With two haunted attractions, four mini escape rooms, food trucks, fire and sideshow performers, and more, owner Sarah Linginfelter says they want first-time guests to Dead Man's Farm Haunted Attraction in Philadelphia, Tenn., to feel overwhelmed from the second they pull up in the parking lot.
"We want them to feel the excitement when they see all the colorful lights coming from the midway, flames shooting 20 feet in the air from the fire breathers and music from our DJ booth that keeps people moving.
Then, they will hear the screams coming from the attraction and watch the fog from our fog machines roll across the entrance and the grounds. And they'll experience these things before they walk through our main gates."
Born out of an idea in 2008 as Linginfelter and her husband, Jeff, had big dreams of bringing a haunted house to East Tennessee ("haunted houses were a fun rite of passage growing up in the fall, but we realized those had mostly fallen by the wayside"), came to fruition in 2009 in Lenior City and was so popular that a larger area was needed. And so, in the summer of 2019, they settled on a farm in Philadelphia and named it 'Nightfall Acres' to honor their root in nighttime entertainment and celebrate the sunset views from the new farm.
As for those who are easily scared, Linginfelter hopes they will open themselves up to experiencing something that could get their blood pumping while still knowing they are perfectly safe.
"There's no greater laughter among friends than when one or more of them have a great fright, and then they come down from the scare and relax together."
Oct. 10-13, 18 -20, 25 - 27, 31; Nov. 1 -2; times and prices vary.
Read on, if you dare, to discover more spooktacular haunted attractions around the region.
Touted as "America's Biggest and Longest Haunted Screampark," Creepyworld in Fenton, Mo., boasts 13 different indoor and outdoor haunted attractions in one location. Yes, that's lucky number 13. Enjoy living out nightmares through the newly updated Haunted Hayride and the new Monster Mansion.
Oct. 11 -13, 17-20, 24 -31; Nov. 1 -2; times and prices vary.
As if an abandoned mortuary isn't eerie enough on its own, add a haunted attraction to it for a spine-chilling encounter. At Gentry, Ark.'s Carpenter's Mortuary Spook House, where demons return to wreak havoc during the creepiest month.
Oct. 11-12, 18 -19, 25 - 26, 31; 7 -11 p.m.; $20 per person.
It's general knowledge that anytime clowns are involved, it will be a combination of evil and frightening. It is precisely that at Scream Hollow Wicked Halloween Park's Sinister Circus in Smithville, Texas. That is just one thrill that awaits you.
Oct. 11 -13, 18-20, 25 - 27, 31; Nov. 1 - 2, 8 - 9; times and prices vary.
If you fear the dark, you can face that fear head-on at The Lost Hollows in Lake Charles, La. Beginning with a hayride, you are deposited onto the Deadly Pines trail that winds through the woods; however, as you make your way through, be on guard because you never know what or who you might come across.
Oct. 11- 12, 18-19, 25 -26, 31; Nov. 1; 6 p.m. (lines open) - 11 p.m. (last shuttle); $20 per person; Fast Past (go to the front of the shuttle and trail lines) $50.
Morbid characters lurk along FRIGHTMARE on Main Street's outdoor trail in New Iberia, La. Meander its way through the grounds of the Historic "Hot Sauce House," once you start, you'll have to finish, no matter how much you may be freaked out.
Oct. 11- 12, 18 -19, 25- 26; 7:30 - 10:30 p.m. (trail doesn't close until the last ticket holder has gone through the attraction); $20 per person, $30 for VIP Fast Pass.
Celebrating ten years, Terror on the Coast in Gulfport, Miss., brings a unique type of haunt to the South. Situated in an old warehouse, the largest haunted house in Mississippi boasts 43 rooms featuring props from shows and films made in the region.
Oct. 11- 12, 17- 19, 24- 26, 31; Nov. 1- 2; 7 - 11 p.m.; $25, $35 for Fast Pass.
Have you ever had that nightmare where you are in a never-ending hallway? You can experience something similar firsthand at Atrox Factory Haunted Attraction, which claims to be the largest indoor haunted attraction in the Southeast, in Leeds, Ala. Meander through 1/4 mile of twisted hallways with chilling surprises.
Oct. 10 -13, 16- 20, 23 -27, 30 -31; Nov. 1- 2; dates, times and prices vary.
Grisly, gory and gruesome - three great "g" words for the spooky season are used to describe Dread Hollow in Chattanooga, Tenn. The attraction returns with three new haunted houses filled with tortured souls, monstrous evil and bloodthirsty spirits, and three horror-themed escape rooms.
Oct. 10 -13, 17 2-0, 24 - 27, 31; Nov. 1; times and prices vary.
One of the longest-running immersive experiences in the metro Atlanta area returns for the spooky season. NETHERWORLD in Stone Mountain, Ga., is packed with nightmarish creatures from beginning to end, with the new haunts, a festival-style Midway, a monster museum featuring rare movie props, a collection of NETHERWORLD memorabilia and five escape rooms.
Oct. 9-14, 16-20, 22-31; Nov. 1-3, 8-9; times and prices vary.
For the unconventional haunted attractions, there's Gainesville (Florida) Fear Garden's AI House of Horrors. It is unique because former and current UF psychology professors have created the concept, so there are twists like sensory deprivation and more.
Oct. 11 - 13, 16-20, 23 - 27, 29-32; Nov. 1 -2; times and prices vary.
According to Booger Jim's Hollow in Blacksburg, S.C., the haunted attraction is based on the legend of Booger Jim. There are three main attractions - a Clown House, a Doll House (both sound equally creepy) and a haunted trail. Be warned; the attraction also states upfront that this is an intense experience (however, 'no-touch' medallions are available for purchase.)
Oct. 11 -13, 18 - 20, 25. 27, 31; Nov. 1- 3; times and prices vary.
Six attractions, each with different macabre themes, like "Killers in the Corn" and "Carny Crypt," and oodles of creepy monsters, make up Haunted Forest at Panic Point in Youngsville, N. C.. Choose your level of scare and see if you can make it out or through without screaming (too much.)
Oct. 11- 13, 18-20, 25- 27, 31; Nov. 1 -2; times and prices vary.
You know you're at a good haunted attraction when there's a rescue phrase you can yell out if you get too frightened. Red Vein in Ashland, Va., offers four hair-raising haunts to explore.
Oct. 11-12, 17 - 20, 25-27, 31; Nov. 1 - 2; times and prices vary.
For 25 years, Skeleton's Lair in Scottsville, Ky., has brought the haunts to the greater Bowling Green area. The attractions include a haunted hayride and a spine-tingling Doomsday Doll Factory.
Oct. 11 -13, 18 -20, 25-27, 31; Nov. 1 -2; times and prices vary.
Immerse yourself in the thrills and chills of the Dark Midway to The Infected Crop and Demented Forest and more at Miller's Nightmare Haunted Farm in Lewisburg, WVa. The attraction also has escape rooms and other entertainment for in-between time between the haunts.
Oct. 11 -12, 18- 19, 25 -26; gates open at 6:30 p.m.; prices vary.