Enter at your own risk: 15 haunted houses open in Chicago for Halloween 2020
The Tribune has been doing this guide to Chicago-area haunted houses since 2011, and we’ve always said, go at your own risk. In the past, that’s been a half-joking sort of thing, as in: You know these places are totally gory and gross, right? And not for the young, the sensitive, the faint-of-heart, or even for people with a proper sense of taste?
This year, that’s a little different. Haunted houses are enclosed spaces. There is nothing special about their ventilation systems. And regardless of whether they wipe down, disinfect, temperature check and social-distance, they are indoor attractions with teenagers running around screaming. A CDC advisory on fall holidays, updated Sept. 21, identified “going to an indoor haunted house” as a high-risk Halloween activity that should be avoided to prevent the spread of COVID-19.
Some of the leading owners in the haunt business evaluated the risks and decided not to open this season, however financially difficult that might be for them.
“I don’t pretend to be an expert,” says John LaFlamboy, owner of Zombie Army Productions. “But I have read the reports. Indoor mass gatherings cannot be safe.”
His company owns HellsGate in Lockport and operates Statesville Haunted Prison near Joliet. Neither will open this year, and LaFlamboy has had to use the profits from previous seasons and take out a bank loan to stay solvent, he says. “We’re risking everything, but I cannot get past the dangers of opening.”
Stephen Kristof, owner of Realm of Terror in Round Lake Beach, also isn’t opening this year. “But the big thing is, I understand why people choose to open if it means their own survival as a business,” he said.
What follows are 15 area haunts and their plans for Halloween, including those that are closed. This is not a “top-scariest” guide this year. The Tribune will not be visiting any in person to review, and the best and scariest might well be shut for 2020. Watch for them in 2021.
13th Floor Haunted House
1940 George St., Melrose Park, 13thfloorchicago.com
This popular big-budget house, part of the nationwide Thirteenth Floor Entertainment Group, is open for business in 2020.
COVID precautions: Limited capacity (some nights already sold out), timed entries only, and social distancing enforced. Masks required for customers and staff. Temperature screening for staff. Regular cleaning and disinfecting. To limit touching personal items, only small, clear bags allowed.
Now open through Nov. 7 on select nights, open daily in October beginning Oct. 13. Tickets $19.99-$32.99, plus optional Fast Pass ($10) or Skip the Line ($20).
The Massacre
299 Montgomery Road, Montgomery, 708-320-3327 and fearthemassacre.com
Haunts, escape rooms, axe throwing and more at this long-time, 30,000-square-foot house in west suburban Montgomery.
COVID precautions: Limited capacity, timed entries and social distancing enforced. Masks and temperature checks are required for customers and staff. All hanging props and squeeze tunnels that are touched have been removed this year, and some plexiglass barriers have been added. Regular cleaning and disinfecting.
Open weekends and some Thursdays from Oct. 2 to Nov. 1; tickets $29.99 general admission or $39.99 Fast Pass.
Dungeon of Doom
600 29th St., Zion, 847-262-3666 and dungeonofdoom.com
This sprawling haunted house in north suburban Zion is down at the end of an isolated road, with a parking lot that’s become Scare Vision Theater this Halloween. Horror movies will play drive-in style, with a few “killer crew” members also slinking around in the dark. You can sit in your car until your entry is called, or just come for the movie.
COVID precautions: Limited capacity, timed entries and social distancing enforced. Masks are required for customers and staff, plus temperature checks for staff. The Buried Alive experience and other scenery that can touch you have been removed for 2020, and some plexiglass barriers have been added. Regular cleaning and disinfecting. Tickets only sold online.
Open weekends Sept. 18 to Oct. 31; tickets $59-$180, depending on movie and small-group options.
Basement of the Dead
42 W. New York St., Aurora at Tivoli Plaza, 630-896-2466 and basementofthedead.com
Owner Todd Baraniak has been going over scenarios for opening Basement of the Dead for months, he said. Along with his customers, “actor safety is the other big consideration.” Changing rooms will be one at a time, and he’s added more animatronics this year. “We’ve got a zombie behind a fence that jumps out,” he said. “Also spiders. We try to work on everyone’s fears.” New this year is “Night of Isolation” — tickets on sale soon — where private groups will be left in the house alone with “one glowstick, no lights, no actors. ... Only on Wednesday nights in October.”
COVID precautions: Limited capacity, timed entries and social distancing enforced. Masks and temperature checks are required for customers and staff, plus COVID-19 questionnaire screening for staff. Regular cleaning and disinfecting.
Open Thursdays through Sundays for Sept. 25 to Nov. 1; tickets $30 general admission, $45 VIP Skip the General Line.
