We visited Fright Dome during their 10 Years of Terror celebration in 2012. Creator Jason Egan pulled out all the stops for the massive celebration housed in the Adventuredome at Circus Circus.
Fright Dome is an epic Halloween party. Five haunted houses, twenty-five amusement park rides, a stocked bar, celebrity appearances, live music, and four scare zones all capped off with a nightly dance party led by a bunch of terrifying clowns.
Christine visits Fright Dome at Circus Circus
The weekend we visited the celebrity visiting was one of the cars used in the film version of Stephen King’s Christine. Since my name is Christine, I am a huge fan. Thanks to Christine’s owner Bill Gibson, I had the privilege of sitting in Christine. I watched with awe as the car seemingly came alive.The dashboard lit up, the radio played “We Belong Together,” fog poured from the dashboard, and my seat lurched forward toward the steering wheel. It was AMAZING.
Back to the haunted houses. All of the haunts were stunning with a fast-paced tour guide format. We were completely wowed by their zombie themed haunt, Ward of the Dead, created in conjunction with George A. Romero. The facility was experiencing a breach and the tour guide shouted guidance about how to avoid the creatures. We jumped and dodged and ducked out of the way…. well, I did. Shelly, who was behind me, couldn’t hear the guide’s instructions and found herself fighting through hoards of zombies. We both had a spectacular time and the sets and costumes were incredibly detailed.
Another highlight of our trip was riding the Adventuredome roller coaster in the darkened Fright Dome environment. You can’t see what’s coming next, which adds a delicious element of surprise.
Final Thoughts
Many haunts try to create a hip party-like atmosphere around their haunted attractions, but no one succeeds like Fright Dome. Fright Dome is the ultimate Halloween party.
Fright Dome 2014 Season
October 3 – November 1
Ticket Information
General Admission: $34.95 – $39.95 | Fast Pass: $54.95 – $59.95 | VIP Tour: $89.95
Age Requirements
Not appropriate for children under 12.
New For 2014
Six new haunted houses including a Texas Chainsaw Massacre themed haunted house that will incorporate scenes from the film. The new Isolation Haunted House is just for fast-pass and VIP ticket holders and must be entered alone.
UPDATED 2015: We seek out the craziest most extreme haunted attractions in the country. The haunted houses on our list cater to adult audiences and involve waivers, extreme physical contact, safe words, abduction, violence, nudity and electric shock. The 7 haunts below shatter the traditional rules and limitations of haunted attractions to provide the scariest, most intense experience the haunt industry has to offer.
Features: Violence, Sexual Undertones, Extreme Physical Contact.
When we attended the Haunted Hoochie at Dead Acres an actor threw me over his shoulder and carried me off into a different room where he spun me around several times and then pushed me back in with my group. We were also cornered by men with chainsaws and one of us got hit in the head.
A sign at the entrance of the haunt warns, “ATTENTION: Entering Dead Acres entails known and unanticipated risks that could result in physical or emotional injury. Risks may include among other things, slipping falling, collision with fixed objects or other participants…This may be the best haunted house you’ve ever experienced. Have Fun.”
Features: Violence, Sexual Undertones, Extreme Physical Contact, Submersion in Water, Humiliation, Must Sign a Waiver, There is a Safe Word.
In 2013, DEAD OF NIGHT on Long Island had one of the most brilliant haunt openings I’ve ever seen. Everyone waited in lines listening to a calming “we are here for your protection” recording, which was interrupted at intervals by an air raid siren and men in gas masks and suits, who each grabbed an unsuspecting patron and dragged them into the haunt. Some people were dragged in, one girl was zipped into a body bag, and I was thrown over someone’s shoulder and carried inside. The haunt opened with this very strong abduction scenario, then the focus shifted to humiliation, the smearing of strange substances, and hitting people in the face with laughably large and painfully heavy fake penises. The experience has evolved quite a bit since 2013 and the theme changes every year.
5. ScareHouse: The Basement
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania | Official Website | $35 – $50 | Adults 18+ Only
Features: Violence, Sexual Undertones, Extreme Physical Contact, Electric Shock, Religious Themes, Must Sign a Waiver, There is a Safe Word.
The Basement at ScareHouse is an intense, immersive, and interactive experience inside a nearly 100-year-old historic and haunted building. You may enter in pairs or alone. I chose to enter alone. It was a spectacular experience. There is a great deal of improvisation and dialogue with the actors as you make your way through each scene of your own personal horror movie. The actors were incredibly creative and fun to talk to as they doled out electric shocks and extreme physical contact. The Basement is a collaborative immersive theatre experience peppered with elements of extreme horror.
4. The Cult
North Conway, New Hampshire | Official Website | N/A | Adults Only | No Longer Exists
Features: 18+, Must Enter Alone, Encounter Live Animals, Edibles, Extreme Violence, Sexual Undertones, Must Sign a Waiver, There is a Safe Word, Extreme Physical Contact.
