Haunted Hills Estate Scream Park Valentine’s Fear Fest proves love bites
Romance is dead in Uniontown.
Haunted Hills Estate Scream Park is hosting a Valentine’s Fear Fest for lovebirds who prefer blood and guts over flowers and chocolate.
“You can sit on your couch watching a horror movie or you can immerse yourself in the action,” says Aidan Finnegan, the attraction’s director of marketing.
The spooky compound promises a date night to dismember on Feb. 14 and 15. From 7 to 10 p.m., guests can enter Nocturnus Mansion, a not-so-humble abode crawling with vampires. There is no age restriction to the haunt, but it’s recommended for mortals 12 and older.
Cupid’s Love Den, however, is an adults-only experience.
Forget everything you know about the winged, arrow-slinging cherub who graces Hallmark greeting cards. Haunted Hills’ version is a cannibalistic man-child looking for his next meal. Before entering his realm, folks most sign a waiver.
Cupid’s Love Den, which includes suggestive themes and light contact with the actors, is a nightmare-come-true for fans of movies such as “Saw,” “Hostel” and “Hellraiser.”
Patrons can opt to only visit Nocturnus Mansion for $15 or get both haunts for $20. Ticket prices also include a carnivalesque midway featuring food and fire-breathing performers. There’s even an on-site gift shop so you can commemorate your to-die-for date.
Finnegan says haunted house industry is being forced to up the ante. Customers don’t want their thrills and chills to die with the Halloween season; they want year-round scares.
Haunted Hills is answering the creepy call.
Nearly 17 years ago, Jackie “Spookygirl” Loveall started inviting brave souls to her family’s farm on Rolling Hills Estate Road. Since then, the attraction has grown into a 101-acre park filled with Hollywood-caliber sets and special effects. Last year, The ScareFactor, an online authority on things that go bump in the night, named Haunted Hills Estate the “No. 1 Haunt in Western Pennsylvania.”
The attraction operated through Nov. 9 and the crew continued shocking people in December during Happy Horror Days, a festively frightening event boasting a 14-foot-tall animatronic Krampus. The Travel Channel named it one of the country’s “10 Scariest Christmas Haunted Houses.”
With Valentine’s Fear Fest, the company is putting its own spooky spin on another yet holiday.
Finnegan says they’re expecting more than 1,000 people to turn out for the “necromantic” getaway. Between the two haunts, there will be 40 costumed actors. The cast has been preparing for more than a month.
“People are here every day writing scripts, going over lines, detailing the actual scenes,” Finnegan says. “Jackie is the Walt Disney of haunted attractions. She puts so much effort into every square inch of this place and it shows.”
Details: HauntedHills Estate.com
Kristy Locklin is a Tribune-Review contributing writer.
Remove the ads from your TribLIVE reading experience but still support the journalists who create the content with TribLIVE Ad-Free.