Cedar Point's 25th Halloweekends

Happy Halfway to Halloween! There's a lot of life changes going on for me right now. I'm currently in the middle of moving and I am in-between jobs at the moment. I am going to be using this time to get caught up on the rest of these posts, so don't be surprised at the influx of posts in these next 4 weeks. Without further adieu, let's talk about October of 2022. 

 It feels wild to say that Cedar Point was celebrating the 25th year of Halloweekends. Time flies when you're being scared. Halloweekends is always my favorite event at Cedar Point every year. I've been going since I was a teenager and it's a very nostalgic experience that just gets better every year. This year they did not do the Tricks & Treats Food Fest (it was at King's Island), and instead opted for 25th inspired food and drinks. We went on the very last weekend in October, which was also the last weekend of Halloweekends for the season. I will admit that this trip did not start out the best, but it ended on a good note. 

 I was so excited to see that they brought back the Opening Scarymoanies. They haven't had it since pre-pandemic, and the surprise was that it is now being held on the main stage by the Iron Dragon rather than the balcony of the ballroom/arcade on the Midway like in years past. I have missed it. It's the best prelude to the evening of spookiness and fright. It used to be a short intro prior to the Scareactors coming out from the makeup room. This year, it was a whole show. They had their very first "icon," Mr. Midnight. Let me delve into my love of horror real quick. I was obsessed with the concept of his character. He was very dark and super intriguing. His self-description was basically that he is the presence you feel between the moment of fear, and your reaction to it. I would not be upset if he is a permanent character of Halloweekends from now on. Mr. Midnight and this opening show in my opinion, was on par with other parks such as Universal's Halloween Horror Nights and Seaworld's Howl O Scream. The show was an introduction to Mr. Midnight and the other shows and Haunts going on throughout the park. It ended with the Scareactors walking through the crowd to their scare zones, which has always been one of my favorite parts. I was so pulled into the show that I didn't see them line up along the perimeter of the crowd. The show was about 8-10 minutes, which I thought was a good time-frame for it's purpose. Another person in my group thought it was too short. This show had flashing lights, some horror scenes, Scareactors on the stage, and pyrotechnics. No strobe lights or loud noises, other than the normal loud music and microphone volume of stage shows.

There was no real list of the 25th inspired foods nor was there a map. We ended up walking the park 3 times on a witch hunt trying to find the locations of the food we had seen featured on social media. We had even asked a team member if they knew if there was a list or a map of where to go, and they said there wasn't. The first night was a Friday night and a lot of the food locations were closed. We did manage to try a few things. First up: Nashville Hot Chicken Tenders with Pickles. The chicken was hot and crispy. It was a good portion size for the money. I was very pleased with the hot sauce. I've had Nashville Hot Chicken that I've been unable to finish even though I love spicy food. This sauce, I could actually taste the flavor it had plus the chicken. It came with dill pickle slices and they did ask if you wanted pickles prior to putting them on, which is always appreciated. The vote on getting it again was 50/50. Spicy lovers were a yay, mild people were a nay.

Beer Cheese Waffle Fry Nachos (back) and Nashville Hot Chicken (front)

Beer Cheese Waffle Fry Nachos with Cherry Peppers. I don't know how you can go wrong with beer cheese. It tastes good on everything. They asked how much cheese and toppings you wanted. We went ahead and added green onions and jalapenos because we go hard (not really; I just enjoy nachos). The waffle fries where fresh and crispy. Another great portion size. Incredibly satisfying. We all agreed we'd get it again. 

Syringe Burger. This was a cheeseburger with a special burger sauce in a syringe on the side. The sauce was relish, onion dip and A1 sauce. It was definitely a different flavor, but it still tasted good. It was nice to have the sauce on the side so you can use as little or as much as you want. The burger itself was deliciously cheesy and the beef had a great flavor as well. It's everything I want in a theme park burger. We agreed it was one we would get again. 

