There are many types of haunted attractions including Scream Parks. The following categories are generalizations; many "haunts" contain attributes from more than one type.
Haunted house, mansion or castle at
Walt Disney World's
Magic Kingdom in
Florida A
haunted house,
haunted mansion, or
haunted castle is a type of haunted attraction that usually takes place indoors. Visitors may experience intense animatronics, bloody and frightening set pieces, rustic antiques, scary music and sounds, dynamic lighting, fog, costumed actors with elaborate makeup or masks, and other special effects used to create scenes of terror.
Knoebels Amusement Resort in
Elysburg, Pennsylvania, has a "Haunted House"
dark ride.
The Haunted Mansion is popular with patrons at
Disney locations around the world.
Miracle Strip Amusement Park in
Panama City Beach, Florida, had a "Haunted Castle" ride until the amusement park itself closed down in 2004. Its prop elements became part of "The Terrortorium" in
Oxford, Alabama, for annual Halloween events. Miracle Strip's former "Old House" walk-through attraction permanently transferred to Panama City Beach's amusement park,
Race City, where it currently stands simply identified as "Haunted House". Many of
Sally Corporation's
Scooby-Doo's Haunted Mansion rides were replaced by
Boo Blasters on Boo Hill. Haunted houses or mansions for an annual Halloween season can be located in hospitals, grocery stores, shopping malls, warehouses,
semi-trailers, factories, boats or ships, dilapidated homes, etc. Haunted house or haunted mansion events can range from a few minutes to many hours in length, with some permitting visitors to go at their own pace and others requiring group tours led by guides. A number of the largest seasonal attractions feature multiple haunted houses on the same site. For example, in 2015, Pure Terror Screampark in Monroe, New York, was awarded the Guinness World Record for World's Longest Walk Through Horror Attraction. In terms of appearance, the prototypical haunted house in America can probably trace its roots to the 1925 painting
House by the Railroad by
Edward Hopper.
Haunted trail or forest A
haunted trail or
haunted forest is a type of attraction that takes place outside in the woods, at a park, at a theme park or other outside venue. Most haunted trails are close to a mile long and may include small buildings or huts that include various scenes visitors are forced to enter or walk past. The majority of haunted trails have lit paths or roped-off areas if there are no paths in the woods that have already been made. Haunted trails include various rooms or scenes such as
hillbilly huts, a haunted
cornfield, a clown maze, an alien invasion, or movie-themed rooms. Haunted trails may use tour guides, or they may allow visitors to walk alone. Unlike haunted houses, weather determines if the attraction will be open or not during the month of October. Tour times may vary greatly depending on the customer's pace and the length of the trail.
Haunted hayride A
haunted hayride is a haunted attraction and a form of
agri-entertainment that takes place during a
hayride on a farm, park or large piece of land. Patrons climb on a wagon filled with
hay or hay bales and are driven into the darkness as the tractor driver navigates through brush, cornfields, narrow paths, fields and barns. Throughout the trip, customers may come in contact with out-of-control farm equipment, fast-moving vehicles (hearses, hot rods), actors dressed up as monsters and traditional characters like the
Headless Horseman from
Washington Irving's
The Legend of Sleepy Hollow. The typical haunted hayride lasts from 10 to 45 minutes. Some use sound systems attached to the wagon or tractor. During the daytime, some haunted hayrides may have live shows, face painting, fun characters and may even sell pumpkins or other vegetables grown on the farm. Haunted hayrides may be intertwined with any other type of haunted attraction, such as first being transported to the location with things to see along the way, before the guests are let off to walk through the rest of the attraction. One of the more noted companies in this sector is
Ten Thirty One Productions, which has hay rides in Los Angeles and New York. The haunted hayride was arguably started and popularized by the original Spooky World, which opened in Berlin, Massachusetts, in 1991.
