We reserved ourselves VIP Buffet In Ghost Town tickets and got let into the park for 30 minutes early while the general public was still there. Then at 5:00, the buffet started. The food was okay except the meat was a bit undercooked. Great carrot cake and potatoes though.Then at 6:30 we were let in to have another 30 minutes. Haunt officialy opens at 7:00 by the way. We made our way straight to Ghostrider.
After about a twenty minute wait we went for a seat in the middle. Ghostrider is an awesome coaster and a must at Knott's. The first drop is very exciting, you get tons of airtime, and the coaster is very lenghthy. Ghostrider provides a great ride.
By the time we finished Ghostrider the Haunt had opened and we made our way through The Swamp (scare zone) which was dissapointgly bare, to Terror Vision In 3D, our first haunted house. Terror Vision is a spoof of 50s, 60s, 70s, and 80s TV shows. It uses funny jokes and some well hidden scares to entertain you. The 3D adds much to the experience. The best rooms were the Braidy Brunch (The Fraidy Brunch) and Sesame Street (I can't rememember it's spoof name). The problem is that the maze exits you into a wierd location. Next we walked around CarnEVIL (the Boardwalk) for a few minutes before hitting Xcelerator.
Xcelerator is one of my fave coasters for one reason. THE LAUNCH!!! The launch is so cool, but I guess the top hat also rocks. The problem with Xcelerator is a very weak and unexciting second half. Still a great coaster. Get the first seat. After that came Carnival Of Carnivorous Clowns From Outer Space In 3D or COCCFOSI3D. This is totally awesome, but no different from last years Carnival Of Carnivourous Clowns In 3D. There is only one added spaceship room. I think the room is just an excuse to make the title even longer. I mean, that title must have a record or something. Anyway, the 3D and scare actors are top notch here also.
Then came Malice In Wunderland In 3D. This was weak compared to last years. The 3D again really helps, but the lack of scare actors was very notciable. Where were they? I only saw a few and they didn't even attempt to be scary. What happened Malice?
Next came the fun time when we get to wait in line 30 minutes for the Red Moon Massacre (or Timber Mountain Log Ride) step up to the car, get in the car, and then be told to get out because the ride is experiencing technical diffuculties which the ride operators have no clue about. YAY!
After our fun little adventure, we decided to see the Hanging 2004 It Takes A Village...Idiot. This year spoofing as you guessed, The Village. This show continues to be hilarious for yet another year, although I found some of the pop culture references a bit stale. Especially the victim of the noose (who I won't reveal). After that we headed to the 2nd new haunted maze, Red Beard's Revenge. What's everyone complaining about. Red Beard's Revenge was a perfectly enjoyable haunted house complete with rocking floors, some good scares, and very nice theming. A great new addition I hope stays around for next year. We then took a stroll through the Gauntlet (Camp Snoopy) where me and Connor did our first haunted maze without mom and dad. Lore Of The Vampire. This is a fun maze, but is short and uneventful. Look out for the guy on stilts near the end, though. He'll give you a pretty good scare if you don't notice him.
After that we headed to Fiesta Village and went through Curse Of The Spider Woods. Me and Connor again flew solo. What the heck happened here. This was a totally awesome maze last year and was completely ruined by a lack of scare actors and the show room being taken out. The worst maze at the Haunt, hands down! After being completely pissed off by Curse Of The Spider Woods we went to Red Moon and were let in through the exit because of the earlier complications. My mom sat this one out not wanting to get wet. There wasn't as many scare actors as 2003, but this ride does a nice job of entertaining and provides a fun ride. Not the best, nor the worst. We walked to the other side of the park for Blood Bayou and Hatchet High next. Discovering that Hatchet High had a 35 minute wait, we did Blood Bayou which only had a 10 minute line. This is a fun maze that puts you in the backwoods with a cannibal family and some wierd a$$ pigs. There are scares to be had and look out for the chainsaw guy.
We exited to discover Hatchet High with a short 5 minute wait and hopped in line. This maze best displays the dark sense of humor that underlies each maze and show. Read the graffiti and classroom doors.
Our last stop took us through Ghost Town, which is the best scare zone just because of the sliders, and backstage. The Asylum is located in a very strange location this year, but it works. Anyway, The Asylum is for another year the scariest and best maze. It's brutal, disgusting, and downright creepy. Do it or you've missed the best maze at the Haunt. And so after making a stop at a souvinier stand and buying a nifty light up hat, we headed to our car and drove off into the darkness.
Here are the best and worst Haunt mazes in order (1 is best and 10 is worst):
1: The Asylum
2: Terror Vision In 3D
3: Red Beard's Revenge
4: Hatchet High
5: COCCFOSI3D
6: Blood Bayou
7: Red Moon Massacre
8.Malice In Wunderland
9. Lore Of The Vampire
10. Curse Of The Spider Woods
Note: We were not able to see Army Of The Underworld or Jaguar- Temple Of Sacrifice although I did them last year and found them both to be just okay.
Here's the scare zones in order:
1. Ghost Town
2. The Gauntlet
3. CarnEVIL
4. The Swamp
5. Gypsy Camp
Tips:
Buy VIP tickets
Use the Burger King coupons
Don't go on a Saturday
Respect the scare actors
HAVE FUN!
thanks for the report!
i've nether been there but it sounds grate!
i'd like that!
sorry if this is annoying but I wouldn't have to do this is people replied
Sounds like fun--if you like being SCARED!
Good report. I appreciated the information on the best place to get the tickets. I didn't know anything about this VIP Buffet thing.
I wonder why there weren't as many scare actors as the last time you went. Hmm. This is Knott's big thing.
From your report it sounds like the lines weren't too long. Did you have any problems with the drunks?
in terms of lines the only long lines were for some of the smaller spinning rides and the coasters later in the night
army of the underworld had a really long line though
working at knotts for 15 years I should know.
the only thing to fear...... is the Beast himself
I sent you an email with my email address so you can get back to me.
Thanks!
Jason, I enjoyed your review of Knotts Scary Farm 2004. Very well said!
I wonder how the attractions will rate this year?
I believe the park pays the actors, so you would think
there would be enough to go around. Anyway, I plan on attending this year. Am hopeing that it is worth the cost of admission. Based on what I know so far, I would say that it should be. I live in northern Ca. so it should be interesting to see how I can go about obtaining coupons from B-King. Any advice for coupons and other discounts would be appreciated.
Thanks,
Amber, who is only scary with the makeup off! hehe! ;)
Have a game plan or else you won't be able to do everything you want. And I strongly recommend VIP tickets.
Don't drive all the way to the park to buy tickets, get them from Ticketmaster.
That's all I can think of.
**** Amber ****
:)