D.E.A.D. Rising
13624 S. Cicero Ave., Crestwood, in the rear of Crestwood Center, www.deadrisinghauntedhouse.com
This smaller, 3,500-square-foot haunt is by Sally and John Vitiritti, one of the owners of the legendary Dream Reapers in Melrose Park which closed at the end of 2012. The haunt’s smaller size and slower pace work in its favor this year, Sally said. “You’re going through with the group you came with, masks on. You’re walking through not touching anything. You’re only going to hug the person you came with.”
COVID precautions: Social distancing in the haunt, as well as outside in the covered waiting area. Attendees will only enter with the groups they arrived with. Masks and hand sanitizer required, as well as temperature check for both staff and customers. Regular cleaning and disinfecting.
Open weekends and select days Sept. 25 to Oct. 31; tickets $10 online or at the door (prices may change during the season).
Midnight Terror Haunted House
5520 W. 111th St., Oak Lawn, 708-571-0266 and midnightterrorhauntedhouse.com
A “old-school haunt” located across the street from Holy Sepulchre Catholic Cemetery.
COVID precautions: Limited capacity, timed entries and social distancing enforced. Masks and temperature checks are required for customers and staff. Regular cleaning and disinfecting.
Open weekends and select days Oct. 15 to Nov. 7; tickets $20 to $60 with optional VIP and Immediate Admissions.
Evil Intentions
900 Grace Street, Elgin, 630-634-2858 and eihaunt.com
Located in the home of the former Elgin Casket Co., a building purported to be haunted. Ghost tours are also available.
COVID precautions: Limited capacity, timed entries and social distancing encouraged. Masks and temperature checks are required for customers and staff. Regular cleaning and disinfecting.
Open weekends and select days Oct. 2-31; tickets $35.
Abandoned Haunted House
2825 SE Frontage Road, Mount Pleasant, Wisc., 262-886-1182 and www.abandonedhauntedhouse.com
Up over the Wisconsin state line, this sprawling complex has three haunts: the Ambush Haunted House, Hysteria and Stalker, plus Abandoned Axe Throwing, where, come to think of it, coronavirus might not be the single biggest risk.
COVID precautions: As noted on its website, masks are required; limited, timed ticketing is designed to reduce the pace of customers; and social distancing “will be encouraged. In order to make this easier, we’ve decided to close one haunted house each night so we have more room to accommodate guests.” Also, temperature check for both staff and customers and regular cleaning and disinfecting. Note that on Sept. 22, Chicago added Wisconsin to its travel order; residents who travel there are required to quarantine in their homes for two weeks upon return.
Open Fridays and Saturdays for Sept. 25 to Nov. 7; tickets $30-$35 with optional $10 Quickpass.
Terror in the Timbers
7826, 37W955 Big Timber Road, Elgin, 847-235-6600 and www.terrorinthetimbers.com
As profiled in the Elgin Courier-News, there is one haunted house, of sorts, that is completely safe to visit during the pandemic. Terror in the Timbers at the Big Timber Campgrounds is an outdoor drive-through experience, presented by BMC Productions, with a torch-lit trail to drive down and scares and scenes inspired by “The Devil in the White City.”
COVID precautions: Tickets only sold online, you will remain in your car, and actors will also wear masks. Drivers must follow 5 m.p.h. speed limit, with further rules on the website.
Open select days Oct. 2-31; tickets $20-$85 depending on experience and size of vehicle.
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CLOSED FOR HALLOWEEN 2020
Realm of Terror in Round Lake Beach (www.realmofterror.com). “Fortunately for us, we own our own building,” Kristof says of his 20,000-square-foot space. “If we don’t open this year, we will open again next year.”
HellsGate Haunted House in Lockport (www.hellsgate.com). Part of Zombie Army Productions. HellsGate sits in the middle of acres of wooded land and part of the experience has always been the path to the house, but LaFlamboy says he didn’t see much to gain just from opening the outdoor areas.
Statesville Haunted Prison in Crest Hill (www.facebook.com/StatesvilleHauntedPrison). Longtime haunt owned by Paul Siegel, with the show run by Zombie Army Productions. It will be back in 2021.
Reapers Realm in Hammond, Ind. (reapersrealm.com). This worth-the-trip haunted house near the expressway in Northwest Indiana, with its neon-lit Carnevil out back, will not be open for 2020. “For over 30 years, Reapers Realm has been a Halloween staple in many lives,” said the haunt’s statement in part. “We knew there was only one way to guarantee everyone’s safety.”
Fright Fest at Six Flags Great America in Gurnee (www.sixflags.com). The theme park has been closed this summer due to COVID-19 and state of Illinois shutdowns.
Tour of Terror in Hobart, Ind. (tourofterrorhaunt.com). Nothing to do with COVID, president Virgil Frey says, rather declining attendance has Blastcamp Paintball & Airsoft concentrating on its other businesses.
HauntedHousesChicago.com: One of the other top online guides to Chicago-area haunted houses has also taken the season off. Founder Kris Zahrobsky has been in the game since haunted houses were mostly Jaycees fundraisers. “It’s a mess,” he said of 2020. “It’s a real setback.”
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