Tricks & Treats 2025 Discussions

[IndyGuy4KI]

The signs of fall at the park are officially here! While at the park today, we noticed Haunt mazes being constructed, which means we're getting close to that time of year filled with Friday night lights, pumpkin spice everything, and amazing autumnal fun at Kings Island!

The Haunt season is already building on our forums, but let's shift gears for a moment. We're starting a new discussion all about the daytime family fun: Tricks & Treats!

[Hawaiian Coasters 325]

Tricks and Treats is cool and all, but I really wish KI would do an Oktoberfest event in the Festhaus area. Other parks in the chain do it and Cincy area has a lot of German roots so it would fit so well here. 

Also Carowinds does a Tricks and Treats parade. I think it would be cool if KI does that too, 

[BeeastFarmer]

They've also cancelled several Oktoberfest events this year. 

[DJSkyFoxx]

I mean. Oktoberfest really would fit in well at the park seeing as there are no shortages of booze at every turn...

[Timchat2]

It's nice to see that the Spectral Sisters will be at the Grand Carousel Stage this year. That should be a much better venue for the scale and vibe of the show.

[SPONGEBOB_FAN_97]

17 hours ago, Hawaiian Coasters 325 said:

Tricks and Treats is cool and all, but I really wish KI would do an Oktoberfest event in the Festhaus area. Other parks in the chain do it and Cincy area has a lot of German roots so it would fit so well here. 

Also Carowinds does a Tricks and Treats parade. I think it would be cool if KI does that too, 

See an Oktoberfest event makes too much sense and would make money which is they they wouldn’t host one

[Hawaiian Coasters 325]

17 minutes ago, SPONGEBOB_FAN_97 said:

See an Oktoberfest event makes too much sense and would make money which is they they wouldn’t host one

I think it has more to do with it would be in the shadow of the big Oktoberfest event downtown and they know it wouldn't be as good as that one and they don't want people comparing the two. 

[Losantiville Mining Co.]

1 hour ago, Timchat2 said:

It's nice to see that the Spectral Sisters will be at the Grand Carousel Stage this year. That should be a much better venue for the scale and vibe of the show.

That new stage is a much nicer venue than having it by the Festhaus especially with all of the new seating. As much as the design of the festival structure might irk people, it was a much needed space.

[Timchat2]

If logistics allowed it would have been fun to see the Spectral Sisters on an International Street balcony like how the original Spectral Sisters used an Orleans Place balcony at California's Great America. That said, the Grand Carousel Stage allows for much better audience seating than anything along the street might provide.

[DonHelbig]

When did Tricks and Treats become a night event? 

[disco2000]

4 minutes ago, DonHelbig said:

When did Tricks and Treats become a night event? 

When they made mazes an upcharge 

[Losantiville Mining Co.]

A number of typos and other mistakes have popped up on these recently published event pages. Another example is that Six Flags Over Texas built a new (worse looking IMO) page for Fright Fest that still calls their daytime event "Kids Boo Fest" despite the park replacing it with Tricks and Treats. It seems that there was either poor quality control or a rushed building process for these sites.

[Stoan]

I really liked the Tricks and Treats event when they had it in Soak City. Granted I understand from a logistics POV that's a huge thing for staying to cover an entire extra section of the park.

 

But really when they moved it over to kiddie land, everything just got smaller and smaller and more crowded. I wish they'd expand the treat areas to the entire park like a scavenger hunt.

[brenthodge]

10 hours ago, Stoan said:

I really liked the Tricks and Treats event when they had it in Soak City. Granted I understand from a logistics POV that's a huge thing for staying to cover an entire extra section of the park.

 

But really when they moved it over to kiddie land, everything just got smaller and smaller and more crowded. I wish they'd expand the treat areas to the entire park like a scavenger hunt.

It was more like that year one (you know, the Covid year that somehow sucked less than this one LOL. There were tasting passes, every food location had a “trick” savory and “treat” sweet (or less spicy or odd) option. There were multiple shows including a pirate themed “game show”. 

[SonofBaconator]

On 8/11/2025 at 6:04 PM, DonHelbig said:

When did Tricks and Treats become a night event? 

A while ago, I shared my opinion that Kings Island should focus on improving the quality of their haunted houses and mazes, even if that means rethinking how they encourage families to stay later in the evening.

In its pre-2025 form, Haunt was always extremely crowded, which hurt the overall experience. While Haunt is intense and not necessarily designed for families, many still came anyway. I think there’s a way to make both groups happy: keep families in the park later for other activities, while upcharging for the more intense haunted experiences.

If families feel welcome to stay, other parents who were previously hesitant might bring their kids-and those families could end up spending more on food, merchandise, etc. Meanwhile, charging for the haunted attractions would help manage crowds and create an expectation of higher quality. For example, securing an IP like The Conjuring could justify the upcharge and deliver a premium experience for those who want to go for the haunts.

At the end of the day, the park is going to aim for maximum revenue- and I’m honestly surprised this approach wasn’t implemented during the pre-merger Cedar Fair days who had only been accustomed to Skeleton keys, higher daily pass rates, and no-boo necklaces.

[Tr0y]

2 hours ago, SonofBaconator said:

A while ago, I shared my opinion that Kings Island should focus on improving the quality of their haunted houses and mazes, even if that means rethinking how they encourage families to stay later in the evening.

