Perhaps the only thing scarier than being chased with a plastic knife covered in red paint is the thought of shelling out all your hard earned money to have people jump out at you every October. Well, this Halloween, don’t fear because here are some ways to save a buck or two on your way to meeting your doom.
Combination Tickets
For the compulsive victim of a good scare who goes to a haunted house Friday, a hayride Saturday and tops off the weekend with a spooky maze, there is one grand solution: combo tickets. With combination ticket pricing, Halloween attractions often offer three or four great scares for half the price, leaving your wallet heavier for more treats. Here are some ghost-ridden places that combine horror with frugalness:
Night of Terror (448 Lincoln Mill Rd., Mullica Hill, N.J.)
For $25, a Night of Terror can be just that. Complete with the Terror Factory, a 3D Haunted House, a Haunted Hayride and a Haunted Cornfield Maze, Night of Terror at the Creamy Acres Farm is sure to scare everyone off their haystacks.
Bates Motel and Haunted Hayride (1835 N. Middletown Rd., Glen Mills, Pa.)
This “ultimate in terror” scream-inducer has a softer side – a combination rate. For $30, brave souls can prolong their fear with a Haunted Hayride, the Bates Motel (rated the best Haunted House in Pa., Del. and N.J. by “HauntWorld” and “Rue Morgue” magazines) and a corn maze. With a scary reputation and less than scary admission, the Bates Motel may be one of the cheapest you ever stay at, hopefully not for too long.
Fright Factory (2200 S. Swanson St.,Philadelphia, Pa.)
Fright Factory, picked by the Travel Channel as one of America’s top 8 haunted attractions, invites students and non-students alike to Horror High. For $20, fearless guests will also suffer through the Forgotten Insane Asylum and the Village of the Damned. For an extra $10, Horror High students can also buy the speed pass so they can start screaming right away.
Student and Group Discounts
Terror Behind the Walls (2124 Fairmount
Ave., Philadelphia, Pa.)
The Eastern State Penitentiary, lined with once-occupied prison cells and rumored to be haunted, offers group rates, student rates and even buy-one-get-one deals, where you can buy a ticket for the night tour and get a free ticket for the day tour, assuming you make it out alive.
Scare World Scream Park (333 Naamans Rd., Claymont, Del.)
With seven unique haunted attractions, Scare World offers various ways to horrify. Along with the Dungeon of Darkness, 13 Floors, the Toxic Freak show in 3D and The Butcher Shop, Scare World also offers group and student discounts on specified dates so those pursuing their education get an added bonus.
Free Frights
Though it’s comforting to know that combination and discount rates are available, there’s nothing less frightening to your checkbook than the idea of getting shaken up for free. Here are a few Halloween-inspired events that may put a dent in your sanity, but not in your wallet:
Halloween Contest and Concert (5th and South streets, Philadelphia, Pa.)
Halloween night, Oct. 31, South Street invites “trick or treaters” of all ages to come out after 5 p.m. in costume to the district’s Halloween celebration. In addition to discounts, specials, freebies and a costume contest with huge cash prizes, there will be a free concert featuring Grateful Dead tribute band Splintered Sunlight near the corner of 5th and South streets from 7 p.m. to 10 p.m.
Whether you go equipped with a combination
ticket, an Owl Card or 20 of your closest
friends, I have to warn you – just because it’s cheaper, doesn’t mean it’s any safer.
What’s the use of having extra money if you don’t live to spend it?
Kristin Granero can be reached at kgranero@temple.edu.
Are you aware of the book that just came out that tells about Dorothy in Oz for Halloween and that they say is more like a Harry Potter book?
There is a new Oz series that they compare to the Harry Potter series, and it’s a Halloween story too. Have you read it?
Name is Halloween in Oz: Dorothy Returns You can Google it, I think.
Vivianne