This past week, Knott’s Berry Farm invited guests into the park to experience Nightmares Revealed. This is their ticketed event where major fans of Knott’s Scary Farm can get a first look at the all new mazes, entertainment, merchandise, food and more; that are coming to the event in 2024. While there has been some rumblings in the fanbase about the “ticketed” aspect of the event, the value of your ticket is quickly met (and then some) with how much there is to do. And, the experiences are unique to this event.
As you can see from the event map above, aside from the main presentation, there are 7 unique experiences and several rides are open as well. The only issue we had was having enough time to fit it all in, which is a fantastic issue to have.
In this article, we are going to cover everything that we experienced during the event so everyone can plan ahead before they visit the Grand Daddy of all haunted events…Knott’s Scary Farm!
MAIN PRESENTATION
This years event felt much more theatrical than it’s previous year. As guests were corralled in the backstage area (typically used for seasonal events) behind Ghostrider, the Conductor himself rose out of the fog atop the steps for Ghostrider to address the crowd. As the gates swung open, monsters from Knott’s Scary Farm swarmed the crowd! We then were lead to the entrance of Ghost Town where we were approached by Sarah Marshall, The Green Witch herself. She warned us of our impending doom but also beckoned us in to learn about this years secrets. As guests were released, more Scary Farm monsters emerged from the shadows. Each from various scare zones through the park.
As the presentation was starting at the Calico Mine Stage, a funeral procession began with monsters carrying a coffin to the stage revealing one of our hosts, Jeff Tucker! He wasn’t alone, he was also joined by Leanna Vamp.
First we learned about all the returning favorites and generally about food & merchandise. But everyone held their breaths as we wanted to learn more about the ALL NEW mazes coming for 2024. They teased us by giving us a new show that was announced at Midsummer Scream…Yours Cruelly: Elvira XXperience!
“For more than 40 years of Knott’s Scary Farm, Elvira, Mistress of the Dark© graced the stage of the “Ghoul Time Theatre” with her electrifying shows for 20 astounding haunted seasons. Take a journey back to every single show with video highlights, behind the scenes footage and memorabilia celebrating the illustrious career of the undisputed Queen of Halloween.“
Cassandra Peterson will also be at the park, on specific dates for signings! STAY TUNED!
Finally, we learned about the first of two mazes revealed was, Eight Fingers Nine: The Boogyman!
“Step inside a living fairy tale in a colonial township that’s under siege by an inhuman monster that preys from the dark. As night descends, Eight Fingers Nine emerges from the shadows in search of fresh meat. His vicious bite penetrates deep, causing sleep paralysis which holds his victim in sway while he slowly consumes their flesh. Step lively and beware the dark, or you may be the main course at his next meal!“
The second was revealed to be called, Widows!
“Can you hear that? The spider possessed residents of the convalescent home are preparing a special place for you. Enter their web and succumb to their dark desires.“
Both of these announcements were accompanied by videos giving guests a behind the scenes look at the inspiration for the maze themes, the people who work day and night to get them done, and some incredibly disturbing concept art. The crowd was very vocal when things bothered them, which these two mazes bothered them a lot it seemed!
Another major announcement for the night, was the return of The Hanging. This year, playing off the popular Eras Tour of Taylor Swift…which is so Scary Farm.
Knott’s also announced the following pieces of entertainment that are returning to Knott’s Scary Farm!
MAZES
SCARE ZONES
VARIOUS ENTERTAINMENT
After a big finale, we were lead off into the fog to experience the rest of Nightmares Revealed. As media, we had an opportunity to interview Knott’s Scary Farm creatives about their upcoming mazes. You can listen to these below!
We also got a first hand look at all the different drinks, food, and desserts planned for Knott’s Scary Farm! We were even lucky enough to give some of them a try.
Our favorites were the Pot Roast, The Enchiladas Pizza, The Mummy Brownie, and the Carrot Cake! In terms of the drinks, we tried the Witches Brew, which is one of the “blood bag” style drinks. It’s a concoction of Blood Orange syrup, sweet and sour mix, and Tequila.
If you don’t like your drinks on the sweeter side, then this isn’t for you. Thankfully we love em, so we really liked this drink.
Every year, Knott’s has a massive lineup of merchandise that makes it incredibly hard for us to save our money. Shirts with fun designs, stickers, cups, mugs, spirit jerseys, and as of recent…LOUNGE FLY BACKPACKS!
We got to chat with Karl Busche, who is a Product Designer at The Farm. If you’ve attended any of the Knott’s Panels in the past couple of years at Midsummer Scream, Karl shouldn’t be a stranger to you. We adore Karl here at TPD.
This years merchandise is no different than any other year. There is something for everyone! We actually love all the different Elvira shirt styles this year will offer. Especially the Elvira and Wicked mashup! And of course, we always love the Spirit Jersey and is simply a must buy for us!
LIGHTS ON TOUR OF THE CHILLING CHAMBERS
After checking out the merchandise, we headed over to The Chilling Chambers for a lights on tour. This was the best of both worlds because while all the sound design and effects were on, the monsters were gone and the work lights were turned on. You can see every single bit of detail in this maze and trust us when we tell you there is so much.
We went through Chilling Chambers numerous times throughout last season and still didn’t see some of the details we saw with the lights on. The Chillings Chambers was a maze created for Knott’s Scary Farm’s 50th anniversary. Taking it’s name from the first standalone haunted house at Knott’s Scary Farm (at the time called Halloween Haunt), called The Ten Chilling Chambers!
This year, the 50th markings were removed and some new inhabitants from retired mazes were added. For nerds like us, this is a dream come true to walk through this maze and appreciate all the details. This was a maze created out of such love for this events history and you can feel it in every nook and cranny.
ROAMING GHOST TOWN
For the rest of the evening, we spent our time roaming the fog of Ghost Town and it felt so fitting. 51 years later, we are still celebrating the spooky season in the area where it all started. Some of the iconic monsters of the Ghost Town Streets scare zone were out taking pictures with guests, and giving some a good fright.
OVERALL
The Knott’s Scary Farm: Nightmares Revealed event is such a fun way to announce the years experiences and has quickly become a “CANNOT MISS” style event. As we said at the beginning, the $20 charge is more than worth the amount of entertainment for guests in attendance. I just wish that the event is maybe 1 hour longer, so we could enjoy just a bit more. But, that’s a good problem to have in the longrun. Additionally, there were a few technical snafus through the entire night. But nothing that truly took away from the overall experience for us.
This event truly feels like it was made for the super fans of Knott’s Scary Farm. It’s the appetizer of Knott’s Scary Farm before the main course starting on September 19th. We hope that Knott’s continues to put on this exclusive event and keep expanding and improving upon it’s execution and offerings. It’s the happiest time of the year and we cannot wait for the fog of Knott’s Scary Farm.
For more information on Knott’s Scary Farm, including admission, park hours, and events, visit knottsscaryfarm.com.
Theme Park Duo 