Knott’s Scary Farm 2025

[Jake S]

We went last night and, after reading the posts here (and talking to @Clive about it), decided to do the Boo-fet dinner for the first time. It was absolutely worth it. Honestly, the quality of the food was better than I expected and going through a significantly shorter security line was a huge time saver. Most importantly, we got through all four Ghostrider mazes within 45 minutes. Excellent experience, would highly recommend if you're not planning on buying a front-of-line pass.

As for the mazes themselves: The Zoo (Lights Out) was very, very fun. The second half of the Bloody Mary was also clever, creative and enjoyable. And everything else? It was Scary Farm. The mazes were just okay, and upon second runs I think Widows and Eight Fingers Nine suffer from a clear lack of creative focus. But that's not really why I go. The vibe is great, the scare zones are awesome and The Gauntlet remains the best thing Scary Farm does every year. We got a chance to watch the slider show, which was a lot of fun.

If we still lived in Orange County, I'd absolutely consider a Scary Farm pass for next year. The mazes don't typically do it for me, but they really kill the Halloween-y vibe every year.

 

[DTH]

If we still lived in Orange County, I'd absolutely consider a Scary Farm pass for next year. The mazes don't typically do it for me, but they really kill the Halloween-y vibe every year.

I thought the same thing. The pass is so cheap but the drive would make it not necessarily worth it. HHN I'd get a pass, but it feels like there's no point because the lines are so insane. Oh well. Funny though, KSF went from me skipping it every other year to me thinking, "you know, I'd love to come back 3x or more in a month."

 

[Ringwraith]

In my first visit since 2012, I have to say I was super impressed. The stories all kind of get whack and everything seems to end with a giant puppet, but man, the houses were fun and it was super immersive.

I've been a harsh critic of Universal Orlando's HHN for a while but this year was amazing like 2015. I'd say as an overall event, Knott's was better than the 2016-2024 years in Orlando. Zoo, Cinema and Mary we're our top 3 and we got to do all 10 in one night.

 

[deadbydawn]

This year has definitely been interesting. Of the two new mazes, The Zoo is the standout for me. I think Mary is a great maze visually, and the second half has some really cool things going on as far as scares go. I do think the story gets lost however, although I'm not sure how much that matters to the average guest.

The Zoo has been lights on exclusively the last couple of nights. I am hearing it will stay that way until the event is over next weekend. Some people have mentioned injuries to talent, among other things. Hopefully next season it will be more clear what they plan to do with that maze.

Speaking of being more clear, if the Boulet Brothers are involved next year which it sounds like they are, I really hope Knott's does more to promote whatever it is they are doing. There was hardly any push on socials, and no signage for the meet and greet even near the Legacy Store. I am willing to bet there probably some people throughout the event run that were fans and didn't even know they were there. That being said, the meet and greet was great and operationally was super smooth.

This last week and the final week coming up is the time of the year when you see a lot of street talent in mazes and shenanigans ensue. I am hoping to get a few more runs through some of the return mazes I haven't done yet before it's all over.

All in all it's been a fun season, but not without it's interesting challenges. Hopefully next year some of those things are ironed out a little better.

 

[DTH]

It's a shame The Zoo is lights on for the rest of the event, my run through with lights off was a top 5 all time best experience I've ever had in a haunted house.

 

[deadbydawn]

It's a shame The Zoo is lights on for the rest of the event, my run through with lights off was a top 5 all time best experience I've ever had in a haunted house.

That is just what has been floating around the rumor mill. If talent is getting hurt, that is obviously the most important thing. It also seemed like when they did the 11 PM switch that the line was still pretty long well after closing. We'll see what the final weekend looks like and I'll be curious to see how they adjust it for next year. Historically, most of their maze pre-shows or elements like this get removed a few seasons in.