The Haunted Graveyard @ Lake Compounce (Bristol, CT)

[Zombie Pumpkins!]

Yet another Halloween attraction I have to try to find the time for...

http://hauntedgraveyard.com/

[Cranous]

Hey Ryan - I wanted to get back to you on the Haunted Graveyard. I've been twice in the past 2 years. I live in Buffalo, NY, but my sister lives in Bristol CT, literally minutes from Lake Compounce. She has a season pass, so for $10 more, you get the park AND the haunted graveyard.

The walk itself is outdoors, but they manufacture buildings to set-up different locations. It takes about an hour to go through the whole thing. They stagger the customers, but expect to wait about 30 minutes to get in to the actual maze.

It may not be as elaborate as some other haunted attractions, but the best part is the numerous scare-actors they have. The best part is to go up to one that appears to be unmoving. Say "He's not real" and the actor will come alive and chase you down the path. It is outside, so on a dark night, it feels very creepy.

The best part - a portion of the money raised from the Graveyard goes to fight juvenile diabetes. So everyone involved is doing it for a great cause, and really put a lot of effort in.

I've been to Halloween Horror Nights in Florida, and this is 10 times better. It's best to go with somebody who is easily scared, because their reaction will help make the trip more enjoyable. There's the normal kind of scenes - haunted house, vampires, chainsaw maniacs, cemeteries but also some interesting ones like a spider cavern.

All the rides are open, and it is great to ride the famous wooden coaster, Boulder Dash, in complete darkness. They even have a Ghost Hunt ride (normal attraction), which is more campy than creepy, but helps set the mood.

In 2008, they expanded their haunted mazes into 2 secondary locations. One was a carnival of evil clowns, and another I missed near the entrance, but was included in the price. There were also live magic shows, a floating head heckler insulting customers, roaming chainsaw monsters, and a giant animatronic demon, that every 15 minutes rose up suddenly to frighten customers.

For $30 ($20 park, $10 Graveyard) we had an amazing time from about 7pm to midnight in mid-October. It was a Friday night, and by the end of the night, we were waiting only 5 minutes to ride Boulder Dash, so we went on about 5 times before it closed. I plan to go back in 2009.

If you are interested in going, I am thinking of going sometime over the weekend of Oct 16/17. You should check it out!

[Zombie Pumpkins!]

Great reviews of these attractions, Cranous. Thanks for sharing!

Making my way to Florida is pretty impossible for me in October, it's tough to find time for my local haunts. But the one at Lake Compounce is quite close to me, so I'm sure I'll see it eventually. I'll post my thoughts when/if I do.

[SaneInsideInsanity]

o0oo i wish it were close to me looks like fun

[Cranous]

My Oct is busy as well, so I went to Universal in Sept. Still, I was very disappointed. I think local haunted attractions have more heart, and people put more effort into scaring you. You are better off staying close to home!