USS Hornet Halloween Monster’s Ball

Great party, same good music. I didn’t think they prepare
d for so many people, a few things they could improve on, like more seating, beer only booth to cut down lines and a water and coffee booth, you had to wait in the long booze line just to get bottle water. besides this it was a great party with lots of amazing costumes.

Went last year and returned this year. They changed the layout and it didn’t flow. Band was moved to the back instead of center and they had 4 bars in the middle with ridiculously long lines for a drink. We ended up not drinking because it at least a 15−20min wait. Also, to walk back and forth you had to fight your way through the lines. Band was fun, but if you wanted a break and sit down, you had to fight your way through the bar lines to get to a sit down area. The tables by the dance floor were reserved for events and adventures singles club. Why did they change the layout?
Costume contest was also not run well. Met people who should have been in it who had no idea how to get into it. Stage was not representative of the best costumes as a result.
More people this year, I love this event, hope it doesn’t get ruined by too many people.

We had a great time! The haunted house was THE scariest one I’ve ever been through! The only thing I would change is the long line at the bar. This was one of the best Halloweens yet!

Thank you Nique for hooking myself and Hubby up with tickets to this years event!
Not having been on the USS Hornet before I was really looking forward to this event. I mean. a party on a huge ass ship, what’s not to be excited about?
The event was fun, as well as tribute bands (Zebop, a Santana tribute band and The Cocktail Monkeys) but there was also my favorite radio station (107.7 The Bone) too who were taking pictures of guests as they arrived.
There was also a short ”haunted tour”, I didn’t find it particularly haunting but it was hilarious laughing at everybody else screaming their pants off when someone jumped out of the shadows.
Other entertainers were located throughout the length of the ship with a Psychic in the middle and lady doing acrobatics in ribbons suspended from the ceiling which was really impressive.
Everybody was dressed for the occasion and some of them were pretty cool like the guy in a trash bag with a ”white trash” sign around his neck, the couple dressed an glow in the dark stick men and Jesus. Some were a little weird and confusing too. like the couple dressed as Santa and a little girl complete with Teddy Bear. Actually, that was a little creepy…
There were a few duplicate costumes — 2 Batman’s, 2 Superman’s and dozens of Pirates and Pirate Wenches which I think stood for about 35% of the people in attendance I was however surprised to see Hubby and I as the only Marvel characters and completely ironic having 2 British people dressed as Captain America.
Drinks and food was available at the concessions stands as well as a small store selling TShirts, Guitar picks and various other nik naks that was located towards the back of the ship and a flight simulator near the main dance floor which was $ 6 per person.
Awesome ship, Great costumes and fun night = A good start to the Halloween festivities.

This was my second year to attend the Monster’s Ball on the USS Hornet. I was very happy to see that they had a special area to board the ship for people with difficulties. The guys who ran the lift were extremely sweet and kind. Kudos to the event committee for arranging this option.

I loved it! My sister and I got tickets for the Monsterball this year and it was amazing! We came out here at night and it was a bit scary getting to the dock but we found it and there was plenty of parking so that was a big plus. There were plenty of event staff to guide us and even to help us up those steep stairs into the ship. While in there, everything was very organized and the checking in went quite smoothly. We went straight to the bar and we were pleasantly surprised that there were various stands and there was very little wait. There were also some food stands but we didn’t get to try any of the food. The music was great, the atmosphere was spooky and everyone had a great attitude. We took the tours that were available and we took some fantastic pictures.

