Overall Score – 4.8/5 (all ratings scored out of 5) Curb Appeal – 4.8/5 Scare Factor – 4.8/5 Actor Enthusiasm – 4.8/5 Creativity – 4.6/5 Donna (The Frightmaster) – The USS Nightmare has always been a force to reckon with on the tri-state haunt scene.  For the past 25 years the boat has been terrorizing young and old people and all in between with it’s sinister “Captain” and dark, creepy halls.     It has been a scary experience that left you with nightmares and a fear of cruise ships for years.  It was good in the past but this year it has changed…. First of all – expectations are high for this haunt.  Knowing that going in it is a very long and a very creepy, dark haunt.  This year all of those expectations were blown away!  The boat actually has changed – yes, changed to the point that I was blown away by the “”new boat””.  The trip into darkness starts off innocently enough with a short history of the William S Mitchell boat and then…..a big surprise!  Many of the animatronics that I have seen in the past are gone – replaced by more sinister characters.  The halls and rooms are changed and noticeably darker allowing the suspense to build between scenes.  The actors are top of the line, convincing, scary, funny at times but very good and stayed in character throughout the haunt. The make-up is extraordinary and done Hollywood style by a former “Face-Off” contestant named Gabby.  New rooms have been added and the walk through time extended about 10 min from last year’s haunt to an unprecedented 30 min to make it through.  The whole boat seems to have undergone a make-over from last year transforming it into an even darker, truly evil place haunted by the spirits of the dead captain and crew members...

Overall Score (Both Attractions) – 4/5 (all ratings scored out of 5) The Northland Asylum Curb Appeal – 3/5 Scare Factor – 4/5 Actor Enthusiasm – 4.8/5 Creativity – 4.4/5 Overall – 4/5   Teresa – This isn’t too impressive from outside, as it is in an old strip mall. Once you get inside, there are plenty of decorations for you to look at while you wait. And the roaming actors are great. Especially Fingers! He did a great job chatting with us and keeping us entertained. Just don’t let him get too close to your own fingers. He can’t be trusted! The Northland Asylum is fun. The characters are enthusiastic. There aren’t a lot of animatronics or expensive effects, but what they do have they use well. And being in an old strip mall, naturally made it feel more old and dilapidated too. Our wait wasn’t bad at all. Older kids should love this. A fun place to get scared where you don’t have to spend most of your time waiting in line. Donna (The Frightmaster) – We went through the ScarAtorium back about a year and a half ago and at the time I was honestly a little disappointed in the quality, scare factor and creativity of the haunt, so I didn’t have too high of expectations for this visit. Boy was I wrong!  The entire haunt has been redone and the quality, scare factor and creativity blew me away!  First of all, they took a very familiar theme (old asylum, patients escaping, crazy people chasing you, etc…) and put a new twist on it.  It is VERY effective in the scare factor area and I’ll explain why. When you enter the haunt, a man introduces himself as the head orderly and welcomes you to the asylum.  While he is talking, you see a door with a...

Overall Score (Both Attractions) – 3.8/5 (all ratings scored out of 5) Haunted Hoochie Curb Appeal – 4.6/5 Scare Factor – 4.2/5 Actor Enthusiasm – 3.8/5 Creativity – 4.2/5 Overall – 4.2/5 Teresa – This place looks pretty scary from the wooded approach all the way to the queue. The external decorations are really good and fit the theme. There’s a big screen showing music videos and political clips, all very subversive. There were some actors who visited the lines to keep things interesting. There’s a dancing girl and a gun tower. You really wonder what you’re getting yourself into. We got there early and still had quite a long wait. Plenty of time to anticipate. The haunt itself is very long and has a great layout. It is dark and full of really good decor. And they do a good job of sticking with the backwoods hoochie theme. The characters are pretty intense, the animatronics are excellent, and the props are fantastic (some I hadn’t seen before). My favorite parts were the scenes where they would stop your group and you’d witness some horrible bit of violence carried out on some terrified victim. These effects were great. Some were so over-the-top they had us laughing at the sheer wrongness of it. The actors will touch you. Nothing too crazy or uncomfortable. They touched my head a lot, grabbed my leg, one took me by the hand and dragged me into a cell, and they do touch you with the chainsaws. The lighting was good. Some parts are strobing, and other parts so dark you can’t see. It is just enough to keep you disoriented. Sounds and music are loud. Occasionally too loud to hear the characters very well, but definitely unnerving. Especially the gunfire. Overall, this is a great haunt. Not appropriate for children! It is one of...

