I was invited to a special Halloween Haunt VIP event by Canada’s Wonderland, then returned to the park Saturday morning for the first day of Tricks and Treats! Thanks to the park, I was able to bring my brother-in-law David with me to enjoy The Conjuring: Beyond Fear, an “Unhappy Hour” with specialty food and drinks, plus a Haunted Attractions Express Pass to enjoy the mazes for free.
Gates of Terror
In recent years, the floral flag display looked more harvest-inspired but I don’t think there’s any doubt which holiday the park is really celebrating. There’s a skeletal pumpkin person looming, an upright casket covered with a bold red curtain, a circus animal cage with a clown standing guard, and so much more!
The giant 20 made of pumpkins looks fine, but I’m sure many guests are confused by it since there’s nowhere to find the context of it being Haunt’s 20th anniversary (and 20th season). The Haunt shack had a sign spelling it out, but that’s gone missing. [EDIT: A sign has since been added with those details.]
As part of the anniversary, there are many gravestones listing past mazes and the years each one operated. It’s a wonderful tribute in my opinion, and far better than the AI generated banners at the entrance to The Grande World Exposition of 1890. I’ll get better photos next time when I’m not with other people nor on a set schedule.
The Conjuring: Beyond Fear
This attraction is a masterclass in haunted experiences and they’ve made a few changes this year which I think make it even better! I got to film the first few scenes which are pretty much the same as last year from what I can remember, so be sure to check out my opening night video if you’re curious what to expect.
Unlike last year, several people get to hold Annabelle and there are fewer artefacts to find throughout the journey. This means less individual activities which ultimately means a more consistent experience regardless of who’s in your group or who happens to be picked for any given task. We were with a few insistent kids who may have tarnished the experience if it still operated the way it did last year, so I’m especially grateful for these changes. As is, it can be difficult to hear everything the guides say due to Thunder Run overhead and the music volume, but that’s my only real complaint. I want to do it again and I’m willing to pay for this experience!
Kingdom of Carnage
I’ll be honest, I didn’t get any footage of Kingdom of Carnage but that’s because I was distracted every time I walked through there, either heading to or from All’s Well Hall for Unhappy Hour. I think they’ve adjusted the placement of the sets which works well, though I still think this scare zone is hurt by only having sets on one side of the pathway. It would be better if they sent guests around the other side of the fountain, in front of Canterbury Theatre. Or at the very least, place some sets in front of All’s Well Hall.
The Crypt
Walking through with fellow enthusiast Sammy was really great as she was terrified throughout! The texture of the walls still throws me off (feeling like plastic instead of stone), and I know the park has limited space for this maze, but it’s a lot of nearly pitch black, very narrow winding hallways without enough scarers or interesting set pieces. With some mazes it feels like every room has a purpose, but this one fees like a lot of padding.
Wicked Hollow
After my concerns over the log house’s placement last weekend, the park moved it (and the mulch under it) to be centred in the plaza. I’m not conceded enough to believe they moved it because of my blog, but I have to say this setup works a lot better than previous years. Guests split up and walk on either side of it with potential for scare actors to pop out from behind the log at any moment!
Spirit Manor
This continues to be a top tier maze in my opinion, with excellent lighting effects and set design! Every room feels unique and purposeful, and there were some creepy rocking chair animatronics I believe are new to mix things up!
Demons of the Deep
There are some great moments in this maze and the animatronic added last year to the end of the maze is pretty good, but then there are some hallways that feel like they’re just filling in the gaps. It’s not a bad maze by any means, but the pacing is just slightly off to me.
Trick or Treat Street
It’s that time of year when the “children” roam the street looking for candy. I maintain this is the perfect balance between a scare zone and maze, with the path just wide enough to allow good interactions while being confined enough with blind corners to allow for some great jump scares! Before leaving, Cotton (the bunny) and I had a fun conversation about tea and clowns.
CornStalkers
The photo booth at the front is such a waste of time, space, and labour. There was one great scare at the beginning when two scarecrows came to life at once on either side of the path, but then it was pretty lacklustre. The chainsaw is in use, but wasn’t on when we went through. (They turned it on right after we left so we could hear it.) Even still, it looks like a toy compared to the real chainsaw (minus the blade) they once used.
The Ruins
I absolutely love the set design of this maze! It uses the basement of Wonder Mountain so effectively to set the stage, though I’d appreciate if the rest of the entrance hall could get the same rock wall treatment as the areas surrounding AlpenFury’s supports. The basement part of the exit path is also quite jarring since it’s still open and unfinished from AlpenFury’s construction. I’m not sure if a second maze can still fit here now, but at the very least I’d love to see The Ruins extended to fill more of this space. Also the drop ceiling wasn’t working once again and there weren’t enough scarers as usual.
CarnEvil
I still don’t love this location around the globe for CarnEvil and the local band ruins any chance of scares or good guest engagement during their performances. Still, I got a few good chats in between shows.
