instamatic
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Posts posted by instamatic
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Every year my family (aka my boyfriend, mom, and I) likes to save up and splurge on FOTL or RIP for HHN, and after it's absence we were very excited to hear of it's return. Would we have a special experience specific to RIP? Would we have the blood lounge to visit and relax in throughout the night? Would we leave feeling as though we wasted our money? Who knew? Only time would tell. Apologies in advance for how wordy this will probably get.
Let me start by sharing how disorganized the parking and VIP staff were at the beginning of our journey. We opted for the earliest check-in we could get, which was 5:40PM, and arrived at Uni at 3:45PM to leave us enough time to try Voodoo Donuts and stroll City Walk before checking in. Our first hitch was the parking staff. The lanes were separated by barricades and the signage did not match up with which lanes were being used for which parking section. We went into the lane marked VALET, which was actually being used for Uber/Lyft, so we asked the kid working the lane where to go and he pointed us in the right direction. We looped around and went into the lane he told us to go in....which was still the wrong lane. Third time's a charm! We looped around and went into the pick up/drop off lane which finally gave us access to the valet. It wasn't a huge issue, but it was annoying.
After finally giving the car up and trying a Captain, My Captain at Voodoo, we headed to the main entrance and proceeded to VIP for check-in...and the second hitch. Now this one did not affect us directly, but it's worth noting that it was causing issues for a few other groups. The email sent with your tickets stated that if you did not check in by your check in time you'd forfeit your RIP experience, no exceptions. Well quite a few people with 5 and 5:10 check in times were rolling up at 5:15 or 5:20. The staff accommodated the late arrivals, pushing back check in for other groups and causing people who had been there in time to be late. As I said, we were there 40 minutes early hoping to get in one early entry maze pre-dinner, so this didn't really affect our night beyond that. However, there were many groups outside of the park who were upset that they were being pushed back, and once we made it inside for our buffet there were groups in the dining area who were upset that they had to pound 2 beers and a buffet in 25 minutes because they were pushed back by late arrivals. Hopefully those kinks get worked out....for the price you pay and the changes made to the RIP experience this year, it really sucks to have to be rushed and not be able to enjoy the full experience.
We checked in and were given a dining time of 5:50, leaving us about 20 minutes to get situated before starting our RIP experience. We rode The Simpson's Ride really quick then headed over to Moulin Rouge for dinner. Upon checking in we were given a tour start time of 6:40PM, giving us 50 minutes to enjoy the buffet and our 2 drinks. We were told that this 50 minutes was our only time in the Moulin Rouge and that there was no lounge to return to this year. This was the biggest letdown of RIP for us, as in prior years it was nice to have an air conditioned spot to hide from the crowds in, especially when water and soft drinks were provided. Oh well. The buffet had everything from salads to stews to pastas to tri-tip to warm ooey gooey cookies and fresh made crepes. The food was absolutely delicious, we did not taste one thing and dislike it. The beer selections have improved a bit from the Bud Light days, offering a few different selections like Heineken, Shock Top, and a craft IPA. Soft drinks, a tasty strawberry lemonade, and water bottles were also available. We grabbed a couple of water bottles on our way out for our tour and met up with our guide Alec, a first time RIP guide who claimed we were his first group.
Alec gave us a run-through of what our tour would look like, mapping out our path and saying that we'd have all the haunted experiences done in just about 3 hours. He excitedly led us to opening scaremonies, claiming that we were the lucky tour time that would have prime viewing up front. Little did he know they decided to run the show 10 minutes early that night, so we didn't get to watch it. He was embarrassed and joked that he was off to a bad start. At this point I had a quick minute long chat with Murdy who we ran into outside of Blumhouse, then took off on a whirlwind of mazes in the following order...
THE HORRORS OF BLUMHOUSE
It was still light out so this maze was not scary at all. Too much light leak and a bunch of the lights/fog/sound was not on yet. We were underwhelmed by this as a whole, though my boyfriend dug the Purge stuff and my mom and I loved the Sinister bits. This was a good warm-up maze and we decided we wanted to try it again later in the night. The second time we walked through it did not make it any scarier, but The Purge had all of it's effects working and the maze as a whole looked much better without all of the light leaks.
