Knott's Scary Farm 2023

[TheHaunter]

Is their going to be a opening ceremony such as the one from 2019 when they had a new maze based on the curse of the green witch and tied it with the opening scareremony. I'm thinking since this is a big year They might tie the opening scaremony to the chilling chambers because the keeper also explains the events of why the mazes go when they die and he might be another cause of the evil in calico.

 

[Michael S]

They have shifted away from building mazes that either impact daily operations or are "visible" to day guests. We've lost some of the real estate on that 2011 map that @Jake S posted above (Camp Snoopy, Fiesta Village, bumper cars, etc) but they've managed to figure out some good solutions I think.

Yeah they had a new GM around that time, Raffi I think, and he really wanted haunt to stay out of the main park essentially. When they first talked about that I thought it was going to hurt the event but honestly it’s actually been pretty helpful.

Also worth noting back in the days of 13 mazes/attractions the mazes were A LOT longer than they are now. Like averaging out at a 8 minute walkthrough in some cases, but it lead to a lot of poor theming with just endless hallways of painted flats and a lot of dead zones inside.

That time of the shift came when HHN Hollywood really blew up in popularity and they needed to find better ways to compete.

 

[DTH]

Honestly, if they went down to like 6 mazes, it would help quality a bit...

 

[Michael S]

Honestly, if they went down to like 6 mazes, it would help quality a bit...

I’ve thought about that too, but when they have so many repeats I wonder how much they’d really be saving cutting down # of mazes.

 

[deadbydawn]

Hearing good things about last night’s preview event. Looking forward to tomorrow!

 

[Freak]

Hearing good things about last night’s preview event. Looking forward to tomorrow!

Haven’t really seen anything about KSF preview. Anything on Insta or Twit- er, sorry, X?

 

[TheHaunter]

On the Knott's scary farm website their is some bad reviews about the lantern. I'm thinking it could have been that it was just a preview night.

 

[deadbydawn]

Haven’t really seen anything about KSF preview. Anything on Insta or Twit- er, sorry, X?

Not much that I can see.

 

[Freak]

Alright, I'm excited for tomorrow! FWIW the showtimes for the Hanging will be at 8:00PM, 10:00PM, and 12:00. Knott's uploaded showtimes.

Finally, I'm going to share my gameplan and see if any of you have a better idea. I'm thinking of starting with Grimoire and Origins instead of the Ghostrider area this time. Now that Bloodline no longer has guns, I think the line will go pretty quickly. I'm going to save Depths, Wax Works, and Dark Entities for dead last. Since they're repeats, I don't think the lines are going to be unbearable, especially Dark Entities. That way, if worst comes to worst, I can hit those up another night. I'm thinking....

1. Run to Grimoire (I expect it to have the longest line by its more theatrical nature)
2. Hit up Origins
3. Do Room 13
4. Mesmer
5. Cinema Slasher
6. Chilling Chambers or grab a beer and get to the 10:00PM Hanging first depending on how I hit the crowds
7. Coffee break
8. Knock out the backstage mazes.

What do y'all think of this gameplan?

 

[Jake S]

I think you make a good argument for doing Grimoire first and the GhostRider houses last - curious to hear how that turns out. I'm curious to see if the Chaperone Impact is lessened this year now that the rules have been watered down a bit.

 

[mccgavin]

I'll be visiting for one night this Saturday. I'm going to try and hit as many mazes as possible, but I imagine the crowds will be quite hectic opening weekend.

 

[Jake S]

fyi: knott's posted the event map for those not familiar with maze locales.

 

[Freak]

I'll be visiting for one night this Saturday. I'm going to try and hit as many mazes as possible, but I imagine the crowds will be quite hectic opening weekend.

The advantage you have dealing with the crowds at Knotts is that there are a ton or rides and a four shows to eat up people. On top of that you have the (Though watered down) chaperone policy which should help. Though the crowds will be a challenge, I’m fairly confident if you follow a gameplan (Possibly mine? I’ll report back on how it goes) you should be pretty good.

I think you make a good argument for doing Grimoire first and the GhostRider houses last - curious to hear how that turns out. I'm curious to see if the Chaperone Impact is lessened this year now that the rules have been watered down a bit.

It doesn’t affect me whatsoever but what changes have they made to the policy?

