(Photo by Ling Hua at Unsplash.com)
Looking for chills and thrills to kick off your Halloween? Try these frightful and fun Eastern Iowa events …
Fridays through October 31 • Haunted Tractor Ride, Wilson’s Orchard, Iowa City. WilsonsOrchard.com. Join Bessie as she navigates an eerie path through the moonlit orchard. Riders will encounter horrifying re-enactments of spine-tingling slasher scenes and cult film gore. Fridays, 7 p.m.–10:30 p.m.
Fridays & Saturdays through November 1 • Mayhem Haunted House, 13011 120th Ave., Ottumwa. MayhemHauntedHouse.com. Voted Iowa’s #1 Haunted House in 2023, not for the faint of heart. Open 7:30 p.m.–12 a.m.
Friday, October 17 • Live from the Artisan Studio: A Night of Victorian Horror. Victorian horror tales and morbid music by Lucy Conroy’s Cello of the Damned. 7:30–10 p.m., Brucemore Carriage House, Cedar Rapids. Brucemore.org.
Fridays & Saturdays through October 31 • Scream Acres, Bloomsbury Farm, Atkins. ScreamAcresPark.com. Three indoor haunts and a haunted cornfield, open rain or shine.
Fridays & Saturdays through October 25 • Midwest Haunted Rails, Midwest Old Threshers Grounds, Mt. Pleasant. MidwestHauntedRails.com. Take a train ride for fun, not-scary thrills for the family.
Thursday, Fridays, & Saturdays through October 31 • Thrashers House of Terror, Midwest Old Threshers Grounds, Mt. Pleasant. ThrashersHouseofTerror.com. Tour a very scary haunted house, for ages 14 and older.
Fridays & Saturdays through October 25 • Haunted Halls, Old Bonaparte School Building, 602 8th Street, Bonaparte. Facebook.com. Dare to enter if you’re brave enough—the madness starts at 7 p.m.
Open daily through Oct. 31 • 12-Acre Corn Maze & Mini Corn Maze at Harvestville Farm. 1977 Highway 2, Donnellson. (319) 470-1558. HarvestvilleFarm.com. Fun for the family! Last admittance to the 12-acre maze is 1 hour prior to closing each day. While you’re there, enjoy a pumpkin patch, tons of games, rides, and fall-themed activities for kids.
Fridays & Saturdays through November 1 • Circle of Ash, Linn County Fairgrounds, Central City. CircleofAsh.com. Three attractions in one: a traditional indoor haunted house experience, a funhouse maze filled with terrorizing clowns, and a haunted forest. Open select Thursdays.
Fridays & Saturdays through November 1 • Eclypse Haunted Attraction, 171 Hwy 1 W, Iowa City. EclypseHaunt.com. “Iowa City’s #1 Haunted Attraction.” Open select Thursdays.
Fridays & Saturdays through November 1 • Haunted Auditorium, Memorial Auditorium, Burlington. Haunted-Auditorium.com. New scares, new rooms, and a new layout on four floors await you.
