Dark Nights Behind The Haunt: Twisted Darkness

Dark Nights Behind The Haunt: Twisted Darkness

Exclusive Details About The Four New Haunted Houses at Hersheypark

Join us at Hersheypark this fall as we introduce our new Dark Nightsadd-on experience as part of Hersheypark Halloween.

Dark Nights is a frightfully immersive haunt experience that spreads its shadows over the Hersheypark landscape every evening during Hersheypark Halloween, with three scare zones and four spine-tingling haunted houses. Midways transform from enchanting to unnerving and once-familiar spaces mutate into chilling explorations of the unknown. The only thing more terrifying than the dark is what lurks within it.

Dark Nights at Hersheypark Halloween will run Sept. 17 through Oct. 30, 2022 from 6-11 p.m. on Saturdays (and Fridays starting Oct. 14) and 6-10 p.m. on Sundays.

Behind The Haunt

We're thrilled to launch a new Behind The Haunt blog series, where we dive deeper into the four spine-tingling haunted houses as part of integrated thrill experiences guests can only find in Hersheypark. Each haunted house is themed with its own unique story to frighten guests with every visit.

The four haunted houses:

• Haunted Coal Mine
• The Descent
• Creature Chaos
• Twisted Darkness

Up first, Twisted Darkness

Overview

Dare to have your tarot read by our twisted fortune teller and be forced into a never-ending carnival of nightmares. Was it real or was it all in your mind?

Location

The Twisted Darkness haunted house occupies only half of the existing Hersheypark catering space in Midway America near Laff Trakk and Wild Mouse. Guests will enter the queue line through the existing Whip attraction and behind Laff Trakk until they get to the entrance which is on the north end of the catering tent.

Unique Tie to Hersheypark

When the design teams first visited Hersheypark in June 2021, our team purposely scheduled their tours long after the park had closed. The shadows and sounds that fall on the park each night have startled more than a few team members and we wanted to immerse their creative minds in the essence of Hersheypark In The Dark! Two spaces created universal excitement for the haunted house concepts, the first was Spring Creek and the second was Midway America. It was that nighttime walk through the empty midway with the iconic Pinwheel on the Ferris Wheel and the bulbs of Music Express providing the only ambient light where the inspiration to explore the darker side of classic carnival environments was hatched.

Behind The Clue

Did you know all of the Dark Nights clues were filmed on-site at Hersheypark? The second clue for Dark Nights showcased a fortune teller's table with aged tarot cards, a crystal ball and baubles offered to Madame Zola in exchange for fortunes told, which were all props brought in by our team and shot in the media room at GIANT Center.

The clues also incorporated where the haunted house was going to be located. In clue #2 an image of Laff Trakk was reflected in the mirror which is next door to where Twisted Darkness will be at Hersheypark.

Did you realize we were giving away the name of our new haunt experience in each clue? "Dark Nights are Coming" is written every clue.

Construction Updates

Transforming 6,000 square feet of open catering space into an immersive haunted attraction takes an army. In our case, the forces began mobilizing in early February to begin pre-planning for the structural building components and refining the details of the scenic elements and special effects. In April, the scenic elements designs were finalized in an undisclosed, off-site location with some very creative and inspirational partners. On-site construction began in June with walls going vertical on July 6 and our first load of complete scenery arriving by the end of that month.

Here's a sneak peek:

Stay tuned for next week as we dive deeper into our second haunted house of the series, Creature Chaos.

Dark Nights Know-Before-You-Go: Tickets

Guests must purchase a separate Dark Nights add-on ticket to experience unlimited access to all of the four haunted houses as many times as they dare during a single visit. Scare Zones are included with a general admission ticket to Hersheypark Halloween.

A general admission ticket to Hersheypark Halloween is required for entry throughout the fall season. Dark Nights haunted houses access is not included with a general Hersheypark admission ticket and must be purchased separately or as part of a bundle. Guests can get to the fear faster with Dark Nights Fast Track program, available to ensure unlimited access to the four new haunted houses on the date of visit.