Haunted ship A
haunted ship is a haunted attraction that takes place on a ship,
battleship,
destroyer, or any other type of ship. Patrons board these attractions via a
gangway and walk through the ship that is usually lit with effects lighting, plays sound effects, and has thematic rooms meant to create a terrifying environment. Most of these types of attractions are found on the west coast or east coast, and are not as prevalent as typical haunted theme parks, hayrides, and haunted trails or forests. Some of the more popular haunted ships in the United States are the USS Nightmare in
Newport, Kentucky;
Queen Mary's Dark Harbor in
Long Beach, California; and Ghost Ship Harbor in
Quincy, Massachusetts.
Haunted theme park (screampark) A
haunted theme park is an
amusement park whose buildings and paths have been converted into haunted houses, haunted trails or hayrides during the fall season (September, October and early November). Many haunted theme parks include themed outdoor scare zones that feature costumed monsters who roam around scaring customers. It is not unusual to come in contact with actors known as sliders who wear special kneepads. When the actor slides on the ground, the kneepads make a scraping noise before the actor is inches away from the customer. Additionally, a large percentage of haunted theme parks feature live shows, concession areas, rides and other typical amusement park attractions. Not all haunted theme parks take place inside an actual amusement park. There are quite a few events that include multiple attractions in one place and may be located on a farm, park, parking lot or anywhere suitable for a large-scale event, but strictly speaking, these are not considered theme parks. The first haunted theme park was
Knott's Scary Farm, which opened at
Knott's Berry Farm in
Buena Park, California, on October 31, 1973. Haunted theme parks are among the most popular haunted attractions since they offer multiple attractions for a single admission price, and are often of a high level of production value. Haunted theme parks, whether they are set in true theme parks or set up within large spaces, typically contain a certain two types of area for their facilities, the hub area where food, drinks and merchandise can be purchased, the guests can relax and the live shows such as bands and magic shows are performed, actors can still appear throughout the hub area, where their scare factor may or may not be as high compared to the mazes themselves. The mazes themselves are typically accessed by large queue entrances, and the mazes for the most part contain the bulk of a haunted theme park's scare factor, encouraging the more elaborate special effects, scare tactics and traversal compared to the calmer hub area.
Dark maze and chain maze A
dark maze (or
pitch-black maze) is a haunted attraction that consists of dark or pitch-black rooms with multiple paths that may contain dead ends. Some may feature actors, air cannons, loud sounds, sprays of water, moving walls or floors, hanging props, flashing lights and more. A dark maze can be a standalone attraction or an extension of a haunted house, haunted trail or hayride. Some dark mazes can transition into a
chain maze, which is similar to a dark maze but uses metal bars or
chain-link fencing for its walls. Most chain mazes will utilize strobe lights and heavy fog to blind and disorient customers while they try to find the exit. A chain maze can also serve as a standalone attraction. The amount of time spent inside a dark maze or chain maze may depend on the construction of the maze as well as one's skill at navigating mazes. Pitch black areas such as dark mazes are quite common as sections for horror attractions, and are quite common in extreme haunted houses, they usually contain ropes for traversal and if a guest is going the wrong way or lost, an actor within the room may hold the guests arm to guide them to the rope in order to find the way out of the dark area.
Hell house during a scene about potentially-serious moral choices (
video)
Hell houses are haunted attractions typically run by
Christian churches or
parachurch groups. These depict sin, the torments of the damned in Hell, and usually conclude with a depiction of heaven. They are most typically operated in the days preceding the triduum of
Allhallowtide. A hell house, like a conventional haunted-house attraction, is a space set aside for actors to frighten patrons with gruesome exhibits and scenes, presented as a series of short vignettes with a narrated guide. Unlike haunted houses, hell houses focus on occasions and effects of sin or the fate of unrepentant sinners in the afterlife. The exhibits at a hell house often have a controversial tone focusing on issues of concern to Christians in the United States. Hell houses frequently feature exhibits depicting sin and its consequences. Common examples include abortion, suicide, use of alcoholic beverages and recreational drugs, adultery, occultism, and
Satanic ritual abuse. Hell houses typically emphasize the belief that anyone who does not
repent of their sin and accept Christ as their personal savior is condemned to Hell. One of the first hell houses is Scaremare (still presented each October) in
Lynchburg, Virginia; it was created by
Jerry Falwell in the late 1970s. Similar events began in several regions during that period. Hell houses have faced criticism for advertising themselves as traditional haunted houses. Most involve biblical lessons and some ask customers to pray to
Jesus Christ before exiting, regardless of their beliefs. Some hell houses are much more graphic than traditional haunted attractions and not appropriate for all audiences.
