Guide to Local Halloween Activities in the Los Angeles ,California, Area

With the Halloween season quickly approaching (my favorite time of the year, by the way), the subject of different ways to celebrate the the holiday frequently arises. I have been a Halloween fan for quite some time now, and have celebrated the holiday in many different ways.

Los Angeles, being home to the entertainment industry, naturally celebrates Halloween in style. There are all sorts of events throughout Los Angeles and Orange County. Since there are so many different things to do in the area, instead of trying to list them all, I will highlight some of my favorites.

The first, and arguably the most famous, is Knott's Berry Farm's Halloween Haunt. Knotts has been putting on the Haunt for more than thirty years, and does a great job of scaring and entertaining. With goblins and ghouls roaming the streets, differently themed fearsome mazes filled with vampires, werewolves, and chainsaw maniacs, and the ever-popular Hanging, which mocks pop culture icons from the past year, you really can't go wrong at the Haunt.

My only problem with the Haunt is that it is almost guaranteed to be extremely crowded every night, and it sells out early. The best way to circumvent these two issues is to buy your tickets early, and have dinner at the "Pre-Scare Dinner" buffet. Be sure and make reservations for the one inside the park, as you will be allowed to enter the Haunt a few minutes before the general public. As with admission tickets, be sure and make your reservations early. For more information and tickets, visit www.knotts.com.

A slightly lesser-known large-scale haunt event is Shipwreck, put on each year by the Queen Mary in Long Beach. Shipwreck is great if you like the gore that none of the other popular Halloween events show. There are fewer mazes than Knott's has, but they are all very well done and will certainly keep you entertained all night long. The crew and talent work extremely hard to put on this event (I know firsthand, being a former Shipwreck monster), and I highly recommend this event.