THE WALKING DEAD ATTRACTION
Meh. As a fan of the show it's still really neat to walk around and look at stuff, but as a haunted attraction it does nothing for me. Got yelled at for taking a picture while walking through a second time later in the night.
TITANS OF TERROR
I loved loved loved this maze. To be fair, my favorite franchises are Nightmare and Chainsaw, so that may have swayed my opinion. And it's also worth noting that my mom was wearing a Jason shirt, so we got so much actor interaction in this maze. All the Jason's targeted us so we got good jump scares and the Freddy's targeted her, miming funny things after the scares. There is a gag in here that was recycled from Alien and tweaked to fit the theme and it gave me my best scare of the night. Didn't see it coming at all. While I thought the transition hallways were kind of lame, I left this maze with a huge smile on my face and my heart racing from non-stop scares. Such a blast. We ended our night with this maze, and while NONE of the Jason triggers were working it was still scary and awesome!
HELL-O-WEEN SZ
Suffered from daylight and lack of energy. I did like the aesthetic of the costumes though. By the end of the night the actors had hit their stride and the zone improved throughout the evening.
TITANS OF TERROR TRAM
Still not scary at all, but I enjoyed the kill scenes. This too suffered from daylight, but it was cool to walk it without a sea of people surrounding you. I felt like it was shorter this year in terms of design and scare opportunities. Chucky does nothing for me. Still really cool to walk along Bates Motel, that will never get old for me. We resolved to try it again in the dark and get our annual pic with Norman.
THE SHINING
I've never seen The Shining in it's entirety, only in bits and pieces here and there. It never excited me and begged me to watch it thoroughly. I read the book but even that never really got me going. I've always been impartial when it came to this property. All of that could have very well contributed to the fact that this maze did absolutely nothing for me. I understand it's hard to execute, but the elevator scene was underwhelming. The actress in the bathroom scene was on point though, she was devoted and quite frankly the only energy in this maze worth noting. The masks were odd to me, often times not fitting the actors well. My favorite part was the air conditioning in the snowy hedge maze. My mom and boyfriend, who have both seen the movie in full and actually kind of like it, were both bored by this maze. He gave points for Murdy not shying away from it, but was not impressed. We did not repeat this maze later in the evening for fear of wasting time.
INSIDIOUS: BEYOND THE FURTHER
This was the maze I was most excited for as I am a fan of the films and I've loved both mazes from prior years. They were scary and fun and made me uncomfortable, basically everything I desire in a maze. This one was SUCH a letdown. This is the Twitter house this year and by the time we got to it (about 8:20PM) Tucker and Specs were out of business cards for the night. This maze felt like one long black hallway with a few red doors once in a while. One actor got me really good while I was preoccupied with Duck Boy, and I did like ending hallway, but if you miss the scares the end will be lame. The pacing in this maze was off and most of the talent was lazy. How is staring at me and thrusting your crotch scary? We also did not repeat this one.
At this point our tour guide gave us a 15 minute break to use the restroom or shop or whatever. We used this time to sit down for a second and talk to the tour guide we barely heard a word from. In prior years the tour seemed very exclusive. You got up close and personal with your guide and they had a whole experience and spiel prepared for you. Alec was wonderful and friendly, but you could tell they sent him out there with no script, no "fun facts" or stories to go with the attractions we were visiting. This year's RIP was lackluster in comparison to prior years. 4 people decided to drop out of the tour at this point and we continued towards Toxic Tunnel. I walked at the front of the group chatting with Alec about supposed hauntings at the studio and the drama that caused them to lose the rights to The Conjuring.
TOXIC TUNNEL
This scarezone is a waste of talent. The actors were on their game but the atmosphere does nothing to get you in fear mode.
URBAN INFERNO
Yes yes yes yes YAAAASSSS. Uni needs to keep heading in this direction because it is definitely right. There was a lull with the ghillie people walkway, but the décor and music and actors worked so well in this zone. We all loved it and walked through it again after our tour to check it out even closer.