Overall Score – 4.1/5 (all ratings scored out of 5)   Haunted Hayride Curb Appeal – 4.2/5 Scare Factor – 3.4/5 Actor Enthusiasm – 4.6/5 Creativity – 4.4/5 Overall – 4.2/5 Todd – Sandyland Acres offers a hayride which while not the scariest thing around, is fun and refreshing from all the other haunts. The trailers that hold ~25 people will be pulled by a tractor to various scenes depicting murder and mayhem. A lot was changed this year, mostly in the scenes and sets themselves. The formula remains the same. At some points other trucks will chase you, while in other areas the actors will come aboard and make threatening gestures and invade your personal space. My personal favorite change this year was a final area where 3 scenes are staged. This year, true life murderers were featured. Younger visitors may not be familiar with these infamous faces, but it was a nice touch. Visiting Sandyland is a nice change of pace. It’s a little more family friendly and it’s nice to be able to ride through a haunt and take it in. A lot of work goes into this one and it’s much appreciated.   Donna (The Frightmaster) – We arrived at the Sandyland Acres location late on a moonless Saturday night just as the last tractor-pulled hayride was leaving.  Even though it was well past midnight, the actors still put on a great show.  The hayride takes you past Motel Hell, then through a very creepy and scary cornfield where you never know when or where someone will jump out at you.  Next you’re being followed by the semi truck and Jeepers Creepers is playing on a loud speaker.  The tractor takes a turn down a path into the woods and you ride past…..a large pirate ship!  This was an amazing edition this year and the...

Overall Score – 4.6/5 (all ratings scored out of 5) Curb Appeal – 5/5 Scare Factor – 4.3/5 Actor Enthusiasm – 4.3/5 Creativity – 4.8/5 Gus – The Dent Schoolhouse has long been a Cincinnati favorite and has consistently been recognized as a top haunt in the country. That sort of recognition doesn’t happen by accident. Every scene in the Dent Schoolhouse is highly detailed, which draws you into the illusion. While you are trying to take in the scene, the monsters have their chance to sneak up on you. So many times, I had already dismissed an actor as a prop or animatronic only to have them jump up and scare me. This year, there is a pumpkin festival as you wait to enter with some great scares of their own. Also, the entire basement has been revamped and a lot of the animatronics have been replaced with in your face actors, which is great. This haunt should definitely be on your list this year, and it should be at the top.   Todd – Anyone reading this likely already knows that The Dent Schoolhouse is widely ranked in the top 10 haunts in the country – and for good reason. “Dent” is unquestionably the most themed and detailed haunted house  you’ll come across. Every single thing fits into the back story of Charlie, Dent’s central character who is supposedly responsible for missing school children on the grounds. Much of the basement has been re-vamped this year, a lot of which contributes to explaining just where those children went. Although Dent’s actors do a fine job themselves, the building itself tells a tale; which why Dent is just so damn good. Nothing is missed inside Dent. Nothing. Even though many of the scenes are brand new, they look as if they’ve sat there for 60 years. Every set...

Overall Score – 2.9/5 (all ratings scored out of 5)   Blackout Curb Appeal – 3/5 Scare Factor – 3.3/5 Actor Enthusiasm – 3/5 Creativity – 3.7/5 Overall – 3.25/5 Todd – This one could be terrifying if you’re scared of the dark of claustrophobic. It’s pretty much just a maze in the pitch dark. PROS: It’s different than the others. CONS: Rooms and hallways get clogged with people – hope you’re friendly. Donna (The Frightmaster) – This was not your typical dark haunt.  Blackout was extremely claustrophobic to the point that will make a normal person hyperventilate and a claustrophobic person to have a panic attack.  Think of a dark room with more and more people being crowded into it, all pushing and shoving trying to find a way out.  Did I say it was dark????   You literally cannot see your hand in front of your face.  The haunt winds around and around as you feel your way through different textures of wall, some soft and some electrified!  There weren’t any actors in the haunt as far as I saw (or heard) but it was a scary experience.  One of the better dark haunts I have been to. Gus – This review is bittersweet. This year, Kings Island replaced one of my favorite of their haunts, Club Blood, with Blackout. At least Kings Island was mindful enough to tip the hat with a tombstone honoring the beloved Club Blood. The good news is that Blackout is a worthy successor, but for totally different reasons. There are no actors inside Blackout, instead it is filled with darkness. It is pitch black inside. You’ll have to feel along the walls to make your way out. Some of the textures made me pull back in fright. “”What did I just touch that was so furry? I hope that wasn’t another patron!””...

Overall Score – 4.9/5! (all ratings scored out of 5) Curb Appeal – 4.8/5 Scare Factor – 5/5 Actor Enthusiasm – 4.9/5 Creativity – 5/5 Donna (The Frightmaster) – Okay, how do I describe my experience in the Haunted Hotel?  This haunt is extreme, over the top, in your face, make you pee yourself and the feature haunt of our trip.  It is the most fun, scary, intimidating, funny, creepy non-stop intense haunt we have ever been through.  From the very first few minutes where you line up against a wall and are given a talk by the crazy hotel proprietor and forced into the rickety elevator with another “occupant” who wasn’t with your original group, you know you are in for a great ride.  The hotel is fast paced and doesn’t let you catch your breath between scenes – each one more extreme and terrifying than the last.  The actors do touch, manhandle and push you, tickle you, and knock you around quite a bit.  We thought the manhandling was ramped up from last year maybe a bit much for some of the haunt goers, though.  This is an extreme haunt and it definitely lives up to it’s rep. We loved the changes this year – love the fact that the entire haunt was different from last year.  Many haunts are good for a few years but get old quickly because the owners don’t change anything or very little from year to year.  Kevin knows that to keep people coming back you have to keep the scares new and fresh.  He did this very well this year and it was like going through a brand new haunt. The haunt is longer than you would think.  It just seems to go on and on (and on and on and on….) especially when you are being chased by five people...

