Travel Notice- Haunt Tour 2014 Kick-off!

 Travel Notice- Haunt Tour 2014 Begins Friday!

 Hey Folks!
Yes, it's been a bit quiet around here the last few days while we've been finalizing plans for the kick off of this seasons Halloween Haunt Tour!

 So we'll be on the road this weekend, which means that Haunted House and Haunted Event Reviews are coming up! We're kicking off the event with the Media Night for Busch Gardens Williamsburgs "Howl-O-Scream". From there we're heading up to Allentown, Pennsylvania and Dorney Park's "Halloween Haunt". To wrap up the busy weekend of travel, we'll be visiting Hundred Acres Manor here in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania!

 So, keep your eyes on the blog! We'll be getting review up by the middle of the week so you can begin planning your own Halloween Visits! Make sure to check out our "Haunt Reviews" for last year to give you an idea of what you might enjoy this spooky season, Plus all the new reviews we'll be adding in each week!

 Remember, We'll be on the road.. A LOT in coming weeks. So you can follow along for tips, tricks and updates via Twitter, Google+ and Facebook by searching #HT2014.

Seaworld San Diego- First Look at Explorers Reef

Seaworld San Diego- A Frist Look at Explorers Reef.

 As part of Seaworld's 50th Anniversary, "A Sea of Surprises" the park in San Diego made some massive changes to their entrance plaza. While the Grand Opening of Explorers Reef isn't until March 21st, Seaworld San Diego has been opening the area slowly to guests. We where lucky enough to be invited to visit Seaworld San Diego but even more to our surprise the new area of Explorers Reef has just soft opened, much to our delight.

Haunt Review- Ghoul Mansion

Haunt: Ghoul Mansion
Location: Sharon, PA
When: October 25th, 2013
Times: Sunday and Thursday 7pm-10pm, Friday and Saturday 7pm-12am
Price: $15-30
Rating: Very Good
Recommendation:  Worth the Drive!
Website: Ghoul Mansion 

!DISCLAIMER!

We were invited by Ghoul Mansion to review their haunted attraction. This has in no way swayed or altered our opinion of this or any haunt we visit.

 We had planned to visit Ghoul Mansion much earlier during our Haunt Tour but plans kept falling through. It's really not much fun to try and review a haunted attraction when your sick!  Finally, things looked clear and we booked two hours north of our home to Sharon (or Scarin' PA) to visit this haunt.

 In the past we've heard a few people talk about them but really had no idea what to expect.  We knew they offered six unique themes in two buildings but other then that, I was walking in blind.  From the outside you may not be impressed but once you step inside, it's another world of crazy shit.  You wait in line and get a small pre-show, form here you enter a foyer to get your picture taken and a surprise ending before you enter your first haunt.

Keep Reading for the Full Review!

Haunt Review- Howl-O-Scream 13 at Busch Gardens Tampa

Haunt: Howl-O-Scream 13
Where: Busch Gardens Tampa- Tampa, Florida.
When: September 27th, 2013
Price: Ranges from $30 to $80
Dates/Times: Thursday-Saturday (Visit Website for Details)
Rating: Very Good
Recommendation:  Worth the Price, Go if your in Florida.
Website Link:  Howl-O-Scream 13- Evil Comes Out to Play

!Disclaimer!

We where invited to Howl-O-Scream's Media Event, as part of this we where given a few perks in return such as front of the line passes and two free drinks. As such we where able to visit every house and scarezone to give you the best review possible.

Busch Gardens also asks that we remind you, this is not an event for small children. 

 Upon entering the park you get no break, no time to make your plans because your very first encounter with the "13 Evils" begins the moment your inside.  13 Doorways for 13 Evils, the scarezone is just as you enter the gates and the actors who portray each are absolutely excellent at their parts. They are high energy, in your face and just as fully twisted as their characters.  It's truly an excellent opening and sets the tone for a great event. 

At A Glance:  

 Howl-O-Scream 13 is a great event and the new theme for this year "13 Evils" works excellent for the park. The new theme and the re-design of some of the older houses just works, it's bumped the event up highly in my opinion from the last time we saw it 3 years ago.

 However, I have a few minor issue with the event which seems to be a problem with both Howl-O-Scream events in general.  While the houses in Tampa where all well done and excellently themed, the clowns just need to go. Nothing about that haunt is scary and most of it falls into the realm of just plain annoying. If your looking for a house to skip, make it the clowns because it's not worth waiting more then 15 minutes maxium for.

 My second issue was the scarezones, which desperately need more actors in them.  Now, I can't tell you if this was "first night" problem or not but these areas are well themed and they should be staffed by far more people. If that happens, I'd rate them as excellent and bump the park's rating up to Excellent. However, as I saw it.. their grossly understaffed.

 Below I'm breaking out the event into two categories: The Houses and The Scarezones.  

 This is to not only keep things straight in my own mind but to allow the reader an easier time.  Each "House" will be giving a rating and description along with letting you know which of the "13 Evils" can be found there. In an effort to keep the scares a secret for your future enjoyment, I will be rather vague but shall attempt to explain as much as possible.