**UPDATE: Cranmore Mountain Resort chose not to bring back The Cult for the 2013+2014+2015 season. Ask The Ghoullog Creators to bring back The Cult in 2016! Contact them now on Facebook or Twitter!**
3. Blackout Haunted House
New York/California | Official Website | $45 – $150 | Adults 18+ Only
Features: 18+, Extreme Violence, Full Frontal Nudity, Sexual Situations, Must Enter Alone, Edibles, Submersion in Water, Must Sign a Waiver, Extreme Physical Contact, There is a Safe Word.
Blackout Haunted House earns the #3 spot for their extreme OFF-SEASON EVENTS which combine their unique brand of immersive horror theater with elements that due to a gag order I am not permitted to disclose. Their annual October haunt and exclusive off-season events are infamous. In the 7 events I have attended since 2010, I have been abducted in a van, faux-water-boarded, rolled naked in a sheet of plastic and forced to walk barefoot down a used condom covered hallway. Blackout is never predictable. The experience is always shocking, upsetting, and exhilarating.
INFERNO is currently running in San Francisco Armory.
Las Vegas, Nevada | Official Website | $100 – $150 | Adults 18+ Only
Features: 18+, Extreme Violence, Deeply Personal Experience, Sexual Undertones, Partial Nudity, Submersion in Water, Electric Shock, Must Sign a Waiver, There is a Safe Word, Extreme Physical Contact.
The Victim Experience III is an uncensored, more extreme way to experience their 18+ Gates of Hell attraction. The Victim Experience is incredibly intense and you must go through alone. Participants will experience extreme physical contact, light torture, simulated drowning, and more. A member of our team made it all the way through and described the Victim Experience as, “intensely personal …more intense, scary and painful than the most intense Off-Season Blackout experience I have ever had.”
Boy, do we believe him! We attended just the regular 18+ Gates of Hell attraction back in 2012 (before they started the Victim Experience) and that was deliciously intense! I watched a camouflaged attacker appear out of nowhere, grab my colleague by the foot, then knock her down and drag her away down a long hallway. I was left alone in the darkness until the attacker came back for me and threw me over his shoulder. We also faced electric shocks, professional wrestlers, and a firing squad. Read more about our experience here.Coming Soon: a no-spoilers account of what it’s like to survive the Victim Experience.
and the Most Extreme (Possibly Unsafe) Haunted House in America is…
1. McKamey Manor
San Diego, California | Official Website | Dog Food Donation | Adults 21+ Only
Features: 21+, Extreme Violence, Small Enclosed Spaces, Edibles, Submersion in Water, Haircut, Covered in Blood, Must Sign a Waiver, Extreme Physical Contact, 4-7 Hour Experience.
McKamey Manor is the only attraction on the list that we have not personally experienced. This insanely extreme home haunt tops our list because it can use scare tactics that are off limits to professional attractions. We’re also not sure that what they’re doing is 100% safe. Participants are covered in blood, forced to eat disgusting things, threatened with power tools, stuffed into a clothes dryer, submerged in water, physically assaulted, and given a haircut. Don’t believe us? Just watch their 2013 promotional video below. Did we mention the experience lasts for 4-7 hours?! This one is too insane for even us!
Did we miss one? Let us know if there is a haunt that we should consider adding to the list!
The Merchant’s House Museum has been called “Manhattan’s most haunted house.” The private residence, built in 1832, has been preserved intact and still contains the family’s original furniture and possessions. The home is seemingly frozen in time. A visit at any time of year can be creepy and filled with unusual occurrences, but their seasonal Halloween events are even creepier.
This October, the museum will offer several exciting new events in addition to their annual ghost tours and 1865 funeral reenactment. Perfect for those looking for an elegant blood-free way to celebrate Halloween. Don’t miss these unique opportunities to immerse yourself in New York City’s haunted history.
October 2013 Event Calendar
October 9 – Lecture: Ghosts of Manhattan
October 10 – Exhibition Opening: A 19th Century House in Mourning
October 18 – Chant Macabre: Songs from the Crypt
October 22 – Lecture: Unsolved Murders of 19th Century New York
October 24 – Reading the Rooms: A Psychic Talks with the Tredwells
October 25 – Candlelight Ghost Tours
October 26 – Candlelight Ghost Tours
October 27 – 1865 Funeral Reenactment and Graveyard Procession
October 28 – Candlelight Ghost Tours
October 29 – Candlelight Ghost Tours
October 30 – Candlelight Ghost Tours
October 31 – Tales of the Supernatural: Horror on Hallowe’en
Wednesday, October 9, 6:30 p.m. Lecture: Ghosts of Manhattan Author and actress Elise Gainer shares historical images and tales of local haunts from her new book, Ghosts and Murders of Manhattan, from Arcadia Publishing. See the faces of the dead that still cling to Broadway theaters, stately hotels, picturesque homes, and cozy taverns. Hear about apparitions, footsteps, phantom smells, and mysterious fires, and the events that still echo today. $15, MHM Members Free. Reservations required; click here to purchase tickets.