Overall Score – 4.1/5! (all ratings scored out of 5) Curb Appeal – 4/5 Scare Factor – 3.6/5 Actor Enthusiasm – 4.6/5 Creativity – 4.3/5 Donna (The Frightmaster) – This is one of our favorite haunts in Louisville and we look forward to returning to it every year!  The theme of the Devil’s Attic is obvious from the first room where you actually meet the devil himself (this actor is one of the best in the entire haunt!!!) and continued all the way through the haunt.  There are a variety of VERY impressive animatronics throughout but the true highlight and meat and potatoes of the attraction are the actors.  We love the intensity that they have in every scene, especially The Exorcist scene and the new Evil Dead scene with chainsaw arm Ash and the thing under the floor trying to escape.  The scene looked like it was taken right from the movie set.  The actors are some of the best we have seen anywhere and very, VERY convincing!  I did feel that the haunt was a bit shorter this year than in the past but that could have been because I was moving faster trying to escape the evil characters chasing me!  Great actors + fun, fun haunt + scary scenes = this haunt is not to be missed!!! Teresa – This one is great for horror fans. You walk through lots of your favorite horror movie scenes. The actors are very enthusiastic and I thought the decorations and costumes were quite good. There are some pretty creepy scenes and a few unexpected jump scares. I’d really like to see them add more interaction to make it last a little longer. Or some memorable surprises. For a horror movie fan, this one is over too quickly. Todd – The Devil’s Attic still has the most authentic looking costuming...

Overall Score – 3.9/5! (all ratings scored out of 5) Please see overall comments at the bottom of each section Darkness Falls Curb Appeal – 3.9/5 Scare Factor – 3.9/5 Actor Enthusiasm – 4.6/5 Creativity – 4.4/5 Overall – 4.2/5 Donna (The Frightmaster) – Darkness Falls was a very long outdoor haunt (33/4 of a mile) that was one of the most exciting and creepy haunts I have been to in many years.  The trail was just dark enough to give you that feeling of being stalked by who knows what and you never knew what was around the next corner.  The haunt was what you would expect from an outdoor haunt – and more!  Enthusiastic actors, very detailed scenes, eerie lighting, good storyline, even a dark slide to ????  I had a blast!  You feel lost in the woods in the middle of a horror movie with no one to hear you scream!  Loved it! Teresa – This was so much fun! It is a very LONG trail. All of the scenes looked great, from the cemetery with awesome crypts to the shacks with cannibalistic families. Very good use of lighting spacing, so the trail was plenty dark, but you could always see a light in the distance to walk toward so you didn’t get lost. I liked that it didn’t have animatronics. I enjoy good animatronics, but this made it feel like an old-school haunt that uses more live actors and decorations for its scares. I would definitely do this again! Todd – Darkness falls is your typical outdoor trail with a few standout areas. As with others, there’s a hillbilly shanty area, a clown area (nice and dark though!), a cemetery, etc. The areas the pop out though make up for any lackluster sections. The most favorable to me was the power generation station run by...

(all ratings scored out of 5) Overall Score – 4/5! Please see overall comments at the bottom of the post.     Temple of Terror Curb Appeal – 3.3/5 Scare Factor – 3.8/5 Actor Enthusiasm – 4/5 Creativity – 4.3/5 Overall – 3.8/5 Comments: Todd – Without doubt, Temple of Terror is the most claustrophobic attraction at Land of Illusion. The walls are narrow, typically forcing your party to proceed single file. Skeletons and other crypt creatures reach out as you pass by. As if this wasn’t enough to make you feel as if the walls are closing in, more has been added to obstruct your already limited path. If you’re familiar with the Temple of Terror, don’t expect significant changes. The route and its major staples remain the same. Caskets and other items have been added to the walls, just enough to move you out of your comfort zone, closer to the unknown around the corner. Some black light paint as been added to a section of walls depicting symbols and other randomness. For me, this felt completely out of place. I’m not sure how or why someone deep down in ancient ruins would have broken out the rave paint and decorated. This didn’t fit into an otherwise consistent theme at all. If I could make a change, it would be to get rid of this, pronto. The actors were hit and miss. Those sticking to the shadows did a good job staying hidden, but when revealed, the “”boo”” was a little lackluster. Those that were more featured did a good job portraying their roles. Overall this is still a great (and pretty lengthy) haunt to check out. It’s dark (except for the black light section) and has more corpses and skeletons than you could ever count. If they continue to find a way to continue adding  to...