One of the most common questions we get at Castle Blood is “My 3 year-old/6 year-old/10 year-old/grandmother” may be coming with us? Is your haunted house appropriate for him/her?”
In most cases, the honest answer is “I don’t know because I don’t know your family member. We are a high startle, no gore guided tour that does not use either chainsaws or clowns. There will be things that jump out and make noise. Your group will be in darkened areas. If your family member does not like these things, then maybe our attraction is not for you, but I cannot be the judge of that. You know your family, what they know is done in fun and what keeps them up at night.”
At Castle Blood, we offer two types of tours. Our “Halloween Adventure Tour” is a guided tour that requires audience interaction with our actors in most of the scenes. In-between, the halls and passageways are “scare zones” that feature the elements that you would associate with a typical haunted house. Things pop out at you, make noise, and distract you in a way to set up a scare. In the scenes themselves, you collect the clues and puzzle pieces to “win the game” and become “Honorary Vampires.” Many of the areas, especially the hallways, are dimly-lit but not total darkness.
Our “No-Scare Matinees” are essentially the same tour, but without the scare actors, pneumatic props, and air canons in operation during daylight hours. Since the attraction is largely outdoors, natural daylight creates a “friendlier” atmosphere. More intense makeup and characters are toned down, and the addition of “trick-or-treating” for the young ones as they go with their guide is also part of the experience.
Given the above, there are some things that I can tell you to help with the above decision, which also applies to selection of other haunted or seasonal attractions:
1. Can your family member differentiate between fantasy and reality?
This is the biggest one that I try to explain to parents. The Haunted Schoolhouse and Lab in Akron, Ohio actually lists this as a bold-print rule. If a person can understand that this is all pretend, done in fun, and even in our case an adventure game, then they should be OK. If the person thinks that all of this stuff is real, then they will have a much more difficult time going through than a person who understands that haunted houses are pretend. Please note: I did not use the word “child” at all here. There are many adults who do not know the line between fantasy and reality and do not deal well with haunted houses.
2. If they get scared and cannot go on, how do you plan on dealing with it?
When we take our own daughter (age 6 ½) to haunted attractions, we always have a safety plan in case she freaks out or has a meltdown. We sometimes go through as two groups while one adult stays with her; sometimes one adult opts out of the experience altogether. In addition, if she chooses to go and freaks out in a way that disrupts others with us or other tours, then somebody is designated to take her to the “chicken exit” and not give her a hard time about it. We’ve dealt with all three scenarios, sometimes within the same trip because her reaction is not consistent attraction to attraction.
3. Can your group go through without disrupting another tour, even if a party member has a meltdown?
The worst part of an experience for us is dealing with unruly, loud, or otherwise disruptive members of a party that has no connection to us, but we are somehow stuck with for the duration of the tour. I will not subject my daughter’s crying upon another party. If we can go through separate from people we do not know, then this is the best option. If we are grouped with strangers, then the rule is “ditch the tour at the first sign of disruption.”
At Castle Blood, we try to group according to age whenever possible. This minimizes a family with children or an adult couple on date night being mixed in with the middle school cheerleading party. It doesn’t always work, but we try our best to recognize when one group will detract from the experience of the other.
4. What do they prefer to watch on television or other video media?
Some children are naturally drawn to Scooby-Doo and Goosebumps. Others are not. If you know that they have a tolerance for watching scarier movies, then your family member stands a better chance of completing the tour. In our case, we describe our tours as “the last 20 minutes of a Harry Potter or Indiana Jones movie” and “classic movie monster images combined with a live-action game of Clue.” Groups who can deal with a bit of suspense and surprise are going to be OK.
5. Who is the target audience for the attraction?
I look more at the demographic in line than I do the attraction itself. Much like choosing a movie, I research the attraction for suggested audience age, level of graphic violence, and other hints such as admission price and hours of operation. If an attraction opens after 9:00 pm and has no child admission price, then it is probably not appropriate for children and many sensitive adults. There are attractions that cater toward a large demographic, some that focus upon the tween/teen group, and still others that are clearly 18 and over. I have been known to “push the envelope” with our daughter, but I have never deliberately broken a rule regarding age restrictions. Some attractions do post age-related rules and restrictions. It is good to follow these, even if they are recommendations.
I also look for other cues, such as whether an alternative tour is offered. If there is a less-intense option, as a consumer I can decide which tour is the right one for our group. Some tours (even here in PA) are not the “touch nothing and no thing will touch you” experiences that you might assume are the standard in such a litigious society. Ask questions. Read signs. Look for hints in the advertising and the age of the audience standing in line.
One of the main reasons that we offer no-scare matinees is so that families have a choice between a typical tour and the “no-scare” option. In addition, there are adults who do not like to be scared, but still like to have fun in October, and there are plenty of “big people” who enjoy the no-scare matinees as much as the young ones. It is also easier to take photos in the daylight, and we encourage those who ask about cameras to consider this option since flash photography is not permitted within the attraction during tours.
6. How comfortable are they with strangers in strange situations?
One of the main tactics of a haunted attraction is to create the feeling of uneasiness by placing people in strange situations with strange people. Children who do not deal well with strangers in day-to-day interaction are far less likely to deal well with the makeup, masks, and costumes in strange settings. Sometimes, a young one who is typically shy will surprise me by having no problem with a costumed character, but this is an exception.
I offer the “Santa Claus Rule” to parents: if a child is frightened by Santa Claus or other costumed characters in non-scary situations (clowns, amusement park mascots, etc.) then they may not have a great time in a haunted attraction.
The decision as to whether some or all of your family members should attend a haunted attraction this October should be made by the adult guardians with strong deference to the child. Listen to him or her. Know when it is OK to stretch a comfort zone and when pushing too hard will result in everyone having a bad time. Given the options at Castle Blood, we recommend “training up” the young ones with the No-Scare Matinees and giving them something to look forward to when they are older with the nighttime tours.
If you decide to visit us at night, we are open at approximately 7:00 pm every Friday, Saturday and Sunday through the end of the month as well as Monday October 31. If you decide to visit us during the daytime, we are open from 1-4 on Sunday October 23 and Sunday October 30 for our no scare matinee.
If you want to see pictures or get more specific information, please visit castleblood.com or find us on Facebook.
Castle Blood is located at 2860 Main St. (Route 40), Beallsville, PA 15313
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