Boos!Letter: Pomona Fairplex transforms into the Fearplex for Halloween
Plus: Haunted Hayride turns 15 and jack-o'-lanterns fill Descanso Gardens.
Happy Friday the 13th, Ghosties!
The home of the annual Los Angeles County Fair is getting a spooky makeover this haunting season with an all-new event dubbed Lights Out.
Producers are making use of the the Pomona Fairplex’s 1930s-era grandstand building, which has been rumored to be haunted, for a series of very dark walk-thru mazes.
The entire grounds will be turned into the Fearplex with multiple activities for horror fans to explore throughout the event.
Reporter Richard Guzman spoke to event designer Dirk Hagen who cautioned: “People are either going to come out less traumatized because they faced their fears or, well, they’ll come out very, very traumatized.” Read Richard’s full interview with Hagen and find out what to expect from Lights Out here.
Our Inland Empire scream queen, reporter Mercedes Cannon-Tran, went to opening night of Lights Out and you can read her review of the event here.
Lights Out runs select evenings through Oct. 31 and tickets are $27-$33 at fairplex.com/lightsout.
Here’s more frightfully fun news.
Haunted Hayride celebrates 15 years in Los Angeles
The Los Angeles Haunted Hayride in Griffith Park has become a seasonal staple with terrifying mazes and a traditional hayride that’s filled with scares.
For the 2023 season, the fictional town of Midnight Falls has taken over the grounds and various monsters, zombies, chainsaw-wielding maniacs and hungry cannibals are stalking visitors through a trio of walk-thru mazes.
Event producers have also made changes to the actual hayride, with new, more comfy seating. However, this posh new luxury doesn’t spare you from almost certain death. Richard Guzman has more on what to expect from the annual event here.
Haunted Hayride runs select evenings through Oct. 31 and tickets are $29.99-$119.99 at losangeleshauntedhayride.com.
Descanso Gardens lights up with jack-o’-lanterns
Photographer David Crane (also my longtime Halloween Horror Nights partner-in-crime) checked out Descanso Gardens’ Carved event in La Cañada Flintridge earlier this week.
There are hundreds of faux carved pumpkins lining the path, but the are 25 custom-carved 200-pound pumpkins that were carved by three artists. Since the work only stays for a few days before rotting, in total, these three artists will use about 144 large pumpkins through the run of Carved. See photos and read David’s interview with one of the artists here.
Carved runs through Oct. 29 and tickets are $30-$45 at descansogardens.org.
Until next week, happy haunting!
Get previous online editions of the Boos!Letter
Boos!Letter: Delusion provides the scares, but is Phillips Mansion in Pomona really haunted?
Boos!Letter: Where to celebrate Halloween in Southern California
Boos!Letter: Pumpkin patches and kid-friendly Halloween events
Boos!Letter: Universal’s Halloween Horror Nights: Tips for survival
Boos!Letter: How Knott’s Scary Farm is celebrating its 50th anniversary
Boos!Letter: Halloween Horror Nights and Oogie Boogie Bash launch next week
Want more spooky fun? The Boos!Letter newsletter includes exclusive content you won’t find on our websites. Get it sent directly to your inbox by subscribing to our Holiday Events newsletter here.