Read on for a FULL breakdown!

Cedar Point's New Gatekeeper- Ride Review

 Cedar Point's Gatekeeper

Ride Review

Trip Date: Opening Day. May 11th, 2013

Time Waited: 2 hours 45 Minutes

Ride Rating: 6 of 10

Opinion: Good but Missing Something

Recommended Wait Time: No longer than 1 hour and no longer then 1 hour 30 minutes if you've never ridden it before.

Coaster Specifications

Builder: Bolliger and Mabillard (B&M)

Type: Wing Coaster (Custom)

Height: 170 Feet

Drop: 164 Feet

Speed: 67.2 MPH

Length: 4,164 feet

Inversions: 6

(Info from RCBD.com)

  To say that I was anticipating Cedar Point's newest coaster "Gatekeeper" would be a gross understatement. Since the last day of Disaster Transport and Space Spiral on July 29th 2012, I've been watching this newest addition come to life from the ground up. I've watched it like a hawk hopped up on some random illegal drug, twitching with glee at every new construction photo because this coaster had all the makings of pure coaster awesomeness.  This was not only because it was demolishing a classic Bobsled Coaster for it's new home but because Cedar Point has a reputation for world class coasters which thrill even the most jaded of adrenaline junkies.

  My Cohorts for this journey where Kitsune Hazard of Kitsuneverse and my favorite ride buddy and fellow coaster-fiend Alex. Between the three of us, the trip had all the makings of complete crazy fun, to say the weather didn't cooperate would be a gross understatement. Earlier in the week the promises of 71 degrees and partly cloudily became a pipe dream. We arrived to a gloomy, overcast day that had a rough feel and left us asking "Wait, it is MAY, right?!".  Not to be deterred we at arrived at 9:30am expecting to have a half hour wait till the 10am gate opening (which we checked no less then 4 times in 24 hours via internet and phone calls to Cedar Points information number). Imagine our shock and anger to find lines that snaked through the parking lot with general admission gates ALREADY OPEN!  Yes, Cedar Point opened their gates to general admission well before the reported time. To say we were mad would be the first of many undertones of disappointment that colored our day. 

  Using our combined skills we wove our way though the people who where simply standing around behind others with no idea of what to do or where to go. Pausing for a few moments to watch Gatekeeper as it passed through the keyholes of the park entrance and obviously snapped a few pictures along the way.  We quickly found a gate line and jumped in, within about 10 minutes we handed over our printed tickets, collected our opening day "Gatekeeper and CocaCola Drink Huggie" and were free to ride.  Homing beacons already set, we hauled ass through the gathered (and idly standing) people and broke towards the last known home of Disaster Transport.

  Then we saw the line and what a line it was! Although our shared surprise was quickly fading as we found out by taking to a few folks in this massive line that the gates opened at 9am to everyone rather then 10am and that Platinum Passholders and Hotel guests had entry at 8:30am. The line twisted like an expert game of snake back towards the gate. After a few minutes we started taking bets between the three of us how long this line currently was. Finding a rather bewildered looking employee trying to keep order we inquired about how long this wait would be and the answer was "At least 4 and a half.. maybe five hours? I'm not sure but it's at least an hour and a half once you reach the queue line".  After picking up our jaws from the ground we quickly made a new game plan. We were easily prepared to wait 2-3 hours but 4+ was pushing even our extreme outer limits of people-tolerating.  So we decided to enjoy ourselves then return later.

 Returning around 2:30pm we jumped in a much shorter line. After chatting with a few people, we found out the reason for the greatly diminished line. Gatekeeper had gone down completely for at least 15 minutes, causing most people to leave the line in search of other thrills. Seeing our chance we quickly jumped in line, I mean really, who wouldn't?!  Only moments later a random ride employee informed us we couldn't enter the line with bags or would be turned away at the loading platform, we would have to pay for a locker. Mildly annoyed (as nearly all Cedar Point coasters have bins which you can store your belongings in along side the loading/unloading dock) we hustled over to the new lockers and shelled out the required $4 for four hours. As soon as we jumped into line a train was dispatched, the ride was back in operation. Everyone cheered and we made ready to wait. The following was the most boring and dull 2 hours and 45 minutes of our entire day.  The line was, like all others, massive and deceptive. It twisted and turned, teasing you into believing you slowly got closer then in reality another "rat maze" was waiting just behind it... like unwanted relatives at Christmas. The line for Gatekeeper also featured ZERO entertainment included (except for watching what we termed "National Geographic LIVE" on the beach with those rotten Seagulls) to pass the time. Yes, we were THAT bored.

  Around 2 hours into the line  we around bored stiff  Our collective  IQ's have dropped to the level of a river rock and we've complete exhausted our immediate area of people watching. In need of something to entertain ourselves (as all our belongings including phones and books are locked away) we begin discussing our (eventually) upcoming ride. Together we all notice one huge difference with Gatekeeper.