Thursday, October 10, through Monday, November 4 Exhibition: A 19th Century House in Mourning Step back in time to 1865, when family patriarch Seabury Tredwell died at home in his bed. Poignant scenes of death and grief recreated in the House will explore mid-19th century mourning customs. Included with regular admission; reservations not required.
Friday, October 18, 7:30 p.m. Chant Macabre: Songs from the Crypt Ghosts, ghouls, and goblins haunt the music of the 19th century. Come be spooked by these harrowing tales as the Bond Street Euterpean Singing Society bewitches your imagination and sings shivers down your spine, echoing sumptuous, rarely-performed songs in an authentic Victorian parlor. Singers Roberta Alessandra, Anthony Bellov, Jane Elizabeth Rady, and Dayle Vander Sande. Music by Schubert, Schumann, Liszt, Debussy, Loewe, Mussorgsky, and others. $25, $15 MHM Members. Reservations required; click here to purchase tickets.
Tuesday, October 22, 6:30 p.m. Lecture: Grisly Crimes and Unsolved Murders of 19th Century New York Ike Iikiw, licensed private investigator, retired NYC Police Detective, and founder/owner of NYC Adventure Tours shares “just the facts” of the most macabre, gruesome, and some unsolved crimes of 19th century Gotham.$15, MHM Members Free. Reservations required; click here to purchase tickets.
Thursday, October 24 60-minute tours at 6:30, 8, and 9:30 p.m. Reading the Rooms: A Psychic Talks with the Tredwells A rare opportunity to walk the dark and hallowed halls of “Manhattan’s Most Haunted House” (The New York Times) with Certified Psychic Medium and Paranormal Researcher Cathy Towle. Ms. Towle will relate happenings and unexplainable occurrences from her several years of on-going paranormal investigations at the House – and deliver any messages from the beyond she might receive on the spot. Bring your questions. $60, MHM Members $30. Reservations required; click here to purchase tickets.
Friday & Saturday, October 25 & 26; Mon, Tues & Wed, October 28, 29 & 30 50-minute tours begin every half hour from 6 to 9:30 p.m. Candlelight Ghost Tours of ‘Manhattan’s Most Haunted House’ Updated with the latest eerie happenings!
Doors slam, floorboards creak, voices call into the night. Restoration work always ‘stirs things up’ at the Museum so we’ve had lots of new reports of especially strange experiences this year. We invite you to venture into the shadows of history to see the house where eight family members died and hear the newest tales of inexplicable occurrences from the people who actually experienced them. And the creepiest of past ones.
Sunday, October 27, 4 to 5:30 p.m. From Parlor to Grave: 1865 Funeral Reenactment and Graveyard Procession In the 19th century, death and funerals took place at home. Join us in the Museum’s double parlors as we recreate the 1865 funeral service of Seabury Tredwell and discuss the funerary customs of 19th century New York City. After the service, mourners follow the coffin to nearby New York City Marble Cemetery – rarely open to the public – for the graveside service and cemetery talk. 19th century mourning attire is encouraged. VIP tickets include front-row seating, black crape armbands, and the opportunity to lead the graveyard procession as a pallbearer. $50, $65 VIP Seats, $25 MHM Members; $10 Graveside Service & Cemetery Talk only. Mourners attending the Graveside Service and Cemetery Talk only should arrive at the Merchant’s House at 4:30 p.m. Reservations essential,click here to purchase tickets.
Thursday, October 31, Hallowe’en Performances at 7 and 8:30 p.m. Tales of the Supernatural: Horror on Hallowe’en Dramatic readings from 19th century Gothic literature and true ghost stories as reported by visitors of the Merchant’s House through the years told in the Museum’s parlors set for a Victorian funeral. $25, $15 MHM Members. Reservations required; click here to purchase tickets.
Sundays, 1 p.m. ‘Spirited’ Walking Tour of 19th Century Noho: Glamour, Greed — & Ghosts
The neighborhood surrounding the Merchant’s House was home to some of the most famous, and infamous, names in New York history. From the literary to the illegal, New York society was played out in the elegant parlors and dark alleys of the fashionable Bond Street neighborhood. On this tour, we’ll see the haunts of renowned figures such as Edgar Allen Poe and Washington Irving; the spirits of long ago firemen and stable boys; the high and low life characters of the Bowery — as well as a tale or two of haunted happenings at the Merchant’s House. And we’ll visit the site of the most grisly of all 19th-century New York murders and hear tales of more contemporary ghosts that just won’t leave the neighborhood.
