Halloween Haunt (Canada's Wonderland)

Halloween Haunt, previously known as "Fearfest", is a Halloween event at Canada's Wonderland located in Vaughan, Ontario, Canada. It runs after the park's regular operating hours on Friday, Saturday, and Sunday evenings in October - up to, and recently in the 2019 season, NOT including Halloween night. It is Canada's largest haunted theme park featuring over 300 monsters, nine walk-through "maze" attractions, six uniquely themed atmospheric scare areas, and three live shows. During its operation, the grounds are transformed via decorative props, thematic music, eerie lighting to further create its scary atmosphere.[1]

Halloween Haunt
Halloween Haunt at Canada's Wonderland logo
GenreHalloween
FrequencyAnnual
Location(s)Canada's Wonderland
43°50′33.16″N 79°32′31.00″W
Inaugurated2005
WebsiteOfficial website

History

The haunted theme park concept was first introduced in 2005, then called Fearfest while the park was under the ownership of Paramount Parks. Fearfest at Paramount Canada's Wonderland originally operated on weekday evenings through October, with eight frightening mazes, later on in the years when Paramount sold the park new owners added the "Skeleton Key" and "Fright Lane".

Most of the park's regular rides and attractions (with the exception of Nickelodeon Central, KidZville and Hanna-Barbera Land) continued to be staffed and operated during Fearfest, including the 'Haunted' Thunder Run coaster, which was slightly thematically changed to match the park. The park grounds were divided into three separately themed scare areas - The Curse of Sleepy Hollow, MTV Rockin' Scare, and Backlot Blood Bath - each having 2-3 mazes associated with it.[2] Each maze and scare area generally has its own unique back story, sometimes linking several mazes together.

The following year, Paramount extended its regular operating season through the family-oriented Halloween event "Spooktacular" in the typically closed child-oriented areas of the park, to match Fearfest's attendance in October. In 2006 the park ran Spooktacular from October 14–29 on weekends during the day, and would reopen the park as Fearfest in the evening.

With the change in ownership of the park from Paramount to the Cedar Fair Entertainment Company, the Fearfest name was dropped and renamed Halloween Haunt, remaining consistent with similar attractions at other Cedar Fair theme parks across North America. In addition, Spooktacular was not revived for the 2007 operating season. Despite this, Canada's Wonderland still continued regular daytime park hours during the Halloween Haunt run. To replace Spooktacular, the park created Camp Spooky, to fit in with the Peanuts theming of the kids area. With an existing history of running haunted attractions since 1973 at Knott's Berry Farm's event, Knott's Scary Farm, Cedar Fair was able to incorporate four additional mazes to the roster while retiring the Legend of the Lost and Slaughter Street attractions.

In 2008, Halloween Haunt saw an extended seasonal run into November, breaking the park's own attendance records for the event. Cedar Fair also retired the MTV Rockin' Scare area, including the Total Request Dead and Ozzburnes mazes in order to introduce three new ones for the season. The "adult-oriented'" horror musical show Dead Awakening also opened during the 2008 Halloween Haunt, performing at the Wonderland Theatre.[3] There are currently seven atmospheric scare areas with free-roaming monsters in the park: Gates of Terror, Ghostly Pines, CarnEvil, Wicked Hollow, The Plague and Trick or Treat. A new scare zone, "Frontier's Revenge", is being introduced for the 2019 season. [4]

Halloween Haunt did not occur in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Current attractions

The park has added new entertainment for the 2019 season. The LED Drumline roams the park, the Halloween Horror Flicks replaces Sinner's Lounge at Canterbury Theatre in The Plague, the Freak Show and The Illusionist share a stage at staggered times in the CarnEvil area, The Gallows features a hanging in The Plague, the Toxic Party Zone is by Behemoth (the pathway connecting Frontier's Revenge and where Orbiter used to stand), and the Radioactive: LED Dance Show is on a stage just in front of Behemoth and Backlot Stunt Coaster.

The Fright Lane lanyard/card is valid at all nine mazes.