It's QUIET. Eerily quiet, it makes little or no noise outside of the lift hill. The roar of a coaster is complete gone, we suspect this is because of an older trick that's been practiced before. A coaster company will fill the ride supports with sand to damp down the noise, the result is an unnatural quiet which dramatically decreases your excitement levels.  We can only figure this is because Gatekeeper lives upto it's name, passing directly over the entry gate. It would be rather hard to get directions or ask questions with a coaster roaring above you every 2 minutes or so. We also come to realize that this ride cascades on a massive level. We're unsure if this is due to a completely inexperienced ride crew or if having the 3 trains on the track at once pushes the limits of what this coaster is capable of handling. Deciding to time things, we pull out the single cell phone we held onto and began playing with the stopwatch feature. It took between 2 minutes and 9 minutes to unload, load and disbatch a single train.  While the 2 minute window is about average for a coaster, we found 9 minutes to be beyond the realm of acceptable. We followed this pattern for a while to learn if it was due to handicap guests loading? It wasn't. Leading us to believe this crew isn't nearly as experienced with their ride as they should be to handle large crowds. We believe they will improve quickly with the park open but this doesn't bode well for folks traveling to ride Gatekeeper for several weeks.

  Suddenly around us people begin cheering and going slightly crazy. Perking up, we thought this might be the mysterious rumors circling the park of "Free T-shirts" in line. Surely enough a few management types showed up and began throwing shirts into the crowd. You've have thought these must be made of pure gold the way folks reacted. We all love something for free, more so when it's an opening day park shirt but really, they acted like animals. The line completely stalled out, people pushed, shoved and climbed to try and get their paws on a shirt. Oh, don't get me wrong, we tried also (hey, free shirt!) but not to the lengths others went too. This entertainment didn't last long and we where back to boring again within 15 minutes. At this point the stalled out line moved quickly as people realized major gaps formed while trying for free swag. 

  While waiting we begin to notice something else. These people have BAGS! The three of us keep watch on the right side exit and surely enough, people are exiting the ride with purses, backpacks and all other types of carry goods. Now we're mad. Ourselves and those around us were strictly told that we could NOT have a bag in line or we'd be turned away at the loading platform as they didn't have anyplace to store loose articules! LIES! ALL LIES! There ARE places to store your shit on the platform, we believe this is Cedar Point attempting to flush even MORE money out of people by paying for a locker. When you go, DO NOT PAY FOR A LOCKER ON GATEKEEPER! 

  Okay, So we're now rather annoyed and peeved. We also still have another 30 minutes of wait time in front of us (still with ZERO entertainment). Trudging along we keep chatting about the ride and how it's going to be simply amazing, we can't wait and as we begin creeping up the stairs to the loading platform our excitement grows. I believe Alex and myself even bounced around at one point. It's finally our turn and we're confronted with an empty platform. Odd but not unexpected as Cedar Point used this same tactic in 2000 when Millennium Force opened, keeping people in line and the loading/unloading area clear. It explains why the line is slow to move and as long as it is, shrugging it off we gleefully jump into our assigned rows (2nd and 3rd from the back). 

Image from NorthwestSignal.net

  One thing to note: The restraint system and ride cars. Similar to X2 at Magic Mountain it's a combination of both hard and soft restraints. A 'hard' restraint which loosely covers our chest/arm area and a 'soft' restraint which fits very close across your upper body (read: If your female, it squishes your boobs). The seats are raised and tilted back which require (for anyone shorter then 6 foot) handhold leverage and a good jump to get into and out of. I believe I stated getting out of this ride as "Getting out was like trying not to get pregnant by a coaster!" so keep that in mind before your ride on Gatekeeper.

FINALLY, WE RIDE!

  After exiting we agree not to speak of the ride just yet. We collect our personal items from our locker (which we shouldn't have been told to pay for) and conviene ourselves to the nearest smoking area for a drink and a review. 

Overall, no one was impressed. 

  Gatekeeper while proving a fun and very quiet ride, isn't what any of us expected. There isn't really any "thrill" to this newest addition. There was no point on the ride which you experience that momentary "Oh SHIT" moment. Not at the lift hill, nor at the first drop and not even when you pass threw the "Keyholes" of the front gate. The ride is smooth as glass and has that "new coaster" feel but it lacks what we termed as "The Party Piece", the part that makes a good ride incredible.

  That single element which draws you back to the ride, compelling you to wait in hot or cold with long lines for your moments of pure thrill.  Gatekeeper simply doesn't have it.  There is nothing to recommend this coaster when it comes to thrills. It lacks speed, some points seem crawlingly slow to the point you notice the restraint system is massively uncomfortable  It lacks air-time as your so secured to your seat combined with the design, it doesn't provide even that momentary "stomach crawling up your throat" feeling. The drop lacks the promised "Flying at the ground" view we all believed it would have as well as that feeling of "Flying" in general which the coaster train design leads you to believe will happen.

No, it isn't just us either...

