My girlfriend and I were super excited to celebrate my birthday at Cedar Point for the HalloWeekends kickoff party held for valid coaster club members. We took the two oldest kids (ages 13 and 11) with us since they're also members who ride everything and enjoy the haunted stuff. The 11 year old has been terrified of the haunted houses/walkthroughs ever since she went through Eternity Infirmary a few years ago, but she was determined this year to overcome those fears and have a blast with us at HalloWeekends.
The main parking lot was EMPTY with maybe a half-dozen cars upon our arrival at 3:00pm. We parked front row, right in front of the Tyrannosaurus Rex.
A small line was forming at Guest Services that we entered around 3:20pm. We waited approx. 30 minutes before we reached Tony Clark at the entrance, who greeted us (and our "minions") while checking our coaster club and photo IDs. They didn't have a printed list of registrants for our particular coaster club, so we had to wait inside Guest Services along with a few others until our list arrived. We waited approx. 30-40 minutes, which wasn't bad at all considering they gave us each Fright Lane passes w/Skeleton Keys (a $55 value) for our troubles. I was blown away that they were willing to do this for us! Kudos to Tony and his staff for their top-notch customer service.
Once our coaster club list arrived, they checked off our names, scanned our season passes and gave us a lanyard detailing the event itinerary. They also gave us tickets to redeem a prize, redeem our free dinner at the Midway Market (from 5-6pm) and our exclusive preview of the new HEXED haunted house (from 7-8pm).
First up on the itinerary was ERT on GateKeeper from 4-5pm. By the time we got there, it was already 4:25 due to the delay at Guest Services, but there was no wait for the left side/back row of the coaster. We only rode GateKeeper once because we noticed a line starting to form near HEXED haunted house for the free prize giveaway. We were late to the prize giveaway party during CoasterMania when they ran out of Survival Kits in our respective sizes, so we opted to go through the line early this time. We waited maybe two minutes in line for the free bright orange HalloWeekends hooded sweatshirt, which my family and I love and appreciate!
Since we were already dressed in hoodies, we decided to head back to the car to change out of them and into our new HalloWeekends sweatshirts. A park employee stopped us near maXair, saying they were trying to keep everyone corralled near GateKeeper until normal park ERT opened at 5pm. We explained our intent and she allowed us to return to our car, however a different employee near the front gate said we wouldn't be able to re-enter the park until 5pm. We had 20 minutes to kill before 5pm, so we debated our options -- return to the car and wait there until 5pm or head back to GateKeeper for more ERT. Since we had just walked from GateKeeper, we decided to exit the park to change into our HalloWeekends sweatshirts. A gate employee was kind enough to stamp our hands and permit us entry back into the park only a few minutes later.
At 4:55pm, we noticed Midway Market was accepting entry to those who had 5-6pm dinner tickets. We were among the first people inside and the self-serving buffet had the following: a few different pizza options, four different flavors of chicken wings (plain, sweet n' sour, bbq and mild), a pasta bar and a create-your-own bowl of chili bar. The Coke Freestyle machines were open and the dessert table had apple and cherry cobbler, Tofts ice cream cups (which the 11 year old was first to notice), Halloween cookies and cupcakes, and a few other pastries. None of us loaded our plates up with food, but we almost wish we had! By the time we got our drinks and sat down, the buffet line was already out the door! We debated getting back in line for an additional serving of chicken wings (which we found was one of the few food options of edible quality -- the pizza, pasta and chili not so much), but decided to pass since Midway Market had turned into a state of unorganized chaos. Ultimately, we were glad to have gone to dinner when we did. Otherwise, it would have been a massive disappointment if we waited in the enormous line.
Once we escaped from MM, we took a walk-on flight on Raptor before heading over to Millennium Force. It was one of the shortest MF waits I've ever had -- not even five minutes -- as we literally walked right up the ramp and were stopped just short of the platform. After a second ride on Millennium Force, we walked over the Mantis to take #OneLastStand but it was down. Iron Dragon was a walk-on, however, and we all shared a laugh upon boarding when the (empty) restraint to my seat wouldn't trigger. Two ride ops tried it with no luck, until one of the female ride-ops gave it a nice whack and voila!
At 6:45pm, we began walking towards the front of the park for exclusive scare time at the new HEXED haunted house from 7-8pm. We chose not to use our Fright Lane passes -- we didn't think they'd let us since the exclusive scare time was limited to coaster club members -- and waited in line for about 30 minutes before entering. The opening room was impressive, as a witch descended a staircase and gave a quick spiel welcoming us to the new haunt. Once inside, the 11 year old began having second thoughts, but her mom and I reassured her that most of the Screamsters were just high school or college kids in makeup. One of the witches was kind enough to break character (albeit privately and for only a brief moment) to say that we were right (that she was in school), which really helped calm her nerves. Thanks to whoever did that! I won't give away too many spoilers, but expect a few male actors among the coven of female witches. No complaints about the actors or lack of enthusiasm. Overall, a very nice debut for HEXED.