ASH VS EVIL DEAD
We all had a total blast in this maze. Could they have done more with it? Totally. But it was so B-movie and so Bruce Campbell. It had elements of humor in it that were done so well, unlike the atrocity that was This Is The End. The Ash actors had their bits down pat and it felt like you were in the show. We did this maze twice, and while the first time was better, we enjoyed it both times because we got different Ash sayings and gags.
SAW: THE GAMES OF JIGSAW
This maze was not scary at all, but we all were enticed by it's design. There were 3 scares I can remember seeing throughout both times we did it, and I almost feel like that's all there is. But the design of this maze is gorgeous. The lighting was great, all of the traps looked exquisite, and most of the victims were believable. The stench had apparently faded because we only noticed a slight smell in the bathroom scene. We went through this again just to look at everything closer. Such a piece of art, truly. Just not scary at all.
AMERICAN HORROR STORY: ROANOKE
I liked this season of AHS, I thought it was fun and different, so I enjoyed walking through this and re-living some of the moments from the show. Much like Saw, the set pieces in this maze were beautifully designed and executed, but it just was not scary. More scares in here than Saw, but nothing that really got any of us.
At this point in our evening our tour guide parted ways with us and we were left with 4.5 hours to go crazy and have fun. We took another stroll through Urban Inferno, Ash, and Saw then made our way back to the Lower lot where we rode Transformers and The Mummy then stopped for an ice cream cone. We passed on Jurassic Park and we passed on giving Insidious and The Shining another go. We made our way back to Terror Tram which was WAY more crowded the second time around. It looked much better at night and we had fun watching people run away from actors, but it still wasn't scary to us. We hit one more round of Blumhouse and The Walking Dead before finishing our night with Titans of Terror.
Our final hitch of the evening came when we returned to valet. We were one of two groups at the station when we got there, yet proceeded to watch dozens of groups come and go as we waited almost a half an hour. Staff and management apologized repeatedly but offered no explanation. There was no damage and the mileage hadn't changed, so our assumption was that they mismarked the space they left my car in so they couldn't find my car. First world problems, I know, but when it's 2am and you're beat the wait totally sucks.
If you're reading this sentence you've made it through a wordy babbling of my very fun night. The final verdict was that RIP has taken a bit of a nose-dive when it comes to special services, but we still felt the price was worth it to have unlimited FOTL. If you're doing RIP get there early and make the most of your dining time and avoid being rushed. The event was underwhelming in a lot of ways, and some elements felt like afterthoughts. But life is what you make it, and we made it fun!
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7 hours ago, StraightEdge said:
That werewolf prop used to be in the House of Horrors. I think they're going to place it in the Hell-O-Ween scare zone cause it's description says it's going to have "Witches, ghosts, vampires, werewolves and undead children..."
Ah, yes, makes sense. I was assuming it'd go in a maze on the backlot where it's stored, didn't even consider it's just a storage location haha.
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Were there werewolves in Roanoke and I just don't remember?
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Has anyone seen any merch arrive at Uni yet? I'm curious to see the offerings and know how broke I will or will not be next weekend
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7 hours ago, StraightEdge said:
Well, 2 weeks away and our beloved event starts. I got RIP passes and I'm hitting it up with family. I went from just getting GA 2014, to FOL in 2016 and now I get to experience the event with VIP, lesgedit
Have fun! I hope you love it! We're doing VIP 9/16. Sooooo excited!!!!
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On 8/25/2017 at 11:33 PM, WESKER69 said:
Squeee... I'd love to hear more about this maze. I wish there was pics and/or video footage of it.
I can't math, I was 7. Anywho, I can only remember a few specific things from that event.
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Monsterquarium was in Waterworld. I vaguely remember a few switchbacks in the queuing area that were decorated but the bulk of my memory was walking around the waterfront. They had dead scuba divers and creatures from the black lagoon actually in the water, and a mad scientist was cutting the little mermaid in half with water spray effects.
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I was chased to the Starway by a guy with a chainsaw. My mom watched the whole thing but I thought I got lost so I was terrified. I chewed on my glow necklace, breaking it in my mouth. Disgusting.