  We spoke to random people after our ride (making sure not to discuses it with those who hadn't tried it yet so our opinion wouldn't color their opinion) and everyone who had ridden Gatekeeper on opening day had this exact same opinion. The ride was a letdown.  The consensus of the two dozen or so people we struck up conversations with through our day said the same exact thing which we said "Millennium Force is Better" (one even stated they liked Top Thrill Dragster better).  

  So it's with disappointment I tell you not to get your hopes up about Gatekeeper, it's really not that great. Personally I know your going to want to ride it and experience it for yourself, perhaps you'll find it more thrilling then we (or the people we spoke too) did but I wouldn't plan on it. Honestly, this coaster isn't something I'd wait more then 45 minutes to ride. At the longest maybe an hour if I was with someone who hasen't ridden it before. It's fun but lacking. It's a good ride but has nothing amazing to recommend it. 

  Overall, I do hope you ride it at least once and judge it for yourself. However, I feel with this newest addition that Cedar Point hasn't struck another coaster gold mine like they did with previous attractions. For it's $30 million dollar price tag all I can keep thinking is "I'd rather have Disaster Transport back". 


For the full review of Cedar Point's Opening Day, Please Visit: Opening Day Trip Report- Cedar Point 

Halloween Haunt Review: The Scarehouse

Scarehouse

Haunt: The Scarehouse
Location: Etna, Pennsylvania
When: October 24th, 2012
Price: Between $15-$35
Rating: So close to Great, You can taste it.
Recommendation: If your anyplace in a 3 hour drive, shut up and go already.

Such an unassuming entrance!

:DISCLAIMER:

- I've worked for Scarehouse in the past and also know the owners. So I do have a slight bias towards them. However don't think that got them the rating I've given, being bias only makes me even more critical about a haunt. 

-My husband and I where invited down my Scott Simmons, The creative director and co-owner of Scarehouse in order to review this haunt. We also spent some time with him getting some backround on the new designs within the haunt.  In the matter of full disclosure, we could probably bullshit with both Scott and Barb for hours about haunts and theme parks.. but that is neither here nor there.

-It was Wednesday Night and Early. So admittedly it wasn't the full cast nor had actors hit their proper stride yet.

-We are damn near impossible to scare but we love to watch folks try!

What to say about Scarehouse, one of my old haunts? In a word or two..

FUCKING WOW

Scarehouse has really stepped up their creative game with the new layout's and haunts they've got offered for public consumption this year. Needless to say we where pleased and greatly surprised at the many changes that have taken over since we last attended and worked for this haunt. It's a completely new ballgame leaving me with hardly anything worth nitpicking.. and we all know I enjoy nitpicking the details. 

Taken from Scarehouse.Com

Forsaken: This area was once the old "Hall of Nightmares" but with a completely new redesign. Upon entering we found ourselves in the midst of a Carnival/Freak Show gone to pot. Oh great, another circus/carnival haunt right? Let me guess, Clowns Right? 

Because that's exactly what went threw my mind, the typical "Oh here we go again" but I was happily surprised to find myself engulfed in a carnival atmosphere that's going to the shady side of dark. Instead of the typical garish bright colors and over caffeinated actors, we found a faded darkness with a hint of creepy. Actors with enough flare to be active and attention grabbing but just enough spooky to give you the impression: Well this isn't going to end well. 

From the Carnival we transitioned into a more classical type of haunt, flowing threw a graveyard with enough narrow space to confine you for great scares. The perception and overall feel in here was well done, giving you that proper "Spooky Cemetery at Midnight" setting. I found the crypt/chapel room to be greatly improved with twisting turns and set up for easy scares. Flowing easily into the staple "Creepy Manor House" we found a more traditional setting. Bedrooms, Kitchens and Closets.. Oh My!  This place had everything from Living Dolls, Angy cooks and right into Creepy Kids.

Following around we spotted some falling heads from the ceiling and a rather giant rat.. which seemed to give our group a nice scare, remember to always look up and down! Going around we found the Hillbillies with a side dish of Slaughter house tossed in for fun. Admittedly this has always been one of my favorite parts of this show and with the new Slaughter House action going on we found this scene to be a great improvement. The giant attack hog was good followed by the actor yelling "Down Piggy" which follows the mantra "If you can't make them scream, make them laugh" perfectly.

Many of the actors within Forskaen seem to relay on startle scares, sitting very still then jumping up to give you a fast fright. While I freely admit these aren't my favorite type of scares, these folks have them down. The only flaw I could spot is they seemed to re-set themselves a bit to quickly, only focusing on the middle of the group rather then working the group as a whole in order to act upon the next group in line. 

