Nights of the Jack lights up this month through Halloween with its spectacular displays of intricately carved and illuminated jack-o’-lanterns. The immersive experience at King Gillette Ranch in Calabasas features a nearly mile-long trail of lighted pumpkin scenes with themes like underwater worlds, Sponge Bob Squarepants and Hollywood. Fun Halloween tunes play while visitors stroll the dazzling path.
This family-friendly attraction draws a huge crowd, including celebrities such as Kim Kardashian, Demi Lovato, Billie Eilish and Miley Cyrus who have shared snaps of their visits. The attraction also offers a gift shop, top LA food trucks and two Spookeasy bars where guests can order themed cocktails.
The attraction opened for the season on Sept. 30 and will continue through Halloween. The venue’s main draw is the awe-inspiring, all-ages walking trail, which takes visitors past awe-inducing jack-o’-lanterns in various themed settings that are sure to delight, scare or just make you say wow. Some of the new additions this year include a dinosaur-inspired trail, a scene with Sizable dinos and a spot that pays tribute to Dia de los Muertos. Other popular scenes include the Underwater World, where visitors can see a sea creature made of pumpkins and a train chugging along.
Unlike a typical haunted maze, this event is less scary and more awe-inspiring, which makes it a perfect option for families with small children or anyone who might be frightened easier than others. And if you just want to walk through the pumpkin-filled path and take some amazing photos, that’s an option too.
Nights of the Jack has a quaint, farm-like entry area with hay bales and food trucks. This adds to the seasonal charm of the event, and the chilly evening air sets the mood perfectly for the immersive adventure ahead.
After the farm scene, the trail opens up to a mesmerizing expanse of pumpkins in various poses. The setting changes as you move through different spots in the attraction, with some eerie, some whimsical, and some downright silly. For example, the path of planets carved out of pumpkins is a nice complement to the Alien Scene, while a scene with a Caterpillar smoking his hookah on a toadstool and a Menagerie-inspired display are more amusing than creepy or scary.
Those looking to experience the sights without navigating the trail can do so via an immersive virtual reality tour. The experience is available through Halloween and can be viewed on smart devices, computers, virtual reality headsets and more.
The other big attraction at the ranch is Holiday Road, which features a much more Christmas-focused layout. The theme-driven show skews younger and cheerier than Nights of the Jack and has some displays that celebrate other holidays as well, such as Hanukkah. But it still features a ton of larger than life installations, including detailed artist depictions of Disney characters and sports heroes.