Creepy thrills: How theme parks celebrate Halloween around the USA
Nearly every theme park now loads up on pumpkins, revs up fog machines, and unleashes a menagerie of monsters to celebrate Halloween. But they all owe a debt of gratitude to the granddaddy of haunts, Knott's Berry Farm. The Southern California park is presenting its 44th annual fall event, which it dubs Knott's Scary Farm, on select nights through October 31.
Before Knott's pioneered the haunt concept, many regional amusement parks would wind down their seasonal operations soon after Labor Day. Now, they follow Knott's template with gotcha-filled mazes, outdoor scare zones, themed shows, and rides. While it is the oldest, Knott's remains one of the biggest and best Halloween events at theme parks.
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Among its nine haunted mazes are Paranormal, Inc., which invites visitors to tour a haunted hospital, and the Tooth Fairy, in which the childhood icon turns out to be a sadistic dentist. (If these haunts are any indication, our healthcare system may be in worse shape than we thought.) Other mazes pay homage to Old West werewolves and samurai warriors gone bonkers. In Special Ops: Infected, guests are issued laser guns to hunt zombies and score points.
Scare zones include the killer clown-filled CarnEvil and the sin-obsessed monsters of The Deadly 7. One of the genre's most famous, if campiest, celebrities presides over the variety show, Elvira's Danse Macabre. The Hanging, a stage show that skewers pop culture, is a Scary Farm staple. When purchased online, tickets for Knott's Scary Farm range from $39.99 to $48.99. The park also offers family-friendly Halloween fun featuring Snoopy and the Peanuts characters at Knott’s Spooky Farm during the day.
Knott's is part of the Cedar Fair chain of theme parks, which includes the flagship Cedar Point in Sandusky, Ohio. Its Haunt at HalloWeekends features six mazes, including creepy wax figures that are a bit too lifelike in Eden Musee and clinicians that are out for blood in Eternity Infirmary. (The medical profession doesn't fare too well at park Halloween events it would seem.) Fear-Y Tales and Cornstalkers are among the event's scare zones. Skeleton Crew presents circus acts, while other shows feature magic and music. HallowWeekends is open through October 30 on Fridays starting at 6 p.m. and Saturdays and Sundays starting at 11 a.m. Online tickets are $42 or $53 depending on the day.
All Cedar Fair parks offer Halloween events including SCarowinds at Carowinds in Charlotte, N.C., Halloween Haunt at Kings Dominion in Doswell, Va., and Halloween Haunt at Kings Island in Kings Mills, Ohio.
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All of the Six Flags parks also get into the spirit of the season with Fright Fest. During the day, the parks tone down the scares and keep the proceedings G-rated. At night, however, the PG-13 mazes and scare zones unleash monsters and elicit screams. Some of the parks offer outdoor haunted mazes as well as indoor ones. Fright Fest is included with park admission, which varies by location. Some of the mazes require additional fees.
There are four scare zones at the Six Flags America Fright Fest in Upper Marlboro, Md., including Necroville and Zombieville. Among the eight mazes at the Six Flags Great Adventure Fright Fest in Jackson, N.J. are the haunted prison-themed Cell Block 6 and the reality-show-gone-wrong, Voodoo Island. The park presents five shows, including Dead Man’s Party Graveyard Rock.
Continuing the park chain's foray into virtual reality, Great Adventure, along with seven other Six Flags locations, converted one of its roller coasters into a Halloween-themed VR experience. Passengers on the indoor Skull Mountain ride strap on VR goggles and are transported to a cityscape that has been overrun by winged monsters in Rage of the Gargoyles. The action is synchronized with the motion of the coaster. Using head movements, riders are able to fire, videogame-style, at the beasts. Rage of the Gargoyles is also available during Fright Fest at Six Flags Great America near Chicago, Six Flags Over Texas in Arlington, Six Flags Discovery Kingdom near San Francisco, Six Flags Over Georgia outside of Atlanta, La Ronde in Montreal, Six Flags St. Louis in Eureka, and The Great Escape in Lake George, N.Y.
The Busch Gardens parks in Tampa and Williamsburg, Va., as well as sister park, SeaWorld San Antonio all celebrate Halloween with Howl-O-Scream. There are plenty of shows and creepy haunted houses. Roaming hordes of monsters also terrorize visitors in scare zones and throughout the parks.
The Williamsburg park is offering two separate-admission haunted escape room experiences. One is themed to Jack the Ripper, and the other features possessed dolls that come to life. Howl-O-Scream is included with admission to the Texas and Virginia parks. In Florida, the nighttime Halloween event requires a separate ticket.