Image from Scarehouse.Com

Creepo's Christmas in 3D: Oh Creepo, Your character always makes me smile in that lovely twisted way. This haunt was a new take on your standard 3D house and the Christmas theme? Enough to make even my hardened self cringe slightly. Angry Elves, The Naughty List, Pissed-off Snowmen.. plus the on-going constant theme of frowny faced gingerbread men everyplace was a great surprise. The scent of cinnamon in the air and body parts on Christmas trees, the holidays have gone way off here. The 3D effects aren't overpowering nor lacking, just enough to give you the right feeling without making your eyes cross from vision overload. The actors had the demeanor of hassled retail workers on Christmas eve and happily shared that "get the hell out or be murdered with a garland" attitude in spades, this gave the whole house a truly great vibe. The Make-up the actors where sporting here really stood out with the effects while still sticking with the themeing. Slightly skeleton eerie with a dash of cheerful, it was Cheereerie! 

Sadly Creepo wasn't present this night, which I can only imagine would be the perfect topping on this tormented holiday fruitcake.. and probably bloodier also. However this character is so detailed to the person who plays them it's nice to see they didn't even try to put in a half-assed replacement that would ruin the show.

Overall I have to say this was the single biggest surprise to me. Normally I'm bored by 3D houses and don't even bother to give them a faction of my attention, seen one you've seen them all. Well let me just say, this one with the unique theme and wacked-out setting made even skeptical me enjoy a true 3D haunt for the first time in many years.  

Image form Scarehouse.Com

Pittsburgh Zombies: Oh Pittsburgh, If there is one thing you do well it's Zombies. Who doesn't love a good Zombie haunt? Drawing off the rich zombie history Pittsburgh has been given by Romaro, this house is a great addition.  However, I have to say I was kind of hoping for some fast/smart zombies but true to the area we got the slow/dumb types. Frankly, I'd have peppered it with both myself to even up the odds of more Yinzers wetting their pants. You flow threw a haunt that could only be Pittsburgh with landmark locations unique to the area such as Primanti Brothers featuring a new special of human body sandwiches! The details of this haunt really surpassed my expectations and threw me straight into rarely seen "Carrie is Pleased" area. This haunt was filled with UPEC signs spotting handy phrases (remember zombies don't like sammiches), Maps of Pittsburgh showing "Your are here" and "Safe Zones", A Steelers Gift shop.. no real detail of the area was left out going so far as to sport TV's stating there has been a "Yinzer Zombie Virus Outbreak"!

The perspective here is simply amazing, giving you both a true 'outside' feeling as well as being in a much larger area then you really are. I've got to say, the Scarehouse team outdid themselves on the little details here that perhaps most people would never spot. Much more like a movie-set then a haunt, it really gives you the one-two punch in the guts.

As I said before the zombies here really where well done, with nice details such as make-up and acting. However they where slow and lumbering, a few faster/smarter zombies would have been one of the two addition's this house really needed. Some really nice touches where added such as zombie actors behind chain fences lurching out for some fresh brains, traveling though a 'safe house' who's owner was on the hunt for a can-opener (I hope she found one!), out threw an industrial yard setting complete with 'zombie snacks in a cage' for later enjoyment.  I found the ending a little dry and a bit lacking however knowing Scarehouse has stairs to contend with at the exit it's understandable. In the past the last punch was high powered which often sent folks tumbling down and out into the street, so I can't blame them for not wanting the mass public running like scared bunnies only to fall down a set of stairs.

With that said, the second addition I would make is the ending.. even with the stairs it seems they could have put their big "ending scare" more towards the middle of this haunt which may give folks a nice "Holy Crap, We Escaped" feeling and a little jogging workout at the same time.  So other then these two minor details to nitpick I found this house overall very pleasing to the eye and senses.

In the end I found that Scarehouse goes by the philosophy of "Slow, Steady and Inescapable" rather then the other side of the coin which is "High-Intensity, In-Your-Face, Run like Bunnies". Neither side is wrong and it just depends a lot on what your opinion of a haunt is. Personally I subscribe to the "High Intensity" school of thought but enjoy both sides of this coin.  One thing I really enjoy is they depend a lot on their team of actors for scares and don't over indulge on technology like Animatronics to get the job done. They have several but their unassuming and work more as a distraction for the real scare coming from left field.

Scarehouse does what they do well and the odd, unsettled feeling you have upon entering will follow you the entire way. You'll find your time and money well spent on this locally owned and operated haun, it's worth the trip. 

Halloween Haunt Review: Halloween Haunt at Kings Dominion

Image from KingsDominion.com

 WARNING: PICTURE INTENSIVE

Haunt: Kings Dominion
Location: Doswell, VA
Event: Halloween Haunt
When: September 28, 2012
Rating: Good
Recommendation: Good (If Nearby)

Additional Reviews:  Kitsuneverse


Having never been to Kings Dominion, this was something of a new experience for me. A park I'd never been to and haunted houses at the same time. I'm fairly familiar with the various "Kings" parks but never had a chance to visit before, so I had a clean slate of no previous expectations to work with.  I have to admit, I was rather pleasantly surprised by what I found!
Unlike some other Theme Park Haunts we've been to this year, we had a very limited time at Kings Dominion (only five hours) and a bucket list of things we wanted to accomplish including the haunts.  We didn't accomplish everything but managed to see most of the haunts offered up with the help of a maps and some canned libations.