Necropolis
Someone turned the brightness all the up this year, and I love it! There are enough hiding places that I think scarers can still hide and jump out effectively, and now guests can actually see them when they do! It’s a huge improvement, though I think the scare zone is far too small.
Streets of the Undead
The zombies were doing the best they could with the setup available, but this concept never made sense outside of a maze to me.
Dark Ride
I really wish this maze had more space. What’s there is great and they’ve made at least one scene change that works much better than before, but I want more and I want it in a building that makes sense for a dark ride.
Unhappy Hour
Junkyard Dog
The pickle spear on this works so well with the other toppings! I only wish the park used all beef hot dogs instead.
Toronto Ty Taste Tier: A
Wicked Chicken Piergoi [sic] Patch
Very tasty and hearty! There was quite a bit of onion flavour toward the end, bordering on too much.
Toronto Ty Taste Tier: A
Bullfighter Burger
I’m trying to make sense of the name since it isn’t particularly spooky. I guess because it’s a beef burger with onion rings you could make the connection to a bull with a ring in its nose? Regardless, it was quite good and I’ll almost certainly get it again, but I’m going to try asking for no cheese.
Toronto Ty Taste Tier: B
Witch’s Poutine
I was expecting a bit more flavour from this, but it’s still good and provides more protein than a classic poutine.
Toronto Ty Taste Tier: B
Veggie Poutine
This reminded me so much of fries supreme from Taco Bell, but obviously with no meat. Honestly the tomato really rounded out the flavours far more than the jerk chicken on the Witch’s Poutine.
Toronto Ty Taste Tier: A
Tandoori Chicken Legs
It was fine. I didn’t find it had much flavour, but at least it wasn’t too spicy, nor dry. David had three of them so I’m giving it bonus points.
Toronto Ty Taste Tier: B
Vegetable Dirty Rice
I think they forgot to season it and the only vegetable I saw was diced carrot.
Toronto Ty Taste Tier: D
Campfire Beef Chili
By far the spiciest menu item. The flavours were all really tasty, but David and I only ate about half our serving before giving up (and that was between eating everything else).
Toronto Ty Taste Tier: C
Halloween Cupcakes
I tried a vanilla cupcake with a mini ladyfinger tombstone and a chocolate cupcake with I believe marshmallow fluff icing. Neither one was very impressive to me as they didn’t have a ton of flavour and the density was far from homemade. Even the icing was far from flavourful and had an unappetizing consistency, but that’s coming from someone who hates tubs of icing. (I’ve been spoiled with delicious buttercream icing since I was a kid.)
Toronto Ty Taste Tier: D
Double Chocolate Reese’s Cookie
It was a bit dried out, but that’s my only real complaint.
Toronto Ty Taste Tier: A
Deep Fried Fudgee-O
I’m not the biggest fan of Fudgee-Os, but this was delicious! It was soft and gooey all the way through, making for a perfect dessert option!
Toronto Ty Taste Tier: S
Transfusion
I’m a “sucker” for red wine, so this vampire-inspired drink was delightfully dry and bitter! It was a bit too sweet for a true red wine experience, but works as a good alternative cocktail for those who enjoy wine more than some other alcoholic options.
Toronto Ty Taste Tier: A
Alien Blood
This was David’s pick and it was decent, but not brilliant. David found it too sweet (though that’s not unusual for him) and I found it a little… curious. It’s trying to be both sweet and sour simultaneously but the blend isn’t quite what I’m looking for in a cocktail. I probably won’t get it again, but I’m glad I tried it.
Toronto Ty Taste Tier: B
Zombie Juice
Perhaps as thanks for me bringing David to the VIP night, he bought me an extra blood bag later in the night. I decided on the Zombie Juice since I love Granny Smith apples and lemonade. This was dangerously delicious, perfectly sour to the point I sipped it all down in no time. David thought it was the best of the night as well.
Toronto Ty Taste Tier: S
Other Updates
The DareDeviler may have been inspired by Clara “The Hawk” Redmond’s ace piloting skills but it seems she may have gotten too brash with her next stunt.
Paper park maps are back! The shelves to hold these park maps seem pretty permanent so I’m hoping with all my might we’ll see park maps available for WinterFest and beyond! I grabbed a couple copies for my collection and couldn’t be happier about this apparent change in policy!
TL;DR
The food at Wonderland the past couple years has been quite lacklustre and this year’s Huant menu is… fine? Nothing was outstanding, but there wasn’t anything especially bad either. The scare zones are a mixed bag, with fewer returning faces again this year and some zones hindered by their design/location. The mazes have some upgrades, but if you’ve done them before it may not be worth spending money on an attractions pass. (That’s up to your judgement and how much you enjoy the mazes.) The Conjuring: Beyond Fear is a truly superb experience though, and I’m looking forward to doing it again! There may be no brand new attractions (and in fact one less show due to the unfortunate loss of Freak Show), but I still had fun on my first visit and will hopefully find more fiendish friends as the season goes on.
I do apologize for the delay in getting this posted. It’s been a difficult past few weeks for me, but I hope to be back at full efficiency soon.
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