When fall begins, students go on the hunt for frightening haunted houses. Sure, there are a lot of options nearby, whether it’s Haunted Hallow, Scary Acres, or Mystery Manor, but they’re always the same. Each year, my mom takes me and a few friends to Worlds of Fun for their Halloween Haunts event.
Starting at the end of September, Worlds of Fun transforms into a world of terror. During the day, the theme park is still a kid-friendly environment.
When eight o’clock rolls around, monsters, vicious clowns, blood thirsty vampires and creepy dolls parade through the park to get to their assigned haunted houses.
Unlike some haunted attractions where there is only one actual haunted house and a lot of mini-activities, Halloween Haunts offers six different haunted houses. My favorites included London Terror, Insane Asylum, The Dollhouse and Corn Maze.
In London Terror, characters were dressed in top coats and hats smeared with blood. The ladies wore classical dresses with their faces torn apart. This house caught my eye because it held the most creative costumes, capturing the essence of old time London with an eerie twist.
Insane Asylum was the most terrifying walk. Crazy nurses with big needle strutted around scaring the awaiting people. This eliminated boredom while standing in line.
Going through the Insane Asylum was difficult. The fog was thick, making it difficult to see some of the scare factors. After a while of walking, the monsters and crazy people began to look familiar because we had already passed them. It was scary being lost in a cloud of fog with absolutely no sense of direction. My friends and I were not the only ones to notice, one of the cast members recognized us and offered to lead us out of the house. The worker confessed to being annoyed with seeing the same people because so many have gotten lost. Going in was the easy part, but coming out was a challenge.
While waiting in line I noticed two real police officers frequently walking into the exit. This was because many people got lost, and some people even had panic attacks due to the chaos Though the Dollhouse was not the scariest, it was by far the creepiest. This particular house I found highly disturbing. Dolls occupied the walls with blood covering them. Girls were dressed as life size dolls with stuffing escaping and red blood dripping from their wounds.
Although the other houses made a huge impact on the scare-o-meter, the Corn Maze made my heart rate increase. The corn people were so well hidden that while walking though I was always in suspense. The monsters were covered in corn husks in order to blend into the scenery.
Aside from the actual haunted houses, there were little walkthroughs you could enter. In the park, next to the Timber Wolf rollercoaster, several tents were set up. Within the tents, several clowns were ready to get up close and personal. As we entered, two clowns greet you with a creepy smile painted on their faces.
The aspect that made Halloween Haunts the most convincing was the makeup and costumes. In each haunted house, the costumes suited the time period. Even when you were close to the actors, the makeup looked still very realistic. From zombies to scarecrows, the allusion was never broken.
Worlds of Fun during Halloween time is by far the best. Instead of going to a nearby haunted house,go to Halloween Haunts. The houses exceeded my expectations. Along with that, the makeup was always spot on, and character was never broken. I already cannot wait to return for some more frightening fun.
Ashley Quintela
West Wind Features Editor and Hitting the Runway Blogger
