The LA Haunted Hayride is a Halloween institution in the Southern California area. It’s a slice of Halloween heaven/hell for residents looking for a more spooky experience; it’s here. The hayride emanates from Griffith Park in Los Angeles and turns it into the town of Midnight Falls. This year, you have the Hayride, three mazes, and other entertainment like a seance, axe throwing, mini escape rooms, Zombie Splat Gellyball, and the Scary-Go-Round. That adds to all the food and drink options they have at the event. For those looking for alcoholic drinks, this might not be the event for you; it’s a dry event.

They have the Haunted Hayride plus three mazes at the event: Monáe Manor, Trick Or Treat, and Hellbilly Halloween. Starting with the Hayride itself, it’s changed from past years, but detractors will still have the same critiques. The actual hayride is hampered in the ability to scare you because you’re in a moving vehicle. It has to move quickly to pump guests through as fast as possible. The scare actors have the challenge of trying to scare a hayride full of people. This year changes it with a radio voiceover reviewing the various monsters, scenes, and what you see. The actual Hayride isn’t horrifying. It depends on where you sit in the carriage.

They have hay bales to sit on or benches toward the front. They do a fine job of making it so both left and right can see everything, but neither side always has scare actors. If you go into it remembering these constraints, it’s still a fun time. They put a lot of effort into the sets and ensuring each segment feels different from the last. Some highlights include fog-filled bubbles, a group of clowns with beach balls, and the animatronics.

LA Haunted Hayride Mazes Ranked

3. Trick Or Treat

Trick or Treat is a carry-over from previous years of the Haunted Hayride. It brings you through the suburbs of Midnight Falls and some of its more eccentric residents. The Halloween festival is upended by monsters and terrors that stalk the streets. It takes you from the facade of a house to the streets. It seems like this maze has gone backward from previous years, with more interactive elements taken away and fewer scared actors overall. The ones that are here, do a great job of scaring you, but they’re too few and far between. We were promised at Midsummer Scream that the doorbells would make for more interactive elements during the house, but at media night, the doorbells didn’t do anything.

That’s upsetting and it just makes for a cheapened experience, especially when you compare the maze to the other two at the event. This maze should be perfect for the vibe of the Haunted Hayride, which packs spooky aesthetic and vibes into a small area, but it ends up feeling hollow.

2. Monáe Manor

Monáe Manor is the new maze for 2024, and it takes up residence across from Trick or Treat. This house is quite lengthy and features Janelle Monáe on video screens throughout. The annual Halloween party brings things that aren’t quite what they seem. As it goes on, the monsters come out to play, and music blares. The grisly ghosts and scare actors make for a great experience. I’m not too experienced with Janelle’s music, but it fits the vibes of the house. This is a big party, and you’re going through it as a guest.

I was a big fan of Monáe Manor and the new experience that it brings to the Hayride. I’m sure that fans of Monáe and her music will get more mileage out of this house. It does feel a bit reminiscent of the house that was here in past events with some of the scenery and the route you take, but that’s a small quibble that some might not even notice.

1. Hellbilly Halloween

Hellbilly Halloween returns for 2024 with a look into the backwoods of Midnight Falls. The Texas Chainsaw Massacre/The Hills Have Eyes-inspired maze takes guests through some genuinely terrifying areas that are easily the most frightening of the entire event. If you’re disappointed by the scares in Trick or Treat or the hayride, this makes up for it. The cannibalistic family and their massive house/compound make for the best scares you can get.

This is a step up from last year’s version it has the most scare actors, the most scares, and the best atmosphere of the three mazes. It’s a shame that all three aren’t up to the quality and par of this maze.

The Haunted Hayride Is The Best Introduction To Halloween Haunts Out There

If you’re looking to take someone that might not necessarily like Halloween events like Halloween Horror Nights or Fright Fest, the LA Haunted Hayride is the best option. The hayride itself isn’t that scary and provides a good introduction to what you can expect at haunts. All three houses, even Trick Or Treat, still have scares, but to a varying degree. If they like Trick or Treat, bump it up to Monáe Manor, and then to Hellbilly Halloween. This is all about the ambiance, the atmosphere, and the LA Haunted Hayride truly feels like a little slice of Halloween heaven. It’s got plenty of fog, activities for people of all ages to do, and you can stick around for the live performances from Monte Revolta and his band.

This isn’t going to be the seasoned Halloween haunter’s favorite event, but it might just make a non-believer into a fan of the season.

LA Haunted Hayride runs from September 21st to November 2nd on select nights. Grab tickets from The LA Haunted Hayride website.

For more on Halloween, make sure to check out Fright-A-Thon.

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