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| Carowinds Amusement Park in October © Katrena |
In October, Carowinds begins to transform itself into two main themes. During the earlier part of the day, kids can enjoy a variety of fun and games geared toward October and Halloween. Many of these activities start after the park opens and some are offered on a schedule or between certain times. After dark, the amusement park becomes SCarowinds with elaborate frightening trails scattered throughout the NC/SC theme park.
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| October Musical Shows at Carowinds © Katrena |
In 2013, Carwinds offers three October shows in the Peanuts Showplace near the back of Planet Snoopy. The Peanuts Spooktacular features Charlie Brown, Linus, and Lucy all decked out in Halloween costumes. This is a musical show featuring lots of fun tunes like Wooly Bully and Thriller and a bit of dancing and drama.
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| Puppet Show at Carowinds © Katrena |
The puppet show encourages the audience to help Fraidy Cat get over Halloween fears. The Kiddie-Oke show encourages children to sing on stage, so this one in particular is dependent on audience participation. When we visited the Kiddie-Oke show, one child danced on stage for about a minute and then headed back to her seat. They asked if anyone else would like to sing or dance and when no children responded, they simply said the show was over.
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| Trick-or-Treat at Carowinds © Katrena |
Quite a few children dress in costume to attend the costume parade and dance party. Stations are set up around Planet Snoopy where children can trick-or-treat. One type of candy is offered at each station. Kids can pick up a free trick-or-treat bag in the shop across from the Flying Ace Aerial Chase roller coaster. They will allow kids to trick-or-treat who are not dressed in costume and who do not have a bag.
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| Hay Bale Maze at Carowinds © Katrena |
Those riding on Gr8Sk8 can get a nice aerial view of the hay bale maze located right in front of the ride. Kids are challenged to use critical thinking skills as they try to navigate from one side to the other. The maze paths are flanked by hay bales, but they are short enough that many smaller kids can easily see over.
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| Foam Zone at Carowinds © Katrena |
The Foam Zone is another popular spot in the October-themed Carowinds mix. This area allows for the smaller kids within certain height restrictions to have a blast in the bubbles. Lots of children emerge from this area covered with foam and a big grin. Those sending kids into this area will be thankful to have an extra set of clothes for children who look like they have taken a bath in foam.
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| Fun October Activities Near Charlotte © Katrena |
The older truck parked beside the Baby Care Center begins to work magic by making bubbles...and more bubbles...and more bubbles. Lots of kids and even a few adults headed to that area to pop a few bubbles or perhaps see a cool view of the Intimidator roller coaster through a "bubblescope!"
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| Daytime Halloween Theme at Carowinds © Katrena |
A few other areas to note are the talking pumpkin named Peter, who interacts with the children standing nearby and a mural wall where kids are invited to color a scene and then see their work displayed on the wall near Snoopy's Junction train ride. They also feature a "mumpkin" patch where children can pick out a mini-pumpkin to decorate and keep.
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| Charlie Brown with Halloween Costume © Katrena |
Charlie Brown was a hit with me. He was the lone character walking around for photo shoot opportunities. He was sporting his famous ghost sheet costume! The above activities were offered free of charge after entry into the amusement park. I would recommend picking up a paper with show times – we found some near the hay bale maze.
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| Spooky and Silly Decorations at Carowinds © Katrena |
Is Carowinds scary in the daytime during October? For my family, the answer was a bit mixed. My youngest child is pretty scared of spooky decorations. Skeletons, coffins, and various other haunted décor line the walkways throughout most of the amusement park. Once we got over the Planet Snoopy, the scenery was pretty tame and not so scary, although my youngest tended to keep looking over her shoulder just in case a creepy skeleton had tried to follow us over there.
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| Fun Family Activities for October © Katrena |
Find additional travel reviews and articles by Katrena at the
Love 2 Travel With Kids and
Travel NC With Kids site maps.
