Local Haunts Reviews & Recommendations

[Rideguy70]

Couldn't tell you, never done either. But there's quite a few YouTube videos of the one in San Antonio, and that's how I know it looks better than I would expect for a tourist haunt attraction. I plan to hit it when I visit in late July!

 

[pumpkinbot343]

Don’t know if it was mentioned before but had anyone ever went to the Field of Screams haunt in Pennsylvania?

 

[TheCodeMan95]

Don’t know if it was mentioned before but had anyone ever went to the Field of Screams haunt in Pennsylvania?

I used to act there actually, from 2010-2015; and a few times in 2016 and 2017.

It's a solid haunt but there are better ones in the area.

They also have a lot of issues behind closed doors that don't make me want to recommend it.

 

[pumpkinbot343]

I used to act there actually, from 2010-2015; and a few times in 2016 and 2017.

It's a solid haunt but there are better ones in the area.

They also have a lot of issues behind closed doors that don't make me want to recommend it.

I don’t understand what you mean by the last part.

 

[TheCodeMan95]

I don’t understand what you mean by the last part.

I'll PM you - probably not a good idea to fill up this thread with it lol

 

[Rideguy70]

We just did the Ripley’s Haunted Adventure in San Antonio. If you’re a seasoned haunt person, there’s really nothing new here (except the very cool funicular intro, and a unique scare as you leave)… however, the sets are VERY detailed throughout, which makes it impressive enough for me—I’d still recommend it. There seemed to be three live scare actors that would rotate around the maze, giving scares throughout. Kudos to them!

I asked the staff, and they did confirm it’s closing in August, and have no plans to relocate. If you can‘t make it there in time, there’s a number of walkthroughs available on YouTube.

 

[pumpkinbot343]

any fun non-HHN/HOS events this year?

 

[MikePat]

any fun non-HHN/HOS events this year?

I've visited a few new haunts this season that I have never tried, and none of them have "wowed" me, but I have also been returning to some of my local favorites.

I have mentioned this haunt previously here, but one place I will always recommend is Haunted Overload, which I would consider the most scenically incredible haunt in the country, considering how much DYI effort the Haunted Overload team puts into their sets. I visited for the first time during there day time walkthrough, so here is one photo from that:

Also, maybe not specifically a haunt recommendation, but traveling around New England during the fall, especially up in New Hampshire and Vermont, provides great fall vibes. From small towns to farms, it's all beautiful with the trees and an atmosphere that the best large-scale theme park haunts cannot top.

 

[CoryLevy91]

For anyone in the New England/CT area of the country, went to Legends of Fear last night, our first haunt in 3 years! We've been before but it was again a blast! LoF features both a Hayride as well as a walk-through Trail. Both are quite lengthy (we had VIP passes so we got to skip the heavier-near-Halloween lines but still took us around 2 hours to complete both attractions) and feature some great production value and talented actors.

Particularly memorable was the Camp Melonhead Massacre Museum section of the walk through, which is a homage to slasher fare like Friday the 13th with a genius back drop that I absolutely think someone should steal for a movie. The small army of crazy looking mutant slashers even featured a particularly memorable bungee cord actor that scaled up a miniature guard tower in the forest!

Definitely recommended if you're in the area. Even though the event was packed and the line through can get conga-y, they do an excellent job at trying to parse you and their design is superbly well done at keeping you contained in your own small group with its claustrophobic maze and tight, twisting turns.

 

[Rideguy70]

In SoCal, I just did Hauntington Beach Manor and Prism Haunts. While a bit pricey, they were a lot of fun. It's supporting local, independent haunts, so I didn't mind.

HBM is a mix of Paranomal, Inc. and traditional haunted house vibes, very detailed sets (the sewer scene has you going over real water in a flooded space), fun effects, and tons of scareactors everywhere. Only minor downsides: not especially long, and the ending was a bit abrupt/weak.

Prism has more of a 28 Days Later/apocolyptic labraotry vibe. Lots of interesting tech and lighting effects. A tad bit on the interactive side, but not overwhelmingly so. Had a great story with a fun ending. Minor downsides: scareactors are not as aggressive or plentiful, and also not especially long.