Saturday night we didn't get any more of the featured food. Many locations were closed again. There was a bloody cupcake that I had my heart set on, and the location was never open that weekend. The signature drink, Mr. Midnight, had run out Friday and Saturday. Per social media, they were supposed to have a signature drink and food item every weekend leading to the end of the season. I saw 3 weeks posted, then nothing. No further announcements. No explanation of why it wasn't continuing. It's like they hoped no one would notice. It was very disappointing. This all made it seem like they were unprepared for the popularity of the food items/drinks at the end of the season. 

 The shows were honestly the saving grace of the weekend. I cannot emphasize that enough. I admit that I don't normally stop and watch the shows. I'll catch one if I am walking past and it's about to start, but I don't plan my day around seeing them. After this trip, that will be changing. I won't give away the plot of the shows, just our experience and opinions in case they bring them back in the future. 

The Tell Tale Heart. We tried sitting in the way back, but the stage and benches backs up to Cornstalkers (one of the Haunts) and we couldn't hear well. You definitely need to be in the circle of benches in order to hear the story. You could still hear the chatter from the line of Cornstalkers, but it's still better to sit on the benches to get the full experience. The actor was a very captivating storyteller and when I could hear him, I was very engaged. This show was a storytelling experience outdoors with no gimmicks or large productions. No loud noises, no strobes or flashing lights. The story itself described 2 graphic murders. I would probably see it again if it was a less busy night. The chatter from the line was preventing me from really enjoying it. 

 The Midnight Hour was probably my 2nd favorite show. Midnight Syndicate was there and it was cool because I didn't know that they do the music for Halloweekends and also Universal's Halloween Horror Nights every year. Mr. Midnight makes an appearance in this show, and I did fangirl for a minute when I realized he was there. The music and singers were great. They did have Scareactors out in the audience throughout the show, and one scared my mom which was the highlight of my weekend. (You have to understand, she NEVER gets scared.) The show was music and storytelling. It wasn't anything I anticipated, but I would've definitely saw it again if we had time. When they turned the lights on after the show, my only words were, "That was badass." There was a photo-op after the show where you could get your photo with Midnight Syndicate and Mr. Midnight. The show was indoors and had strobe lights, horror scenes, loud noises, darkness, flashing lights, Scareactors, and fog. 

 The Shrieks show were on the main stage and it was fun Halloween and Pop music. They had to do an "abbreviated" show because of the stage conditions (it was cold and damp out) so I'm unsure what the full show looked like. The music was louder than the singers, which is always a bummer because you know they're good. The show was outdoors and had strobes, flashing lights, and fog. 

 The Fangtastics was my #1 and also my mom's because it was so much fun. My mother raised us on rock music, and this show was vampy rockers. They came into the audience to engage during songs. They moved around a lot and didn't just stick to the stage. We sat on the 2nd floor and they even looked up and engaged with us which was nice. The visibility from the first and second floors (along the railing) was great. This show is indoors so it had an intimate feel to it. I would've definitely gone again. This show had minimal flashing lights and loud music. 

We caught Raging Inferno on our way out of the park. They absolutely killed Metallica. I love Metallica and many people make attempts, but they were spot on. We came at the end of their set, so I would've loved to see the whole thing. (Come back, please!) We left the park on a high note after that.

In 2021 we went at the beginning of Halloweekends in September, and for this 2022 year we had gone for the last weekend in October. I wish it wasn't a huge difference, but it really was. We were so disappointed in the disorganization of the 25th food items and lack of availability. I understand that they rely a lot on college student workers and may not have had enough employees at the end of the season. However, people who go in September should have the same experience as the people who go in October. I also wish they would HAVE A MAP for food festivals to save the manhunt, but Disney is guilty of that as well. The shows honestly saved the entire weekend and I cannot recommend them enough. Take the time to see them. The shows made it the best Halloweekends I've had in years. Did you make it out to the 25th Halloweekends? What were your thoughts (especially if anyone got the bloody cupcake)?