Spooky Amusement Park Halloween Makeovers

throughout the Los Angeles and Southern California area

Redecorating the Los Angeles area amusement parks for Halloween has become a major tradition.  It's often Friday night through Sunday in October as well as Halloween. The big ones are open most of October.  However, check an individual attraction's own web site for the actual spooky days.

Scare Mazes are the big thing.  Many can be quite graphic. Because of intensity of the haunting, there are child age recommendations for most of these events.  Some events have separate children's events.

For the most part, costumes ARE NOT allowed at the amusement parks to keep the employee's separated from the paying customers.  Some of the children's events do allow them, check before getting your kid to the front gate.

Knott's Berry Farm Halloween Haunt

Here's the most elaborate scare event with over 1,000 monsters.  Knott's Berry Farm turns into the "Scariest Place on Earth" after dark.  A dozen mazes and shows including The magic and mayhem of Ed Alonzo, The Hanging, satirical look back at the year's pop culture with pyrotechnics and other special effects, Dr. Cleaver's Psycho Circus extravaganza.  Also have pre-scare dinner  (reservations 714-220-5055) and VIP  options.  Scaring since 1973.

Knott's Berry Farm Camp Spooky

Daytime alternative to the scary Halloween Haunt.  Celebrating Halloween cheer with trick-or-treating, mazes and shows.  Non scary. Costume contest.

"Tykes can use their map to search for pirate treasures like eye patches, bandanas, coins and more. Tykes will look like little pirates ready to join the costume parade in the Camp Snoopy Theatre with the Peanuts gang or brave the high seas surprises in Captain Jack's Hideaway Adventure"

Queen Mary's Ship Wreck

 Wana party on a real haunted ship???  The Queen Mary changes into a horrifying party boat just to celebrate Halloween.  It has 9 mazes this year,  dance parties with  DJs as well as a live bands transform the ship  into a high energy alternative rock night club with their own their own Fright Mistress.  Open weekends most of  October.  Check the site for the schedule of the Shipwreck hearse.  Check out the website for a tour of the mazes and dace floor from past years.  Terror fest since 1995.

Halloween Horror Nights - Universal Studios

Blurring the line between frightful illusion and grim reality Universal Studios is back with ”Halloween Horror Nights” beginning Friday the 13^th of October.  The event will be helmed by “The Director” ― a sociopathic cinematic auteur – who will convert Universal’s working studio backlot and the theme park’s most popular rides and attractions into terrifyingly realistic settings for an intense and enveloping vision of mayhem.  By creating the ambiance of a true “horror genre” production, “The Director”  will set the stage for a transformative horror experience.

Universal Studios is back in the Halloween Haunt business for 2006. Universal Studios Hollywood’s favorite attractions will remain open for the nighttime Halloween Horror Nights experience, but many will feature a menacing twist.  “WaterWorld”  is transformed into “Slaughter World” for the occasion.  See  “Jurassic Park—In the Dark.”

Performances by the Mutaytor’s blend of pyrotechnics, stunt performance, tribal dancers and pounding percussion--a riotously surreal techno-retro-funk-audience—will add a spine-tingling and alarming element to the overall Halloween experience.  “Chucky’s Insultorium” - a mix of menace and humor to the event while the “Carnival of Carnage” - medieval torture artists, sword swallowers, fire and glass eaters, human pincushions and those with a hearty appetite for cockroaches, worms and maggots. 

Universal's CityWalk Halloween Carnival for kids

They are creepy, they are cooky, they are all together ooky…The fun begins for kids up to 12 to Trick or Treat starting at 4PM. Costume contests, great prizes, Universal Characters and a real live hearse…will give the kids only "Fun" nightmares... 

"Wicked" at CityWalk!

  CityWalk will celebrate the return of of the Broadway and international hit Wicked to Los Angeles with "Wicked Day"

At this event the Los Angeles cast of WICKED will be announced and after being introduced, they will perform numbers from the show. The creators of WICKED -- composer-lyricist Stephen Schwartz, author Winnie Holzman, producers Marc Platt and David Stone - will also be on hand for the festivities. “Be WICKED” singing contest, WICKED costume contest, WICKED games, and opportunities to get autographs or “go green” for the day with a WICKED makeover. There will be WICKED giveaways and refreshments as well.

Fright Fest at Magic Mountain

Six Flags Magic Mountain is transformed from a “theme park” to a haunted “scream park” for Fright Fest, Southern California’s ultimate Halloween experience. With six terrifying haunted mazes, roaming zombies, spooky shows and Xtreme rides in the dark, Fright Fest offers sensory overload for every range of fear. And, a Fright Fest exclusive – experience one of the largest, most celebrated coasters in the world, Colossus, BACKWARDS!

Mazes not recommended for the young kids.  Some mazes have actual age restrictions.  However, they also have Bugs Bunny World: "Twick or Tweat" just for the kids.

Mikey's Halloween Treat - Disney's California Adventures  

Ghostly going on.  Costumed Characters. The Golden Scream's Theater will be the Disney Villains Lair.  The Haunted Mansion will be done up in it's Jack Skelton Holliday theme, complete with Oogie Boogie.  The Tower of Terror gets a seasonal makeover.  Wood has a Halloween Roundup at Boo Thunder Ranch.

(Disney seems to have canceled the special costume event that they earlier announced for California Adventure... so it looks like it's just a spooky re-do of the park.  If anyone has better luck than I'm having getting info, please write me.)

Scarium of the Pacific

Numerous treats are in store this autumn at the Aquarium of the Pacific. Friday nights they're open until nine to visit the Shark Lagoon.  Consider dinner.

Scarium of the Pacific

A spooktackular event for the whole family. Special presentations.
Activities include magic shows, spooky storytelling, a display of decorated pumpkins, children’s coloring contest, and a variety of educational and fun crafts."

Autumn Festival

"Experience the richness and diversity of Asian and Asian American cultures through this fall celebration. This year the Autumn Festival will focus on the traditions and heritage of Japan, China, Korea, and the Philippines through a weekend of learning opportunities and family entertainment."  Music, dance, story telling, kids crafts, exhibitions, ethnic cuisine.

Boo At the Zoo - Los Angeles Zoo

Our annual Halloween celebration is sure to be another spook-tacular event! The entire Zoo is transformed into themed areas for trick-or-treaters to delight with fun. Performers, treats, crafts, music, and creepy crawlers will create a not-so-scary weekend for all! 

Face Painting, Halloween crafts, Trick-or-treat candy stations, creepy creature, encounters, face painting, holiday entertainment in the pumpkin patch,  “Stomp and chomp” special animal feedings and more. Get up close and creepy with spiders and snakes at the petty zoo. Check out the swamp for the white alligator.

Other Parks and Attractions

Every single amusement  park in Southern California seems to have some kind of Halloween or Autumn celebration going.  Many have children's costume contests.  There are addition events...

Check out <Boo News & Sources> for search engines.

Please contact us at  spookycat@alleycatscratch.com with any corrections or if you have an item to be added to this page.  

This page last updated 01/18/08

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