Despite minor issues, I'd recommend them!

 

[BayAreaBubba]

In NorCal, this year so far I’ve done
Fear Overloard at NewPark mall in Newark. Scares were a 10, you’re alone most of the way with a flashlight.

Winchesters Mystery House Unhinged - Very fun, do VIP so you can go in twice. They also have a speakeasy there.

I just did Barely Legal’s Rock Horror live show last night in Modesto. Was a blast, highly recommend. They travel all around the area.

Next weekend will be my first time doing Terror Vault in San Francisco. I’m very excited for this and expecting to see haunts in a new light after what I’ve read about this event.

 

[Jakemeister]

Checked off a haunt bucket list & hit Netherworld this year and I can't recommend it enough.

It's like they bought everything spooky you've ever seen at IAAPA, HauntCon, or Transworld and made it into a show scene with actors. The fact that one house was probably 50 shows scenes and 30 minutes is still mind blowing to me. The actors also had a lot of energy, and the 2nd house "Parasitic" was my favorite because of the theme & because of the actors. The amount of great scares I got still has me thinking a lot about the event. I watched an actor do everything against "the rules" at Universal with his chainsaw, I got ALL the scares in my run of Parasitic and it's truly of note.

Operationally, I had a great experience and would recommend it highly.

 

[Rideguy70]

I'm curious... has anyone done Freakling Brothers in Vegas? I've been curious to try that one, but haven't made it yet.

 

[MikePat]

I just got out of 13th Gate for the 2023 season!

I highly recommend it to any haunt fan. The actors are on point, and there are a lot of them. Highlights were the cemetery, the train-scare, and cave rooms. New for this year was a Stranger Things 4 "inspired" section, and it was beautiful. Vecna's lair was pulled off entirely with mirrors, no screens or projections, and it was stunning. It's insane to see Stranger Things unofficially done but also done THAT good.

In the future, 13th Gate, I think, should consider adding more actors outside the main haunted house, especially in their carnival festival area. There are so many inside the attraction, which is excellent, but outside the building could give more energy to the event as a whole.

One last thing, PLEASE DO NOT BE MEAN TO THE ACTORS. There was someone in front of me for the first two sections of the house who ruined my experience, and I am sure being an actor was worse.

Besides that, overall, I highly recommend it! 13th Gate is a must-do for anyone! Don't get me started on the escape rooms…

 

[FaceBagman]

Over the weekend (October 14th), I saw a dream of mine realized and finally hosted a small haunt in my workplace, our city's public library! I'm so glad that it was a successful proof-of-concept and that the feedback's been overwhelmingly positive. We all learned so much, can't wait to build on it in the future.

Here's a small snippet our local news station ran on it:

 

[Jerroddragon]

Over the weekend (October 14th), I saw a dream of mine realized and finally hosted a small haunt in my workplace, our city's public library! I'm so glad that it was a successful proof-of-concept and that the feedback's been overwhelmingly positive. We all learned so much, can't wait to build on it in the future.

Here's a small snippet our local news station ran on it:

I'd loveeeee more Libraries to do this

 

[jseal777]

In South Carolina but last weekend had a blast at Deceased Farms in Lexington. Beer was cheap!

 

[JunoSynth]

I used to act there actually, from 2010-2015; and a few times in 2016 and 2017.

It's a solid haunt but there are better ones in the area.

They also have a lot of issues behind closed doors that don't make me want to recommend it.

I will be in Harrisburg, PA in Oct for work and was thinking of visiting this haunt. Are there still better haunts in the area?

I'm taking my team to one of these and was hoping to give them the best haunt experience.

 

[Jake S]

Anyone done this? We're staying just down the street from this in October and I'm strongly considering it.

 

[TheCodeMan95]

I will be in Harrisburg, PA in Oct for work and was thinking of visiting this haunt. Are there still better haunts in the area?

I'm taking my team to one of these and was hoping to give them the best haunt experience.

There are better ones within a 90 minute drive for sure!