Dark ride A dark ride or ghost train (United Kingdom and Australia) is an indoor amusement ride where riders in guided vehicles travel through specially-lit scenes that typically contain animatronics, sound, music, and special effects. A dark ride is enclosed so all illumination is controlled, often using theatrical lighting to achieve special effects. Selective use of darkness helps hide ride mechanisms and increase visual drama.
The Twilight Zone Tower of Terror is a popular dark ride at
Walt Disney World's
Hollywood Studios (Sunset Boulevard),
Tokyo DisneySea (
American Waterfront), and
Walt Disney Studios Park (
Production Courtyard).
Revenge of the Mummy roller coaster is the most popular dark ride at
Universal Studios Florida (New York City),
Universal Studios Hollywood (Lower Lot), and
Universal Studios Singapore (Ancient Egypt). Another classic example of a haunted dark ride is the
Phantom Theater Omnimover at
Kings Island in
Mason, Ohio.
Haunted cornfield maze A
cornfield maze is an attraction that uses cornstalks to form paths for people to walk through. Patrons can expect to experience turns, straight paths and dead ends. The cornfield maze might be designed to resemble a popular character, public figure, event or holiday. Most cornfield mazes are open during the day and are appropriate for all ages. The largest corn maze in the world was located in
Dixon, California, and is 45 acres in area . Although this corn maze holds distinction as the world's largest corn maze, Adventure Acres corn maze in
Bellbrook, Ohio, consists of 62 acres of corn maze with 8.5 miles of trails. In 2003, a world record for the longest maze path, as recognised by Guinness World Records, was set on 10 July 2003 at in the Lobster Maize Maze, designed by
Adrian Fisher, at Stewarts Gardenlands, Christchurch,
Dorset, England. A
haunted cornfield maze is identical to a cornfield maze except that it may include actors, props, special effects, scary music and more. The majority of haunted cornfield mazes are open after dark.
Home and yard haunts A
home haunt is a simplified version of a haunted attraction that is created at a person's home. They often begin with a
yard haunt (see below) before continuing into interior rooms, which may include garages. Visitors can expect to see homemade props or animatronics, detailed decor, special effects and costumed characters. The vast majority of home haunts are not for profit, or may ask for donations for charity or other local causes. They are usually open for a few hours on Halloween night, or for a few weekends in October. They do not require state-issued emergency lighting, fire alarms, or fire escapes if they are under a specific length.
Yard haunts take place in a yard, usually dressed to resemble a cemetery, adjacent to a home. They may feature prop tombstones, skulls, large inflatable characters, plastic light-up figures (a.k.a. blowmolds), strobe lights, fog machines, cobwebs, spooky music, animatronics, and other décor that can be purchased at Halloween stores. Some homeowners create their own props. Displays can include synchronized music and lighting effects using computer programs such as Light-O-Rama or Animated Lighting. They may utilize an FM transmitter so people can park their car, locate a low-frequency radio station, and watch and listen to the show without the sounds disturbing the neighbors. An example of this type attraction is
The House at Haunted Hill in
Woodland Hills, California.
Ghost run A
ghost run is a haunted event that takes place in a person's car. When a customer purchases a ticket for a ghost run, they are given various clues as to where different haunted attractions are. This haunted scavenger hunt usually includes a few local haunted attractions and other free items. At the end of the ghost run's season, the winner with the best mileage locating the haunts is revealed and they are given a prize.
