The Stanley Park Ghost Train is a favourite family-friendly activity in Vancouver that features Halloween fun and magical scenes.

Sometimes it has skeletons, monsters and other ghoulish characters. Other years it has more of a fairy-tale theme.

The train rides at Halloween can be a tiny bit scary, but nothing compared to many of Vancouver’s more frightening hard-core Halloween venues, including several that aren’t recommended for children at all. Some years the Stanley Park event isn’t even that scary at all. It is always, however, especially at night, a fun and magical experience.

The Stanley Park Ghost Train was cancelled in 2020, 2021 and 2022. It isn’t happening in 2023 either. Hopefully it returns in 2024.

Ghost Train at Stanley Park

If you’re looking for a good haunted attraction for children in October, the Stanley Park Ghost Train is a great place to take them when it’s open. Trips last about 12 or so minutes and include spooky music and not overly gory Halloween-ish scenes to look at.

Each year the Stanley Park Ghost Train has a slightly different theme. In 2019 it was Alice in Nightmareland. The story behind the theme involved Alice falling into a hole, except this time she was in a graveyard.

In 2020 the event was cancelled due to the coronavirus pandemic, and the 2021 event was cancelled in the interest of public safety.

The Ghost Train was scheduled to return in 2022 with a new “Atomicville” theme. Unfortunately, the 2022 Halloween-themed train was cancelled due to mechanical issues.

The Ghost Train isn’t operating in 2023. Hopefully it returns in 2024.

For information about train rides at other times of the year, click Stanley Park Miniature Railway.

Ghost Train Halloween Schedule

Before getting cancelled for the third consecutive year, the attraction was going to run most days between October 7th and 31st in 2022.

Matinee Trains for Little People

In 2022 matinee train rides were going to take place on Saturdays and Sundays from 2 to 5 pm. The cost would’ve been about $7 per ride.

When the Ghost Train returns, the daytime train rides are usually similar to the attraction’s trips at night, but slightly cheaper and without the darkness, ghoulish lighting and over a dozen live actors which make the night time version scarier.

Being a little tamer, in daylight and not just before bedtime, the matinee railway excursions are a good way to expose little people to the spookiness of Halloween – most kids really enjoy it, although not the most highly timid.

Halloween Ghost Train

At night time the Stanley Park Ghost Train becomes a fair bit spookier, but still ranks as one of the Lower Mainland’s most family-friendly haunted places. Before the Ghost Train was cancelled in 2022, rides were scheduled to run between 6 and 10 pm most days. The attraction was going to be closed on the Mondays of October 10th, 17th and 24th, but it was going to be open on Halloween.

In years that it operates, the Ghost Train experience at night includes live performers and spooky lighting, which makes it appropriate for slightly older children. Night time travel usually costs about $14 for adults, $11 for seniors (ages 65+) and youth (ages 13-18) and $10 for children (ages 3-12).

For more information about the Ghost Train, check out the Stanley Park Miniature Train website.

Halloween Train Video

To give you an idea of what to expect on the train at Halloween, check out the following video. It was taken at night in 2018 when the event had a “Jack O’ Lantern’s Journey through the Dark Forest” theme.

As you’ll see in the video, the train ride wasn’t scary. Instead, it was beautiful, magical and entertaining. Every year the event has a different theme, and some themes are more frightening than others.

Night time is when the live actors come out. Unless you have young children that are afraid of the dark, or the year’s night-time theme is scarier than average, we highly recommend taking the train ride when it’s dark!

Other Stanley Park Halloween Activities

The last year it took place, the Stanley Park Ghost Train event was bigger than it had been in the past. There was more to do than just ride the train, which was awesome.

Extra activities included a maze and live entertainment. There were also pumpkins on sale for $6.

Stanley Park Maze

The same as the year before at the Stanley Park Halloween event in 2019, there was a maze that people could walk through.

The maze was a fair size with high black walls that you couldn’t see over. It was suitable for all ages. It was a maze that you had to wander around and it had dead ends, but nothing scary, and no live actors hiding around corners ready to jump out and scare you.

In years when the event doesn’t get cancelled, it costs money to ride the train, but other activities, like the live entertainment and maze, are free for everyone to enjoy. There are also food vendors selling popcorn and other treats.

Halloween Live Entertainment

In addition to the Ghost Train and maze, and again the same as the previous year, the Stanley Park Halloween attraction also featured live entertainment in 2019, which was great!

The year before, we went on a weekday evening and there was a magic show, storytelling and juggling. At other times there was music. In 2019, folk saw the Queen of Hearts and other Alice in Wonderland characters.

The live shows are typically short, but there’s a good amount of variety. They are a nice addition to the already popular event and worth staying around extra to see.

Directions to the Stanley Park Train

The Ghost Train takes place in Stanley Park just off Pipeline Road, which cuts through the centre of the park east of the Stanley Park Causeway (which connects Vancouver’s Georgia Street with the Lions Gate Bridge). If using GPS and needing a physical address, type in 690 Pipeline Road and it’ll get you pretty close.

Coming from Vancouver along Georgia Street, keep right and take the entrance into Stanley Park. At the roundabout, take the second exit and go straight along Pipeline Road. The closest parking lot for the Stanley Park miniature train is just a little ways up on your right.

Tips and Advice

Below are some suggestions and information to help you make the most out of your Halloween experience at Vancouver’s Stanley Park.

TIP #1: Parking is usually free in the parking lot off Pipeline Road right outside the Ghost Train venue during the miniature train’s operating hours in October. At other times and elsewhere in Stanley Park, parking in the low season costs about $2.50 per hour or $7.00 for the day.

TIP #2: Tickets for the Ghost Train can sometimes sell out, especially for night time trips on evenings when it’s not raining. To avoid disappointment, buying tickets in advance either by phone or online can be a good idea when possible. Click Ghost Train Tickets and scroll down for further information under the “Tickets” tab.

TIP #3: If you take the later and more expensive night time Ghost Train, go when it’s dark (unless you’re with timid little people). The lighting then better suits the experience.

Other Information

If you like child-friendly Halloween train rides there is also the Halloween Pumpkin Express and Haunted Forest Scream Train at Bear Creek Park in Surrey from around the second week in October until the 31st. Click Surrey Miniature Railway for details.

Another best place for children of all ages is Burnaby’s Haunted Village which takes place for a few days at the end of October. There, instead of a train, you’ll find an old-fashioned carousel.

For details about train rides at other times of the year, click Stanley Park Miniature Railway. There you find information about the train at Easter, Christmas and other seasons.

For more information on the Ghost Train, click Stanley Park Ghost Train.

For other ideas on things to do in October, check out the following:

• Vancouver Children’s Halloween Activities
• Vancouver’s Best Places in Autumn
• Halloween Haunted Houses (not for young children)
• Vancouver October Calendar