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I was absolutely petrified by the Crypt Keeper when I was a kid, and I think he was something of an icon for the event that year because he was everywhere. I think he even had a maze because I remember walking through the first room and seeing him there, then spending the rest of the maze with my face buried in my mom’s hips just waiting for it to be over.
On 8/26/2017 at 11:33 AM, LeakyBumBum said:I don't remember too many specifics about the beginning, there are two new demons in the new insidious movie, Key Demon and Dirty lady. I believe both of those will be heavily featured at the beginning of the maze. Then you go through a red door from 3rd movie and you see those scenes but this time they're all in the further. Then you go through second red door from 1st movie, scene from that movie but in the further. Then you go through a red prison door and you get scared by the 5 demons: Lipstick demon, Man Who Can't Breathe, bride in black, dirty lady, and Key demon. I never watched the movies but the maze has these two (like tv show investigators who are like a duo) and they introduce you to the maze, I believe they're also the ones outside doing the twitter password thing.
I can't wait for Insidious, this sounds really cool!
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What is scary or not scary, creative or not creative, is so subjective that you can't always hit, you're bound to miss once in a while. Sure HHN has it's kinks and flaws, but it's just flat out fun. And I'm not a bootlicking fangirl. My heart lies with Knott's as it was the first haunt I ever attended, 20 years ago now. I remember my mom taking me to Horror Nights in 1997 when most considered me to be way too young (just a hair shy of 7) and I was in awe! The Monsterquarium maze (in my memory) was pure blood and guts camp, and that to me is what the event is all about. Walk me through movies, walk me through your weird mashup of monsters I've seen on the screen. It's a living art exhibit and it's just damn fun!
As for this year, I'm really excited to see what they do with Ash vs Evil Dead! And I've had nothing but amazing scares in all incarnations of the Insidious mazes, so I have high hopes this one will be no different. Is it September 16th yet?!!?
Side note : Mad props to you scare actors on here. I've had the opportunity to participate in a local haunt and it was not easy to keep up the energy when your costume/makeup gets hot and the guests act like morons.
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We get to enter through his trailer? I love this!
Thanks for posting photos. I don't have a pass anymore and I was starting to get curious about the construction.
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On 8/7/2017 at 1:36 PM, Mother Firefly said:
Can the people doing RIP this year please come back and let us know what the tour consists of after you do it? I'm planning on going later in October and I love to know what to expect as it gets closer!
Will do! My family is doing it the first Saturday so I'll post a review or something.
RIP is pricey, but in the past it became the route our family has sworn by. Yes, you can save money and see everything if you map out your evening and stick to it. But we just put a little away throughout the year and save up, and it's so worth it for us to have unlimited FOTL and not have to stress about making it to every maze at least once. I really like the way it seems to be laid out this year too. Our check in time is during early entry and it says to expect 4 hours for your tour and meal. So in theory our group thing will end by 9:20 PM leaving almost 5 hours of unlimited FOTL madness! Super stoked for it!
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On 8/5/2017 at 6:00 PM, StraightEdge said:
You think I'll be able to get 2 RIP passes by the 25th of this month or September 1st to get them for opening night? I'll have $ by then
The group size is 14 people and there are still 15 check in times with availability (upwards of 210 spots left). Unless there is some massive groundbreaking announcement that causes people to throw their $$$ at Murdy and crew you should be good to go!
I'm personally very excited they brought back RIP. It became a family tradition for us. Since we usually make it to HHN only once a season, it's totally worth the money for us to have the perks.
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Just posted the Game Plan, assuming Early Entry is the backlot. If anything changes, I'll change it. As of now, it's not much different from last year.
Thanks for the plan! We've decided to forego and just try your plan. Excited!
Is opening weekend typically packed?
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except that you didn't get to see everything idk how that was a bad experience considering in 2010 there was only 5 houses including HOH, so all you missed was one.
