Halloween is becoming a bigger holiday every year, it seems, and Connecticut attractions are offering a variety of spooky fun to entertain children and adults this October. Here are my picks for some of the best Halloween events and haunted attractions in Connecticut for 2012. Visit them all... if you dare!
Haunted Graveyard photo provided to the media by Lake Compounce.Graveyard Productions' 22nd annual Haunted Graveyard is back for its 13th year at Lake Compounce amusement park in Bristol, Connecticut. This Halloween attraction stakes the claim of being southern New England's largest and scariest Halloween event, and there's plenty of horror in store for 2012.
© 2009 Kim Knox BeckiusIf you're looking for Halloween fun for little ones that is merry, not scary, head to East Hampton, Connecticut, where PumpkinTown USA's zany pumpkin-headed people delight visitors of all ages. This affordable Halloween attraction is immensely photogenic, and it's for a good cause: the Sandy Peszynski Breast Cancer Foundation.
From chilling tales to fortune telling to a haunted walk-through, spine-tingling fun awaits at
Mystic Seaport in Mystic, Connecticut, during the month of October. Be sure to purchase your tickets in advance for these special, family-friendly evenings of Halloween mischief, scheduled for October 19-20 and October 26-27 in 2012.
Mystic Aquarium in Mystic, Connecticut, hosts four evenings of ghostly Halloween fun October 20, 21, 27 and 28, 2012. Enjoy underwater pumpkin carving demonstrations, scavenger hunts, magic shows, craft activities, special Halloween-themed sea lion shows and more. This family event is designed to be appropriate for all ages.
Want to hear spooky tunes at midnight on Halloween? Then be glad you live in Connecticut, where each year, the Yale Symphony Orchestra performs a Midnight Halloween Concert at Woolsey Hall in New Haven. Purchase tickets in advance for this unique multimedia extravaganza and live performance, which is always a sell-out.
Climb aboard a vintage train at the Danbury Railway Museum in Danbury, Connecticut, for an old-fashioned pumpkin picking outing. Halloween Pumpkin Patch Train Rides will be available Saturdays and Sundays from October 13 through October 28, 2012.
Visit Connecticut's Beardsley Zoo in Bridgeport on Sunday, October 28, 2012, and children under 12 dressed in their Halloween costumes will be admitted free with a paying adult. Special events will include hayrides, seasonal activities and the announcement of scarecrow competition winners.
On Friday, October 26, 2012, tour Hartford's historic Cedar Hill Cemetery by lantern light on the only night the cemetery is open after dark all year. Reservations for specific time slots are required in advance for these "spirited" tours featuring actors telling dark tales: Call 860-956-3311. Bring a flashlight!
If Mark Twain was alive today, he'd surely have something humorous to say about our obsession with Halloween. You'll hear about Twain's own fascination with the supernatural and hear mysterious stories when you reserve your spot on a ghost tour at the author's Hartford home this October. Reservations are required for these evening tours, scheduled for October 5, 6, 12, 13, 19, 20, 25, 26 and 27, and reservations may be made by calling 860-280-3130. The Mark Twain House will also host a Halloween Tea Party with the Countess on October 27.
The Windsor Chamber of Commerce sponsors its annual Nightmare on Broad Street in Windsor, Connecticut, on Wednesday evening, October 31, from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. The free event features hay rides, a Halloween movie on a huge screen, a trapeze show and trick-or-treating at Windsor businesses. You can also have your picture taken with a ghoul.
