13 Nights at Jiminy Peak is New England’s Only Ski Lift Haunted House (3.5 stars)

Based in the Berkshire Mountains in Western Massachusetts, Jiminy Peak’s annual Halloween haunt should be a 5-star attraction. It’s the only place in New England where you get to ride up a ski lift to the mountain peak at night!

Going up, it’s incredibly thrilling and peaceful to hang there, suspended on the ski lift, taking in the moon, the clouds or stars, and trees in the darkness, and going down you look out over the entire town’s lights. There’s no way to take a photograph. You just have to go there.

And that’s only the beginning. When you get to the peak, you’ll find an 8-minute woods walk and Halloween scare that takes you through spooky woods at night, with costumed actors who leap out and notably with two special effects: an enormous flame spout that erupts out of nowhere, and a laser lake. A laser lake is a room filled with fog, and a laser that moves horizontally, creating a horizontal “surface” of green laser light. Like the surface of a real lake, you can’t see underneath it, so as you walk through the lake, with the surface at chest height, who knows what ghouls may be hidden underneath to pop up? At Jiminy Peak they have combined multiple lasers together, making New England’s largest laser lake, dominating a large tent room. Amazing.

The attraction also includes a Halloween maze path at the ground level, which is not outstanding by itself, in terms of its production, the set design, costuming, and animatronics, but I love the exorcist room where the mattress bounced spookily, and have to give kudos to the actors, the monsters who jump out at you. Their enthusiasm is even higher than at other Halloween attractions. Bless the ones at the top of the mountain where it is so windy, lurking in the cold for hours just for a chance to scare passersby and give them a good scream and then a good laugh. I love that kind of passion and it is so commendable. Even though the attraction seems low budget, the staff have done so much with a little.

That by itself would make Jiminy Peak an outstanding attraction, but there’s more! Jiminy Peak also has a “mountain coaster”. It’s like a roller coaster ride where you zip down the mountain slope. There are very few of them in New England, and the only one open at night for Halloween. (Their other attractions such as the Soaring Eagle zip line I believe are closed.)

Finally, don’t miss a chance to eat at Christiansen’s Tavern, the on-site restaurant at Jiminy Peak. The food and atmosphere are remarkable, far above what you might expect. Try the apple, cranberry, and walnut salad, and the nachos with pork. They even have lodging on site if you want to stay for a weekend of fall foliage and fun in the Berkshires, making better use of the long drive out there.

Unfortunately, the two issues that I noted in my 2018 review (which is why I gave only 4.5 stars) have gotten worse.

First, better signage is needed so that people know where to go. At the entrance, I was confused and I saw guests confused about where to get tickets. At the entrance, staff did not warn guests with insufficient shoes (there’s no way that high heels will work at the summit) or insufficiently warm clothing (it’s even colder and windier at the peak).

It’s okay. I warned them.

Then in the base camp haunt, I sometimes was unsure where to go. At the summit, at the entrance to the forest path, you’ll find red string lights to the left and right of the forest path, lining the path and showing you where to go, but the string lights are also drawn across the path, signaling “don’t enter”, like how yellow police tape is drawn across a path to block your way. It wasn’t just me; as I finished the summit woods path and was returning to the ski lift I saw another group of people confused and heading the wrong way.

Then as you return down and leave the ski lift at the bottom, it’s unclear where to go next. I was told to turn left, but there’s a lot to the left. Signs, please.

Most importantly, at the peak there’s an 8-minute walk through the woods. The lighting is insufficient and the path is bumpy terrain, with tree roots and rocks. If there’s been any recent rain, slippery mud makes it worse. It’s a hazard. It’s dangerous.

I have empathy for this. It is challenging, almost impossible, to make a smooth forest path, I know, especially with a limited budget and if there’s rain and wind reshaping the terrain. But other Halloween venues do it. They cut tree roots, they remove rocks, they fill in uneven ground with dirt or gravel, they add wooden planks or bridges with hand rails.

In the past Jiminy Peak would loan you a flashlight for the woods path, but they’ve stopped doing that, perhaps because if the guests all have flashlights, it’s harder for the monsters to surprise them. But it is needed for safety. If the expense is a problem, sell flashlights for $3, or encourage every guest to use the flashlight on their smart phone. Even with flashlights, do more to smooth out the worst of the path’s obstacles, and add better lighting.

I have a heavy heart to write anything negative. I founded Events INSIDER to support the arts, not to be critical. As I wrote in my review 6 years ago, 13 Nights at Jiminy Peak is arguably the most glorious experience you can have at a haunted attraction in New England, with three unique experiences you can’t get anywhere else during Halloween: the mountain coaster, the ski lift, and the giant laser lake. The actors are enthusiastic, and there’s even a restaurant on site. It is absolutely worth the 2.5-hour drive from Boston. It’s even a contender for #1 in New England.

But, to get there they would need a higher budget to match other Halloween attractions, and to fix safety and guest management concerns. 3.5 stars this time, I am sorry.

See 13nightsatjiminy.com.