It being a bad experience had more to do with the mood everyone was in because of the crowds and the fact that we seemed to run into nothing but jackasses all night. I suppose that can't be helped much with a plan of attack, but there's a part of me that feels like if we do have a plan and can get a good chunk of the mazes taken care of early in the night we'll be more relaxed and have less of a chance of a repeat in moods. But it'll just be the two of us so that already is huge decrease in stress. lol
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I can't wait to see what plans and strategies y'all come up with after opening weekend. I'm doing FOTL on 9/19 with family, but I'm likely heading back on a Sunday in October with a GA ticket. The last time I used a GA ticket was 2010 and it was a fracking nightmare! I think we got 3 mazes done before half of the group got fed up and left, while the rest of us used the last hour to do Terror Tram and HOH. Definitely don't want to repeat that. It'll be my friend's first time so I want to make sure he sees everything.
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I'm excited and terrified. Rodents are the only thing on this earth that scare me. They better not give a rat a chainsaw.
I can handle a giant rat but a fucking giant cockroach, I don't know how I can handle this, hate those fuckers
Looks like both of you are screwed
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I'm looking forward to this, especially since they're finally booting TWD from Terror Tram this year.
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DTH, I have no clue how anyone could come out of that maze and think anything less than "HOLY CRAP THAT WAS AMAZING!!!"! And I'm not even a fan of the franchises!
Doctor Jeffula, I was a bit worried going in to the stripped down VIP experience since we had sold our friends on our experience last year, but we all had such a great time that they didn't even care about the differences between what we described and what we received this year. I honestly believe that VIP will always be worth it if you can afford it. The people I go with and I only make it to HHN once a season and we save up. The lines are so insane that the $210 is worth the unlimited FOL alone. The lounge and food and drinks are all just bonuses. While initially I was bummed we didn't have a special backlot experience, our guide Sheryl was so much fun that she made our trolley journey a blast. And yes our "exclusive scarezone" was cheesey and silly, but it really was a fun addition to set the tone for the evening and say "Welcome!". I'll continue doing it every year as long as I can afford it.
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ARRIVAL AND VIP LOUNGE/BUFFET
Having had such a great experience with the VIP ticket last year, we opted to go VIP again this year, and brought along a pair of first timers. The 5 of us arrived around 5pm and got straight in line at security. Within minutes we had made our way through security and over to another line to check in for our VIP experience. Again within minutes we were checked in, assigned to group G (for "Gravediggers"), and escorted to an upstairs lounge to relax until further notice.
This year's VIP experience was a bit different than last years. Last year we were given a tour time to be led through the backlot for an exclusive experience and then were free to enjoy the buffet and lounge at our leisure until the lounge closed. This year we were given a time slot to enjoy the buffet before heading out on a trolley to the metro sets for the mazes and the backlot for Terror Tram. We were given explicit directions that we were allowed in the lounge during our meal time and were not supposed to return until the meal times ended at 11, the lounge would then remain open for desserts and drinks from 11pm-1am. We were assigned to the first meal time and at 6:20 we were escorted from the front of the park to the VIP lounge located in the Mask-a-Raid scarezone.
One "perk" of being a VIP this year was getting our own exclusive scarezone, and the only way to enter the lounge was to go through the SZ. Basically it was a short alley with tombstones, statues, and mausoleums with scareactors sprinkled throughout. Some were living statues, some were monsters hiding behind tombstones, some were trees and bushes hiding in trees and bushes. It was nothing super spectacular but it was really fun to look at and I think it was a great little welcome for the evening. I did get a startle out of a tree that suddenly was in my face after a statue had distracted me. We walked through the zone 3 times and each time was a different experience. Some guests got scared, some were bored, but all of us got a kick out of the GA public asking security why they couldn't go through it.
Some of our group really enjoyed the buffet, while some of us thought it was ok. The selection was great as there was a variety of items to choose from, but even having the first dining slot some of the food tasted like it had been out all night. The beef short ribs and the mac and cheese were to die for, so load up on those if you're going VIP. The beer selection was Heineken, Corona, or Amstel. I opted for Heineken and it was ice cold and delicious. Others in our group had chardonnay and they said it was good.
