It's finally October, which means two things: grocery stores will probably start playing Christmas music ... and the Valley will finally be taken over by zombies, candy corn and, you guessed it, Haunted Houses. We're on a mission to scout out the best (and worst) ones and share our experiences. Hope you packed an extra pair of pants ...
Where: Arizona's Original Scream Park, Loop 101 & McDowell Road
In Brief: The scream park consists of four attractions - Alice's House of Nightmares, 3-D Fear Factory, Castle of Darkness and Goldminers Revenge. If you're headed to this haunted attraction, you can expect dust, gasoline fumes galore (blame the chainsaws) and a few scares.
And if the main houses haven't satisfied your adrenal needs, there are a few other options at the park including a casket ride, psychic area and a gory glow booth with glow accessories and body jewelry for sale.
Our Experience: We headed to the scream park around 8 p.m. on a Saturday. The line to get in was fairly long. When we entered the park we were approached by Alice (from Wonderland). She held onto a skull and briefed us on the attractions. We began our fright night at the 3-D Fear Factory and ended at the Castle of Darkness.
Find out if Arizona's oldest and largest haunted house will make you scream, after the jump...
Scariness (1 to 5 Scale): 2.5. Only one of the four houses made us scream. The others we could walk through for minutes without being approached by an actor. The actors weren't very scary, but the setting (which was sometimes pitch black) added some spook.
Worth the cash? No. For $18 you have access to one of the four attractions. For $22 you get entry into two haunted houses. A $27 all-access pass includes one-time entry into all of the haunted attractions, plus 3-D glass for the 3-D Fear Factory. A speed pass gets you through lines faster, but even on a Saturday night the lines weren't long enough to warrant paying $11 for the pass. If you drive to the scream park and have to park, it's $6 per vehicle.
Who Should Go? Anyone. The crowd was filled with young and old. We were told that people of all ages have visited the park, including a 94-year-old woman. When we attended, the park was mostly filled with 13- to 16-year-olds. The scream park's website does not recommend the attraction for children under 12.
Best Scare: The 3-D Fear Factory. If you decide to attend the park, the 3-D Fear Factory is a must see. First, you enter an eerie elevator that "takes you to hell." Once you're inside the house, you're in for a real scare. With 3-D glasses you can see "blood," graffiti and other markings on the wall. The 3-D effects add to the entertainment. This is the only house that made us scream.
Fail: The Last Ride. This attraction is not included in the ticket packages and will cost a few additional bucks. The solo "ride," which lasts less than three minutes, takes place in a closed casket. The person is expected to lie in the casket and essentially live out their burial. Sounds spooky, right? The ride didn't scare us at all. Overall, we were more concerned with being able to breathe, not contracting head lice and avoiding the potential casket-residing bedbugs.
Overall Grade: B
And the scaring doesn't stop there. Check out our other haunted house reviews so far ...
The Gauntlet
Fear Farm
The Crypt
Arizona's Original Scream Park
