Skip to content

'Very scary': Halloween attraction vows to 'spook' up ODAS Park

'There are so many people who really get into Halloween and I think they are going to have a lot of fun with this,' says general manager of ODAS Park
ErinAbbott-9-20-22
Erin Abbott is excited to announce that a Halloween attraction is coming to ODAS Park this October.

Boo! ODAS Park is getting ready to scare people at their new Halloween attraction set to make its debut next month.

The ambitious event will welcome guests to the event grounds on Thursday, Friday, and Saturday evenings throughout October.

“We have a haunted house in the hall called the Severn Slaughterhouse,” says ODAS Park's general manager, Erin Abbott. “We are going to be having something out in our field directly behind the hall leading into a walking trail through part of our bush.”

Abbott says the idea came from an Ontario Association of Agriculture Society convention where a haunted house company talked about the value of hosting home-grown Halloween attractions.

“We haven’t done much for Halloween before,” she said. “People love getting dressed up and scared, so we wanted to try it out this year.”

With most Halloween attractions being located in Toronto and even further south, Abbott is expecting the event to attract families from all over Simcoe County.

“We are intending on doing an hour and a half on Thursday nights at least where it’s a little calmer for people who are coming with young children," she said. “For the rest of it, we intend for it to be very scary.”

Abbott expects the frightening walking trail will be the talk of the town this Halloween season.

“We are really excited about that,” she said. “We are really going to spook it up in there.”   

Hosting the event three nights a week in October — for a full month — is a huge leap of faith, Abbott admits.

“It is very difficult to get volunteers these days,” she said. “We actually have a lot of kids in high school who are needing their volunteer hours and are very excited to come out and help out with this.”

ODAS Park is still looking for 15 to 20 volunteers for each night of the event. To volunteer as a "scare actor", email [email protected].

“People really get a kick out of scaring people,” Abbott said. “There are so many people who really get into Halloween and I think they are going to have a lot of fun with this.”   

Tickets for the event will be $15 with all funds going back to ODAS Park, a non-profit organization. Tickets will be available online only and more information will soon be available here

A combo package will be available later for the annual Halloween dance (19+ event), which takes place on Oct. 29 this year. Attendees of the dance are asked to be in their best costumes to dance the night away with The Handy DJ.

“It’s all about getting out and dressing up,” Abbott said. “We will be having a costume prize as well.”

A more family-friendly version of the Halloween haunt is being planned in conjunction with the Trunk-or-Treat event during the afternoon of the same day.


Comments

Verified reader

If you would like to apply to become a verified commenter, please fill out this form.




Tyler Evans

About the Author: Tyler Evans

Tyler Evans got his start in the news business when he was just 15-years-old and now serves as a video producer and reporter with OrilliaMatters
Read more