Theme parks gearing up for Halloween fun
Six Flags and Quassy plan horror-filled attractions while Lake Compounce goes family-friendly route
Halloween season at nearby amusement parks will look different: Lake Compounce replaces its super-scary Haunted Graveyard with a softer theme, while Quassy goes the other way and ramps up the fear.
Only Six Flags New England is staying relatively unchanged: It will stick with its popular Fright Fest haunted mazes and starts the season Sept. 24.
The switch-up between Lake Compounce and Quassy started in midspring when the Haunted Graveyard announced it was leaving Lake Compounce, where it had grown steadily for 19 years.
Neither Lake Compounce nor Haunted Graveyard founder Ernie Romegialli have said precisely what led to the split. Coronavirus precautions kept the attraction closed in 2020, but at the time both the park and Romegialli said they planned its return for 2021.
Instead, Quassy Amusement Park in Middlebury surprised Halloween fans this summer with news that the attraction will operate there under the name Terror at Quassy.
That’s a big shift for Quassy, which for several decades developed a reputation as a low-key family-oriented park with plenty for young children but scant offerings for thrill enthusiasts.
In the past 10 years, though, it has added a roller coaster and other relatively intense rides, and advance promotion for Terror at Quassy suggests a focus on adrenaline and frights.
The logo is depicted in dripping blood, part of the haunted walkthrough is described as a zombie hospital and Quassy’s Facebook posts are heavy with hashtags like #horrorjunkie #horroraddict #horrorstories #horrorcommunity.
All of that would be in keeping with Romegialli’s elaborate Halloween production at Lake Compounce, where visitors would end up walking nearly a mile through a half-dozen heavily themed horror houses as well as a haunted corn maze.
Quassy’s attraction is scheduled to run Friday, Saturday and Sunday nights between Oct. 8 and Oct. 31, with hours of 6 to 11 p.m.
Lake Compounce is going in the opposite direction: It’s dialing back the ghoulish so it can offer a gentler experience for families with young children.
Its new Happy Hauntings exhibition won’t have roving vampires or demons, or any scary walkthroughs. Instead, the plan is for plenty of autumn decor and a focus on the kiddie rides and thrill rides. Usually most of those are closed after the regular season, but Lake Compounce will have nearly all of them going.
“Think pumpkin patch but with rollercoasters. That’s what makes us different from any other fall fest around.” — Lynsey Winters, of Lake Compounce
“No scary characters,” said Lynsey Winters, the park’s public relations manager. “We will more than likely be dressing our team members in fall attire like flannels or suspenders. The park will be themed with pumpkins and hay and maybe happy ghost cutouts. There’ll be no scary people popping out at you.
“Think pumpkin patch but with roller coasters. That’s what makes us different from any other fall fest around.”
There will be fall-themed foods, live entertainment and Halloween-inspired décor throughout the park, along with favorite rides like Boulder Dash, Compounce Railway,
Rev-o-lution, Ghost Hunt and more.
At some point through the event, the park will have an apple fritter-eating contest along with vendors offering pumpkin beers and apple cider beers.
Happy Hauntings runs from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. on Saturday and Sundays starting Oct. 2 and ending Oct. 31.
In Agawam, Mass., Six Flags offers Fright Fest on Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays from Sept. 25 to Oct. 31, along with Monday Oct. 11. Operating hours vary by day.
Six Flags is sticking with a maximum-terror formula that has
been working for years. A few of the attractions will be Midnight Mansion, Zombie’s Revenge and Slasher Circus.
Like most amusement parks around the country, Six Flags, Lake Compounce and Quassy had an extra challenge in hiring seasonal staff this year.
Lake Compounce, for instance, still seeks about 200 weekend workers for jobs ranging from maintenance and ride operation to food concessions, and is offering up to $15 an hour.
Six Flags New England has spent weeks recruiting security guards, attendants and those willing to dress up as ghouls or zombies for the haunted attractions.
It is offering bonuses of up to $1,000 to seasonal workers who start now but emphasizes they must be working through Oct. 31.