It’s the classic combination of ghosts, goblins, witches and wheels!
For the fourth straight year, the Ghost Bus Tour makes its way to points far and near through Barrie, this Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday. Last year, more than 5,000 kids of all ages got on the bus, and the city is promising all sorts of new attractions to make this year’s ride all the spookier and more exciting.
To find out more, who ya gonna call? Why, city recreation supervisor Alex Malmsten, who spreads the credit around.
“I did originally come up with the idea to turn a bus into a mobile haunted house, (but) Karen Roy from transit must be given credit for the majority of the spooky elements within the bus. Our wonderful communications team in Access Barrie came up with the catchy Ghost Bus Tour name along with our marketing material, and the always creative Programmers in the Rec department source and design all of the Halloween games, crafts and activities each year.”
Alex says the uninitiated would find on the bus everything they’d expect of a haunted house, “dim lighting, spooky music, lots of cobwebs with the occasional evil screams in the background. We do our best to keep it age friendly for everyone so we try to stay away from the gory props you sometimes see out in the stores”
What’s more, city staff does “a great job of helping to get those kids who find it a little too scary off the bus quickly and safely.”
Malmsten also urges trick-or-treaters to expect the unexpected.
“Each and every year, we redesign the bus so returning participants never know where someone is going to pop out of and say BOO! We love seeing the same faces come back for a scare year after year.
“All of the games and activities get changed up each year as well, we do reuse some of our favourites, but you can always expect some new experiences even if you have come out in the past.”
Of course, come out in your best Halloween finery, which Alex says is quite-ranging.
“We see a fair amount of police and firefighters which are always a hit for pictures with the real life police and firefighters who are at the event helping out. Of course we get our fair share of princesses as well, but our all-time favourite costume was from a few years ago when a little girl was dressed up as the CN tower!”
There will also be a bunch of Halloween-themed activities, and the bus will remain stationary all night so participants are invited to drop in anytime during the free event.
While there is no charitable theme specifically, “our Customer Service Desks do accept donations all year long to help cover the costs for families in Barrie to send their child with special needs to our Summer Camps, so, if anyone is looking to donate (something) financial… for this free event that’s one we would gladly accept.”
The Ghost Bus Tour makes its presence felt Tuesday, (Oct.24) from 5 to 7:30 p.m. at East Bayfield Community Centre; Wednesday from 5 to 7:30 p.m. at Allandale Recreation Centre, and Thursday from 5 to 7:30 p.m. at Holly Community Centre.
Malmsten can hardly wait.
“We have a ton of fun with this event every year because we get so many families out to participate. Halloween is such an exciting time of the year for children of all ages so we hope everyone will take advantage of this event and come out for a fun, memorable experience!”
To learn more about the Ghost Bus Tour, click here.
