Brett (wm)

Looks can be deceiving! Driving up to Wisconsin Scaryland, it just looked like any other large building. But inside this average looking dwelling was another story!

The line for Wisconsin Scaryland was impressive! It’s clear that this is a very popular attraction, the wait was close to two hours! There are two separate wait lines: one outside and one inside. The smoke alarm kept going off as they were using a fog machine in the inside wait area. At first I thought that was just another sound effect until I saw a worker keep fanning the air by the alarm to make it stop. Although it’s very expensive, you might want to consider the 'Jump The Line' ticket. Especially on a cold night where you're waiting over an hour!

Your journey starts in an elevator where they lay out the rules. It's there that you learn that you cannot touch the actors, but they CAN touch you! It's good that they state this right up front so visitors are not too freaked out when it happens. Then you ascend to the "13th" floor and to the horror that awaits you.

There are three different themes in Wisconsin Scaryland: the Westport Penitentiary, Toxic, and the Carnevil Big Chop Circus. While some haunts would make these three separate attractions, here they flow from one theme into the next.

There were so many great staged scenes: The cemetery, the circus, the trashed bathroom (SO gross), the nursery, the dentist office... every room was done very well! They had them all dimly lit to perfection. Unfortunately not all the rooms had actors in them, but everything was great to look at.

As mentioned above, one thing that makes this haunt unique is that they the actors can touch you. This isn’t over-done, but just enough to freak you out! There were a few times where someone grabbed or lightly touched me. Their timing was great!

The haunt seemed to end abruptly. I thought we were walking into the next scene and it really was the exit. I didn't want it to end!!! In talking with other visitors, everyone seemed to really enjoy themselves. A tip that I didn't find out until after my visit: Purchase your ticket online for a nice discount!

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For years I’ve heard about the Haunted Barn. I always hoped that one day I would be able to take a road trip and visit this well run haunt. When the Haunted Barn went away last year, I was extremely disappointed. Another great haunt that I would never be able to attend. But earlier this year I hear that they’re back for 2015!!! I was determined that I wasn’t going to miss out on attending this year.

I have to start this review out by saying that the staff was GREAT! This was the second haunt I attended on the same night, and the first haunt ran longer than expected. When my GPS took me to the wrong place (twice), I called their number to get their correct location. When they state that they never turn someone away, THEY MEAN IT. Although we were late in arriving, they rolled out the red carpet for us. (Not knowing I was reviewing their haunt for Haunted Wisconsin) From those at the ticket booth, to the food booth, to all the actors in the haunt itself: definitely a CLASS ACT! They take pride in what they do, and they do it well. It's haunts like the Haunted Barn that do it for the love of Halloween and giving a good scare! I unfortunately didn't get any pictures of the haunt or it's actors due to not wanting to keep them any longer than needed. I hope that they continue to stay around for a long time to come, and I mean that sincerely. Thank you!

The location of the Haunted Barn is great. There’s not much around it but its also not too far out of town where you're in for a long drive. The grounds is setup very well and visually the barn is impressive when you drive up. First impressions set the stage to your experience... and my first impression, both by the staff and the look of the barn, was telling me I was in for a treat!

Considering there is limited space in the barn, they do a great job of making the most of their square footage! It seemed that every time we turned a corner there was a scare or surprise waiting for us. The bloody bride got me really good! The fortune teller was very entertaining, repeating several times that I had 'something to hide'. (If she reads this review, this is that something!) The little girl that led us to different areas was humorous and never once dropped character. Just when we thought we were done, there was one last scare that had us running! The scoreboard for those whom either wet their pants or quit the haunt half-way through is a nice touch!

I'm so very glad I was finally able to visit the Haunted Barn. One more thing off my bucket list! Here's hoping they continue to provide a quality haunt for years to come.

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You would think with a name like ‘Screamin Acres’ that this haunt would be huge. Well, you thought right! Screamin Acres is one of the biggest haunted attractions around that includes multiple areas. There’s so much ground to cover, at some point I lost track of time! They expect to expand their haunt every year, which is mind-blowing as it’s already huge with multiple themes. While some other haunts will charge you for each theme or attraction, you get everything for one price here.

The wait area is very nice and impressive. It’s housed under a big tent, so you are out of the elements on those nights that are cold and nasty. The first thing you notice is the dj spinning the tunes. Not some cd playing on repeat, but an actual dj in a booth! The whole tent is lit up with lasers, which is another nice touch!

First up is the Slaughter House. If you’re into gore, then this will be right up your alley with a few scares thrown in. The amount of detail was crazy, those with weak stomachs beware! Then we went through the corn maze which was dark and quiet. Being out in-between the corn stalks at night is creepy! Your mind will start to play tricks on you and you’ll start jumping at things that aren’t even there. Then throw in a few actors to really keep you on your toes! You can never go wrong with a corn maze at night.

About halfway through Screamin Acres I realized something was missing. Shhh…. Can you hear that? No, I don’t hear anything! While there was a music playing in the wait area, pretty much 95% of the experience was void of music or pumped in noises. While odd at first, I actually enjoyed that! It was eerie to walk in the cornfield or down a long dark corridor with no music or automated noises. DEAD QUIET, other than some screams heard off in the distance. It made this haunt that much more spooky!

Next we entered the Crawl Space. I won’t give too much away, but smells play just as big as a role as what you’re seeing! VERY realistic, but hardly any actors. That leads you to the Last Resort, which is more a traditional style haunt. We were startled a few times in there! Just when we thought it was all done, there was Side Effects. This is a 3D attraction complete with glasses. There was a little bit of everything!

Several actors were very funny, while others were down-right scary. Some opportunities for a good scare were lost due to number of staff versus the size of the haunt. That’s really my only complaint. Many rooms looked incredible but there was nobody in them. But with that said, the amount of detail was incredible! It felt like we were walking through a big budget horror movie.

On busy nights, the Fast Pass is a good deal for only $10 more.

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