Knott's Berry Farm's 35th Annual Halloween Haunt promises a 160-acre "living horror movie," with 12 mazes, six shows, 4 scare zones, and 1,000 live monsters.
You can buy tickets online at Fandango.
Or order by phone at the Knott's "Haunt Line" (714-220-5000) and at the TickeMaster "Haunt Lines" dedicated for the event (213-365-3535 and 714-703-2555). Tickets are availabe at Knott's Guest Relations or at any TicketMaster outlet: Robinsons-May, Wherehouse Music, TV Musica, and Ritmo Latino.
KNOTT'S "SCARY" FARM 8039 Beach Boulevard Buena Park, CA 90620 Haunt line: 714-220-5000 Website: www.halloweenhaunt.com
Is Knott's Scary Farm your favorite Halloween Haunt? Vote for it in our online poll. Care to know what we think? Check out our review of the 2007 edition. Or scroll down toward the bottom of this page for our video tour of the park.
2007 DATES: September 27-30; October 3-7, 10-14, 17-21, 24-31.
HOURS: 7:00pm to 1:00am on weeknights, until 2:00am on Fridays and Saturdays (Knott's Berry Farm closes its regular theme park at 5:30pm each evening and re-opens for the Halloween Haunt at 7:00.)
TICKETS: $45 pre-sale, $51 the night of the event (requires a special ticket; your regular Knott's Berry Farm admission will not get you into the Halloween Haunt). Purchase tickets online at Fandango, using their new "Live Events" option.
PARKING: $10.00 per car; $15 for larger vehicles (vans, etc).
BARGAINS: You can save shipping costs on pre-sales by using the Print@Home function on the Knott's website. Coupons available at Burger King can save you up to $21; if the thought of dining at Burger King fills you with more horror than you can handle, you can download a coupon for the same discount here. Biggest discounts are for weeknights early in the season (some shows may not be operating, but all the mazes will be). Group discounts for 24 or more are available at 714-220-5163.
V.I.M. (Very Important Monster) Tours: You can get haunt admission, preferred seating at select shows, a our escort for the entire evening, and back door access to the attractions, but the price is not cheap: $1,500 for up to six guests. Reserve one week in advance by calling 714-220-5298.
PRE-SCARE DINNER SPECIALS: These give you a chance to eat before the park opens for the nightly haunt. $12.95 gets you a pre-scare buffet in the Ghost Camp or Black Lagoon picnic areas; plus, you are allowed into the park through a separate entrance a few minutes before it opens for other guests. $15.95 gets you a more elaborate V.I.P. Monster Buffett, with prime rib, shrimp and salads in addition to the other items; you also get a souvenier beverage cup. Due to seating limitaions, this offer is available only to ticket holders with advance dinner reservations. NOTE: Once you're inside the park, your dining selections are mostly limited to fast food and snacks.
FEATURES: All the usual Knotts rides and attractions are open for business, but the park is redecorated for the Halloween season in grand ghoulish style: 160 acres with 12 mazes, 6 shows, and 4 scare zones. The scares start the minute you walk in the gate, with 1,000 wandering ghouls lunging at you out of the fog.
DRAWBACKS: The crowds. Inevitably, you have to wait in long lines for each attraction, unless you arrive as soon as the gates open or attend on an off-night. For some reason, the park's appeal skews young, so expect to find yourself surrounded by teeny-boppers. Also, the level of performance among the monsters sometimes seems to drop off near the end of the season, as if the actors are growing weary of their roles.
Ghouls lurk in one of the scare zones. (Click for more photos.)
HISTORY: It all started back on October 31, 1973. Since Knotts is more or less modeled on a real ghost town (Calico in California), it made sense to decorate the ghost town section of the park up for Halloween, along with a few dozen monster lurking in the fog. The first walk-through maze was added the next year. Since then, the Halloween Haunt has grown into a huge annual event, with hundreds of actors in makeup and numerous mazes featuring everything from 3D lighting and to elaborate mechanical effects.
MAZES:
NEW FOR 2007: BEOWULF - Labyrinth into Darkness (set in The Lake). Obviously inspired by the upcoming movie starring Russell Crowe, which in turn is based on the epic poem about a hero who fights three monsters: Grendel, Grendel's mother, and a fire-breathing dragon.
NEW FOR 2007: PYROMANIAX (set in the Timbermountain Log Ride. The premise is that a fire breaks out on the mountain due to an accident at the local moonshine factory. Toxic fumes turn the locals, including the fire-fighters, into mutants.
