IF YOU GO
Buffalo Gap Historic Village: Near Abilene, Texas, http://tfhcc.com/?tribe—events=paranormal-history
Busch Gardens: Tampa, Fla., http://seaworldparks.com/en/howloscream-tampa/Attractions/Haunted-Houses/The-Experiment
Voodoo Music Experience: New Orleans, Nov. 1-3, http://thevoodooexperience.com
Disney: Lake Buena Vista, Fla., https://disneyworld.disney.go.com/
Universal: Orlando, Fla., and Hollywood, Calif., http://www.halloweenhorrornights.com/
Ghost tours and haunted houses are hallmarks of the weeks leading up to Halloween. But this year, some attractions are upping their game with an interactive component.
They’re not just listening to ghost stories. They’re learning how to do their own paranormal investigations on ghost-hunting overnight stays at Buffalo Gap Historic Village near Abilene, Texas.
Busch Gardens in Tampa, Fla., just launched “The Experiment,” where visitors are asked to participate in experiences so intense that they sometimes decline.
“If you refuse three times, the experiment is terminated,” said spokesman Travis Claytor. The experiments “may or may not involve live animals or creepy crawlies,” he added. “There may or may not be something in there for germaphobes. Psychologically this is one of the most invasive experiences you’ll ever have. I was there Friday on opening night and there were several people who could not make it through.”
Pat Konopelski, president of the Haunted Attraction Association, says the new intensity and increased interaction is simply the maturing of an industry that started out 25 years ago “scaring people with rubber masks and plastic knives. Every year people came back and wanted more.”
Here are some other Halloween-themed destinations, events and attractions.
New Orleans
New Orleans’ annual Voodoo Music Experience festival often coincides with Halloween but this year takes place immediately after, Nov. 1-3, in City Park. Coming from a range of musical genres, headliners include Macklemore & Ryan Lewis, Afrojack, Nine Inch Nails, The Cure and Kid Rock.
Other Halloween events in the Big Easy include a Vampire Ball thrown by the official Anne Rice Vampire Lestat Fan Club. A link from the author’s home page states that she will be attending the ball this year.
A brand-new Halloween parade in the French Quarter, Krewe of Boo, kicks off Oct. 26, at 6 p.m. followed by a Spook Fest party for costumed attendees inside the Mardi Gras World attraction.
Theme parks
In Florida, the streets of Universal Orlando are being taken over by zombies inspired by AMC’s popular show, “The Walking Dead,” for Halloween Horror Nights, held select evenings through Nov. 2. One of the park’s eight haunted houses is also themed on the show. Other haunted houses take inspiration from horror video game series Resident Evil and horror films “Evil Dead,” “The Cabin in the Woods” and “An American Werewolf in London.”
For the younger crowd, Disney offers Mickey’s Not-So-Scary Halloween Party at Disney World’s Magic Kingdom in Florida, and Mickey’s Halloween Party at Disneyland in Anaheim, Calif.
Ghost tours
Unlike the in-your-face scare zones and trapped-in-a-room experiences popping up at theme parks, ghost tours — whether in inns, historic sites or neighborhoods — tend to be more fun than fright. Expect a good ghost story and readings of alleged paranormal activity on hand-held meters.
A list of 30 B&Bs and inns with ghost-themed stays can be found at http://www.betterwaytostay.com/thirty-great-places-sleep-ghost/ . Or take a look at haunted hotel packages offered by Historic Hotels of America: http://www.historichotels.org/hotel-deals/featured-packages.php .
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