Our group of three adults went on Tuesday, October 23rd, 2013, a clear night about a week before Halloween. The site opens at 6:30pm. We showed up just after 7pm, and waited no more than a COMBINED 10 minutes for a ticket and ALL THREE of the attractions.
Before I proceed to summarize each of the three attractions, I will preface by stating that I don't scare easily. I'm satisfied with the experience so long as the actors stay in character, and the attraction is visually and aurally appealing throughout. Undoubtedly, pyrotechnics, special effects, and a storyline can sweeten the experience immensely.
HAYRIDE
Easily the strongest of the three attractions, and probably the best single haunted attraction I've ever experienced. It's about a 25 minute ride through the woods, start to finish. There were SO many live actors. Since the path is a complete circle, I wouldn't be surprised of some of the actors migrated back and forth between sections... but it's difficult to say for sure. As the ride progressed through several well-constructed scenes, the actors were appropriately dressed and in character to match. The moonshine-brewing rednecks even smelled like moonshine! There were lots of surprises, lots of interaction, and even a good deal of light contact, but not too much... just enough to skeeve you out. Rest assured, the only thing that would cause you harm might be the overwhelming smell of diesel exhaust from the tractor.
CORN MAZE/TRAIL
Despite a great deal of ambient light pollution that the trees otherwise filtered for the hayride, the engineers did a fantastic job in making sure the corn maze was chock full of surprises. Similar to the hayride, the trail progressed through several scenes with lots of live actors and animatronics. Very light fog (mostly natural last night, I believe) was used to disperse the light of strategically placed flood bulbs. So you'd be walking along, and before you know it, you're face to face with someone you never saw coming. Perhaps they were standing there the whole time!? The dispersion of light also enhanced any surprises as you rounded a corner into a floodlight that's facing into your path. Total time was about 15-20 minutes.
HOUSE
Very elaborate and impressive sets throughout. Some of the costumes were unbelievably fantastic. I couldn't believe one was even on stilts! Despite tight quarters, the actors managed to hide and sneak fairly successfully in the shadows. I was impressed how long the walkthrough was (15-20 minutes) despite how small the building looks.
Overall, the amount of love and effort put into this project is outstanding. Even though I didn't find it particularly scary, I felt it was worth every penny... especially since I got to see my poor Russian mother-in-law curled up in a ball in the middle of the hay wagon. Evidently, she was horrified. They just don't have stuff like this in Russia... though I'm pretty sure they do have chainsaw-wielding bears.
Tips:
+ Do the hayride FIRST. It's the first of the three attractions to close each night.
+ Go on a weeknight with clear weather, and try to get there before 7pm.
+ Buy a combo ticket, NOT individual tickets to each attraction.
+ Get the coupon from their website to save $10 per adult combo ticket, making the price $30 instead of $40. You will need to print one per person.
+ As with any haunted attraction, the live actors are smart enough to know who to scare. It's what they're paid to do, and they love a good challenge. Cowering in the back or middle of your group will only make it worse. They will find you, and they will be relentless in doing so. If you truly cannot handle the thought of strangers getting in your face, and trying to scare you to the point of crying or losing control of bodily functions, then save your money and go rent Despicable Me 2 instead.
+ If you're leading your group through the house or corn maze, you bear the responsibility of keeping a healthy buffer zone between you and the group in front of you. Not doing so will most certainly result in a less satisfying experience for your entire group. Do not cave in to the demands of the wussies in the back of your group! Hopefully the staff doesn't feed people through like cattle when it's crowded.
+ Also, if you're leading your group, and you manage to make eye contact with an actor hiding ahead or next to you, give a subtle point "behind" (like point with your thumb into the front of your shoulder), so they might provide a surprise to someone behind you. You can enhance that surprise by momentarily drawing your friends' attention to the other side.
