Twisted Trails, our 2025 Haunt of the Year, is back and bigger on Staten Island

Last October, 318 haunts from 45 states went after one title. The FrightMaps community cast 2,288 votes. The top five went in front of four judges. And one haunt came out on top of every bit of it.

Twisted Trails.

A walk-through haunted forest in Annadale, Staten Island. Built by a schoolteacher. Crowned the 2025 FrightMaps Haunt of the Year. And this fall it's back for season six, bigger than the trail that won.

If you live anywhere near New York, this is the one. Here's everything you need to go.

See Twisted Trails on FrightMaps

Why it won

The judges scored three things, weighted equally: creativity, community impact and innovation. Donnie Black, Debbie Rochon, Troy Crivellone and Jeff Robertson ranked the finalists, and Twisted Trails finished first with the voters and first with the panel.

Creativity. Forget a yard with some props in it. This is a trail through the woods, split into themed lands that run from a graveyard to outer space. You walk into CARNEVIL, a sideshow that goes wrong fast. Then a vampire crypt. A UFO landing. And the Corn Stalkers Maze, the scene the crew itself calls the scariest on the trail. More than 500 props and animatronics, with live actors on most nights.

Community impact. Tim Imbemba, a Staten Island teacher, built Twisted Trails as a passion project and still runs it that way. Tickets stay affordable, the actors are local, and part of every season's proceeds goes to St. Jude, the ASPCA and Rocco Strong, which fights childhood cancer.

Innovation. Here's the part most haunts never think about. Twisted Trails is built for people who scare easily as well as people who don't. No-actor nights. A daytime walk. A scavenger hunt for the kids. And a straight answer on which scene to skip if you want something in the middle.

Don't take our word for it. Here's what visitors wrote on its FrightMaps page last October:

• "Best haunted house on Staten Island."
• "The BEST around! A must see!!"
• "Doesn't get any better than Twisted Trails."

Season six: Rise of the Giants

The trail that won just got bigger. It now runs to 36 themed lands, and four brand-new giant animatronics from Unit 70 are moving in for 2026, plus new characters and upgrades all along the trail.

It's also already number one on our list of the Best Haunted Houses in the New York City area for 2026.

Dates, times and prices

Tickets are sold at the gate: cash, Venmo, Zelle or PayPal. Kids 3 and under get in free. Entry is first come, first served, and the line gets long, so a $10 Fast Pass per person skips it (go straight to the cashier).

• Sat Sept 26 — called off for weather
• Sun Sept 27 — 6:30–8 PM, $15, no actors (weather call pending)
• Fri Oct 2 — 7–9 PM, $15. First night with actors.
• Sat Oct 3 — 7–9 PM, $20
• Sun Oct 4 — 6:30–8:30 PM, $15, no-actor night
• Fri Oct 9 and Sat Oct 10 — 7–9 PM, $20
• Sun Oct 11 — 6:30–8:30 PM, $20
• Fri Oct 16 — 7–9:30 PM, $20
• Sat Oct 17 — 7–9:30 PM, $25
• Sun Oct 18 — 7–8:30 PM, $20
• Fri Oct 23 — 7–9:30 PM, $20
• Sat Oct 24 — daytime walk 1:30–5 PM, $15, no actors; then 7–9:30 PM, $25
• Sun Oct 25 — 6:30–8:30 PM, $20
• Thu Oct 29 — 6:30–9 PM, $15, no actors
• Fri Oct 30 — 7–9:30 PM, $20, last chance night
• Sat Oct 31 — Halloween, 6–9:30 PM, $20, limited actors, candy at the exit for everyone who survives

Weather calls are posted on twistedtrails.nyc, so check before you drive.

If you scare easily

Come on a no-actor night (Oct 4 or Oct 29) or to the daytime walk on Oct 24. You get the whole trail with nobody jumping out. At night with actors, you can still take the trail and skip the Corn Stalkers Maze.

Getting there

Twisted Trails is at 496 Annadale Rd, Staten Island, NY 10312, near the Arden Avenue exit off the Staten Island Expressway and the Korean War Veterans Parkway. From New Jersey it's about seven minutes from the Outerbridge Crossing.

Know before you go:

• Stay on the trail. No climbing, jumping or running, even when you're terrified.
• Don't touch the actors or props. The one exception is pulling a switch that sets a prop off.
• The ground is rocky, so mobility devices are parked at the entrance.
• No smoking, alcohol or weapons of any kind.
• Let's Get Toasted, a s'mores truck, is on site all season.

Go see the winner

Twisted Trails has its own page on FrightMaps with photos, hours and directions. Open Twisted Trails, save it, and check in when you go. The full season, with photos from the trail and a note from our founder, is on the Haunt of the Year page.

Not near New York? The same map covers home haunts and haunted attractions across the country. Find one near you. And if you run a home haunt yourself, put it on the map. This is what a winner looks like.