Maps are Helpful!

Unlike some of the other theme park haunts out there, Kings Island is a little crazy. Rather then a few big haunts, they have both big and small totaling the shocking number of 10 total haunts. Their prices are also easily affordable, ranging between $32 (on Fridays) and $40 (on Saturday). We managed to go on opening night, which resulted in a single ticket costing only $20 (college ID). This same night also happened to be "Dress like a Zombie" night which made the who environment of the park even more enjoyable.  It's very rare you find any haunt that will have a theme night and allow folks also in costume to attend!
Thankfully, this Friday wasn't super busy so we managed to do some decent damage. Making it to 7 of the 10 haunts and 4 of their themed scarezones.




Let's begin with the overall themeing which I admit was well thought out and well placed.  The various areas had set themes which worked well and tended to match the attractions in the area, this was a pleasant surprise since it's not nearly as common as one might think! The actors costumes also correlated nicely with the various areas threw out the park. Lot's of attention was placed in the opening courtyard which was nicely themed out with a "Masquerade" feeling which extended threw to the actors and the staple of any one time Paramount Park, the Eiffel Tower which spotted a menacing pair of eyes.

Spooky Skull and Glare-y Eyes!

On to better and scarier things! We quickly acquired an adult type libation and plopped down to make our game plan. What was the plan? Haunted Houses and Roller Coasters naturally, We're simple folk here.  After our quick break and planning session, we used our plot to head to the closest house and work our way around the park in a quick manner and peppering the haunts in with various rides. This sent us in the general direction of our first haunt, Medieval  Macabre.

The name explains a lot really. A Medieval Dungeon inspired haunt. The line was busy but quick moving, allowing you enough time to enjoy the scenery but fast enough that you didn't get bored.  The set was decent but not anything to really write home about spotting your typical haunt fare: Ghosts, Ghouls, Vampires and Dead type folks. One thing we did notice is that this house seemed rather short and rushed. Overall a decent haunt but lacking real inspiration.

Next we wondered threw the "Cleaver Brothers Carnival" which was nicely done to your now generic Carnival/Circus theme. The actors where good and seemed to be having an excellent time using quick startle scares on unsuspecting patrons, electing quite a few screams (to which we giggled).

We landed at "The Slaughter House" up as our next haunt.  This looked promising and we quickly jumped into another good paced line that was moving quickly. This haunt was nice and juicy, full of the lovely gory stuff we so love around here.  Themed like a true slaughter house it had your typical (if generic) props: Bloody Tables, Meat Slabs and Crazed Butchers. The actors here really where having fun, we think they where in the Halloween candy a little bit early because these folks where bouncing off the walls with energy giving the place a good feel. Again though we found this house to be short and slightly rushed but overall the actors made the house work well.

At this point we're enjoying ourselves but haven't seen anything really wonderful to write home about, hoping things would improve haunt wise we took a minor coaster break and enjoyed another fast moving line on Rebel Yell then indulged in a Pepsi followed by a map checking break.

Moving On...

 Up next we had "Toxic Plague" as our next house.
At this point the weather decided to be rather annoying and try to dump some unwelcome rain upon us. Being as it wasn't to heavy and we didn't much care, we kept waiting. The line for this one was decently themed, sporting a large 'chemical' truck spill and your ever lovely toxic waste barrels out front. Some randomly flashing lights and fog really gave us some higher hopes for the speed and themeing inside of this haunt. Inside we found some crazy mutated folks, a few monsters and more run-of-the-mill sets leaving us rather disappointed that more wasn't done.  Now don't get me wrong, it was done well and had decent actors who managed some good scares on our group but it wasn't really impressive. Again keeping with the same theme we found this house to be short and left you with a "hustled" feeling after exiting.

Turning the corner we found ourselves staring at the first decently long line we've seen all night which lead to one of their big 'featured' haunts, "Club Blood".  This haunt being one of their big premier advertising pieces we quickly jumped in line.  The line moved quickly which was a pleasant surprise for it's length, they also had some nice props outside (Coffins, Grave Stones and Blood) peppered all over the area giving you some nice eye candy but they easily could have put some more effort into it rather then just the two areas which props where found.
Inside we found ourselves inside a gothic themed warehouse style nightclub obviously run (or overrun) with vampires.

Now here is when I complain a bit, they where blasting Top 40's music which really wasn't fitting for the slightly ragged/punk look of the inside. For me I'd have expected industrial or something more screechy, having this blasting threw I found to be a huge distraction simply because it didn't fit the theme.  This house was inside and rather warm, we found well dressed actors who did well with startle scares and being up close and in your face.. but little else. Being as this was opening night this was really to be expected, people getting used to the new role and finding their groove. The themeing however was wonderfully done, very much what you would expect from a Gothic club then moving into a darker side of vampires.  However this house too was short and left us with an unfinished feeling upon exiting.

Another jump on a Coaster, This time Grizzly and off to another haunt!

