A Complete Guide to Knott's Scary Farm - 2023 Updates

Everything You Need to Know 

The scary season is around the corner. Time to put away the summer floaties and get out the pumpkins! Fall is most people's favorite time of the year. In Southern California it's still hot, even at night. But all the better to explore Knott's Scary Farm.

New for 2023 is a redo of what I used to call the Christmas store, it's called the Legacy Haunt Store and Museum. It looks like a haunted house. There is one entry and one exit. Enter from the south and exit north. 

The store is completely transformed to look like a haunted maze. You'll find all kinds of cool merch inside and relics from Scary Farm's past. 

Days and Hours

Knott's Scary Farm running on select nights beginning September 21st through October 31, 2023.  

Entry Price

Tickets start at $59.00 each and prices go up the closer it gets to Halloween; it also gets busier.  Click here for more details. Additionally, there are certain packages that include dinner.

Discounts

They offer discounts for military and season pass holders.

Add-Ons

The good news is you don't have to wait as long in line. You can purchase a Fast Lane Pass. It's gonna cost you $145.00 per night (online price). You get unlimited priority entry to all mazes, Silver Bullet, Ghost Rider, Return to the Fair and Beary Tales. 

Parking is $30.00 per night. Passholders with parking get free parking. VIP parking will cost you extra.

Boo-fet Dinner is a pre-scare dinner option that allows you early entrance to certain area of the park and you get a free souvenir bottle and one photo download. This'll run you $45.00 each.

They offer an ultimate VIP package that includes parking, entry to the park, the pre-scare buffet, t-shirt, a 6-hour guided tour with priority access to rides, mazes and priority seating for shows while you have the guide with you. I've never done this before but I'm sure it's worth every penny at $549 each.

Safety

A hot topic these days. Knott's has extended their chaperone policy for the duration of Knott's Scary Farm. 

On top of that, there is a continued bag policy. Clear plastic bags smaller than 12"x12"x6" are allowed as well as non-clear bags, sized 5"x8"x2".

I noticed on my last visit, last year, there are a lot of security teams walking through, all night. I felt perfectly safe. I also noticed a lot more kids, younger ones this year. The monsters don't seem to be giving kids a break either, fyi.

You Should Know

Knott's is cashless. If you bring cash with you, they have these exchange machines that turns your cash into a card so you can buy stuff.

Some cute refreshments

Food and Drinks

They do serve alcohol; it is pricey though. Be prepared to show your ID. 

Season passes with a drink pass can use it during Knott's Scary Farm. But because this is a special event, you cannot use your 2022 food plan.  They have entry ticket options for 2023 where you can add a meal and drink for the night of entry. 

What's There to Do Around There

Glad you asked, if it's a pre-party you're looking for, there is a TGI Friday's right outside the park. If it's the famous fried chicken, Mrs. Knott's Chicken Dinner Restaurant is worth stopping by. The restaurant also has a bar if TGI's is too crowded. If you want something quick, you can order some chicken and eat it in the bar.

Our seats at the Conjurer's show 2022.

There's a couple of shops and a bakery as well. Next to the bakery, you can order chicken to go.

If you're ready to buy tickets and learn about all the different mazes or plan your trip, click here.  

Most importantly, have fun, take in a horror show and stay safe. Scare you later!

New for 2023, 10 mazes.

1. The Chilling Chambers. A throwback to Scary Farms inaugural maze. 
2. Room 13. A 1920s prohibition style maze.
3. Cinema Slasher. This maze is a theater with a "cinema slasher" style theme. 
4. Bloodline 1842. A steampunk neo-Victorian style maze full of vampires. Your job is to stick together as a group and destroy the vampires as you make your way through the underground catacombs.
5. The Grimoire is back. I think this is the campground gone wrong theme. Evil creatures have been released by a spell book and you must fight your way through the evil unleashed.
6. Mesmer. A hypnotic maze filled with torture and madness.
7. Origins: The Curse of Calico. This maze follows the story of Sarah Marshall and the evil curse left on the town of Calico.
8. The Depths. This maze explores the underground caves left behind by the miners.
9. Dark Entities. An outer space, extra-terrestrial super haunt of a maze. 
10. Wax Works. A scary walk through a wax museum. An old favorite. I am happy to see this one come back.