Rising prices of admission to Busch Gardens’ Tampa Howl-O-Scream would initially suggest a more memorable experience than last year’s performance. However, after I attended the event Oct. 9, I didn’t think so.
The “Cursed” experience advertised to viewers for weeks was far less than scary than anticipated. The scare zones seemed low budget and the costumes for scarers seemed no different from the years before.
The haunted houses contained gruesome displays. Actors jumping out from behind a wall # most of whom were already in clear sight and expected when you hear the random screams. After turning a couple corners with nothing but blood and guts everywhere, I was ready to get out.
The 3D “Circus of Superstition” was my favorite of the houses, but I was more visually entertained than terrorized or surprised, as the website led me to believe I would be.
Universal Orlando’s Halloween Horror Nights and Howl-O-Scream have been in competition for some years now. For USF students and local residents, Halloween Horror Nights is farther than Howl-O-Scream, but is the different experience worth the travel? Fox 13 intern Francis Vinas said attending Halloween Horror Nights is not worth the drive.
“If you don’t buy a fast pass, don’t go,” she said. Vinas found that a ticket costing $180 was a waste for not getting scared. At least at Howl-O-Scream, guests spend more time in the haunted houses rather than the long lines, she said.
Michael Murphy, a USF St. Petersburg senior, said the “theatrical nature” of Halloween Horror Nights exceeds Howl-O-Scream, but Murphy noticed that the scare actors were more frightening and energetic at Howl-O-Scream.
As a bonus to the haunted houses and scare zones, both horror events in Orlando and Tampa offer free access park rides. The rides at Howl-O-Scream had short wait times#an alternative to haunted houses to keep the traffic in the haunted houses lower.
Halloween Horror Nights relies on trendy, blockbuster horror films to capture audiences and ticket sales for their Halloween-inspired event. Unlike Howl-O-Scream, Halloween Horror Nights uses the television series “The Walking Dead” and cult horror film, “Halloween,” to give guests the experience of live action scenes from the thriller movies.
“Halloween was extremely accurate to the movie,” Murphy said. “A weakness Halloween Horror Nights has is the redundancy and reusing of old ideas from previous years.”
If nothing else, it’s something festive to do for this haunted holiday.
For park and ticket information, visit HalloweenHorrorNights.com and/or SeaWorldParks.com.