Camp Killauee was looming ahead and so far we where impressed right until we tried to get in line. There where no signs to show folks where to go so we ended up walking up the exit then being sent back. After another minute or two of confusion, someone finally pointed out we where suppose to queue up at the Log Ride. Apparently they never thought to put out signs!

 
Inside we found your typical horror movie type plot, kids in the camp turned to monster and want to eat you. It's the 80's all over again minus a nutcase in flannel and a hockey mask! In fact, I wish they had the nutcase in a hockey mask we found exactly where they got cheap. Actors in cheap rubber masks, zero extra make-up and simple red and white 'camp uniforms' all shiny and clean (which really, if you where murdered or turned into a monster.. you'd at least get a little dirty)!  This outside house was nicely themed in the proper camp style, we wondered what boyscout troop they divested of tents, the actors appeared slightly awkward and were vastly spread out in the first decent sized haunt we'd come across. The costumes where nothing short appallingly cheap and kept bugging me during our entire tour. One bright point was a lady who followed our group about singing quietly, this was the bright spot and added a minorly creepy factor to an otherwise sad haunt.

The Lair ScareZone

Moving along, it was still drizzling lightly so the crowds where quickly disappearing. We jumped over threw "The Lair" scarezone and into line for our next haunt "No Vacancy" which we found located in next to their Dinosaurs Alive theater (the dinosaurs are another complaint for another post).












This haunt was pretty up front and simple, Haunted Hotel. Another inside haunt, this was easily the best show we've gotten so far tonight. It had everything going well, the actors where excellent in their roles and made had already made them their own. The themeing inside was wonderfully done so far as to even include a false stairway and moving pictures. We're damn near impossible to scare but our group was obviously having fun from the various screams coming from around us. This is the one house so far that we didn't find to be short or leaving us with a hanging feeling, it had an ending! They can do it! Without giving to much away it was a security room, just check the monitors while your passing through..


With time running out, we hauled ass over to another haunt and where happily greeted with something right out of the great book of "What-The-Fuck".. The Doll Factory was next!

Wow, this has "Creepy Shit" written all over it and we loved it! Themed up like an abandoned factory this building and the outside of it had the weird factor turned up to 10. This is also pretty straight forward, an abandoned doll factory taken over and re-opened for a much more twisted purpose.

This house should have been their prime haunt because it was all around amazing. It really had the trifecta of a good haunt: Actors, Themeing, Costuming. They even had actors that would go through the haunt with the groups, heckling them and setting up great scares for the actors located in the different scenes. It was an orgy of broken and headless Barbie dolls and mutilated toys located everyplace! Hanging from the ceiling, the walls, random conveyer belts.. it was so much visual candy to take in even I had some trouble spotting the actors until the screams started. This was easily the best haunt and the actors really had their "A+" game on even for opening night, their costumes where a nice shade of twisted (in pastel no less) and the make-up was eerie. Even people as jaded as my husband and I where happily surprised and very pleased with this house, there was something new around every bend and curve in this maze-like haunt. This was the haunt that really boosted Kings Dominion above a "Meh, Okay" rating and right into the "Good" zone.

With time quickly disappearing we jumped threw yet another ScareZone on our way to the two final stops of the night: Volcano and Avalanche.   This was "PrimEvil" and it was also a step above the other scarezones which after our run threw Doll Factory really boosted our moods into the pleased area.  Cannibals and Corpses impaled on stakes, what more can a girl ask for?! They merged this area into working with two joining pathways and part of a queue line for a Top Spin ride (we call them Flip'N'Fuck's around here).



This place was directly across from Volcano and it fit so perfectly we easily could have lingered here all night if the park wasn't trying to hustle us out at closing time.

Overall I can't say I was really "impressed" with Kings Dominion, I was pleasantly surprised but still left wanting more in the end. It isn't that it was a bad haunt, it just wasn't enough but it easily could have been much more without leaving folks with the feeling of "that was is?!" at the end. While I freely admit to being massively jaded when it comes to haunts and damn near impossible to scare, I found it to be fun even if not impressive or very exciting. I suppose to other folks who do get scared by haunted houses, you'd probably enjoy the creepy job they do very well.

In all honestly, I can't tell you to drop everything and see this haunt. However if your nearby or passing threw the area of Doswell, Virginia on I-95 it's easily worth this low admission and worth the time of stopping for the night.

Halloween Haunt Review: Kennywood Phantom Fight Nights

Picture from Kennywood.com

Haunt: Kennywood Park
Event: Phantom Fight Nights
When: Oct 13, 2012
Rating: Disappointing
Recommendation: Avoid



Now, I love Halloween. It's like my Christmas and Thanksgiving all wrapped up into one lovely holiday where I'm allowed to be my normal, scary and surly self.  So my husband and I often travel all over (as money permits) and visit various haunts. Kennywood has always been a fun experience even if their not on the budget or level of someone like Universal Studios. However this year I was sorely disappointed in not only the haunt event but the park as a whole.

