It was supposed to be the ultimate Halloween Horror Nights weekend — packed houses, cooler Florida weather, and the most anticipated event nights of the season. But for many guests at Universal Orlando Resort on Sunday, the real horror began after the event ended.
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In a scene that quickly went viral across theme park fan accounts and X (formerly Twitter), both of Universal’s parking garages were abruptly shut down late Sunday night, leaving guests unable to access their cars or rideshares after Halloween Horror Nights. The incident unfolded amid what was already a crushingly busy Columbus Day weekend, and the timing couldn’t have been worse.
Many attendees had just wrapped up their night at HHN when they found themselves stopped by security at the resort’s transportation hub. What followed were reports of a full-scale lockdown of the Jaws, King Kong, and Jurassic Park levels of the parking garages, with heavy police presence and zero access for guests trying to exit.
What Happened in the Garages?
The first public report came from Jacob from Carey, who runs the account @hhn_jacob and regularly covers Halloween Horror Nights news and crowd conditions. Just before 10:30 p.m., Jacob posted:
“Heads up for anyone trying to leave #HHN right now: security has the entire Jaws/King Kong/Jurassic Park garage blocked with a heavy security and police presence. Guests are being held in the security hub and not being allowed to access their vehicles/ride share.”
Heads up for anyone trying to leave #HHN right now: security has the entire Jaws/King Kong/Jurassic Park garage is blocked with a heavy security and police presence. Guests are being held in the security hub and not being allowed to access their vehicles/ride share.
— Jacob from Carey (@hhn_jacob) October 13, 2025
Not long after, he followed up with a more serious update:
“Actually, access to both garages is now cut off entirely.”
That’s right — both garages were reportedly inaccessible for an extended period Sunday night. No official cause was immediately provided, but accounts from guests suggest the issue involved either a security threat, a medical emergency, or an overcrowding issue severe enough to warrant a lockdown.
While Universal has yet to issue a public statement about what caused the shutdown, several videos and firsthand reports online showed guests waiting outside the garages, security denying entry or exit, and large clusters of people stuck in the security hub area near CityWalk.
One of the Busiest Days of the Year
To understand the full picture, you need to know just how packed Universal Orlando was this past weekend. The garages didn’t close on a slow day — they closed on what might have been the busiest day of 2025 so far at the resort.
Thanks to the Columbus Day holiday, which gave many families a long weekend, and the arrival of Florida’s first real break from summer heat, crowds surged beyond typical Halloween season levels.
Guests flooded Universal Studios Florida, Islands of Adventure, and the new Epic Universe, which is still in the soft opening phase but is already drawing massive crowds. All day Sunday, fans reported crushing wait times across all three parks — including some of the longest lines we’ve seen post-pandemic.
Here are some of the wait times from Sunday:
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Hagrid’s Magical Creatures Motorbike Adventure: 255 minutes
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Harry Potter and the Battle at the Ministry (Epic Universe): 240 minutes
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Mine-Cart Madness (Epic Universe): 200 minutes
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Jurassic World VelociCoaster: 110 minutes
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Escape from Gringotts: 135 minutes
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Mario Kart: Bowser’s Challenge (Epic Universe): 105 minutes
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Hiccups Wing Gliders (Epic Universe): 120 minutes
Even rides that normally fly under the radar — like Spider-Man and Skull Island: Reign of Kong — posted waits between 40 and 55 minutes. And of course, Halloween Horror Nights, which brings in tens of thousands of guests each night, was operating at or near capacity.
The Garages Couldn’t Handle the Exit Surge
With lines still long well into the evening, it’s not hard to imagine the wave of people leaving HHN all at once around 10 p.m. overwhelming the resort’s infrastructure. But the garages shutting down entirely? That’s rare — and significant.
Universal Orlando operates two massive garages, connected by the security hub where all foot traffic flows through before entering CityWalk. On normal nights, this process works relatively smoothly, but on high-capacity nights like HHN weekends, the entire area becomes a choke point — especially when thousands try to leave at the same time.
What made Sunday night especially difficult for guests was the complete lack of communication. According to guest reports on X and Reddit, no announcements were made via the app, no alerts were sent out, and most frontline employees had no idea what was going on. Guests trying to get to their cars were simply stopped and told to wait — with no ETA and no details.
This lack of real-time information added to the frustration, particularly for families with kids, out-of-town guests with early morning flights, and visitors unfamiliar with the resort layout.
No Alternative Transportation
Some guests attempted to walk to nearby hotels or call rideshares from outside drop-off points, but without access to the garages, even rideshare pickups became difficult. Ride apps showed long wait times or canceled trips due to the blockage.
A few guests posted that they had to wait more than an hour before being allowed back into the garages. Others said they gave up and walked several miles to reach their lodging.
It’s unclear exactly how long the shutdown lasted, but multiple guest accounts suggest it extended well past the event’s official end time. Some didn’t make it out until close to midnight.
Universal Orlando has faced busy weekends before, and Halloween Horror Nights always pushes the resort’s capacity limits — but the total closure of both garages during exit hours is unprecedented in recent memory.
Whether it was a safety threat, medical situation, or pure overcrowding, the incident points to real concerns about the resort’s ability to handle modern crowd levels, especially now that Epic Universe is drawing even more guests to the property.
With peak holiday season still ahead and another wave of HHN weekends left on the calendar, fans and passholders are wondering: what happens when crowds hit this level again?
And more importantly, will guests be told what’s going on the next time they’re left standing in a parking lot with no way home?
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