Magic Screams: Theme park adds ‘enhancements’ to favorite activities
Magic Screams Weekends returns to Magic Springs Theme and Water Park beginning Sept. 30 and running through October, inviting guests to enjoy the family fun by day and fright by night activities on Saturdays and Sundays.
“This is the time that our entire park just literally transforms,” said Marketing and Sales Manager Seth Louton. “From when you walk into the gate to the different types of food that we have available and everything like that. We have jello shots that are in a syringe, we have an apple crisp funnel cake.
“We’ve got cobwebs all over the place, pumpkins all over the place. At our fountain, we usually put a big, giant skull in the middle of the fountain when you walk into the park. We have other little decorations all throughout the park that really just make it feel like it’s Halloween.”
The park will take on its annual Halloween look through Oct. 29. Opening at noon on both Saturdays and Sundays, the park will close at 11 p.m. on Saturdays and 9 p.m. on Sundays.
Returning guests can look forward to an “enhancement” of many familiar activities, including the Undead Cemetery, Magic Farm Hay Maze “An Enchanted Harvest Quest” and the Wasteland Haunted House, Louton said. Other returning activities include Bumpin’ Carz 2.0 and Cata-Punkin @ The Pond, according to a news release from the park.
“This year, we are doing some things a little bit differently,” Louton said. “Normally, we have a haunted cemetery, but this time, we’re making a couple of changes to it. It’s going to be a little bit enclosed, and it’s just kinda getting enhanced a little bit. Also, our hay maze for the kids is also getting another enhancement. So, we’re really trying to spruce up the activities and the things that we have in
the park for this event.
“We’re adding a little vortex to the hay maze, and that’s kinda cool. … And the cemetery usually was open, and this year it’s gonna be partially enclosed, so it’s gonna have a little bit more of a spooky feel.”
As the park opens at noon on Saturdays and Sundays, family friendly activities begin to take place across the park. Activities for the whole family include the Trick or Treat Trail, Fraidy-Cat Pumpkin Patch, inflated corn maze and the Last Laugh Scare Zone, where “you just kinda walk through if you just want a little chill and thrill,” Louton said.
The park is also bringing back Halloween inflatables, arts and crafts, ghostly games and contests, including the Fright Flix Movie Trail, in which guests name the movie scenes located throughout the park for a chance to win one 2024 season pass.
As the sun begins to set, the spooky atmosphere of the park begins to come alive with more frightful activities, including the Wasteland Haunted House.
“This year, about 6 p.m. is when everything starts to get a little bit more scary,” Louton said. “As the sun goes down, that’s when we have more scary thrill roaming characters in the park. That’s when the Last laugh Scare Zone gets a little bit more intense. And, of course, the haunted house, that’s when we open that up and let everyone go through. It’s just a really neat time just to be there and get that good Halloween scare.”
Live shows will also take place from the Fun Zone Stage, including the interactive dance party called Slash Dance on Saturdays from 6-8 p.m. and Sundays from 4:30-6:30 p.m., and the Wicked Fire performance will take place on Saturdays from 8:30-9:30 p.m. and Sundays from 7-8 p.m., the release said.
Contests are also returning with the Great Pumpkin Roll on both days at 1:30 p.m., for children aged 6 and younger as well as the Mummy-Wrap Challenge on Sundays at 3 p.m.
“This is my personal favorite,” Louton said. “We have teams up to four. They have a certain amount of time to wrap up one of the people on their team in toilet paper like a mummy. And it’s super fun to see people come out with their kids and just have a blast trying to do this.”
There will also be individual costume contests on Saturdays at 3 p.m. with a group themed contest on the park’s last day of Magic Screams Weekends on Oct. 28 at 3 p.m., he said. Online registration beforehand is required for the group contest.
Familiar rides from the park will also be open, including the Diamond Mine Coaster and Ozark Mountain Taxi Company and children’s rides like the Carousel, Fearless Flyers, Kit ‘n Kaboodle Express, Krazy Kars and Li’l Leapin’ Lizards, the release said.
“For a thrilling nighttime experience guests can only get during the fall season, visitors can ride Brain Drain, Big Bad John, The Hawk, The Gauntlet, Plummet Summit and X-Coaster in the dark,” the release said. Daily admission tickets for Magic Screams Weekends are $39.99 at the gate and $34.99 online for guests aged 4 or older, the release said. The purchase of a 2024 season pass also allows admission to Magic Screams Weekends.