NEW FOR 2007: THE DOLL FACTORY (set in Wilderness Dance Hall). The Marionette Murderer, a psycho-serial killer, turns his victims into life-sized porcelain dolls. You take a tour through his museum of death and hope to escape his mechanical lair. Sounds vaguely inspired by DEAD SILENCE and/or SAW.
NEW FOR 2007: KILLER CLOWN KILLEGE (set in Xcelerator). A terrifying initiation into Clown University and its fearsom fraternity.
NEW FOR 2007: BLACK WIDOW'S CAVERN (set in the Mine Ride). The old abandoned mine ride is overrun by lethal arachnids.
LORE OF THE VAMPIRE (set in the Balloon Race) The old favorite returns: nocturnal hunters seeking victims.
THE ASYLUM (set in GhostRider). Torture and pain in an abandoned sanitorium, where the patients pale in comparison to the doctors.
RED BEARD'S REVENGE (set in the Main Gate Area). Another favorite, with a nice nautical feel and cool costumes: pirates on the Isle of the Dead, in the main gate area near Camp Spooky.
FEARY TALES IN 3-D (set in Ghost Rider, near Asylum). Characters from the Brothers Grimm and Aesop's fables mutate into monsters in this colorful maze (which replaces "Malice in Wonderland").
13 AXE MURDER MANOR (set in the Mystery Lodge). A condmened Victorian mansion is haunted by the ghost of an ax murderer and his victims.
THE GRUDGE 2 (set in the Fiesta plaza). This maze, which was was established in 2006 to promote the release of the movie, returns for another go-round. The ghosts of Kayako and Toshio haunt an abandoned Japanese house.
LOST VEGAS IN 3-D (set in the Bumper Cars). A 3D casino of horror.
DARK REALM WITH LAZER RAGE (set in the Stage Coach Trail) This former "Scare Zone" was upgraded to a haunted maze in 2006: for an additional fee, you can arm yourself with a lazer gun and fight off nuclear mutants!
SHOWS
THE HANGING: celebrities are skewered in an outdoor stunt show in Calico Square.
HACKS "Trick-or-Treat": Crazy comedy in the "Ghoul Time Theatre."
DEATH OF DR CLEVER: Operating in the Bird Cage Theatre, the demented doctor and his sinister sidekick take you on a mind-bending trip into the beyond.
THE CHIPPER LOWELL EXPERIENCE: The crowd-pleasing performer combines magic with comedy in the Boardwalk Ballroom.
ZOMBINE SIDE SHOW OF THE BIZARRE: This freak show in the Gauntlet Theatre features Zamora the "Torture King" and Miss Electra, eating light bulbs, swallowing needles, etc.
THE ROCKETZ: An undead rock and shock show with psychobilly sounds and Go-Ghoul Dancers, in the Wagon Camp area.
FORTUNE TELLERS: Psychics will help you peer into the future on the Native American Stage.
INFERNO: Fire, dancing, and pulsating music form a lethal combination in between the Coasters and the Perilous Plunge. Besides fire-eating, this sow also features martial arts.
Scare Zones
Ghost Town: the original Knott's scare zone, the appropriate setting, an old, abandoned Western street populated by the dead
Silver Bullet Mine Town: Knott's resident gunslinger turns monstrous and leads a posse of evil miners.
The Gauntlet: the tranquil Camp Spooky is possessed by evil after dark
CarnEVIL: the living dead roam, even in the brightly lit Boardwalk area.
ALSO OF NOTE: Not recommended for children under 13. No re-entries allowed. No costumes.
REVIEWS:
2004: We attended the haunt early in the season, on Sunday, October 3 (one of the Bare Bones Nights, when the hypnotist, magic, and other shows were closed). Our assesment: One of the best Haunts ever, well worth the admission price. Read the full review in our Daily Journal by clicking
2005: We attended on a weeknight near the end of the month, and were pleased to find that the enthusiasm level among the monsters was still frightfully high. The crowds were a drag, but the new additions to the haunt were worth checking out. Read a complete review here.
2007: We hit the park on Thursday, October 4 and find it wide open, giving us enough time to walk through each and every maze, some two or three times. Read all about it here.
VIDEOS: Check out our multi-part video tour of the 2007 Halloween Haunt. (Click on menu to access more videos.)
