Knott's Scary Farm Halloween Haunt - Buena Park, CA

Knott's Scary Farm is a well known event for any kid growing up in Orange County.  Every year they transform the Knott's Berry Farm theme park into a haunted theme park, with monsters running through the park scaring people, haunted mazes, and special twists to many of the rides.  The park has pretty good rides to begin with, so add in the special event around Halloween, and it makes for sell out crowds, and very long lines.  That being said, there's not much you can do to avoid them if you want to see Knott's Scary Farm, so you may as well just go for it.

Ticket prices for day of the event are $57 as of October 2011, but if you pre-order in advance you can get them for $34 - $51.  Knott's Scary Farm usually lasts for about a month leading up to Halloween, and a couple days after, depending on how the week falls.  Don't forget, parking is an additional expense, and not cheap at about $15.

From Wikipedia...
Knott's Halloween Haunt or Knott's Scary Farm is a seasonal Halloween event at Knott's Berry Farm in Buena Park, California. It is an event in which the theme park is transformed into "160 acres of horror", via a series of over 1,000 monsters, 13 mazes and a collection of 'scare zones'. It is the largest Halloween event to be held at a theme park. Knott's Halloween Haunt is responsible for producing half of the theme park's revenue.

Originally a one-night affair, beginning on October 31, 1973, the annual, month-long event celebrates its 39th year in 2011. It has become the largest event of any theme park. Knott's Berry Farm was originally modeled after Calico, California, a ghost town that was a result of the California silver rush. Already having a dedicated Ghost Town section in the theme park, this area would become the designed area for the original Halloween Haunt, eventually expanding to the entire park.

The 1980s would continue to be a success for the theme park, and popular culture icons were employed to represent the event. In 1981, actor and parodist "Weird Al" Yankovic joined the cast, as did Elvira in the following year. Elvira was prominently featured in many Halloween Haunt events until 2001. According to postings on her My Space page, Cassandra was released from her contract by the park's new owners due to their wanting a more family friendly appeal. The 1990s would show a different approach to Halloween. Humor was added to many facets in the theme park and Knott's turned from the explicit horror to black comedy. This continuing balance of horror and humor has been a key to the continuing success of Knott's Halloween Haunt.

While Knott's Berry Farm is a year-round theme park, the entire acreage is modified to fit the Halloween motif. Rides and other attractions are converted into macabre themes. Over 1,000 seasonal workers are specifically employed to play the roles of "aliens, werewolves and other monsters", roaming the 160-acre (0.65 km2) park in three terrifying scare zones, amidst haze produced by giant fog machines. Charlene Parker has been the "green witch," since 1982, and is the longest serving of all the 1,000 "monsters" who scare the guests at this event.

In recent years, the park has constructed 13 mazes and 3 scare zones as well as performing 7 live shows. The controversial "Hanging" live show is a staple of the Haunt that lampoons celebrities and persons in the news through a series of staged hangings. The Hanging has been an annual event since the 1979 Halloween Haunt.