 

[Jake S]

It doesn’t affect me whatsoever but what changes have they made to the policy?

"One (1) chaperone may accompany no more than ten (10) guests ages 15 or younger per day"

that's double the number of guests per chaperone compared to last year.

 

[saint.piss]

Need some help. This year will be my first time ever visiting Scary Farm and I still don't know if I should stick to a single night ticket or get the season pass for the event. I would be able to use the pass at least 2-4 times I think. I also just really want that physical card that you get with the pass as well lol. Any advice would be appreciated

 

[TheHaunter]

Need some help. This year will be my first time ever visiting Scary Farm and I still don't know if I should stick to a single night ticket or get the season pass for the event. I would be able to use the pass at least 2-4 times I think. I also just really want that physical card that you get with the pass as well lol. Any advice would be appreciated

Idk It's my first time also but I got the season pass. I'm really excited!

 

[Stryker]

Alright, I'm excited for tomorrow! FWIW the showtimes for the Hanging will be at 8:00PM, 10:00PM, and 12:00. Knott's uploaded showtimes.

Finally, I'm going to share my gameplan and see if any of you have a better idea. I'm thinking of starting with Grimoire and Origins instead of the Ghostrider area this time. Now that Bloodline no longer has guns, I think the line will go pretty quickly. I'm going to save Depths, Wax Works, and Dark Entities for dead last. Since they're repeats, I don't think the lines are going to be unbearable, especially Dark Entities. That way, if worst comes to worst, I can hit those up another night. I'm thinking....

1. Run to Grimoire (I expect it to have the longest line by its more theatrical nature)
2. Hit up Origins
3. Do Room 13
4. Mesmer
5. Cinema Slasher
6. Chilling Chambers or grab a beer and get to the 10:00PM Hanging first depending on how I hit the crowds
7. Coffee break
8. Knock out the backstage mazes.

What do y'all think of this gameplan?

Pretty solid plan although I’d swap Mesmer and Cinema Slasher. Less walking and it flows better. Mesmer is at the far corner of the park so it takes 60-90 mins to form a line. I generally try to keep a clockwise plan. So basically exactly how they have it labeled on the event map (mazes 5-10) in that exact same order.

Also, 5 shows if you count the Blind Tiger Jazz Band & Dancers. They have 30-min sets and showtimes are shown this year. You can catch them occasionally doing flash mobs and guests are encouraged to join in. Really fun zone to ppl watch.

Need some help. This year will be my first time ever visiting Scary Farm and I still don't know if I should stick to a single night ticket or get the season pass for the event. I would be able to use the pass at least 2-4 times I think. I also just really want that physical card that you get with the pass as well lol. Any advice would be appreciated

Pass for sure. Spread it out over several days. There’s so much to do this year.

 

[deadbydawn]

Need some help. This year will be my first time ever visiting Scary Farm and I still don't know if I should stick to a single night ticket or get the season pass for the event. I would be able to use the pass at least 2-4 times I think. I also just really want that physical card that you get with the pass as well lol. Any advice would be appreciated

If you can go 2-4 times, I’d say to get the pass. Not only does it pay for itself, but it will allow you to not feel rushed and/or miss any mazes or shows.

Plus, their scare zones are always so good it’s worth it to be able to go back several times and really soak them all in.

Pro-tip though: get the parking add on. If you already have a Season Pass with parking you are fine, but if it’s the stand alone Scary Farm pass add it on. It’s well worth it.

Let me know if you have any other questions!

 

[Freak]

Got here early to get some rides in and check out the Tribute store, but I wanted to give a fair word of warning to those coming in from the 5 southbound:

DO NOT get off at Beach Blvd! There’s some construction going on narrowing all three lanes into one lane. It’s a mess. Just want to help everyone preserve their sanity and not pull out their hair. Drive a little longer and get off at La Palma instead.

 

[TheHaunter]

Got here early to get some rides in and check out the Tribute store, but I wanted to give a fair word of warning to those coming in from the 5 southbound:

DO NOT get off at Beach Blvd! There’s some construction going on narrowing all three lanes into one lane. It’s a mess. Just want to help everyone preserve their sanity and not pull out their hair. Drive a little longer and get off at La Palma instead.

Great tip I'll for sure keep that in mind when I go on Saturday. Will they let you in early if you show them your scary farm pass/ ticket or will you need regular park admission?