Kings Island Halloween Haunt (Mason, OH)
“ If The Corn Is A Popping Don’t Come A Knocking”
By Noah Wullkotte: Jollypumpkin@aol.com
Halloween Haunt at Kings Island is one of the most popular attractions in Ohio during the fall season. It’s understandable since there is so much you can do in one place without spending tons of money. Halloween Haunt consists of 10 haunts, 3 scare zones, Coffin Races, various shows and there are plenty of rides that are open.
One of the best parts of Halloween Haunt is how they decorate the entire park to put customers in the mood for Halloween. Eyeballs hang from trees, skeletons are dressed up in costumes and there’s plenty of fog, tombstones and props that decorate Kings Island. Even the Eiffel Tower is lit up and has red eyes and razor sharp teeth. The lake has flames that randomly shoot up in the air. You will definitely feel the heat if you’re near by.
Halloween Haunt’s newest attraction is Field of Screams. This is a cornfield style haunt that uses the Dinosaurs Alive area. Just imagine Constalkers, but larger and with more narrow paths. There’s not much to this haunt to be honest. The design essentially consists of cornstalks that have been attached to walls. The outside farm house facade before entering the haunt is the most impressive part of the experience.
The rest of the haunts aren’t dramatically different from last year. Pitch Black now requires you and a group of people to hold on to a rope. The audio and lighting design has been improved. But it’s not difficult to navigate since there are green glow in the dark arrows pointing you in the right direction. Wolf Pack is the shortest haunt at the park coming in at 3 minutes. The soundtrack is great, but the actors wear werewolf masks and yell as you walk by. It would be more realistic if they growled like actual werewolves and wore a combination of makeup and prosthetics. Light can shine into the haunt since the roof is open and this can make it less frightening if you visit when it’s still light out.
Delta Delta Die has been renamed Sorority House and some haunts have been moved to different locations. Haunts range from 3 to 7 minutes long. A few years ago, the Skeleton Key Rooms were introduced. These are special rooms for those who pay extra. For the most part, they’re pretty unique. Kill Mart requires you to find a key in the stomach of a man in order to exit. It was pretty neat how they had spaghetti inside of his wound. It’s an old school effect, but it’s sure to gross some people out. Slaughter House has a pretty neat Skeleton Key Room, but the chainsaw they use isn’t an actual chainsaw and the sound is coming from speakers. Sorority House just had us wearing blindfolds in its Skeleton Key Room. There are a variety of Skeleton Key Rooms. If you have a fear of snakes then you’re going to hate the Skeleton Key Room at Madam Fatale’s Cavern of Terror.
Board to Death features rooms that focus on classic board games such as Pop-O-Matic trouble, Risk, Candy Land and more. Kill Mart is a super store that’s been taken over by the living dead. You’ll explore housewares, sporting goods, the pet supplies section and more. It’s pretty creative and can be a little creepy. Carnevil will always be one of my favorite haunts at Halloween Haunt. It’s not very scary, but it’s one of the most entertaining haunts at the park. Return customers will notice some of the changes that were made this year. Backwoods Bayou is no longer a scare zone and is now a haunt or what Kings Island calls a Maze.
Halloween Haunt is very popular and it’s not uncommon to run into another group of people inside of a haunt or wait between some scenes. This is a problem since you might miss a scare. When I was separated from my group in Urgent Scare, I was able to walk through the haunt by myself. I was pleasantly surprised by how good the actors are when they aren’t dealing with lines of people walking through the haunt.
Madam Fatale’s Cavern of Terror is the most impressive haunt in terms of design. It actually resembles a haunted wax museum. We are quite happy that Tombstone Terror-Tory had been removed. The train ride was fun, but the haunted trail was mediocre. It was our least favorite haunt at the park. Please don’t forget to experience Boo Blasters on Boo Hill which is Kings Island’s only Dark Ride. Halloween Haunt features scare zones such as Cemetery Drive, Freak Street and Nightmare Alley. There are shows such as Blood Drums, Monster Rock and Hot Blooded. Hot Blooded is without a doubt our favorite part of Halloween Haunt. It’s a very entertaining stage show with vampires, rock music, scantily clad women and gore. It’s always been a tradition of ours to finish the night with a viewing of Hot Blooded.
General admission for Friday is $30.99 and at the gate it’s $46.99. On Saturday it’s $42.99 online and $65 at the gate. Admission with Fright Lane access to skip the lines is $65.99 online and $91.99 at the gate for Friday. On Saturday Admission with Fright Lane Access is $97.99 online and $123.99 at the gate. Season Pass holders get unlimited Halloween Haunt visits. Please visit www.visitkingsisland.com/haunt for more information on pricing which includes prices for Fright Feast, Junior/Senior Discounts and more. There are plenty of food options, refreshments, games, Kings Island merchandise and more. You might even run into a costumed character as you roam the park.
Halloween Haunt is a good value if you purchase your tickets online and it includes all the haunts, shows, and rides. You might have a difficult time trying to experience all the haunts unless you have a Fright Lane Pass. The Fright Lane will have a green neon spider sign. Yes, there are areas that Halloween Haunt could improve upon, but we always have a fun time and we think you will too.
Please Note: Halloween Haunt is a lengthy experience if you’re able to experience everything at the park. Most people won’t unless they purchase a Fright Lane Pass and arrive early. The Skeleton Key Rooms add to the length of the haunts. It’s very tough to rate the length of Halloween Haunt, but you are going to be there for a long time. There are a lot of variables that effect the length score for Halloween Haunt.
Length-8 Design-7 Props/Animatronics-8 Acting-7 Scare Effect-7
Final Stab: 7.4
www.visitkingsisland.com/haunt