Visit Date: October 11, 2024

In honor of the spooky season, Sam and I, along with some friends, visited Pittsburgh’s Kennywood amusement park for their Phantom Fall Fest event. 

Tickets were advertised at $75, but they were running a deal for $32.99 each when you purchased two or more. For years, Kennywood charged around $35 per ticket during the summer season, but after the pandemic, prices have gone up considerably. However, they more often than not have discounts like the one we received on this day. Otherwise, we would not go for face value.

On the particular Friday that we went, the park was open from 6pm-12am, but typical Friday Fall Fest hours are 6pm-11pm. The park is also open on Saturdays and Sundays, and they keep things family-friendly from 12pm-6pm with the spooky stuff not starting until later.

We pulled into our parking spot at 5:50pm and took the escalator down shortly after. The free parking at Kennywood is abundant but not super well marked, so we always just park up on the hill. Well, not always, but definitely as of late. We used to, at Sam’s insistence, pay to park closer, but as time went on and the price went up, I was able to talk him into the free parking only feet away. When he was a kid, the parking was $12, but now it’s up to $20. We’ll save the $20 for overpriced food and walk a few minutes instead.

The normal center gate to enter Kennywood was closed, and instead they were directing guests towards two lines on other side. This line moved quickly and was just a preliminary security check to make sure that bags were an appropriate size and that all minors are chaperoned. Kennywood’s chaperone policy, specifically for Phantom Fall Fest, is that a 21+ adult (with a valid ID) must accompany all minors during the whole event. From there, you move through the usual security scanner and ticket lines until you’re in the park!

The spooky stuff, scare actors with props, fog/smoke machines, and eerie music, starts right before the tunnel as you go down the ramp past security, so this is a scare zone that’s impossible to avoid (if you’re not a fan of any scares). Actors brandish loud prop chainsaws as well as other fake weapons while dressed in varying levels of scary outfits. We say varying levels because while some were very spooky, others were moreso just confusing and left us with questions instead of fear. The actors cannot touch you, but they will get pretty close to you. We didn’t have any problems with just walking past them, and we were only followed once all night by someone in costume, but it was a person we knew.

Once you get through the classic Kennywood tunnel — for those who don’t know, the tunnel is how you get under the road from the ticketing side to the park side — it is possible to avoid most of the scary stuff if you have younger guests or people who scare easily in your party. The “scare zones” are clearly marked on the map, and actors don’t venture further than their designated areas. The zones are themed — Welcoming/Departing (general scares), Fear Fest (clowns), Dead Light District (zombies), Hellbilly Hollow (redneck cannibals) — and your experience will depend on what actors are engaging with you. Some actors are better than others…

Once our group arrived, we got started riding rides and getting spooked! Here’s what we accomplished (in order, during roughly 5.5 hours):

• Kangaroo
• Racer
• mAlice in Wonderland (Haunt)
• Thunderbolt
• Phantom’s Revenge
• Turtles
• Jackrabbit
• Kennyville Cemetary (Haunt)

The haunts are, obviously, the only two attractions not usually available during the summer, so they’re the experiences to focus on in this review. Last year, we walked through the VooDoo Bayou, and Sam went through Dark Shadows with a friend. We liked both of them, and we were excited to try a new one (or two) tonight. 

Our entire group walked through mAlice in Wonderland, a spin on Alice in Wonderland. This was located in the Steelers Country area of the park where the Log Jammer was formerly located. We waited about 50 minutes, and it was our longest wait of the night. After a quick introduction from a costumed character in the first room, we were off! This ‘house’ consisted of multiple themed rooms which followed, very loosely, the traditional story of Alice in Wonderland but with a scary, gory twist. We didn’t find any of the rooms too terrifying, and there were a few well-placed scare actors. Overall, this was our favorite haunted house of the ones we’ve tried so far. 

At the very end of the night when only three of us remained, we decided to do another haunt since they’re seasonal attractions. The Kennyville Cemetary was on the way out, and it was a good thing we got in line when we did (around 11:35pm) because they closed off the line shortly after. We waited about 10 minutes before being shown to the “directions” space. This one is an outdoor one, and three flashlights were distributed to our group of around 25 — one at the beginning, middle, and end respectively. Nobody ended up relying upon the flashlights though since the “streetlamps”, which had been off all night, suddenly turned on for our walk through. The lights definitely killed any sort of spooky ambiance, but that didn’t stop the actors from doing their jobs! 

Other haunted houses were the Villa of the Vampire and Shady Grove, so we’ll have to come back next year to check those out. While the haunts are not on the same level as Universal’s Halloween Horror Nights (and why would they be?), they’re pretty well executed for Kennywood. 

While we’ve been on the rides many, many times before, there’s something special about riding them in the dark! Specifically, the Phantom’s Revenge and the Thunderbolt, feel different, faster, better, at night in the dark. If you’re able to stay later, we highly recommend checking these out at night.

As far as snacking goes, Kennywood’s food scene has also been average and lackluster (save for the famous Potato Patch fries), and tonight was no different. The highlight of the night was the crisp apple funnel cake (unpictured due to poor lighting and hungry stomachs). The dessert ($11) was a basic funnel cake topped with cinnamon, apple pie filling, and vanilla ice cream. The low was a corndog (also $11), which you would think an amusement park would have down pat, but alas. Unfortunately, there is no way to order a corndog by itself; you must instead pay for a side of fries regardless of if you want them or not.

Overall, Kennywood’s Phantom Fall Fest is a great way to spend an evening in Pittsburgh — if you like fun fall vibes, spooky sights, and remarkable rides. Lucky for us, we love all three!

WE WANT TO HEAR FROM YOU:

What do you think about Kennywood’s Phantom Fall Fest? Too scary or not scary enough? What’s your favorite ride? Is Kennywood a Pittsburgh “must-do”? Do you have any questions about Kennywood? Let us know your thoughts in the comments!