After our meal the Gravediggers were called to meet in the courtyard of the lounge for our tour. Last year the tour consisted of a ride through the backlot with ghost stories and an Insidious experience on the shores of Amity, followed by a walkthrough of the Metro Set mazes and Terror Tram. This year there was no special tour, just a private trolley ride past the guests who had to walk down to the Metro Sets followed by another ride to the Terror Tram. Our tour guide was a bucket of fun named Sheryl and our driver was named Lizzie, so naturally the ride in the trolley was filled with Lizzie Borden puns. Sheryl did an excellent job keeping our group interested, informed, and amped up. She was a self proclaimed chicken who refused to walk through the mazes with us, but she did do Terror Tram and showed us just how much of a chicken she really is. The littlest thing would scare her, and somehow that made a repetitive Terror Tram somewhat enjoyable. After the Metro Set mazes and Terror Tram we were on our own to enjoy the rest of the evening.
Now on to the important stuff....
MAZES AND SCAREZONES
Terminus Scarezone - I could not see a thing! Dark, fog, strobes, and scares from loud banging noises. That's all I remember. Much scarier than last year's version of the SZ.
From Dusk Till Dawn
The wait time at this maze was only 50 minutes when we got here on our tour, and I didn't see it go below an hour the rest of the night. We waited 2 minutes with our FOL. At the door I gave the doorman the Twitter password and he gave me Santanico's calling card. I also gave the password to Richie and he warned me not to go into the maze as he had seen what will happen to me. He flipped through his notebook and showed me a gruesome drawing of a woman torn in pieces and said that was the destiny that awaited me. As he was showing me his sketches a very convincing Seth came up to us and apologized to me and started yelling at Richie. They began arguing and the doorman led me into the maze. Having been a huge fan of the film for years and loving the TV adaptation, that part of the evening was a highlight for me. The actors were on point and were having a lot of fun in their roles. The maze itself was cool to look at but it left me wanting more. I felt like parts of it were really half-assed and disconnected. Some of the scareactors had great energy, others were lackluster. The soudclips and voiceovers from the TV show were obviously used to help narrate the story to people who weren't familiar, but they were more distracting to those of us in the group who were familiar. I was amused by a guest at the dinner table that looked eerily like Quentin Tarantino. Not sure if that was an intentional nod to his writing and role in the film or just a coincidence. Overall I think this maze was a decent effort, but it missed the mark for me. We only went through this one once.
The Walking Dead: End of the Line
The wait time at this maze was 90 minutes, and reached upwards of 150 minutes at a point in the evening. We walked straight in to this one. Many of the sets were recycled and very familiar. Some of us in the group felt this was more of a "best of TWD" than a "TWD Season 4" maze. The store scene was fun and filled with decent scares, and the outside scene was put together really well. All of the scareactors had a ton of great energy and they all did an amazing job scaring every person that walked through with us. As much as I love the show I think Walkers just aren't scary anymore. I really do enjoy the TWD mazes every year but I think this year's maze just wasn't unique enough. I still liked it and we went through it twice. The second time around wasn't as good, but I think that's just because I already knew what to expect.
AVP: Alien vs Predator
This maze had the longest line throughout the entire evening. It was 110 minutes the first time we went through it and reached 180 minutes at a point. We walked straight in to this one the first time and waited about 10 minutes the second time. I must admit I am not a fan of Alien or Predator. I can appreciate the artistry behind the films and the creatures are amazing creations, but both franchises never really did anything for me. HOLY CRAP DID I LOVE THIS MAZE!!!! The first time we went through it my mind was absolutely blown. The creatures were massive, the set design was gorgeous, the story line and the flow were coherent, the scareactors were fabulous, the scares were amazing even when expected. I seriously cannot rave about this maze enough. It was fabulous both times I walked through it, but the first was better, and not at the fault of any of the staff or the maze itself. My second time through I had a guest in front of me who kept stopping for long periods of time and at one point she backed me into a wiry tree. Nonetheless, this maze was spectacular. I adored it.
The chest-bursters look phallic and the Queen is epically epic!!! I swear I stood staring up at her in amazement.
Terror Tram
Yawn. There's not much to say about this really. It was basically the same as previous years with a few minor changes in layout. Terror Tram needs some serious help or they should just get rid of it. I'm over it.
