Holiday happenings

Elf on the Shelf journeys to Dallas-Fort Worth for fun new 2021 Christmas adventure

Elf on the Shelf Magical Holiday Journey

He'll be watching for naughty and nice kids around Dallas-Fort Worth.

Photo courtesy of The Lumistella Company

Santa's spy arrives early this year for an adventure in Dallas-Fort Worth: The Elf on the Shelf’s Magical Holiday Journey will be a walk-through experience created and designed specifically for the concourse at Choctaw Stadium in Arlington (formerly Globe Life Park).

Coming direct from the North Pole (okay, no, Los Angeles), the event will run November 18-January 2, and will be family friendly — friendliest of all for good girls and boys, of course.

Here's how organizers describe what's in store: "Santa’s Christmas Compass has gone haywire, and Scout Elf Tiny Tinkerman and the Scout Elves need human help to get Christmas back on course. Audiences will journey into the concourse at Choctaw Stadium, shrink down to elf size, and explore enchanting, Texas-sized scenery showcasing a company of fifty cheer-building performers."

The multi-sensory scenery and lighting promise to be pretty spectacular with a creative team that includes award-winning creative director and set designer David Korins (of Broadway’s Hamilton, Dear Evan Hansen, and the 2019 Oscars); heavyweight director David Alpert; lighting designer David Weiner; and composer Curtis Moore. They're the theatrical collaborators behind the first Elf on the Shelf experience that debuted in Los Angeles last year and attracted 130,000 visitors.

The event is produced by entertainment companies Lumistella Company and Constellation Immersive. Dallas-Fort Worth is only the second location nationwide for an Elf on the Shelf adventure.

“After the events of the past 18 months, people around the world are eager to connect in meaningful ways and create new memories,” says Thao Nguyen, producer and co-head, Constellation Immersive, in a news release. “The Elf on the Shelf’s Magical Journey represents the future of family friendly entertainment experiences, and beautifully embodies the holiday spirit in an intimate and innovative setting.”

Because of ongoing COVID-19 concerns, the event is being held in the open-air stadium and will follow social distancing rules and all current health and safety precautions, organizers say.

Tickets start at $19.95 for children and $24.95 for adults and go on sale to the public at 1 pm on Tuesday, September 21; they're expected to sell out. For tickets, packages, and more information, visit elfontheshelfjourney.com. Follow The Elf on the Shelf Experience on social media at @magicalelfjourney.

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Hottest Haunts

North Texas haunted attraction ranks among America's 5 scariest for 2026

Facebook/Thrillvania

Thrillvania in Terrell ranked No. 5 scariest haunted attraction in the United States.

Since spooky season ends in just a couple weeks, it's time for Dallas daredevils facing tons of scary options to make some tough choices. Those in the know have a tip: Thrillvania, located 30-40 minutes east of Dallas in Terrell, is a no-brainer, experts say.

America Haunts, a national association that tracks haunted attraction industry trends, ranked the Top 5 Scariest Haunted Attractions in the United States and “recognized five mega-haunts that have mastered very different approaches to creating the kind of fear” for which thrill-seekers actively search.

Thrillvania creeped in at No. 5 in the national list, earning praise for its staying power and storytelling.

“The sprawling setting and continual updates have shaped its reputation for decades,” America Haunts adds in a press release. “Don’t expect refuge just because the space is big. When the scarecast seeks, it knows how to find its target.”

Thrillvania has three haunted houses spread across 50 acres. Fear at the Terrell property is rooted in narrative, the haunted attraction analysts say.

Central to Thrillvania is Verdun Manor, Verdun Manor, where the dead, undead, and creatures more beast than man await.

Baron Verdun and Lady Cassandra, a vampire and werewolf, were once inhabitants of the mansion, the legend goes. Through the haunted manor, cemetery, and Voodoo Bayou, their gruesome story unfolds.

On the busiest nights it might take an hour or two to access the main attractions; however, guests enter the fantasy world before reaching the mansion itself, making the journey part of the narrative.

In Cassandra’s House of Clowns, a giant brain connected to a mysterious apparatus has transformed the attraction’s clown world into something even more sinister and surreal.

Sam Hain’s Trail of Torment adds a final leg to the tour and challenges those who make it so far to determine what is real and what is delusion, according to the review.

The rest of America Haunts' top five scariest haunted attractions are:

No. 1: The Dent Schoolhouse in Cincinnati, Ohio
No. 2: Nightmare New England in Litchfield, New Hampshire near Boston
No. 3: The 13th Gate in Baton Rouge, Louisiana
No. 4: Bennett’s Curse Haunted House in Dundalk, just outside of Baltimore, Maryland

What those who made the list have in common is not a particular monster, effect, room, or scare technique, America Haunts reports: “It is the ability to create an immersive world that keeps guests wondering what will happen next while relentlessly layering scares upon scares.”

Thrillvania Haunted House Park is located at 2330 Co Rd 138, Terrell, Texas. It is open Friday-Sunday through October 25 and October 29-Halloween night. Tickets run $29.99 on Thursday, $39.99 on Sundays, and $44.99 Fridays and Saturdays and can be purchased on Thrillvania's website.

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