The Haunted Hotel (Louisville, KY)
“Home Sweet Bloody Home”
By Noah Wullkotte: jollypumpkin@aol.com
Kevin and Brian Stich, former owners of Wolf Creek Haunted Forest would get very bad news this year. After the end of the 2011 season, the land they were using was not going to be available for the 2012 haunt season. This brought an end to Wolf Creek Haunted Forest in Brandenburg, KY and their haunt dreams or so they thought. As they closed one door, another one opened. Terry Campbell and Todd Moore, owners of The Haunted Hotel in Louisville, KY decided to sell their haunt and this was the opportunity Kevin and Brian were looking for.
The Haunted Hotel has new owners, but that doesn’t mean it doesn’t have the same intensity it did before. The Haunted Hotel begins inside an old elevator with 2 freaks that will touch, stare and torment you while the elevator malfunctions. The Hellevator is more intense than ever with more emphasis on interaction with customers. I was honestly getting a little nervous as these two sick and demented freaks poked and prodded me. Would I survive my descent into hell?
The Haunted Hotel has many new scenes for 2012 and some might cross the line of decency. Religious themes come into play in the new Jesus Crucifixion scene that features Jesus Christ nailed to a cross and a priest who keeps him company. This isn’t a priest you want to mess with. Another controversial scene is the Natzi Werewolf room. Yes, I said Natzi Werewolf room. I won’t ruin this for customers, but all I can say is that it ends with bang.
The Haunted Hotel is the type of haunt where anything can happen. This classic haunt is known for being one of the most intense haunts in the United States and this year the owners have taken it to the next level. The actors are insane and will scare you at any means necessary. There are few times where I get intimidated in a scene, but when I entered the gory butcher house and was grabbed by the scruff of my neck, I knew that I was in for a night of intense scares at The Haunted Hotel. Many of its actors use graphic language to instill fear into customers and are downright relentless.
Many new scenes return this year like the famous Haunted Hotel Shower scene. You’ll walk past a shower curtain where a girl can be seen showering behind it. She sticks her head out of the shower and then all hell breaks loose. Many scenes return this year, but one of my personal favorites has been eliminated. I’m of course talking about the Killer Santa scene. There are plans to bring this scene back in the near future and hopefully it’s improved a little. Over the years it’s become a little stale and predictable.
The Haunted Hotel doesn’t stick to a certain theme and hopefully the haunt focuses more on the hotel aspect of the haunt in the near future. This doesn’t take away from the intensity of the haunt though. The inside of the haunt is incredible, but the outside needs a little tweaking. The outside is themed after clowns. You’ll enter an impressive vortex tunnel, walk past a clown prisoner, escape from being hit by a charging car and more. The haunt ends with the craziest chainsaw chase you’ve ever been a part of. It’s very nerve wrecking and crazy as hell.
I quite enjoyed the outside of The Haunted Hotel, but it pales in comparison to the inside of the haunt. The inside of The Haunted Hotel is where this haunt really shines. Not only does The Haunted Hotel have the craziest actors around, it has some amazing animatronics.
The Haunted Hotel features 2 CGI animatronics this year. The first one is called The Asylum Door. You’ll walk past an aged door where a mental patient can be seen in the window walking through an asylum’s hallway as lights flicker off and on. She gets real close to the window and she begins to hit it with the base of the axe. The glass cracks before she proceeds to hit the sides of the door with her axe as it leaves big dents. She screams and pounds on the glass before vanishing and leaving the axe behind. You’ll meet this psychopath later in the haunt.
The other CGI animatronic is called “Zombie Attack”. A zombie can be seen feasting on his victim in the woods. He suddenly looks up and charges the window. A hunter takes a shotgun out and blows his head to smithereens as brain matter hits the customer in the face. It’s an impressive animatronic. There’s lots of impressive eye candy at The Haunted Hotel. This includes plant like creatures that attack you near the steps, the Hellevator, Mongo and more.
The Haunted Hotel has improved this year with a new level of intensity and improved acting. There are new scenes and slightly better theming. The total tour time is close to 20 minutes give or take a few minutes. Tickets are $18 a person and VIP Admission is $28. Haunted Hotel Lights Out admission is $10 and this event takes place on November 2nd and 3rd. Click here for a $2 off coupon good on Thursdays and Sundays.
You’ll check in, but you won’t check out at The Haunted Hotel.
Length-9 Design-9 Props/Animatronics-9 Acting-9 Scare Effect-10
Final Stab: 9.2
www.hauntedhotelky.com