Close Menu
Inside Universal
    Facebook X (Twitter) Instagram YouTube Threads
    Friday, July 11
    Trending
    • Terrifier is coming to Halloween Horror Nights 2025 in Orlando and Hollywood
    • Halloween Horror Nights 34 Frequent Fear Pass multi-night tickets now on Sale
    • Knott’s Scary Farm 2025 tickets go on sale July 25
    • What’s Happening at the Universal Parks – Week of July 7, 2025
    Inside Universal
    Facebook X (Twitter) Instagram YouTube LinkedIn Threads
    • Home
    • News
      • Hollywood
        • Photo Updates
        • CityWalk Hollywood
        • Halloween Horror Nights – Hollywood
        • Events
      • Orlando
        • Photo Updates
        • Universal Studios Florida
        • Islands of Adventure
        • Epic Universe
        • Universal’s Volcano Bay
        • CityWalk Orlando
        • Universal Resorts
        • Halloween Horror Nights – Orlando
        • Events
      • Japan
        • Photo Updates
        • Events
      • Singapore
      • Beijing
      • Other Universal Destinations
      • Outside Universal
        • Walt Disney World
        • SeaWorld Orlando
        • Around Orlando
        • Disneyland Resort
        • Knott’s Berry Farm
        • Around California
    • Forums
    • Inside Universal Podcast
    • Features
    • Merchandise
    Inside Universal
    Home»Outside Universal»California»Knott's Berry Farm»REVIEW: Knott’s Scary Farm Makes Its Return for the 2021 Haunt Season

    REVIEW: Knott’s Scary Farm Makes Its Return for the 2021 Haunt Season

    September 22, 2021 Knott's Berry Farm By Chris
    Share
    Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Pinterest Email Reddit Copy Link

    Man, it’s been a heck of a journey the last two years, hasn’t it? At least for Knott’s, they had planned for their biggest Boysenberry Festival in 2020, leading into their 100th anniversary and the world had other plans.

    But always one to take boysenberries and turn them into boysenberry juice, we got a series of tasting events, including the most unique one, Taste of Fall-o-ween, a hybrid of a food & wine festival mixed with trick-or-treating and lots of Halloween-style performances and characters, except for one core part. Scary Farm.

    If you would’ve asked me what the odds of getting Scary Farm in 2021 was going to be, my response would’ve changed every month, including up to August of this year. But, as you’re reading this now, you know the fates determined it should rise from its grave, unable to rest for any longer.

    At this point, after running like a well-oiled machine for decades, Scary Farm articles basically boil down “What’s new? What’s changed?” and we’ll get to that, but I just want to say I’m simply happy to have anything, literally anything related to Scary Farm this year and I’ll take whatever I can get. Talk about a new appreciation of every aspect of things we lost access to for so long, right?

    While two mazes took their final bow in 2019, we were only blessed with one new maze this year, Mesmer: Sideshow of the Mind, but it’s a doozy and we got a lot of other entertainment going on. Especially with the retirement of the polarizing Hanging show.

    In its stead, is Carnaval du Grotesque, which is a mixture of sideshow acts and musical acts. From what we saw on opening night, there were fire acts, a man puncturing his skin, and a musical performance by Knott’s Summer Night. I have to imagine there’ll be even more variety throughout the season. The fact that Hiatus made an appearance makes me think bands will be a permanent fixture in that spot for seasons to come.

    Beyond that, Chipper Lowell is back in the Birdcage Theater with Conjurers and supposedly other guest magicians will be appearing, too. Around the corner, inside Mystery Lodge, home of the final location of the former Special Ops: Infected maze, is an entirely new show called Invitation to Terror, making use of the Mystery Lodge theater’s pepper’s ghost effect in ways that haven’t been seen for literal years. It’s a spooky short show that takes place in the yuppie world of the 80s. The show is definitely a love letter to the decade of excess, with so many details to find. And the performers do a great job of drawing you in. I’m curious what the future of this area holds, especially after being vacant for so long.

    And of course, we can’t ignore Puppet Up which was the surprise hit of 2019. The improv performers from the Jim Henson Company fill up the theater for every performance and it’s always a great time, provided you’re mature enough for the topic.

    In a familiar place, a new drum show called Wicked Drums is over in Camp Snoopy, which should make some old-time folks remember a very similar act from years back.

    Oh, and there’s the art show, too! Into the Fog is accessible during daytime and night. I feel like every year I gush about all the great art in here, and this year is no different. It’s getting really close to just becoming a year-round art exhibit area, which we’d have no problem with.

    In addition to all these shows, there’s also surprise pop up shows in all the scare zones, which aren’t on any publicized schedule but can pretty much be determined to be at either the top or bottom of the hour, like a funeral march at Forbidden Lake, or the Witch Burning at midnight in The Hollow. New this year is a scare zone in the Roaring 20s area of the park, appropriately titled Gore-ing 20s.

    This is a scare zone unlike any other, though. While the other zones rely on shadows and heavy fog, this one is more interactive than before. The land is peppered with a wide range of folks, both arguing for and against prohibition, by any means necessary. This means you’ll find club bouncers, newspaper boys, proselytizers, flapper girls, guys in zoot suits, and grease monkeys. All of which have an angle and an agenda to push. No one in this area has masks. They’re all ready for you to bend an ear and hear their tale. It’s not too much of a stretch to say this is the closest thing to Ghost Town Alive we’ve had in a long while. Lots of story elements and freedom.