The Simpsons Ride - Walked on this ride. Not a favorite of mine, but it was fun to do with our group, especially with no wait.
Skullz Scarezone - Two stilt walkers and a sign saying Skullz does not a scarezone make. FAIL.
Clowns 3D: Music by Slash
The wait time was 55 minutes, we waited 5. I should mention that I almost never finish a 3D maze with the glasses on. I get really dizzy with this style of 3D, so I walked the first couple of winding hallways with the glasses on then took them off. The makeup in this maze was really neat to look at and I liked the cheesey music, but that's about all I liked. No scares, the sets weren't impressive, and the cast was bland. I'm happy we only waited 5 minutes. I'd be mad if I wasted an hour of my night on this maze.
Transformers: The Ride 3D - Walked right on it. Fun as always.
Jurassic Park In The Dark - Walked right on. Still love hearing GNR on this ride, makes me laugh. Fun as always.
Revenge of The Mummy - Waited 5 minutes. Incredibly short ride but I still like it.
An American Werewolf in London
I had the fortune of experiencing this maze in Orlando last year and it blew me away. It was terrifying and beautifully done and I loved every second of it. So I was very excited to see how Murdy and crew would tweak it to our event. This maze did not disappoint. While I liked Orlando's house a bit better, it wasn't better by much. The wolves are terrifying, the scares are done well, the makeup is fun, the story is told well enough. This maze was another favorite of the night for me.
Mask-a-Raid Scarezone - Great costumes, decent makeup, fun decorations. Not many scares.
Despicable Me Minion Mayhem - Cute ride. It broke down for 5 minutes while we were on it. The worker kept droning on about how we might be stuck on it for another half an hour, luckily that was not the case. We were able to ride it and get out the two mazes we hadn't done within 10 minutes of boarding.
Dark Christmas Scarezone - The best scarezone I've ever been through. Loved loved loved it. From the music to the costumes to the makeup, it was spectacular.
Dracula Untold
This maze is the sleeper hit of this year's event. I went in to this maze expecting it to be one of the worst second only to Face Off, but this maze was amazing! Because the line was only 10 minutes long they were spacing out the groups and they sent just the 5 of us in there alone. I honestly don't remember much of the sets from this maze because I spent the whole thing being nervous and getting really good scares. The claustrophobic layout of this maze really helped the energetic scareactors keep us screaming and jumping at every turn. I loved this maze.
Face Off: In The Flesh
Much like Dracula, this maze surprised me. Again the wait time was only 10 minutes so they sent in our group of 5 alone, allowing us to get more scares. It was nowhere near as scary as the better mazes of the evening, but as a fan of Face Off it was cool to see some of the makeups I loved from the show. It was basically UMR round 3, but it wasn't as bad as previous incarnations. I'm not sure if it was the actors or the fact that we felt alone, but the maze was much better than it had been in previous years.
Purge Scarezone - Based on what I saw this was pretty much the same as last year. Scareactors did a decent job but the theming was nothing special.
OVERALL
My favorite mazes of the night were AVP: Alien vs Predator, Dracula Untold, and An American Werewolf in London.
My least favorite maze was Clowns 3D.
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I did it last year and am doing it again tomorrow night. I personally think VIP is worth the money if you have it to spend. I like being able to go through all of the mazes multiple times and it's nice to have a lounge to retreat to for a minute when you want to relax. It's really all about the unlimited front of the line for me. I usually only make it to HHN once a year so for me it's worth the money to get to experience everything repeatedly and get my fill
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Thanks for the tips instamatic! I have no problem getting there early (I often show up around 5, sometimes even before security barriers are completely set up). It would be nice to grab the first tour time. Perhaps since the lounge is near the El Cucuy exit, I'll pop through that maze first upon opening if there is enough time. Do they begin checking in VIP people at the same time they open the ticket turnstiles or before?
I'll certainly hold off eating until later as well, probably get something small on City Walk beore getting in security line, then having dinner after the tour.
Thanks again!