To understand this, please realize something important. I hold Kennywood Park to high standards. Kennywood for years was a small, local park which had high standards of customer service and they always did excellent. However since Parques Reunidos and Palace Entertainment took over full ownership and operations in 2011, things have gone downhill at a shocking speed.

Let me explain.

1. The Employees.
Now normally I rarely complain about service in an amusement park, especially on an exceptionally busy night.  People get frazzled, I know this better then most folks but what I saw was more what I'd expect from a carnival or county fair.. Not an amusement park of any quality!
-They had employees in the bathrooms, hustling folks threw. Not only were these people rude, half of them where having personal conversations on cell phones during this point. One spot right next to First Aid spotted an underage women heaving her guts into a trashcan right beside the entrance.  Rather then getting this poor soul to first aid, she was ignored then later asked said persons friend "She Okay?" then again ignored. I was appalled.
-The folks who are running their line groupings have ZERO clue how to pulse or even queue a line.  I saw groups as tiny as 4 going threw while the line was easily an hour long. Now anyone who as been in a haunted house in their life should know bigger groups are easier to handle and better to not only 1) Keep your line moving at good pace but 2) Give better scares to all folks within that group.  Sending in tiny groups accomplishes nothing but killing the actors "scare buzz" and aggravating the people waiting in line behind these tiny groups.
-Guest Services should at least have half a clue about what is in their park. Well, let me tell you the two people I asked simple questions of had zero clue. When asking about an ATM machine, I was directed once to a gift shop which isn't even open for the event. Upon the second time asking, I was directed to one which may or may not have been located on a pathway that was closed for the event. The third time asking, this time inside of a gift shop I was simply directed to guest services. In the end I stopped one of the Kennywood Park Officers (always nice folks) and finally got correct information.  This just proves it, if you don't know where you going.. ask someone with a badge!

The only folks who gave any form of correct information, such as bathroom and haunt locations, where the folks in food services and Kennywood's Finest. They obviously had knowledge of their park and knew where things where located, they gave excellent directions and knew exactly what was going on.

2. The Actors/Haunted Houses.
The houses as always where beautifully themed. They really do go all out for some of their haunt settings, this year I was most impressed with "Voodoo Bayou" which ran threw their (now drained) Raging Rapid ride.  They really went all out on the setting for this crazy walk-thru, the sets where well done and nicely laid out.  Dark Shadows was their "Pitch Black" house this year, very nice maze set up and just enough light to mess with your night vision.  The Kennywood Cemetery was saidly disappointing, let me explain my biggest issue.
-Lack of Actors! I don't know if everyone called in sick this particular night or if Kennywood simply didn't bother to hire enough actors for their Fright Nights. They had next to NO actors, in the Voodoo Bayou, a very long haunt I counted a total of 7 actors.  The Cemetery had a total of 4 then most being found in Dark Shadows and they appeared to be the only ones enjoying their job also. The complete lack of street actors was appalling outside of the only two set "zones" within the park, I counted exactly 5 total all night (although the Chainsaw guy was really enjoying himself, he made me grin every time he passed by). 
-Zero Professionalism!  Inside the Cemetery, we clearly saw the 3 of the 4 actors standing around having a chat in clear view of guests. They also ignored guests completely to continue their conversation, barely giving a half-hearted "hiss" as our group passed by.  At the Bayou, we spotted people outside the end of the haunt who where clearly actors having conversations with guests. The guy queuing the entrance was amazing however as was the "I'm eatin' this corpse" man in the middle of the haunt.

3. Time Problems!
Kennywood clearing states on their website "Open till 1am" well I'm here to tell you, this is false advertisement. They shut down every single line, even the short ones, in the park at Midnight. MIDNIGHT! Now I fully understand you have to cycle your lines, this is not a problem but it becomes one when nothing is posted anyplace and you simply shut things down I have an issue with this. Not only where the decent lines (20+ minutes) shut down but so where the lines to houses with little or no line at Midnight.  I've worked in haunts for a good 10 years over my time and I've never once seen anyplace stop their lines over an hour before closing time. When I asked about this I was told "We have to have everyone out by 1am" and if that's the case, simply SAY your closed at Midnight but don't lead people on!
This was even more shocking to us later when we stopped in at Park Services and ask why they state "Open till 1am" and shut down everything at Midnight. They very nice folks working this night where shocked, they simply had no idea what was happening and where honestly stuck when the complaints began. After speaking to them for several minutes they even admitted they had no idea why this was happening and on such a busy night, this had never happened before. Obviously someone made a decision this night which was never relayed to the front of the park, leaving these poor folks on the bad end of the stick.  Obviously break-down of communications and very bad judgement by someone in management this night.


Frankly, I've never been more disappointed in Kennywood in my many years of attending both their normal season but also their special events. I'm sorry to say this and I truly wish I could tell you different but avoid Phantom Fight Nights until they can improve their shoddy performance.  Your better off to support one of the smaller, non-amusement park haunted houses in the Pittsburgh Area then waste your money on a half-assed and unprofessional show.

To read another version of this same trip, please visit Kitsuneverse for another take on this disappointing haunt.