please help.

[haverghast asylum]

Hello I am doing aan asylum themed haunt this year. I have a list of rooms and was woundering if anyone could help me arnge them so the haunt flows. What room should be 1st, 2nd. ect. My rooms are Office, doctors exam,group theropy room staff break room, nursery, mourgue, medical storage room, janitor/boiler room, max securiety room hall of cells, bathroom, death row, padded cell, mess hall, and shock theropy. Also if you have any other room ideas, or think a room does not fit Please share. Thanks in advance.

[Smiley]

My two copper coins of currency:

I suggest having a "build up" kind of flow to your haunt. Starting off with something that doesn't appear that scary to the average person (i.e. office) and gradually get scarier and scarier.


Office
Staff Break Room
Mess Hall
Bathroom
Janitor/Boiler Room
Suggestion: Garbage Pit
medical storage room
Mourgue
Doctors Exam
Max Security Room Hall
Padded Cell
Shock Therapy
Suggestion: Lobotomy Operating Room
Death Row

[shredman]

I have done this with two of my yard haunts. I would suggest a maze, it may already be too late, but make it to where the patrons go through the rooms in random order, go through different hallways, but make sure you must go through every room some how or another to exti! :0 itts hard to make it where they must end up going through everyr room but it can be done! It is also a great way to give the patrons a scare.

[shawnc]

I agree with making it scarier as you progress through the haunt, and that should help determine the order you put the rooms in. Figure out what will be in each and how scary it will be and go from there. How about adding a celebrity room, with Britney Spears and Michael Jackson look-alikes? This could be towards the beginning and give everyone a good laugh right before a good scare. Either that or the other way around. I am reading a book right now that suggests that people like something to lighten the mood within about 30 seconds of a good scare.

[haverghast asylum]

Thanks for the help.

[OgeXam]

I feel it is important to mix the scare rooms and the "cool down" rooms together. That way you scare them give them a second to cool down a little then hit htem again... if you keep them scared the whole time they will scream and want out, but they will nto remember much in the haunt, just that they were scared. If they remember things they can tell the stories to friends which will bring in more people and create repeat customers for next year.

Start off with a room or two that is story set up. Go then creepy, then scary, cool down, a couple scare, back to creepy/cool down, build up the scare, then hit them with the big scare for the last room.

[Smiley]

if you keep them scared the whole time they will scream and want out

But isn't that what some haunts strive for?

For their patrons to be so scared of the place they can't handle it?

Why, if we saw handfuls of patrons leave due to the scary factor, I'd say we did a damn good job. Oh well, different strokes for different folks.

[Jim Warfield]

An overdose of fear and revulsion will erase the name of your haunt from their minds leaving only the negative automatic reaction to the term "Haunted House".
I have met plenty of people who were drug to my house, I sweet talked them into giving it a try, made promises to them, kept those promises to keep them "Happy' and in the tour, then after it is all over they confide in me some of the details of their bad haunt experience. They did not brag to any friends or relatives about messing in their pants, they did not brag about being mentally reduced to a feeble-minded scared child, they did not buy another admission to another haunted house until they were brought here, 10,15,20 years later.
So how much potential business for Every haunt was ruined by this person's one bad experience? It multiplies very quickly in the loss column for all of us.
Anybody want to be around next season? How about a few seasons from now?

I have then had these nervous, scared non-haunt fans become great customers of mine! (But they won't go to another haunt yet!)

[haverghast asylum]

Awsome! Thankyou all very much for the help, and info.

[JamBam]

Hey Warfield, what kind of drug? And then they experience your place? What a trip!!!!!

I actually helped a friend surprise his wife by not telling her we were going to your place. She is always the one we watch and enjoy her experience going through the events we go to. If we had told her of the Ravens Grin Inn, we would have had to drag her, because she doesn't do drugs. lol All the way through Chicago and over to Mount Carroll I just kept telling her it was twenty minutes away when she would ask when we were going to get there. We were actually on our way to TW, but made a 300 mile round trip side trip to you. Try to say that ten times in a row.

And then when we were in the sub-basement, twenty-five feet underground, she turns to you and says, "YOUR WIERD!!". And I keep thinking, if this guy is a closet serial killer, no one knew we were going to Raven's Grin Inn, and we are 150 mile off course, and he could kill us, dispose of our vehicle into his yard, and use our bodies for props for future tours after Mr Tuxedo is done eating us!!! "Shut up Teresa", as I think - we don't know the way out if he reverts into killer mode!

Finally after 2 hours 45 minutes, we are out on the street after you congenially let us out of the Inn.