Mazes
Attraction Type Opened Location
Code Red Maze 2016 International Street
Sci-Fi House Maze 2013 Medieval Faire
Cornstalkers Maze 2005 White Water Canyon
The Ruins Maze 2013 Wonder Mountain
Blackout Maze 2017 Wonder Mountain
Blood Shed Maze 2014 Courtyard
Forest of Fear Maze 2017 Courtyard
Spirit Manor Maze 2015 Action Theatre
The Crypt Maze 2018 Medieval Faire

Scare Zones
Attraction Type Location
Gates of Terror Scarezone Front Gate
CarnEvil Scare Zone International Festival
Ghostly Pines Scare Zone Action Zone
The Plague Scare Zone Medieval Faire
Trick or Treat Scare Zone Vortex
Wicked Hollow Scare Zone Action Zone (by Skyhawk and WindSeeker)
Frontier's Revenge Scare Zone Yukon Striker Pathway

Shows
Show Location Closest scare zone (or located in)
Halloween Horror Flicks Canterbury Theatre The Plague
Devil's Circus Coasters in Action Zone Wicked Hollow
Vampire Disco Medieval Faire The Plague
Freak Show International Festival CarnEvil
The Gallows Medieval Faire, outside of Canterbury Theatre The Plague
Toxic Party Zone Action Zone Frontier's Revenge
Radioactive: LED Dance Show Action Zone Frontier's Revenge
LED Drumline Front Gate, Action Zone, and International Showplace Gates of Terror, Frontier's Revenge, and Wicked Hollow
Dixieland Zombie Marching Band Roaming Roaming

Retired attractions
  • Sinner's Lounge - Show (retired 2018)
  • Bloody Buccaneers - Scarezone (retired 2018)
  • Club Blood - Maze (retired 2018)
  • Mysterion The Mind Reader - Show (retired 2018)
  • Skeleton Crew - Show (retired 2017)
  • Cryohazard - Scarezone (retired 2017)
  • Louisiana Scream - Maze (retired 2017)
  • Streets of The Undead - Maze (retired 2017)
  • Toxicity - Show (retired 2016)
  • The Asylum - Maze (retired 2016)
  • Terror of London - Maze (retired 2016)
  • Clowns at Midnight - Maze (retired 2015)
  • Steampunk - Scarezone (retired 2015)
  • Mother Noose - Maze (retired 2014)
  • Blood on the Bayou - Maze (retired 2013)
  • Iron Empire - Maze (retired 2013)
  • Kingdom of Carnage - Maze (retired 2013)
  • Red Beard's Rage - Maze (retired 2013)
  • Blood Drums - Show (retired 2013)
  • Haunted House 3D - Action Theatre Show (retired 2013)
  • Miner's Revenge - Maze (retired 2012)
  • Beyond The Grave - Show (retired 2012)
  • The Hanging - Show (retired 2012)
  • Fun House Express - Action Theatre Show (retired 2012)
  • Elvira's Superstition - Action Theatre Show (retired 2012)
  • Psycho Circus - Show (retired 2011)
  • Fangs - Show (retired 2010)
  • A Midsummer Nights Scream- Maze (retired 2010)
  • Dead Awakening - Show (retired 2009)
  • Massacre Manor - Maze (retired 2009)
  • Slaughter Mill - Maze (retired 2009)
  • Total Request DEAD - MTV Rockin' Scare Maze (retired 2008)
  • The Ozzburnes - MTV Rockin' Scare Maze (retired 2008)
  • Legend of the Lost: The Director's Cut - Backlot Blood Bath Maze (retired 2007)
  • Slaughter Street Fear Zone - Backlot Blood Bath Maze (retired 2007)
  • Spooktacular - KidZville/Nickelodeon Central Area (retired 2007)

See also

References
  1. "Everyone's Dying to Get In". Canada's Wonderland. 2011. Archived from the original on 2011-07-08. Retrieved 2020-01-10.
  2. Lazarenko, Rebecca (2006-10-11). "Fearfest takes over Paramount Canada's Wonderland". The Brock Press. Archived from the original on 2013-02-15. Retrieved 2020-01-10.
  3. "The Dead Awaken at Halloween Haunt this October". Canada's Wonderland. 2008-08-18. Archived from the original on 2011-07-08. Retrieved 2020-01-10.
  4. "Things To Do For Halloween | Haunted Mazes & Attractions | Canada's Wonderland". www.canadaswonderland.com. Retrieved 2020-01-10.

External Sources
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