Tag: Halloween

This year in Vancouver‘s Stanley Park, the Ghost Train is entitled Jack O’Lantern’s Journey Through the Dark Forest. It is a more whimsical take on a Halloween theme and is based on the story of Jack, an Irish trickster who was cursed to live in-between heaven and hell, but managed to get an ember of coal so he could make a lantern from a turnip. The event is very family focused, but there’s just nothing to beat that miniature train ride through the dark woods. Note that you can drive, park for free. Buy tickets online mind you and you’ll […]

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Each year the miniature train in Vancouver‘s Stanley Park puts on a ride through the woods where they make a family friendly spooky adventure. This year’s theme is Alien Invasion, which gives nods to all the famous alien abduction themes from the 1950s to the X-Files. The train itself is a small sized replica (hard for my tall body to squeeze into) of Canadian Pacific Railway Engine #374. This is the first engine to arrive in Vancouver and the original full-sized engine is on display at the Roundhouse Community Arts and Recreation Centre in Yaletown. But the fun is the […]

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The annual Stanley Park Hallowe’en Ghost Train and Attractions in is one of my favourite places because I like the spooky feel of Stanley Park in the Fall, especially when the Park does its spooky presentations. For me I’m not into the freaky scary stuff with chainsaws and gory zombies jumping out at you. The Stanley Park presentation is family friendly. It’s just eerie enough to thrill the elementary school aged children without parents dealing with sobbing wrecks. This year was a Mexican Day of the Dead (Día de Muertos) theme, which is much more cheerful, believe it or not, […]

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I’ve enjoyed The Stanley Park Halloween Ghost Train in past years, but there was something special this year. Maybe it was the teeming rain. Seriously, it was teeming rain and we were in the middle of an urban rain forest. Strangely the dark woods seemed to protect us, even though we were going to see something scary. Perhaps the side effect of the rain was a smaller crowd. About 15 of us convened and there simply wasn’t a crowd. It was 6 PM, which is prime family time. Most 6-year-olds are mush by 8 PM. Doing something scary after 8 […]

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On a rainy night I and the family enjoyed the Halloween Train in Stanley Park.  This year it was an Alice In Wonderland theme and I thought taking some of the traditional images from the book and films and making them creepy was well done.  I particularly liked the Black Queen, who was on stilts and looking pretty nasty. As for the ride’s fear factor, my two-year-old was more mesmerized by the image of Alice’s huge leg sticking out of the White Rabbit’s house.  It is definitely PG rated and there’s no gore or anything jumping out at you. I […]

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