Hauntville (Elyria, OH)
“Ohio’s Only 4-D Attraction”
By Noah Wullkotte: Jollypumpkin@aol.com
Hauntville in Elyria, OH is one of Ohio’s most unique and interactive haunted attractions. It’s located across from Midway Mall in Midway Crossings Shopping Center. It might not be the most publicized or talked about haunt in Ohio, but it’s definitely one of the best. Haunville offers customers 3 different attractions which are Cell Block 13, Psycho Manor and Wicked Clowns in 4-D. For only $16 you can experience 3 quality haunts that are scary, humorous and very entertaining.
Brand new this year is Wicked Clowns in 4-D. Wicked Clowns in 4-D is a trip through the wildest funhouse you’ve ever been apart of. It’s also the only 4-D haunt in the state of Ohio. Sound, touch and taste have been incorporated into your experience. Put your 3-D glasses on and enjoy the fun.
Many people have a fear of clowns called Coulrophobia. Your fears are just around the corner at Wicked Clowns in 4-D. This is a very unique haunt with scenes that Barnum Bailey would be envious of. Scenes are themed after the circus and a demented carnival. You don’t want to taste the popcorn this funhouse serves. Hauntville uses some amazing effects like its large spinning cage where a clown is in control of your fate. Will you puke or will you still be standing when the box stops spinning around and around.
Wicked Clowns in 4-D is a haunt where your fears are exploited. If you have Ophidiophobia (aka fear of snakes) then run and don’t look back. You’ll meet one of the largest snakes you’ve ever seen and he’s not very happy. This large prop has been customized to be bright and colorful and to perfectly fit the circus theme. Wicked Clowns in 4-D will have you entering a clown wall of fame, an ice cream truck, a popcorn stand, a display of oddities, a bathroom with a clown plumber and much more. It’s one of the best clown themed attractions I’ve walked through. The different smells can be disgusting or appetizing.
Cell Block 13 starts with a brief interrogation by a police officer. Welcome to Cellblock 13, the most unique corrections facility in the United States of America. Behind these walls contains the most insane criminal minds this side of the Mississippi River. There are 3 rules you must follow and you’ll be given a special nickname. Mine was Candy Ass. Make peace with God and go see the warden.
Cell Block 13 is a tour of the dark halls and rooms of a prison where the inmates have escaped and the staff is looking for fresh meat. A prisoner slams down his lunch tray and yells that you’re going to die. A mental patient is locked behind a metal cage where only a Frankenstein creature keeps him company. Hopefully he won’t escape. You’ll meet the doctor who wants you to donate a body part or two and a nurse who wants to extract some blood.
Cellblock 13 is the weakest of the attractions at Hauntville. The actors are very good, but some of the scenes are empty and could use more detail. There are too many black walls. Overall, it’s a quality attraction. Cellblock 13 transitions into Haunville’s second attraction called Psycho Manor. You’ll enter a dilapidated home that’s ruled by the undead and monsters that hide in the darkness. Enter the home of Benjamin Whitfield, the town Mortician who mysteriously disappeared when his wife Sarah and five children died in a plane crash. Do you believe in ghosts? You will at Psycho Manor.
Psycho Manor has a bone chilling soundtrack. Many of its scenes involve rooms you would see in a creepy haunted Victorian mansion. You’ll walk through a nursery with an evil baby that has glowing green eyes. Don’t wake the baby or else. A ghoul hides underneath a bed. He reaches out with his feather duster and waits for the perfect moment to attack. A funeral service has a corpse that isn’t quite dead yet. He pops up to say hello. Crazy Carl’s casket service will take care of you with its wide selection of caskets for all shapes and sizes. Enter the casket and rest in pieces.
Each attraction at Hauntville is as good as the next with Wicked Clowns in 4-D being City Blood’s favorite. Hauntville has improved a lot and doesn’t fail to impress us with its nice blend of animatronics, its well trained actors and nice sets. Don’t forget to get your picture taken in front of the “I Got Scared at Hauntville” sign. It might be featured on Hauntville’s Facebook page.
Hauntville is just shy of 30 minutes. Each attraction is more like a themed section of the haunt since you aren’t waiting in individual lines except for the first attraction. You might need to wait a few minutes before receiving your 3-D glasses. Tickets are $16 a piece and it includes admission to all 3 attractions. Click here to sign up for a $3 off discount good on Thursdays and Sundays.
Hauntville is where skeptics become believers in ghosts and killer clowns.
Length-10 Design-8 Props/Animatronics-9 Acting-8 Scare Effect-9
Final Stab: 8.8
www.elyriahauntedhouse.com