attention is....uh...maybe the Bean, I guess, if you like taking selfies?

Whereas Vegas has multiple huge convention centers, the cirque shows, the novelty architecture, is in countless movies and TV shows, and so on. Nor does Vegas have outdated and persistent statements made relatively commonly in the media about how dangerous the city allegedly is.

I don't see anything or anyone in Chicago freaking out about loss of tourist revenue the way anything that remotely covers Vegas is doing right now.

This link has Nevada and Las Vegas in the top five for state and city, respectively, while Illinois and Chicago are no where to be found. This link looking at domestic tourism likewise has Vegas far above Chicago.

I'm honestly baffled they picked Chicago for this and if it doesn't go the way of Disney Quest within a few years, I'll be shocked.
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Chicago lacks attractions explicitly dedicated to tourists, but many tourists don't visit a large city to see such things. They go for the actual city experience and everything that entails. People visit NYC for the same reason.
 
PiratesMansion

PiratesMansion

Well-Known Member
JT3000 said:
Chicago lacks attractions explicitly dedicated to tourists, but many tourists don't visit a large city to see such things. They go for the actual city experience and everything that entails. People visit NYC for the same reason.
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And also for tourist magnets like the Statue of Liberty, Times Square, the Empire State Building, Broadway, etc. that Chicago just doesn't have. NYC can very much coexist in both of those worlds.

Not saying people don't visit Chicago, just that in addition to that data I provided (that has thus far been ignored) that reinforces that at least international tourists are more likely to visit Vegas than Chicago-and I don't imagine it's a huge stretch for the same to likely to apply to domestic travelers as well who aren't conveniently located near Chicago at any rate, it is supremely obvious to me that among cities like NYC, Vegas, and Chicago, one of those lacks a certain level of internationally famous, iconic attractions that would draw huge levels of tourists.

I don't think it's outrageous to say that the sort of person that might travel to Vegas is much closer to the sort of people that would travel to Orlando than the sort of person who might travel to Chicago.
 
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J

JT3000

Well-Known Member
PiratesMansion said:
And also for tourist magnets like the Statue of Liberty, Times Square, the Empire State Building, Broadway, etc. that Chicago just doesn't have. NYC can very much coexist in both of those worlds.

Not saying people don't visit Chicago, just that in addition to that data I provided (that has thus far been ignored) that reinforces that at least international tourists are more likely to visit Vegas than Chicago-and I don't imagine it's a huge stretch for the same to likely to apply to domestic travelers as well who aren't conveniently located near Chicago at any rate, it is supremely obvious to me that among cities like NYC, Vegas, and Chicago, one of those lacks a certain level of internationally famous, iconic attractions that would draw huge levels of tourists.

I don't think it's outrageous to say that the sort of person that might travel to Vegas is much closer to the sort of people that would travel to Orlando than the sort of person who might travel to Chicago.
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The sort of people who would visit Chicago aren't going to NYC for hollow tourist traps like Times Square (likewise, the Bean is nothing more than a quick photo-op.) They're going for the historical landmarks, the performing arts, the fancy restaurants, the architecture & the museums. The sorts of things you don't go to Vegas or Orlando for. Yes, this makes the latter two more akin than a Chicago, even if they have their own differences, and perhaps it's a bad sign for something like Horror Unleashed, which wouldn't make the city's tourism numbers all that helpful in this situation. But it does get tourists.

With this particular attraction, I think it's ultimately a question of whether or not it can stay open long enough to be profitable and serve as a lure for HHN, because it's probably unlikely to become a staple that stays open for the long haul, and I'm not even sure Universal themselves have that expectation.
 
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Stitchon

Stitchon

Well-Known Member
I'm really astonished by the number of people here who assume Universal hasn't done their research. They have decades of data showing exactly who is going to HHN, and presumably the Chicagoland area has a high number of attendees. It's not like said "why not Chicago ¯\_ (ツ)_/¯" without any backing. While I definitely wonder about the longevity, if Universal commits to updating it (that's a big if) then I don't see why it wouldn't be successful in the short to medium term. Hell, i'd argue that if DisneyQuest opened today and Disney followed through with updating it regularly, it'd probably be successful given the Instagram / TikTok social media culture. Experiential is in.

But of course, given the reviews of Horror Unleashed in Vegas, it seems Universal has a lot of work to do in getting it ready for expansion.
 
WDWFREAK53

WDWFREAK53

Well-Known Member
Stitchon said:
I'm really astonished by the number of people here who assume Universal hasn't done their research. They have decades of data showing exactly who is going to HHN, and presumably the Chicagoland area has a high number of attendees. It's not like said "why not Chicago ¯\_ (ツ)_/¯" without any backing. While I definitely wonder about the longevity, if Universal commits to updating it (that's a big if) then I don't see why it wouldn't be successful in the short to medium term. Hell, i'd argue that if DisneyQuest opened today and Disney followed through with updating it regularly, it'd probably be successful given the Instagram / TikTok social media culture. Experiential is in.

But of course, given the reviews of Horror Unleashed in Vegas, it seems Universal has a lot of work to do in getting it ready for expansion.
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What about Disney with DisneyQuest? I'm sure they also had decades of data showing where these "should" thrive...but they didn't.
 
J

JT3000

Well-Known Member
DisneyQuest wouldn't work now. Yes, it's "experiential," but it's specifically an experience based on a bygone era. It didn't exactly help that Disney completely failed to keep it updated, but at the end of the day there's only so much you can do when we live in a time where things like VR can be had in the convenience of your own home.
 
lazyboy97o

lazyboy97o

Well-Known Member
JT3000 said:
DisneyQuest wouldn't work now. Yes, it's "experiential," but it's specifically an experience based on a bygone era. It didn't exactly help that Disney completely failed to keep it updated, but at the end of the day there's only so much you can do when we live in a time where things like VR can be had in the convenience of your own home.
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He was referring to the DisneyQuest in Chicago which opened in 1999 and closed in 2001.
 
PiratesMansion

PiratesMansion

Well-Known Member
JT3000 said:
The sort of people who would visit Chicago aren't going to NYC for hollow tourist traps like Times Square (likewise, the Bean is nothing more than a quick photo-op.) They're going for the historical landmarks, the performing arts, the fancy restaurants, the architecture & the museums. The sorts of things you don't go to Vegas or Orlando for. Yes, this makes the latter two more akin than a Chicago, even if they have their own differences, and perhaps it's a bad sign for something like Horror Unleashed, which wouldn't make the city's tourism numbers all that helpful in this situation. But it does get tourists.
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I'm pointing out that NYC does have more of the sorts of tourist trap types that Vegas and Orlando do vs. Chicago, to me this is incredibly straightforward.
JT3000 said:
With this particular attraction, I think it's ultimately a question of whether or not it can stay open long enough to be profitable and serve as a lure for HHN, because it's probably unlikely to become a staple that stays open for the long haul, and I'm not even sure Universal themselves have that expectation.
Click to expand...
It pretty obviously will not.
 
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