The Bernal Scream reopened its doors at 7:15 p.m. Friday at the Santa Clara County Fairgrounds in San Jose, kicking off a season that runs through Nov. 8 and, for the first time in the show's history, puts two full haunted attractions behind a single ticket. The homegrown haunt has grown its footprint to nearly 10,000 square feet, cramming in scares, a psychological gauntlet and even glow-in-the-dark paintball for visitors who want to shoot back.
According to NBC Bay Area, the 2026 lineup includes two main attractions: The Last Confession, which takes visitors through their darkest sins, and Anxiety, described as a psychological gauntlet designed to trigger primal phobias. The station also notes that the event includes bouncy houses for younger children who aren't ready for the scarier stuff, plus glow-in-the-dark paintball for those looking for a different kind of adrenaline rush. The official run dates, September 18 through November 8, line up with what californiahauntedhouses.com lists for the Santa Clara County Fairgrounds season, which the site describes as opening two haunted attractions under one ticket for 2026.
A One-Way Walkthrough Built for Long Lines
The Bernal Scream's own FAQ page describes the whole experience as a 10,000-square-foot, one-way stroll through all of its rooms and attractions, per the site's own wording.
Ticket prices reflect the expanded scale of the operation. General admission starts at $35, while VIP Fast Pass tickets are priced at $55.99 and $65.99, according to californiahauntedhouses.com and the event's own ticket page. A family ticket bundles two child tickets and two adult tickets together with access to the bounce houses for kids, and children age five and younger get in free, per the FAQ.
From Backyard Show to Fairgrounds Fixture
The Bernal Scream's roots go back more than a decade. Mike and Abel Barrera started the show as a free production in their backyard in 2013, before it went dark for years and then announced its long-awaited return in 2023 after a seven-year hiatus with an all-new show called Lucifer's Wrath, according to californiahauntedhouses.com. The attraction found a long-term home at the Santa Clara County Fairgrounds in 2025, the same year it debuted a haunted attraction called Forbidden Symphony, according to a Yelp listing for the business.
That 2025 season wasn't only about scares. The Bernal Scream partnered with Home First and the Santa Clara County Fairgrounds to host a season-long clothing drive for people in need and to build 250 sanitary kits, according to californiahauntedhouses.com.
Location details carry a small wrinkle for anyone mapping out a visit. Yelp lists the venue at 344 Tully Road in San Jose, while a listing tied to the official ticket page cites 200 Old Tully Road — a discrepancy that hasn't been resolved and is worth double-checking before heading out.
Plenty of Company on the Bay Area Haunt Circuit
The Bernal Scream isn't the only option for Bay Area thrill-seekers this fall. Fear Overload Scream Park is advertising two Bay Area haunted houses, while Grimm's Hollow has promoted a 2026 San Jose season opening Oct. 9, according to fearoverload.com and Grimm's Hollow's website, respectively. A broader roundup from hauntedattractionnetwork.com catalogs multi-day haunted houses and Halloween events across the San Francisco Bay Area for the season, giving locals plenty of ways to fill an October calendar with screams.
