Haunted Attraction Reviewed: Pennhurst Asylum BLACKOUT EVENT
Website: www.pennhurstasylum.com
Location of Attraction: Spring City Pennsylvania
Date of Review: Sunday November 4th 2018
Total Number of Attractions Available: FOUR
Overall Haunted Attraction Rating: 10/10
Entertainment and Food Rating: 9/10
Atmosphere Rating: 10/10
Overall Costume and Make Up Rating: 10/10
Overall Cast and Crew Rating: 10/10
Overall Props, Animatronics and Set Design Rating: 10/10
Overall Scare/Thrill Factor Rating: 10/10
Overall Feedback: On Sunday November 4th we made our second visit to Pennhurst Asylum during the 2018 haunt season. This go around we were visiting on their final night of operation, BLACKOUT NIGHT! The same SPOOKTASTIC attractions that we experienced earlier on in the season but with the lights OFF! We’ve done some blackout events in the past at other haunts and they never seem to be truly a blackout. Often what happens is the set lighting gets dimmed down where it’s notably darker but still light enough that guests can see to venture through. Well Pennhurst Asylum did what no other blackout event that we’ve experienced has done… they truly turned the set lights off! After signing a waiver for this special event groups are given 1-2 glowsticks, this is your ONLY source of light through most of the attraction(s). Guests will experience the three main attractions in the same order as you would on a typical operation night; Pennhurst Asylum, The Morgue and Containment. When our squad partakes in a blackout event we like to visit during a typical night earlier in the season so that we can visually take in the set design and costuming/makeup. Then when we return for blackout night all we need to worry about is venturing through the darkness. As the event was advertised there were many areas of true darkness where we couldn’t see anymore than a few inches in front of us. Of course there were some scenes lit up by some of the props/animatronics but for the most part, it was pitch black. Pennhurst Asylum by far has some of the best scare actors and boy were they amped up for blackout night. The actors were much more physical and often messed with our hair, grabbed our legs and even a few times took a member of our group away. In the living quarters of the Pennhurst Asylum we were in for a special treat when the crazed patients decided to have a pillow fight with us. But there was one issue, they had pillows and we didn’t. As if the darkness didn’t already put us at a disadvantage we were getting whacked upside the head with pillows while trying to escape this scene. We recall in one scene getting a little electrical zap/shock on the back of our calf… this was quite frankly frighteningly surprising. We were quite surprised when Pennhurst Asylum utilized BRIGHT lights to disorient us. After our eyes had adjusted to the darkness, at just the right moment a bright flash of light would occur, leaving us disoriented and unable to see for the next several scenes. This method was utilized several times and worked very well to their advantage. We also recall what smelt like tuna being lathered onto our cheek. This was quite surprising as we were just venturing through the darkness and then BAM, we felt a cold and slimy substance on the side of our faces. This highly grossed out several of our members! Another scare tactic utilized was the use of water/mist! We recall several times being drawn in by a prop to then be blasted by a stream/spray of water/mist. This quite frankly caught us off guard and again, grossed out several of our members. Looking back on our experience we felt that the glowstick given was more of a actor clue for where guests were located verse being a light source for the guests. With the lights out and our group carrying nothing but a single glowstick we certainly couldn’t see the scare actors but they could see us. Their timing was perfect; waiting until we were at a vulnerable spot and then delivering a hair raising scare! We could simply go on and on about how spooktacular Pennhurst Asylum BLACKOUT night was but we think you get the point. This event really amped up the scare factor and delivered a SPOOKTASTIC experience featuring vicious chills and thrills. By far our favorite blackout experience to date, an event we will certainly come back to experience in years to come. If you’re a “hard scare” then we strongly urge you to give this special blackout event a whirl next haunt season. It will certainly please all haunt goers and may even make you piss your pants! Thank you Pennhurst Asylum for delivering a horrifying blackout experience!
For our full written review of Pennhurst Asylum’s typical experience click HERE!
Individual Attraction Review:
Attraction Name: Pennhurst Asylum
Overall Attraction Rating: 10/10
Cast and Crew Rating: 10/10
Props, Animatronics and Set Design Rating: 10/10
Attraction Scare/Thrill Factor Rating: 10/10
Attraction Name: The Morgue
Overall Attraction Rating: 10/10
Cast and Crew Rating: 10/10
Props, Animatronics and Set Design Rating: 10/10
Attraction Scare/Thrill Factor Rating: 10/10
Attraction Name: Containment
Overall Attraction Rating: 10/10
Cast and Crew Rating: 10/10
Props, Animatronics and Set Design Rating: 10/10
Attraction Scare/Thrill Factor Rating: 10/10