Who is open year round?

[swampboy]

So which haunts operate as haunts year round and/or are still open? I'd like to visit some!!!

[NightmareAftershockLLC]

Want to know the truth? Any haunt that is worth visiting will not be open year round. Hell look at larry. He's spending over three quarters of a million renovating and building a new facility and redoing his scenes. You can't do this kind of work and stay open year round.

[Greg Chrise]

That's a bullshit answer.

There is a whole list starting out with Ravens Grin Inn and 3 locations of Ripply's Haunted Adventure. There are many year round attractions and dark rides even Larry has had a lot to do with that are great inspiration. The success of these all year attractions kind of is related to whether Larry GETS $250,000 to spend on the Darkness thru reputation or not. There are many types of shows to become familiar with.

They might not all be how Larry does it, but are continually changing and upgrading smaller sections that crowds can be routed around or work off hours and because they have money coming in all the time can do that.

Year round attractions have year round wear and tear. They don't just open it up and run it into the ground then close. Not everyone is as pubic about their spending or manhours invested. And they are in fact spending the manhours so to poo poo that is just plain bullshit.

Plus if you have never been, you have lots to see.

How much money do you think Rippley's spent to be right across the street from the Alamo? How much money do you think Jim might have spent on the Raven's Grin Inn over 20 years? Just by shear years available rather than months per year they deserve a little credit and patronage.

[swampboy]

Off season

Hmmm. Presumably the only reason someone doesn't open their haunt in the offseason is because the customer base isn't looking for haunted attractions in the off-season and the corresponding drop in revenue puts you below the break even point on your operations.

"Its hard work" wouldn't seem to be a sound business approach. Assign a cost for your time and wear and tear and the usual operating costs and if you can make a profit, a rational business would stay open. Unless of course you have hit the plateau on your utility curve for profit...

[NightmareAftershockLLC]

Well if we want to play the ripley game:

Universal studios has some creepy stuff year round.
Disney world haunted mansion.
Haunted houses up in Canada by niagra falls
and it goes on....... And on...........

[KeithK]

I think Ripley's Haunted Adventure in Gatlinburg is open all year. Mysterious Mansion (also in Gatlinburg) gets much better reviews, but I think it's only open May through October.

[Speculo]

In general they are different animals. Year round haunts tend to be in tourist areas (with the possible exception of Raven Grinn!) and are usually able to survive with minimal staff during periods where they will have minimal attendance. Most may have only one actor stalking you through the event, with bigger ones like Ripleys having only 3 or 4.

All of the rest of us open for the Halloween season, and the bigger you get the HARDER is is to open nights without many guests, the cost on ONE night can be thousands in labor costs alone. Opening with a paid cast of 100 on a Tuesday in Feb. doesn't sound like fun to me!

We love horror, but most of the folks out there only want it on vacation or close to Halloween it seems.

Personally I like the cycle of retheming, rebuilding, operation and off season. It makes each part fresh, and lets you go crazy knowing you will have a while to rest when it is over!

Thanks!

[Greg Chrise]

Larry is an all year attaction. He builds for others and learns something every day and brings his great education to the darkness or his many other events.

So when you visit the darkness this March don't just enjoy the Darkness, look at Larry very very closely.

[Jim Warfield]

Ravens Grin

Because a tour of The Ravens Grin requires usually 90 minutes ($12.00) most people will not have memorized this entire house or remember the whole tour so when they might think that they "know" , they actually don't know so much of it will seem new to them. There, one potential problem solved as far as doing all that "New" stuff to please those certain customers.
There are many problems to solve in any livelyhood/enterprise that you choose to be into.
I have solved most of the problems I have ever had here by simply working harder and longer..sometimes even "smarter" (It happens!)
I could fill the first room with all the things I do and say to the customers for probably 150 minutes and never repeat myself, of course then the usual 90 minute tour would become a 3hr.30 minute experience.
I also build 95% of the displays and props found here and do all the repair and construction besides being open for tours almost every night of the year for almost 20 years now.
Yes! I must be just abit odd, wouldn't you say?
(And THAT is also part of what I'm selling here!)

[SomeThingInTheIce]

If you think a haunt can't be good because it is open all year, you are dead wrong! I went to the Raven's Grinn Inn , I think it was March and it was one hell of a haunt. No you will not see 20' Scarefactory props but what you will get is a tour that your not to sure that you will be coming back from. Theres awsome attractions out there and yeas some are year round.

Want to know the truth? Any haunt that is worth visiting will not be open year round. Hell look at larry. He's spending over three quarters of a million renovating and building a new facility and redoing his scenes. You can't do this kind of work and stay open year round.

[Spookyfinder]

Personally, I really don't like the Ripley's houses... not worth the ticket or time! Just my .666 cents worth! -Tyler

[UnDeRTaKer313]

Ghostly Manor in sandusky ohio
open all year round.
hands down best haunt ive ever seen.
possibly spent more than any haunt on here and puts on best show around.
check them out!!

[Jim Warfield]

Last night ,Nov.28th

I took 18 people through the Ravens Grin Inn. There were teenagers and older and a few little kids and some extremely vocal wonderfull fans of my house, I had no trouble taking in $216.oo on a late November night.
I guess that I really fooled all of them, since this place can't possibly be "worth it", I have been "Fooling" people here every night (with few exceptions) for 20 years.... I might think.... even this fooling ability might bare some closer scrutiny from those of you really interested in how any haunted entertainment might be made to function.
But then....maybe knot!

I could not even begin to guess just how many times customers have remarked concerning how much fun" I" am having as I take them through here.
It is not all about the money...it's about my on-going therapy ..involving my manipulation of others for my personal entertainment!!!! (Insert evil laughter here ~~)
Now you know how and why I can been doing this like I have.

[James Lurgio]

Well..

We're not a haunted house during any month but October but we ARE open every month but December and January. During those slow months, we do renovations and improvements. The museum is fun and unique and has drawn a lot of attention near and far. We're located in Salem MA if you want to come and see us after January! Very slow time but it's only open Saturday's until it get's busier. Take care!

James Lurgio
Nightmare Productions

[Jim Warfield]

Ravens Grin Closed Today/tonight

Forecast for possibly alot of snow, first big snow of the winter, so I tell them on the answering machine to stay home and thereby stay safely out the ditch with your car....since we are open almost every other night.
Most will drive 50 to more miles just to arrive here and this is northwestern Illinois, wishfull thinking can't change that!
Wearing a t-shirt and shorts outside when it's zero out doesn't change it either no matter what some teenagers think.