Author: Chris

We went up to visit Six Flags Magic Mountain this weekend for Fright Fest and had a blast. Six Flags Magic Mountain Fright Fest is known for being a fairly consistent Halloween event, but this year they tried a bunch of different ideas, from new mazes to new IPs and even a new entry system. And they mostly pulled it off. Let’s get that out of the way first, before we dive into the other aspects. That entry system is an important thing to remember. If you’re familiar with other Halloween events in Southern California, you know Magic Mountain does…

The weather is allegedly getting cooler. It’s not, really, but at least there’s a nice breeze every so often; but that can only mean one thing: Knott’s Scary Farm is back, and Halloween has officially begun. The farm is definitely all decorated for the season. The scare cloth is up everywhere. Fog has rolled in through all the lands. But this year, there’s been a few shake-ups to the formula. Carnevil has been injected with more a story now. Instead of being a mish-mash of clowns throughout the dust-bowl era, it’s firmly rooted in the world of Knott’s Scary Farm’s…

It’s now the middle of August, the days are still well into the 80s, and Midsummer Scream is now becoming a distant memory. It also means Halloween is right around the corner, and Knott’s Scary Farm is only a few short weeks away. That means it’s time for Knott’s annual Nightmares Revealed event, where, as the name suggests, everything is revealed for the upcoming 2026 season of Knott’s Scary Farm. Earlier, at Midsummer Scream, Knott’s revealed Origins and Chilling Chambers will be returning to the fog at the end of this season. They also showed off the revamped Carnevil scare…

If it’s August, that means it’s time for the one-two punch of Knott’s Scary Farm announcements. The first is the teasing at Midsummer Scream, which is what we’re covering today. They announced which mazes will be celebrating their final season with us and provided an update to one of the scare zones. The first of two new mazes retiring after this year is Origins. Origins was one of the last mazes Jon Cooke worked on, and it debuted in 2019 to warm reception. It incorporated an endless number of references to the history of Ghost Town and served as an…

Nathan the CatLady moderated the 13th Floor panel at Midsummer Scream this year, covering four of their Halloween events around Southern California. While nothing new was mentioned, The Magic of the Jack O’Lanterns is returning this year to the South Coast Botanic Gardens, where it was recently relocated. Affectionately described as a palate cleanser, it’s easily the most family-friendly attraction of the bunch. We attended last year and loved it. It’s perfect for a date night stroll, or to get out with the kids and have them chase smoke bubbles as you look at wild sculptures carved into countless pumpkins.…

The Gray Ghost is celebrating 13 years of hosting Dark Harbor, and just across the port at the Long Beach Convention Center, the people of the coincidentally named 13th Floor Entertainment detailed everything going on this year. One thing is certain: the Queen Mary hasn’t been idle. Even during the off-season, 13th Floor has introduced a year-round escape room aboard the ship and held smaller haunt events in the spring, all aimed at expanding the lore of the Queen Mary and its numerous curses. To catch people up on this year’s event so far, the Dark Masquerade focused on a…

Over the weekend, Mike Ostrom and Mark Wing sat down at Midsummer Scream to lay out everything happening with Fright Fest at Six Flags Magic Mountain this year. They can be seen here in their seasonally appropriate looks. In lighter news, they mentioned that Tricks And Treats is returning for its second year, this time with a new Halloween show in the newly revamped Looney Tunes Land. Without wasting much more time, they detailed what would not be returning this year. Three mazes, Condamned, Saw: Legacy of Terror, and Truth or Dare, were all getting the axe, along with the…

While the rest of America is gearing up for the semiquincentennial, over in Ghost Town at Knott’s Berry Farm, they’re celebrating the 100th anniversary of the founding of Calico, founded in the grand year of 1795. The math is correct, but the current year is not what you think it is. If you saunter into Ghost Town from now through the end of August, you’ll be entering 1895 on Founder’s Day, all as a part of their daytime interactive role-playing event called Ghost Town Alive. Since it began in 2016, the award-winning Ghost Town Alive has run a constantly evolving…

Can you feel that spring is here? The air is warming up, flowers are blooming, and the boysenberries have taken over Knott’s Berry Farm. It’s now time for the most delicious season at Knott’s: the Boysenberry Festival! For a park that was founded on food, it only makes sense that they host an annual food and wine festival – this one with an obvious tilt toward their namesake berry. We recently covered some of the dining and merchandise options in our tasting preview earlier this month, but there’s a lot more to cover, so let’s get to it. In terms…

Winter is fading in Southern California, and that means one thing in Buena Park: the return of the Boysenberry Festival at Knott’s Berry Farm. Ahead of the full kickoff, we got a preview of this year’s boysenberry-inspired food and new merchandise. Here’s a quick look at what’s coming soon. To no one’s surprise, there were a lot of desserts to try this year. The group favorite was the boysenberry shortcake sushi roll. Chopsticks were even provided if you wanted to make it feel like a somewhat-authentic sushi roll. There was also a no-bake lemon and boysenberry cheesecake that had the…