Tokyo’s Sunshine Aquarium is taking the unique approach of combining its tropical fish and relaxing scenes with extreme terror, as the usually family-friendly visitor attraction will at night become a hair-raising fright fest for the month of Halloween.

Through October, the aquarium will from 6:30pm onwards be the location of Noroi no Mizugushi (curse of the water comb), an exhibition designed to give visitors a fright as they explore the darkened aquarium.

The aquarium is pulling out all the stops for the exhibition, bringing in celebrated Japanese horror house producer Hirofumi Gomi to write the original story. Gomi, who in his career has created more than 35 horror houses around Japan, is the author of several books investigating fear and why we crave it from a psychological perspective.

“The aquarium is a space of beautiful healing,” said a statement on the aquarium’s website. “That is until ‘the curse of the water comb’ afftects the space surrounding it. Shimiwataru brings fear from the dark depths, coming up to you and lapping at the water’s edges.”

So as to provide minimal disturbance to the aquarium’s inhabitants, the horror experience will be delivered in-part through an audio guide. Noroi no Mizugushi starts on 1 October, running through to 31 October with general admission prices at ¥2000 (US$20, €17.50, £15).