Tour is 50 minutes and begins promptly at 1 p.m.
Promenaders will return to the Museum in time to take the2 p.m. GUIDED TOUR if they wish. $10, Students $ Seniors $5, FREE for Members. Reservations not necessary.
NOTE: Tours are canceled in the case of heavy rain, snow, or extreme heat and cold advisories.
The Haunted Mansion was the first haunted house I ever attended. (Leave it to Disney to create a haunted attraction where a 4 year-old can make it through unscathed) The Mansion’s 999 ghouls have been haunting guests since 1971, but that doesn’t mean the scares are old as dirt. Disney continues to update technology, while paying homage to everyone’s favorite unearthly characters. A recent update includes an interactive queue that allows guests to play ghastly tunes, help a ‘posthumous poetess’ complete a rhyme, and decode a ‘cryptogram’. Despite its mild scare factor, The Haunted Mansion remains a favorite of adults and children alike, providing spooktacular entertainment that the whole family can enjoy.
Is it Scary?
Disney says: “The Haunted Mansion contains some mildly frightening subject matter. But there is no gore, the ghostly residents are friendly and the experience is appropriate for all ages.”
The Raven and Black Cat Says: Disney’s Haunted Mansion is the perfect introduction to the Haunt world, particularly for timid guests that want to experience something spooky without startle scares and gore.
What We Loved
There are many spooky moments that make The Haunted Mansion a classic. The stretching portrait chamber never fails to frighten a few unsuspecting children. I always look forward to the transparent ghastly dancers in the Grand Ballroom. I love all the singing ghosts in the graveyard; there are so many ghosts you always seem to catch something you haven’t seen before. The new animation of the hitchhiking ghosts is really fun.
What Could Be Better
In terms of a family friendly haunt experience, The Haunted Mansion is ‘practically perfect in every way.’ However, I wish that Disney World’s Haunted Mansion had a Nightmare Before Christmas theme during Christmas time. It’s unfair that only the west coast gets to experience such a treat.
Final Thoughts
The Haunted Mansion is an eerie ride that the whole family can enjoy. Since it’s open year round, it’s a great way to experience some spooky Halloween fun at any time of the year.
Few things divide haunted house fans like whether or not they want to be touched by the horrifying characters lurking within. Here is our list of haunts that push the limit by invading your personal space and literally wrap their icy fingers around you.
Note: This feature is updated frequently. Please email contact@ravenblackcat.com regarding any information that is no longer accurate or to add a haunted attraction.
HAUNTED HOUSES THAT TOUCH YOU
Our list ranges in intensity from the most extreme (haunts that grab you violently, lift you off your feet, grab you by the throat, have sexual undertones or touch you with electricity, ect.) to a subtle and spookier use of an unexpected soft touch or touch with an object.
18+, Extreme, Violent, Must Enter Alone, Encounter Live Animals, Must Sign a Waiver. There is a safe word. NOTE: The Cult will not return for 2013. **Fingers Crossed For 2014**
For 2 Nights Only, Barrett’s Haunted Mansion turns off the lights and allows their ghouls to touch you. There is a safe word. Not recommended for children under 7.
For The First Time Ever: Being Touched is an Option, Children under the age of 18 must be accompanied by a parent or guardian. No children under 7 will be admitted.
October 17 -19, we will be visiting Sleepy Hollow, New York to see how they celebrate the Halloween Season. We’ve scouted out the creepiest events, tours and attractions that the Headless Horseman’s hometown has to offer. We’ll be sharing our experience when we return, but here’s our guide to all things Sleepy Hollow.
Celebrating Halloween In Sleepy Hollow
(and the surrounding areas.)
The Creepiest Halloween Events in Sleepy Hollow, Tarrytown, and Croton-on-Hudson.
After the sun sets,the Historic Philipsburg Manor becomes Horseman’s Hollow. The historically accurate 18th century Haunted House, inspired by Washington Irving’s “Legend of Sleepy Hollow, spans both indoors and outdoors as guests follow a half-mile long candlelit path.
A 2-hour walking tour of the Sleepy Hollow Cemetery in the dark.
OLD DUTCH CHURCH OF SLEEPY HOLLOW Sleepy Hollow, New York (Self-guided Tour)
The church and churchyard mentioned in Washington Irving’s short story, “The Legend of Sleepy Hollow.”
JAY GHOUL’S HOUSE OF CURIOSITIES Tarrytown, New York (Haunted House)
Historic Lyndhurst Manor was used in the “Dark Shadows” films from the 1970s, and now hosts a seasonal haunted house at night. The architecture alone is terrifying. I can only imagine what waits inside.
During the day, Historic Lyndhurst Manor offers guided tours to see the special autumnal decor and learn about the history of Halloween and how the Victorian times influenced many of the customs that we associate with Halloween.