Midnight ghost (or spook) shows Between the 1930s–1960s, movie theaters would have live shows that featured
magicians performing magic tricks,
séances,
special effects and scary skits. This was at a time when people were unaware of how these seemingly incredible tricks were done and it was a relatively new form of entertainment before the spread of the haunted attraction. Many of these spook shows doubled with horror movies and played at smaller movie theaters during the
Halloween season or different parts of the year. Eventually these shows would incorporate bloody special effects and sometimes be referred to as Midnight Horror Shows. These shows were daring for their time, but would phase out by the end of the 1960s. A modern interpretation of the classic spook show was the Hauntings Ghost Show in
Gatlinburg, Tennessee. This attraction was themed as a Victorian Seance, which took place in a small theater setting. During the show, the audience would encounter automated gags instead of live performers. The attraction was in operation from the early 1980s until September 2015.
Extreme haunted houses As the haunted attraction industry has evolved, it has trended toward ever more elaborate settings, more sophisticated technology, more elaborate backstories and so-called "extreme" haunted houses. Most operators, from the mega-haunts down to local charity events have felt the competitive pressure to improve their events. Higher quality scenery and props and ever more elaborate concepts and writing have become the norm. Furthermore, the experiences have expanded in terms of sheer size, either by making the mazes longer, or by providing more than one attraction on the same site. Some operators have tried to distinguish themselves by adding more extreme experiences. The most common upgrades beyond those cited above include blackout houses, interactive houses, and the inclusion of virtual reality, laser tag elements, or both. Blackout houses are pitch-black mazes which the guests must feel their way through. This may involve crawling, and, sometimes, contact by the actors. This is usually not allowed in less extreme houses, and may require the guest to sign a waiver prior to entering. Interactive houses may involve the guests being closed into an "escape room", where they have a time limit to try to figure out how to escape, and physical clues scattered around the space. There are scares also hidden in the space, and often guest escape efforts have consequences for wrong guesses. VR and laser tag houses add an element of the
first-person shooter video game experience to the guest's journey through the house. The most extreme houses may feature full contact with the guests and include a chance that the guest may be subjected to mild torture, including simulated drowning, simulated assault, and light electric shock. Guests are often given a safeword for anyone who might not be able to complete the experience. Tennessee's
McKamey Manor requires both an application process and a waiver. Unlike most of its rivals, there was no safeword until 2017. The tour, which is free, can take up to four hours to complete. In that time, guests have been tied and gagged, forced into coffins and freezers, and had their heads pushed into cages full of snakes. People have even been known to leave with scratches and bruises. Another example is Blackout, which has versions in Los Angeles, Chicago, Miami, and New York, and has been rated on several lists as the most extreme haunted house in the world. Additional extreme haunts include Heretic and Hvrting in Los Angeles, Miasma in Chicago, Shock Theater in New York, and Faceless Ventures in the UK. The Naked and Scared Challenge was an adults-only experience at
Shocktoberfest, a 27-acre fear park located in
Sinking Spring, Pennsylvania. Visitors at least 18 years old were invited to disrobe before entering. After choosing the "nude" or "prude" (underwear-only) option, guests were asked to sign waivers prior to a clothes-free fright. The nude option was cancelled prior to opening, due to pressure from local authorities. There have been a few such houses around the country, but they have apparently not caught on. This event began during the 2013 season, and was still running as of 2017, as the
Almost Naked and Scared Challenge. A
haunted experience is a relatively new type of haunted attraction that combines the concept of a haunted house with something like a scavenger hunt. These begin in one place and end in another, usually the haunted house itself. An example of a haunted experience is Nyctophobia on
Long Island,
New York; in 2010, ticket buyers were given a location that was not the physical haunted house, but a pick-up spot where they got into a van blindfolded and were driven to the real location. Other experiences such as
Blackout have the participants sign liability waivers and feature scenes where the performers can physically touch the guests and perform actions that resemble various acts such as
waterboarding. ==Business environment==