Knott’s Scary Farm kicked off this year on Sept. 18 at Knott’s Berry Farm, transforming a bright, playful amusement park into a thrilling event full of scare zones, haunted mazes, and live shows. This not only has brought forth exciting frights, but a continued dispute about the sale of the “No-Boo” necklace, a light-up necklace meant to alert scare actors that the wearer would not like to be approached. Park-goers could purchase the necklace for $15.99. It was designed with varying Halloween-themed charms, with animated-looking purple spiders for most parks.
In response, there were differing opinions about the sale of the necklace. Some agreed that it is a great product, while others saw it as unnecessary. The majority of fans viewed the product with the latter mindset.
Knott’s Berry Farm producer Christopher Do defended his position on how it can be useful to families new to the Scary Farm frights, especially with Knott’s chaperone policy, stating that any child under 15 years of age must be accompanied by an adult of at least 21 years of age.
Do told Inside the Magic, “I think there’s two different things about the No-Boo Necklace. Of course, if you’re bringing a lot of little ones, and you know that, ‘Hey! I’m going to be watching my kids,’ and things like that, and you’re coming, and you’re like, ‘Hey! I’m here for this group of teens, my kids,’ things like that. You get yourself a No-Boo Necklace, and you’re able to enjoy your night.”
In support of the sale, junior Mackenzie Villalobos explained that she considered it important, as she herself gets scared easily and would like to be given a break every once in a while in the event.
“I would love to watch, like I love watching or seeing different activities like scary events; however, I get scared really easily, and I cry when I get scared, so I prefer not getting chased around, which has happened many times, and so I think it’s a great thing, and I would totally use it,” Villalobos said.
Junior Camilla Schroer was ecstatic about the sale and communicated her thoughts.
“Yes, I think we should keep [them] because people like me get scared really easily, and we don’t want to get scared,” Schroer said. “It is set at a good price; it’s worth it.”
For many people, though, this product is considered unnecessary. Currently, the main argument is that those who do not want to get scared should not attend the event at all. There have also been a few people who are in the middle of the debate with the opinion that the necklace is a good start for inclusion for those who are nervous about attending the well-known event. The difference between the previously mentioned opponents of the necklace is that this group acknowledges it is overpriced when compared to other parks’ versions of the same product
Freshman Jaynee Aguilar, who attended the Knott’s event, does not support the sale of the necklace, and she shared her perspective on the topic.
“Personally, I think it’s unnecessary because you’re going in to get scared, and it’s just boring,” Aguilar said.
Knott’s has not confirmed whether the park will bring the necklaces back after all of the controversy shared on various online platforms.