Afterwards, we hoped to make it back to Frontiertown prior to 7:45pm for the gathering of Screamsters near Skyhawk, but we stopped to refill our souvenier cup and were too late. We passed Fort Sandusky, which housed the monsters of Maniacal Mechanical Screamworks. This area has been lacking the past few times we've been through it, but there appeared to be plenty of Screamsters this time around, all of which were on their game and ready to scare once the clock struck 8pm! A light drizzle began to fall as we took a quick pit stop in Frontiertown. The 11 year old was surprised to encounter a Screamster in the bathroom touching up her makeup, but again, this helped ease her concerns and fears...
...until we approached Eternity Infirmary. She refused to go back inside after being terrified by the haunt a few years ago. Even I'll admit that Eternity Infirmary is probably the most unsettling haunt at Cedar Point. She did feel more comfortable with the Cornstalkers walkthrough, which we all enjoyed for the very first time. It was cool walking through Thunder Canyon in its dry state. Next up was a perennial favorite of ours, Cut Throat Cove, but not before we traversed through the new Tombstone Terror-tory walkthrough. Tombstone Terror-tory is a nice concept that fits the theming of that area of the park, but I felt it was the weakest haunt of the night. It's just located in a really awkward spot.
After Cut Throat Cove, fatigue and ankle blisters were beginning to take their toll and Happy Friar was calling our names at the Gemini midway. We stopped for the Platinum perk deal and relaxed for a bit while a light rain continued to fall. Our 30 minute break probably could have been longer.
I took the 13 year old through CarnEVIL -- we got a kick out of the girl on the motorized scooter -- while the girls contemplated Gypsy Fortune Tellers before ultimately deciding to skip it. On our walk back towards the front of the park, we split up again as I took the 13 year old through Zombie High School for his first time. We waited 25 minutes in line (again, we didn't feel the need to use our Fright Lane passes) and he got a kick out of the jockstrap room since he's a hockey player.
After ZHS, we met back up with the girls and stopped at Dippin' Dots and the Bavarian Nut Stand for the kids. Since we were all getting tired and sore from walking, we decided we'd close out our trip at the Ghoul Time Theater for the 10:30 showing of Midnight Syndicate Live. I was excited for the show, but didn't really know what to expect. Upon entering the theater, I was very impressed by the set. Visually stimulating, for sure! The show itself wasn't what I anticipated it would be -- I guess I'm no horror cinema/soundtrack enthusiast -- but I'll give props on the very creative ending.
Overall, I can't thank Cedar Point enough for hosting this event for coaster club members. You guys went above and beyond for us, as always, and it's very much appreciated! HalloWeekends at CP is a personal favorite of mine and I can't wait to return in a couple weeks!
@RyanRufe
I didn't check to see how the official name of the haunt was written/typed, but why does it matter? If we're being nitpicky, I also forgot the "Legacy of Shadows" title when referencing the Midnight Syndicate Live show and didn't type out the full Zombie High School name in the second-to-last paragraph. There's probably some spelling, grammar and punctuation mistakes in there too. Didn't mean to offend anyone, as I always try to be comprehensive with my Trip Reports, but thanks for reading!
@RyanRufe
Nice trip report! I was wondering how it went. What was the Skeleton Keys for?
On edit, should the S and K be capped Scottf? I don't want to get called out so I will ask.
No, given that they aren't proper names, they shouldn't be capitalized, in the same way that Hexed, not being an acronym, shouldn't have every letter capitalized.
Though since you're into improving your writing style, and clearly not being sarcastic, you really should have:
a) Written "What were the skeleton keys for."
b) Used a comma after "called out"
I really appreciate that you took the time to write such a thorough trip report. Thank you for providing the readers with a description of what the event was like from your perspective.
Amaze said:
Nice trip report! I was wondering how it went. What was the Skeleton Keys for?
The Skeleton Key is a special feature with the Fright Lane pass that you have the option of turning on (they light up with flashing lights) when you enter the haunted houses. Apparently, there are Screamsters within the haunted houses that keep an eye out for guests with their Skeleton Keys lit up. These guests are then whisked away/directed to a special "intense" room within the haunt that are for Skeleton Key guests only.
We opted not to use our Skeleton Keys to help our 11 year old feel more comfortable, but from what I hear some of the Skeleton Key rooms were pretty cool.
@RyanRufe
rmrufe said:
Amaze said:
Nice trip report! I was wondering how it went. What was the Skeleton Keys for?The Skeleton Key is a special feature with the Fright Lane pass that you have the option of turning on (they light up with flashing lights) when you enter the haunted houses. Apparently, there are Screamsters within the haunted houses that keep an eye out for guests with their Skeleton Keys lit up. These guests are then whisked away/directed to a special "intense" room within the haunt that are for Skeleton Key guests only.
We opted not to use our Skeleton Keys to help our 11 year old feel more comfortable, but from what I hear some of the Skeleton Key rooms were pretty cool.
Thanks for sharing.
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