    There’s still sliding, scares, and fog in this area, but it’s more story-laden than anything that’s been done before in Scary Farm’s history, and I personally love it. A lot of the veteran talent that has worked other scare zones are in the Gore-ing 20s this year, so it’s definitely something the park is taking seriously. I’m not sure what the feel of the maze will be by the end of the season, but that’s the beauty of it. It’s always changing. You get out of it as much as you put in.

    On that same note, the new maze, Mesmer, is less about being ultra-scary and more about immersing guests in the dark world of the circus. Each room focuses on a depraved and unique sideshow act or character. I was told early on it was like a combination of Doll Factory and Black Magic, two classic mazes, and I have to agree. Because of the circus aspect, it means the performers in the maze are doing dual-duty as both scaring guests AND performing in a sideshow. More than any other maze this year, it lends itself to repeat walk-throughs, should time provide it. There are also some other gimmicks in the maze, like a tight-rope scene, that are really fun, building on some similar design elements in Shadowlands, which occupied this space for years prior. For only getting one new maze this year, it definitely holds it own and I hope to see it for years to come.

    The other returning mazes are still in top form. Although it feels like some changes have been made to reduce interactivity and some flow problems, like Dark Ride’s security room was disabled and the giant gears were moved out of the way. Nothing that ruins or affects the maze in any major way, though.

    Honestly, I would have been more than pleased with a scaled-back affair for 2021. But instead, Knott’s graced us with a Scary Farm filled with shows, a fantastic new maze, an intriguing new scare zone, and the resurrection of Mystery Lodge. It’s hard to argue with all of that. And on top of that, the daytime Knott’s Spooky Farm starts later this week, too. And that will bring even more life back into the park.

    Unfortunately, season passes sold out for this year quite early this year, so if you want a chance to enter the fog, you’ll need to pick up a 1-day ticket. I’d recommend Fright Lane if you only have one day to spare, to help get the most out of it. Unlike other events, it allows unlimited admission to each maze instead of a one-off usage.

    Tickets are on sale now at Knotts.com and the event runs through October 31st.

    2021 Event Halloween haunt Haunted House Knott's Berry Farm Knott's Scary Farm new News review
    Share. Facebook Twitter Pinterest LinkedIn Tumblr Email
    Previous ArticleUniversal Beijing Resort officially Grand Opens
    Next Article REVIEW: Howl-O-Scream 2021 at SeaWorld Orlando
    Chris

    Editor

    Related Posts

    Halloween Horror Nights - Hollywood

    Terrifier is coming to Halloween Horror Nights 2025 in Orlando and Hollywood

    July 10, 2025
    Halloween Horror Nights - Orlando

    Halloween Horror Nights 34 Frequent Fear Pass multi-night tickets now on Sale

    July 10, 2025
    Knott's Berry Farm

    Knott’s Scary Farm 2025 tickets go on sale July 25

    July 8, 2025
    LATEST POSTS

    Terrifier is coming to Halloween Horror Nights 2025 in Orlando and Hollywood

    July 10, 2025

    Halloween Horror Nights 34 Frequent Fear Pass multi-night tickets now on Sale

    July 10, 2025

    Knott’s Scary Farm 2025 tickets go on sale July 25

    July 8, 2025

    What’s Happening at the Universal Parks – Week of July 7, 2025

    July 7, 2025

    Johnny Rockets closes at CityWalk Hollywood

    July 2, 2025
    About Inside Universal

    Inside Universal is a website dedicated to covering Universal Parks & Resorts, specifically Universal Studios Hollywood and Universal Orlando. Our team of editors is committed to providing fact-based, non-sensationalist content that educates and informs our readers while still focused on having fun.

    Inside Universal aims to maintain a rational perspective, allowing us to offer commentary, news, and analysis about Universal Parks. Our mission is to provide you, the reader, with accurate and in-depth reporting to the best of our ability. This is our goal - nothing more, nothing less.

    Facebook X (Twitter) Instagram YouTube LinkedIn Threads
    JOIN THE DISCUSSION ON OUR FORUMS
    If you’re looking to have your Universal-related question answered, or if you’d simply like to chat about the park’s future developments, Inside Universal's forums is the Internet’s leading unofficial forum dedicated to Universal Studios Hollywood and Universal Orlando. MEI Travel
    Facebook X (Twitter) Instagram YouTube LinkedIn Threads
    • About Us
    • Masthead
    • Contact
    • Legal
    • Privacy Policy
    © 2025 All Rights Reserved - Inside Universal is not affiliated with Comcast, NBCUniversal, Universal Parks & Resorts, or Universal Destinations & Experiences. You may not copy, redistribute, publish, sell, or otherwise make the original contents of this website available to third parties unless you have received prior authorization from Inside Universal.

    Type above and press Enter to search. Press Esc to cancel.

    This website uses cookies to improve your experience. We'll assume you're ok with this, but you can opt-out if you wish.Accept Read More
    Privacy & Cookies Policy

    Privacy Overview

    This website uses cookies to improve your experience while you navigate through the website. Out of these cookies, the cookies that are categorized as necessary are stored on your browser as they are essential for the working of basic functionalities of the website. We also use third-party cookies that help us analyze and understand how you use this website. These cookies will be stored in your browser only with your consent. You also have the option to opt-out of these cookies. But opting out of some of these cookies may have an effect on your browsing experience.
    Necessary
    Always Enabled
    Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. This category only includes cookies that ensures basic functionalities and security features of the website. These cookies do not store any personal information.
    Non-necessary
    Any cookies that may not be particularly necessary for the website to function and is used specifically to collect user personal data via analytics, ads, other embedded contents are termed as non-necessary cookies. It is mandatory to procure user consent prior to running these cookies on your website.
    SAVE & ACCEPT