Monster Bash 2011 was a great sucess and I hope the reviewer from last year came back as the Haunted Medical Center was improved. However there are limitations to what they can do as they discovered when they tried to have smoke/​fog in the haunted house they set off the smoke detectors and the fire alarm in a previous year.
Once Again There was a children’s area for families and young children to hang out and play with arts and crafts, games, a jumper, and aircraft cockpit to get into.
The flight similator was running and there were plenty of tables and chairs. Food and bar concessions were available and price reasonable, probably less than an amusement park or ballpark.
It is a large ship, a WWII Essex Class Aircraft Carrier that happens to be the recovery ship of Apollo 11 & 12 the first moon landings. So you are walking on the deck that astronauts who walked on the moon walked on. There are some footprints painted on the hangar deck where the astronauts walked from the helicopter that picked them out of the sea to the Mobile Quarantine Unit that they were sealed into upon their return to earth. The Mobile Quarantine Unit on display is the real one used for Apollo 14. One other trivia fact the one of the helicopters that was of the type that picked up the astronauts on display is a helicopter used in the movie Apollo 13
The emcee for the Bash, and conducting the costume contest was DJ Nikki Blakke from 107.7 «The Bone». There was a Children’s Costume contest and then later in the evening an Adult Costume contest. Thank You Nikki Blakke for helping out and making this a fun contest. There were lots of interesting costumes. Winning Children’s costume was a robot and the winning Adult costume was Jelly Fish.
The Band was The Cocktail Monkeys who Rocked the house and played a 3 song oncore at the of the night. The Cocktail Monkey’s kept the crowd on their feet and on the dance floor with hits from the 70’s, 80’s, and 90’s Nikki Blakke the emcee even joined the band at one point.
I think the USS Hornet Halloween Monster Bash is the perfect place to go for all ages, not just young adults, not just young children, not just teenagers but everyone young and old. As you can imagine the crowd was younger earlier in the evening and mostly adult by the time the Adult Costume contest took place after 10 PM
DaVinci Fusion from San Francisco provide the Sound and Lighting for the event and as usual did a great job.
For photos from this and past USS Hornet events go to

The USS Hornet has it’s separate Unilocal review already. However, I write this review specifically for the Halloween Monster Bash they hold every single year.
This was my first time attending. There were plenty of parties around the Bay Area, but this was the only one that catered to those UNDER 21. This was perfect as I wanted to be able to have fun with other family friends who were not over 21.
I looked EVERYWHERE, for prior reviews to give us an idea of what to expect, but was unsuccessful. So hopefully this review will help potential attendees in the future.
The general admission tickets for adults 18+ is $ 20 presale, and $ 25 at the door. For kids/​teens up to 17 is only $ 10 presale AND at the door. Keep in mind this is pricing for 2010. It might change next year. Parking is FREE, and there is plenty, so do not worry about anything with that. The $ 25 price tag was exactly WHY I wanted to read reviews, because there is no refunds (like most).
We said what the heck and went for it. As mentioned parking was easy and free. The USS Hornet if you don’t already know is a huge naval ship that served in 3 wars. The venue is ON THE SHIP! How can you beat that! The ship is docked and stationary so do not worry about getting seasick. You do not feel any swaying at all. You have to walk a good amount of steps to get to the floor where the venue is held at. This is a HUGE ship, so there is an assigned section. For disabled and handicaps, I did not see it, but there were a few there, so they should have special accommodations.
Once we get to the designated area, the place is HUGE and ROOMY. It’s a long wide corridor. There are some classic aviation vehicles that guests can admire. There was a good amount of people, but you never feel overcrowded because this space can house many comfortably.
I need to commend the entire staff aboard the USS Hornet, the older staff members, perhaps veterans, were absolutely nice. They always greet you with a smile.
How is the crowd? Although it is for all ages, the younger audience is the minority. There are a good handful of kids, but this is clearly an adult event. They have a section for kids that included skeeball, whack’a’mole, tv with a movie playing, air hockey table, face painting, and other activities.
Everyone dresses up! From mild to wild. You will see a variety of different costumes. The crowd is diverse, old to young. There are a few who don’t dress up, but they were definitely the minorities.
There is haunted «house» type of attraction included with your entrance. This was probably the most disappointing. You walk through a lower corridor medical hanger, decorated as a haunted version. But there were little to no scares. The scares consisted of yelling at you surprisingly to try and catch you by surprise. It was a waste of space, because once you see what they can work with, they definitely could make an outstanding haunted tour with genuine scares. Good effort though.
The main event, is the music and dancing. From open to 12AM, you have a live band performing. This year it was the Crazy Monkeys. They were great, they played popular songs of old and new. They sounded really well and got the audience into it. After 12AM, you have a DJ in the mix. He played some good mash ups. It ends at 2AM! For those under 21, this really gives you a great place to get the clubbing experience.
They have an outside area, but ONLY for smoking, which is ashame because for those who don’t smoke who want to get some fresh air and take some night time views of the bay, have to suffer inhaling the smoke.
There are plenty of tables setup behind the dance floor. Food is also sold here. It’s about average price for this type of venue. There is also a bar so you can order your alcoholic beverages.
As of this year, purchasing drinks and food requires CASH ONLY. Maybe a big deal to others so plan ahead.
In conclusion, I have to give this a perfect score. This is only one of it’s kind event where those under 21 can enjoy a clubbing type of Halloween Party. i would definitely come back for next year.