Dracula’s Forest 2016 Haunt Review

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Location: 2828 Rock Rd, Clarks Summit, PA 18411

Web Page: http://www.draculasforest.com

Introduction:

Dracula’s Forest has spent 33 years providing a haunted attraction experience that in some aspects have been frozen in time, for better or worse. We have never visited an attraction that has so much potential to be something truly special yet fails to capitalize on its rather obvious strengths. We have enjoyed Dracula’s Forest every single season, and continue to do so, but so much more can be done to not only bring the attraction into the 21st century, but to compete in an ever increasingly aggressive market in which new attractions offer more relevant, detailed and mature attractions at a similar price point.

From a nostalgic standpoint, it is easy to appreciate the unique old school features of this attraction as many of the vintage set designs and scenes are unlike any other in modern haunted attractions. The gritty, realistic atmosphere of the attraction itself is the perfect foundation for a special experience that we hope one day is capitalized on before it is too late. Minor alterations to this attractions approach, as well as some modernization regarding promotion, presentation, and execution of the attraction itself, would go a long way towards providing an unforgettable experience that keeps Dracula’s Forest at the forefront of the industry in the Northeast PA/Tristate area.

As it stands, Dracula’s Forest harkens back to the late 1990’s, during a time in which the haunt industry was not nearly as competitive, or geared towards true horror Halloween fans as it is today. It pains us to see such potential ignored, as minor and larger scale developments over a period of time can allow this attraction to respect its history while building upon the historical significance to create an unforgettable event. It is time for Dracula’s Forest to evolve, competition continues to grow and with some minor adjustments and a refocusing of resources, new life can be injected into this historical gem of an attraction. A deep respect for the past, coupled with an aggressive plan to tackle on the industry addressing newer trends and interests can make Dracula’s Forest shine again and we sincerely hope they decide to take the necessary steps to not only survive but thrive into the future.

Attractions:

Dracula’s Forest features two attractions, the vintage “Haunted Hayride”, and additional “Walk of Doom”. Each attraction, while enjoyable can be greatly enhanced to address the horror interests of diverse age groups and haunt fans, while justifying a rather steep $25.00 price for a combo ticket.  We were also confused by the lack of attention paid to Dracula’s Forest internet/social media presence. On their Facebook page parking is advertised as $2.00 per car, yet is actually $3.00. While not a major difference it is the lack of attention to detail that hurts the professional presentation of the product.  Furthermore, the once bustling “midway” or “fall festival” is a far cry from the offerings provided by other local and larger mainstream haunted attractions. We always enjoy the hayride attraction and overall found the hayride’s classical presentation to be an effective haunted attraction experience. Dracula’s Forest can be one of the scariest, most intense haunted attractions in the area. The drive to the attraction itself sets the perfect tone for a creepy atmospheric haunt that terrifies for years to come.

Haunted Hayride:

The “Haunted Hayride” is a throwback to the gritty hayrides of year’s past, utilizing unique set pieces and an amazing atmosphere/environment to create a memorable haunted attraction experience. The realistic, custom built set pieces some of which have been present over the past several seasons are not found in many larger scale haunted attractions. The “Haunted Hayride” effectively hides scare actors who augment the various vintage scenes which are found throughout the attraction. While the set designs feature unique props and structures unlike any other, there is an overall lack of theming between each scene. Furthermore, the scare actors are generally actors dressed in hooded sweatshirts, and jeans featuring random masks that have little to do with the larger set or scene serving as a backdrop. Thematic planning based on each scene, coupled with scare actors who are dressed to fit each set would better help Dracula’s Forest in telling a story throughout the hayride.

The level of old school gory details placed into most scenes is impressive enough that themes, characters, and storylines can be created throughout the attraction. Actors in random skull masks, while scary for children or teens, fail to reach the potential of the attraction. Some of the newer set design and props are clearly purchased from Spirit Halloween stores and do not fit the overall horrific, rustic nature of this attraction. Despite these issues, the atmosphere of the hayride and the vintage set designs are a treat to see. Improvements to the hayrides theming, actor training and a sense of purpose behind each scene would greatly augment the attractions quality.

Several minor changes and alterations were made to the hayride this year, some which improved the experience while others were perplexing. Midpoint during the hayride a loudspeaker/announcer “welcomes” guests to the attraction. This soundtrack choice was odd as it distracted from the vintage “Haddonfield” memorial hospital scene and generally felt out of place. Furthermore, Dracula’s Forest at one time featured an insane flying “chainsaw” scene which has since been abandoned. While these changes hurt the overall experience we enjoyed the new, more theatrical Michael Myers/Halloween climax which we felt was a step in the right direction regarding theming of each hayride scene.

The Walk of Doom:

The “Walk of Doom” is an outdoor, partially self-guided tour of the creepy woods surrounding the hayride at Dracula’s Forest. The dense foliage and dark atmosphere of the attraction is the perfect backdrop for a terrifying experience. While we explored the trail, we again encountered a variety of random scare actors who had little purpose or thought put into their characterization. Some of the scenes/actors are more engaging than others, we thoroughly enjoyed our interactions with “Bizzaro or Bizzerko” the clown and a rather off-color family which wanted us to “see” their demented “baby”, yet felt others lacked the basic training to generate scares other than for a teen population. Some of the actors simply would scream “run” louder and louder which was not scary, did not build tension or relate to the several scenes found throughout the trail. Being lost in the dense forest of the attraction itself generates fear, as the environment and surroundings of the haunt itself are truly frightening. A more focused effort on building interactive walk-through set designs, coupled with actors who are relevant to each scene can improve “Walk of Doom’s” scare level creating an outdoor haunted trail that utilizes its effective environmental atmosphere to generate legitimate scares.

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