In its pre-2025 form, Haunt was always extremely crowded, which hurt the overall experience. While Haunt is intense and not necessarily designed for families, many still came anyway. I think there’s a way to make both groups happy: keep families in the park later for other activities, while upcharging for the more intense haunted experiences.

If families feel welcome to stay, other parents who were previously hesitant might bring their kids-and those families could end up spending more on food, merchandise, etc. Meanwhile, charging for the haunted attractions would help manage crowds and create an expectation of higher quality. For example, securing an IP like The Conjuring could justify the upcharge and deliver a premium experience for those who want to go for the haunts.

At the end of the day, the park is going to aim for maximum revenue- and I’m honestly surprised this approach wasn’t implemented during the pre-merger Cedar Fair days who had only been accustomed to Skeleton keys, higher daily pass rates, and no-boo necklaces.

I agree. I really wish they would keep the “Haunt” aspect in the mazes and decorate the park much like what Dollywood does for its Harvest festival. Think Winterfest level of decor and atmosphere, but themed for the fall season. Keep a couple fog machines out for some of the coasters, but remove them from the pathways. Keep the roaming scare actors and gore in the mazes. 

Haunt is the only time of year Kings Island contradicts itself with being a “Family Park.” And I’m routinely told, “Families spend the most money.”

[SonofBaconator]

31 minutes ago, Tr0y said:

Haunt is the only time of year Kings Island contradicts itself with being a “Family Park.” And I’m routinely told, “Families spend the most money.”

This. And you CAN have it both ways. All the scary, gory stuff can be tucked away inside buildings and mazes while you can make the overall park atmosphere more Halloween friendly and appeal to families.

During the day when I see all of the scary stuff just sitting out like in Coney Mall, it just doesn’t seem appealing. There’s a clear difference between making things spooky and making things scary:

Outside the mazes/houses = spooky. Inside the mazes/houses = scary.

[DoomPlague]

1 hour ago, SonofBaconator said:

This. And you CAN have it both ways. All the scary, gory stuff can be tucked away inside buildings and mazes while you can make the overall park atmosphere more Halloween friendly and appeal to families.

During the day when I see all of the scary stuff just sitting out like in Coney Mall, it just doesn’t seem appealing. There’s a clear difference between making things spooky and making things scary:

Outside the mazes/houses = spooky. Inside the mazes/houses = scary.

I've always felt like the scare actors are wasted as "roamers." They could staff more mazes if they just ditched the roamers and have a more family friendly atmosphere to boot. Then again, they wouldn't be selling as many of those glowing necklaces.

Honestly, they really should add more weeknights to Haunt as well, at least as we get closer to Halloween. The park has so many passholders and other people nearby who would be willing to show up on a weeknight and it would help distribute the crowds to different days. Of course, we all can imagine why they don't do this. 

[Tr0y]

2 minutes ago, DoomPlague said:

I've always felt like the scare actors are wasted as "roamers." They could staff more mazes if they just ditched the roamers and have a more family friendly atmosphere to boot. Then again, they wouldn't be selling as many of those glowing necklaces.

Honestly, they really should add more weeknights to Haunt as well, at least as we get closer to Halloween. The park has so many passholders and other people nearby who would be willing to show up on a weeknight and it would help distribute the crowds to different days. Of course, we all can imagine why they don't do this. 

KI is going to be open on Thursdays for haunt during the month of October. Which is a plus, subject to change however.

[SonofBaconator]

12 hours ago, DoomPlague said:

I've always felt like the scare actors are wasted as "roamers." They could staff more mazes if they just ditched the roamers and have a more family friendly atmosphere to boot. Then again, they wouldn't be selling as many of those glowing necklaces.

I agree, sometimes Haunt is so packed that the roamers don’t have the same affect as they would if they were relocated to mazes.

You could have dedicated scare zones that feature roamers where no-boo could be used- kinda like what CP does for Halloweenends at the back of the park. 

The other solution would be family friendly roamers like Phantom Theater characters, a Mystic Timbers mascot, Banshee, etc.

 

[Losantiville Mining Co.]

I would much rather see the scare actors and fog machines restricted to the back areas of the park than have Haunt neutered entirely just to better cater to families. That being said, that method works a lot better at Cedar Point because of the park's layout with only two real entrances to their dedicated Haunt zone. My idea for a revitalized Halloween Haunt had this same idea with International Street, part of Planet Snoopy, Action Zone, and Oktoberfest being the tamer zones while Adventure Port, Coney Mall, Rivertown, and Area 72 were the real scare zones where all of the mazes were. 

It may be a good idea to redirect some of the roamers into the mazes, but removing the fog and catering more to families means no more shows like Dead Awakening or Hot Blooded. Once you make the event any more family-friendly you lose the ability to make it scary again without a lot of work. There are a good number of people who buy their passes just for Halloween Haunt, so any families that come in for a neutered Haunt event may just replace the guests who like the event as it has been — meaning little-to-no bumps in attendance. 

I'm very passionate about this subject and I hope Halloween Haunt becomes more adult-oriented than it has been in recent years. 

[brenthodge]

3 hours ago, Losantiville Mining Co. said:

It may be a good idea to redirect some of the roamers into the mazes, but removing the fog and catering more to families means no more shows like Dead Awakening or Hot Blooded

Well, that ship sailed a few years ago…