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Queen Mary Dark Harbor makes triumphant return as the Halloween favorite meets and exceeds expectations. The highly anticipated scare event brings back what was beloved, tried, and true bringing all the scares and thrills to new levels of entertainment for old and new fans. Five scare mazes, four carnival rides, dance floor, four hidden speakeasies, roaming scare zone, photo opportunities, and refreshments make Long Beach one of the best Halloween experiences in Southern California. This time, it better stay in its home port and never drift away.
The looming sight of the historical ship in the disquieting background makes for a haunting backdrop. Iconic characters like Ringmaster, Captain, Scary Mary, Graceful Gale, The Butcher, Admiral, and more swing back on top of their game. New operating owners Thirteen Floor Entertainment Group ensured fans and the city of Long Beach they wanted to keep the integrity of what made the original popularity of the annual Halloween event stand out again. And boy did they truly keep to that statement. It’s like seeing a dear old friend come back after being lost and drifting in the open ocean unsure if we’d ever see it again. Queen Mary is bigger and badder than ever before.
Five distinct themed areas join the collective port bringing photogenic backdrops, food, bars, interactive characters, and more to the forefront.
Seaside Village is your entry into the event setting the tone of the evening festivities. Be sure to collect your coin for access to one of 4 hidden themed bars tucked away in scare mazes, courtyard, and inside the Queen Mary herself. They’re not too hard to find as the entrance is guarded by a waiting staff member and some marked by a lit symbol.
Use your token any hidden entrance except at Big Top Terror. It was small, lightly decorated, and filled with red lighting. Be sure to take the entrance alleyway all in as the exit will be elsewhere. Not only will the slider shows set up here but you’ll find the entrance to the first and longing maze of the evening here, Breakout and on the Run.
Seaside Village Photo Gallery
The Shipyard is the place to be with an open dance floor with DJ spinning party tunes. But at 8:08 pm, the stage is anchored for the Maiden Voyage Launch Party introducing the cast of ghostly characters that make Queen Mary a spiritual legacy. Longtime fans may notice The Captain seems to be different. That’s because the original was promoted to Admiral! We dig the new look.
Shipyard Photo Gallery
Voodoo Bayou is the swampy oasis full of leisures from cocktail bar, hookah bar, sitting area, s’mores, and a pirate themed gelly paintball experience.
Voodoo Bayou Photo Gallery
The Midway fills your appetite with flavored popcorn, open-flame grilled meats, fried desserts, frozen treats, cocktail bars, private elevated cabana rental, and illuminating wave swinger ride. This is your entrance to board the ship for the Lullaby scare maze featuring Scary Mary. The in-the-round stage is prepped for the fire and aerial shows. Showtimes are 8:30pm, *9:30pm, 10:30pm and *11:30pm.
Whereas most acts see aerialists use silk rope, the *performer here uses metal chains! Would recommend skipping the 8:30pm showtime in favor of going through the scare mazes when scare actors are in their prime. Be sure to grab a drink and snack and be mesmerized with the standing room only shows. Our favorite view was from the perspective of the cabanas looking toward Voodoo Bayou as flames shoot up in the backdrop.
The Midway Photo Gallery
Halloween Carnival takes a fiendish spin on sinister clowns, glowing twirling, blacklit carousel, green lit spider ride, competitive game, axe throwing, and the high heights of Rampage ride. This is also home to the Big Top Terror scare maze.
Halloween Carnival Photo Gallery
There’s so much to do and see to keep guests entertained through the whole evening. There’s something for everyone even if one offering is not high priority of things to do, another part of the list will fill your time. If there’s one upcharge activity that is a must-do, do yourself a favor and experience Lady Mabel: The Summoning of Samuel. Gifted psychic Lady Mabel conducts a seance to call upon the spirit of Samuel the Savage adorned by artifacts from the ship. Flickering lights, haunting whispers, and total darkness send chills down spines. Queen Mary Dark Harbor is worth every bang for your buck.
Entertainment Photo Gallery
Step inside the backend of the ship’s kitchen to witness the origin story of The Chef, who began his career as a young, ambitious and handsome Butcher with his eye on the head chef role aboard the luxury cruise liner. After chopping up flesh for years on the ship, The Butcher grew resentful towards the ungrateful First Class Passengers who consumed his meticulously prepared meats.
Frustrated, The Butcher takes recipe creation efforts into his own bloody hands by adding a special ingredient that no one can quite put their finger on. Will you be able to escape the wrath of The Butcher or will you be served up next?
Feast Photo Gallery
The wicked spirits of a sadistic surgeon and his accomplice in life, Graceful Gale, torment the living with ghastly echoes of their gruesome procedures. Their path of destruction stretches from the First-Class decks to the eerie depths deep inside the bowels of the Queen Mary as they accost the living with their unrelenting rage.
While the spectacle of Dr. Edwin Master’s specialized surgeries in the operating theater dazzles spectators, but they have no idea what’s happening below in the third class corridors. Injustice will not stand for long.
Infirmary Photo Gallery
In the depths of the Queen Mary’s first-class swimming pool, the sinisterly playful ghost of Scary Mary rises to accost passengers and guide them toward a watery abyss – a vortex that leads to the chilling underworld.
Lullaby Photo Gallery
Step right up and uncover the terrors that lurk within the shadows of the Big Top!
This Halloween carnival is no ordinary circus—it’s a trap, a deadly labyrinth of jack o’lanterns designed to ensnare the souls of the innocent. The Ringmaster, with their hypnotic charisma and enchanting performances, lures the unsuspecting into this dark maze, where doom awaits. Proudly displayed within the Circus is the Ringmaster’s sinister collection of cursed objects, amassed over the ages. Learn the tale of the Pumpkin Carver, see the death defying stunts and avoid the Ringmaster’s Henchies at all costs!
Big Top Terror Photo Gallery
The mystery behind what happened in the infamous stateroom, B340 continues… In the first half, the notorious murderer, Samuel the Savage has been arrested, dragged off the ship and thrown into a prison cell. The heavy iron door slammed shut behind him, but the rusted shackles inside this seaside village jail are no match for the notorious criminal.
In the second half, he escapes his cell scavenging through the small town – YOU are now in his footsteps trying to avoid the long eye of the law as you seek safe haven, hiding places and if nothing else, REVENGE! How does it feel to step into the shoes of Samuel the Savage? Will you listen to the twisted voices in your head or can you resist the urge to KILL in Breakout! and On The Run!
Breakout! and On The Run! Photo Gallery
Queen Mary Dark Harbor is back in the best possible way. Rejoice in the refresh. Alive and loving it! Queen Mary Dark Harbor is open on select nights from September 20 through November 2, 2024. For more information including ticket sales, visit https://darkharborhalloween.com/