They begin VIP check in first, then FOL check in, then open the gates and walk you to the Opening Scaramonies. It was every man for himself madness!
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So, I was wondering where the VIP lounge is located? And where exactly do you check in for VIP at upon arrival to security? I've never noticed either in past years. Thanks.
This will be my first time doing VIP as well (I've done FOL for the past several years), but realized I wouldn't be able to go more than once this year, like I have been in previous years, so wanted to get the most out of my time in the park with unlimited front-of-line access. The extra tour, and the free food is also certainly a bonus.
The lounge is located right next to where T2 was/Despicable Me is being built. It's in a convenient location haunt-wise because it's in a scarezone and right at the exit of the El Cucuy maze.
The check in is really easy to find. There's a huge yellow sign directing you to two security lines on the furthest right of the entrance. Once you go through security they have you line up at Will Call right next to the VIP door. Once they begin check in you show your ticket and ID then go through the VIP door to trade your ticket in for a lanyard and wristband.
One tip I have based on what I experienced, get there early and grab the early tour times. We had the first tour group of the night so we were able to have a quick drink then head off on our tour while the buffet line was HUGE and there wasn't enough space for everyone to sit down. When we got back from our tour the lounge was mostly empty, so there was no wait for food or drinks and we didn't have trouble finding a place to relax and enjoy our meal. Plus if the tour is more of bonus to you and not really your focus, it's nice to have it out of your way so you're able to enjoy the event without keeping track of your time.
ALSO NOTE we were told the food and drink service stopped at 11:30pm and the lounge closed at midnight.
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Thanks for posting your review! I'm looking forward to my first time VIP'ing it this coming Saturday. One thing you didn't mention - how was the food in the lounge?
It was decent. There was a lot to choose from such as sandwiches, BBQ items, burger sliders, a very yummy Mac and cheese, stuffed pasta shells....there really was a variety. My only complaint was that the hot items weren't actually hot. They were pretty cold. But the food tasted good and I was satisfied after eating.
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Hey hey hey.
There's five scarecrowz in the lower lot. Not three.
Coming down the Starway and walking around the area I only saw 3 at a time. Maybe the others were on break or out of my line of sight?
I saw a typical scary scarecrow, one in all white, and another with hay tufts coming from his chest.
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Great review, your opinions reflect a lot of the same that we've been saying around here. How would you rank this year with the other years?
It's hard for me to rank it because our VIP experience (the experiment and just the perks of VIP in general) were all completely new to us and we had such a great time. But I think if you take away that aspect and I were to have gone with FOL like usual, I would rank this year amongst my lesser favorites.
The event as a whole felt off. It wasn't BAD, but it didn't feel right. Maybe it was because I was sick, maybe it's because some of the mazes didn't live up to their potential in my mind, maybe it was all of the construction walls, maybe it was the major waste of time wtf moment that was the B & T show. It just wasn't up to par with what I was expecting. The park was dead and it all just felt disjointed. But Insidious was a major and unexpected hit that shot some life into the event for me, and I was blown away by the intensity of Dead on Arrival. I wanted that SZ to last for a long time because it truly was that good.
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Wow, amazing review! It sounds like the tour entertainment is at least a step up from last year (although in the same location). So the experiment, backlot attractions, and Terror Tram are all part of the VIP tour?
Yes, the experiment and the backlot attractions are where you end up definitely. Then we were given the option to stick with our guide and private tram up to the Terror Tram, or stay behind on the backlot and take the general public tram back to Transformers. It allowed us to be by ourselves for a bit during Terror Tram too, until we caught up with the previous group on the climb up to the Psycho house.
instamatic's HHN RIP 9/16 review
in HHN 2017: Reviews
Posted
It honestly depends on your personality type. If you like to talk to new people and are going to be assertive in asking the guide questions I would say do the tour and have fun flying through the mazes and seeing your groups reactions. I am a chatty person who likes to meet new people, so I had some decent conversation with the guide while walking. If you don't care at all about any of that, you can definitely opt and do your own thing. There wasn't any special experience or any extra info most of us don't already know about the event or the properties featured. It was a very basic tour as far as tours go.