^I agree with most of your points, but there's one point I very much disagree on, and a very big thing your review doesn't mention at all: shows.
I feel that as a
total package, Knott's by far the better deal. Scare Zones everywhere, great and detailed maze designs, interesting food options (even if the lines to get food are pretty bad/long/slow), and SHOWS.
We sprung for Fast/Fright Lane, since we only can make it to Knott's once this season, so we wanted to make the most out of our visit. It turned out to be a great value, because I don't think we waited more than 10 minutes for any maze the entire night... including repeats, we did 18 mazes in one night.
And we got to see 4 shows (forgive me as I don't remember all the names):
- The 7 min dance show in Fiesta Village which, while short, was extremely entertain... a nice, quick diversion that doesn't take up a lot of your night. It was also nice to see a dance show that at least had a small connection to the holiday, even if it was just from costuming alone (lookin at the Jabawookees, who, while extremely talented, know full well they are peforming for a Halloween event don't even put on a single seasonal song or costume)
- Wicked Drums, which I was a bit underwhelmed... the three drummers were fine, but they were accompanied by three female actors that we thought were eventually going to drum at some point, but never did, just were there for a storyline that went nowhere, despite their best efforts. Still, not a super long show, maybe 10-15 minutes, and it's nice to sit for a bit
- Futuretronics. It's nice to see the Mystery Lodge being used again. Many of the pre-show scareactors are hilarious in a very low-key way, keep an eye on them. Lead actors were good, but the 2nd half of the show is just too much of the same, like it doesn't know when or how to end. But I definitely applaud them in their efforts to have something unique, which is Knott's best strength... they take risks, and while they may not always pay off, it's worth trying.
- Puppet Up, which is always a fun time. I don't love it as much as others, and the quality of improv can always vary widely, but in general, they've been doing it long enough to know when to "kill" a sketch if it's not going anywhere, so the show keeps moving along quickly. I also enjoyed that they included a couple of non-improvised set pieces, one with an cool historical connection.
And in addition to the above, we also visited during the day to see the Bob Baker Marionettes, which was a great deal of fun, and the audience was totally eating it up. If you've never seen them before, I highly recommend. They're an LA institution that's been around since 1963, so they're doing something right! Which made me realize that between the day and night shows, Knott's has not just one, but TWO puppet shows running concurrently.
So for me, it's more about the total package. Having a variety of events to select (including some that allow you to sit for a while) from really make a difference. I didn't even get to mention the two live bands that were also playing at various times. With all that kinetic energy, it really shows why it's the leading Haunt event in the country, if you ask me.
Now, it's not all glowing. There's room for improvement. I do agree that many mazes are understaffed, and it's pretty easy (and sadly common) to be able to walk though nearly 1/2 of a maze and not see a single scareactor, which can be pretty fustrating. That isn't just COVID understaffing, this has been an issue for many, many year prior to COVID. And I also find the quality of the scareactors a little inconsistent--there's a fair number of them that just sort of phone it in. Additionally, it was also pretty dang crowded (we wanted to try to ride Ghostrider as well, but even the Fast Lane line looked to be at least 45-60 min--the Fast Lane line once backed up to Spurs, which is crazy long). Food lines are pretty bad, with many smaller places literally having only one window/server open for a huge line.
Still, despite shortcomings, if I had a friend who was looking for a haunt, but only wanted to do one, I'd have to go with Knott's more than USH. They'd get more bang for their buck.