As in previous years, the park is open 10am-9pm every day throughout the event giving you plenty of time to experience everything that the park has to offer. After sunset it's a valuable opportunity to experience the best rides at Alton Towers in the dark, including all of the big roller coasters.

The theme park has something for the whole family, with a mixture of family friendly spooky activities suitable for younger guests, to their newest and most intense scare mazes for only the bravest. When added to the impressive line-up of brilliant rides and attractions, it makes Alton Towers Scarefest the perfect destination for your Halloween fix.

Towers Street looks splendid again this year and it's always great to see the Alton Ancestors.

This year, there are a total of four scare attractions, a family-friendly walkthrough experience and plenty of live entertainment:

The Invitation (New for 2022)

The Lakeside Cemetery invites you to join them for a grave experience that will live with you for eternity. Their friendly funeral director is dying to assist you as you descend into the burial chamber, where you can choose your final resting place. Some caskets have already been filled, but there are others, still empty, waiting for you…

The entrance to the attraction resembles a graveyard, albeit a little unfinished as it has been hastily constructed, but there are some nicely themed elements and the costumed cast were excellent.

Unfortunately, very little effort has been made to disguise when you're entering a large black shipping container, which rather spoils the immersion. After a brief elevator ride down to the burial chamber, guests are seated in booths and put on headphones. Shortly after, the lights go out and the audio scare experience begins.

Created in partnership with DARKFIELD, the binaural audio experience itself is well produced and will probably be terrifying for those scared of the dark with some effective jump scares. It demonstrates how incredibly effective audio alone can be, enveloping guests in an immersive soundscape that triggers your imagination into visualising a series of disturbing happenings all around you.

The Attic: Terror of the Towers 

Around here, people talk of the Governess – how she’s haunted by the death of her young charges, how she wants revenge, and how she’ll take it by seizing the spirits of the living in retribution. They say her ghost haunts The Attic. That’s where you’re headed. Dare you risk your immortal soul?

The haunting stories and legends of the Towers themselves return this year, with this scare maze taking place inside the park's iconic landmark.

Guests are greeted during a pre-show where the legend of 'The Governess' is explained, then climb a number of flights of stairs towards the attic. Once there, you'll encounter a number of 'children' delighted to meet you, but all may not be as it seems and the further you venture into the attic the more you will discover before coming face to face with 'The Governess'. You then find yourself climbing into a fireplace and will encounter the dark and terrifying secret beyond.

This is the fourth year that The Attic: Terror of the Towers has been part of the Scarefest line-up, and it continues to be an effective scare maze.

Altonville Mine Tours 

The ‘Skin Snatchers’, we call them. Outcasts, their whole family. Rumours are they lived in that old mine. It’s deep and dark and the damp inside gives you the proper shivers. Just recently some fool reopened it – for tours! Be careful: they say those Skin Snatchers have a secret too horrifying for words. Beauty’s only skin deep. Remember that.

Also located within the Towers, this returning scare maze takes on the theme of a reopened mine, home to a family of village outcasts nicknamed the ‘Skin Snatchers’ by local residents. 

The hard hats with lamps are no longer part of the experience, so you really do descend into the darkness this year! With unexpected events at every turn and highly detailed scenes, this scare maze is not to be missed.

The use of lighting, smells, props and effective scares, all make for a reliable scare attraction. However, now in its seventh year at the event, it may be time to make way for something new.

Darkest Depths

Enjoy some extra-spooky swashbuckling aboard ‘The Mutiny’, a notoriously spine-chilling ghost ship. You’ll truly earn your golden Piece of Eight by venturing into the darkest depths, avoiding the hazardous calls of the treacherous Sirens, dodging the swords of terrifyingly ghoulish pirate mutineers and coming face to face with the Kraken – the legendary monster of the seas!

With the recommended age changing from 10+ to 12+ this year, Darkest Depths is now darker than ever! With updated scenes and new scares, impressive theming and a great cast, it's very immersive and much scarier than before.

This returning attraction, updated for its fourth year, brings you face to face with treacherous sirens, pirate mutineers and the huge tentacles of the Kraken!

Trick O Treat Town with HARIBO

This Scarefest get ready to explore a special town where every day is Halloween! And do you know what’s the townsfolk’s favourite past time? Yes, you got it! It’s to host Trick-or-Treating for the town visitors! So, muster up your courage and prepare to knock on doors from Spooky Avenue all the way up to the Witchy Woods but be careful! As well as treats there are tricks aplenty!

Returning for its second year, and now in association with HARIBO, this brilliant interactive walkthrough attraction is perfect for families, or anyone that fancies a bit of Halloween fun and plenty of sweets!

The premise is simple, explore the colourful town meeting friendly residents along the way and do a bit of Trick-or-Treating.

From the beautifully themed sets and wonderful costumes, to the enthusiastic cast and the yummy treats, it really was absolute perfection. We had so much fun exploring the town and interacting with the characters, and the sweets kept on coming.

Garden Lights Walk: Whispering Souls

This year you can once again enjoy parts of the grade I listed gardens with some spooktacular lighting.

As darkness falls the many wonderful features of the gardens are illuminated for a self-guided trail that also incorporates atmospheric music.

This element of the event can be enjoyed by a wide range of visitors, not just those interested in the scare attractions.

Freaky Fun Zone

This family area has returned to the lawns at the bottom of Towers Street, with various food and drink stalls repurposed from the Oktoberfest event.

The entertaining shows include Patch's Trick or Treat Party, Phil's Halloween Dance Party, A Vintage Halloween!, Alton Ancestors: Final Haunt and Sin Bin: ImmortHELL.

CBeebies fans can also dress up and join all their favourite characters for their first Halloween Party at the CBeebies Land Monsters’ Ball in Big Fun Showtime.

Alton Towers Scarefest continues on 14th - 31st October 2022.

Although with limited additions this year, the event is just as full of chills and thrills for both families and thrill seekers.

For a first time visitor, both the scale and quality of the event are sure to impress and the main three returning scare mazes are once again some of the best in the UK. However, for returning visitors it may be a little too much of the same, and although it's nice to see a different kind of scare experience, The Invitation is not of the same standard as the other attractions.

The event still offers by far the widest range of Halloween activities at a UK theme park, with something for everyone.

Our tickets were provided by Alton Towers for the purposes of this review.

The '4 scare attractions' combo ticket includes The Invitation, The Attic: Terror of the Towers, Altonville Mine Tours and Darkest Depths for £32 in advance. Trick O Treat Town is £12 extra.

Tickets for the theme park are also required and are £42 in advance.

ALTON TOWERS TICKETS

ALTON TOWERS HOLIDAYS