Published by Jeremy. Last Updated on March 14, 2019.
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Kennywood absolutely loves going all out around the holidays, and no event is perhaps more extreme than the Phantom Fright Nights in the month of October.
During this event, Kennywood transforms itself into a theme park of horrors with several haunted houses, many scare zones, and several of the park's best rides open to enjoy.
When our friends at the park invited us out to enjoy the scares, you know we had to go.
The Scares Start Immediately
Now, if there is one thing I know about haunted attractions, it is that we would be doing you a disservice if we gave away all of the surprises in our review.
That being said, Kennywood does a fantastic job during their Fright Nights in ensuring that the scares start right away. The tunnel at the entrance of the park is transformed into one of the scariest fright zones on the property, and is a perfect welcome that you absolutely cannot avoid.
From there, the park has several scares zones ready to catch unsuspecting patrons, as well as the occasional stray ghoul that will sneak up on you when you think you're safe.
The Haunted Houses are the Star Attractions
When it comes to visiting Kennywood during Phantom Fright Nights, the haunted houses are the star attraction. During the 2016 season, the park had several themed haunted houses and fright zones including Biofear, Mortem Manor, Villa of the Vampire, Voodoo Bayou, Dark Shadows, the Haunted Ark, and more.
With a decent size crowd at the park, the lines ranged from 30-45 minutes in most cases; although we're told they can become much longer at peak times (making the VIP pass a worthy investment for some).
The haunts themselves are not the most intense you'll experience in the region, and some more hardcore horror fans may even classify them as disappointing. But if you are a periodic haunted house visitor like we are they will surely do the trick to satisfy all your Halloween needs.
For those who do not like haunted houses as much, visiting Kennywood during the Phantom Fright Nights is also a great idea as the lines for the roller coasters and top attractions were almost non-existent during the first weekend in October (and, again, we're told pick up quite a bit as you get closer to Halloween).
We were on the Sky Rocket within five minutes, Phantom's Revenge within ten minutes, the Jack Rabbit in three, and the Racer in less than 15- much faster than we've ever experienced on a regular weekend day.
But, there is a catch- no one can escape the fright zones at this park. So the scares will be coming at you in-between the rides- just as it should be.
Overall, Kennywood's Phantom Fright Night haunts are targeted for a specific audience in mind. If you want to ride Kennywood's top rides in a Halloween ambiance, a visit to this one is a must. But for the most die-hard horror seekers who want the most horrifying thrills all night long, you may want to consider another haunted house to satisfy your, shall we say, bloodlust.
We'd like to thank our friends at Kennywood for inviting us out for the haunted festivities. As always, all opinions are our own.
Looking for more things to do in Pittsburgh in October? Click the previous link for more recommendations!
Hello I attended the. Fright night at kennywood on October 8 2016.
This was a great disappointment.
The haunted houses were a joke. And the. Cast members were non existent. It was a waste of time and money . We arrived at 7:45 walking in to the. Tunnel. There was actors just leaning on the. Trash cans. Not. Doing anything but chatting to each other. We did the vampire house. And they were. A joke. No scare at all just a few. Hay and mmmm taste blood . Very poor very disappointed with the program .