Final Scores – By Category:

Cast (20% of Final Score): 7.93

Costuming (10% of Final Score): 7.99

Customer Service (10% of Final Score): 9.65

Immersion (10% of Final Score): 7.59

Special Effects (15% of Final Score): 7.19

Scare Factor (20% of Final Score): 8.04

Entertainment & Value (15% of Final Score): 7

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Final Scores – By Attraction:

Attraction 1: 7.85

AMS Haunted Attraction has done it again! This year, they have completely remodeled and moved everything around. You are in for a treat with all the new scary things! This year, they have two themes within the haunt, including the Crumpet Family Circus and the Hillside School for the Strange and Unusual. Be prepared for A LOT of scary creatures, big and small, because we didn’t expect to see so many.

This haunt is located near Maryville, Tennessee, and is mostly outdoors with some coverage inside. The parking lot is all grass so if it is raining, be prepared for mud. We found this haunt to be creepy and exciting. We DARE you to enter the creepy circus and hopefully make it through all the deranged students in the sinister school.

So many actors were within AMS Haunted Attraction! From tiny child actors to grown adult actors, we were excited that at almost every turn, there were at least two new faces to scare us. Most of these actors did a great job of playing their parts. We encountered many different circus freaks and deranged schoolchildren.

Overall, the actors within the haunt did a great job of staying in character. We encountered some amazing clowns who were energetic, crazy, and evil. A few of them did not stay in character very well. For example, when I was ushered into the circus ring, the assistant clown stumbled over dialogue a bit, but otherwise put on a great performance.

We especially enjoyed the three clowns that were together in the same area and the ring leader of the circus. They all seemed to have creative dialogue and really got into the show. In the school, our favorites were the nurse and the detention assistant. They were both very interactive with us. We even got squirted on from a full needle of water!

We encountered many different types of characters, including circus and school characters. Many of them had a specific place within the haunt and there were only a handful that were placed in positions to jump out and scare us. We would have liked to see a little bit more variety of behavior. For example, many of the clowns acted the same: crazy and annoying.

The costumes were much improved over last year. Many of the clown costumes looked amazing! Especially the three clowns that were trying to take our skin, and convincing us to join them. Their makeup, hair, and costumes fit the part perfectly.

We didn’t notice very many masks, but the ones that were used were creepy. Many of them were clowns, but there was one in a skull mask. Makeup was the thing used most often for the costumes. Most of the clowns had creative makeup, but some of the people in the school had basic makeup that wasn’t very creative. Overall, we thought they did a great job with masks and makeup.

There were two main scenes within AMS Haunted Attractions: Circus and School. They seemed to stick pretty closely to those themes when it came to the costumes. The only out-of-place costume we noticed was a clown inside the school as soon as we entered.

We really enjoyed the queue actors and became best friends with Zippy the Clown! He seemed into his character, and kept trying to scare anybody; everybody who would let him, and not let him, LOL. There were a few other queue actors who stayed in character and kept the entertainment flowing as well.

We had a very easy time locating AMS. It is located right off of a main road. We put the address into the GPS and it took us right to it. The sign at the entrance is well-lit and the parking lot has a lot of lighting. The only thing we would have liked to see is parking flaggers. We got there early so it was easy for us to find the parking lot. The lot is all grass and not marked, so finding a parking spot can be a bit difficult. After parking, they have signs everywhere so you know exactly where to go to get to the ticket booth and the attraction.

We didn’t notice anything dangerous about the haunt. Everything seemed to have enough lighting so there were no issues seeing anything and there were no trip hazards. There are no stairs within this haunt either, it is an all-flat surface.

As soon as we approached the ticket booth, we were greeted by smiles and happy people. It was easy to tell that this is a family/community-operated haunt and everyone is legitimately happy to be there. We even spoke to the vendor on site and he was very friendly as well.

AMS Haunted Attraction has an easy-to-navigate website with all the important information you need to know before arriving. Their website lists the dates/hours, ticket prices, location, rainout, parking, and touch policy information. You may also want to purchase your tickets beforehand so you don’t have to wait at the ticket booth. There’s a place to read the story behind the haunt as well!

Outside of the haunt, you could tell there were some spooky vibes. There were a few scare actors, creepy lighting, and spooky games to play. The queue actors are what kept the excitement mounting.

Once we entered the haunt, it was pretty obvious what the theme was: Circus. Each room was decorated circus-themed until it switched to the school. There was a transition zone between the two and then we were inside the school. The only room that didn’t quite make sense was the room with the slot machines. We’ve never seen a school that has slot machines before.

Overall, AMS Haunted Attractions did very well with creating the illusion that we were at a crazy circus and then a strange school. They even did well with the transition zone. It was mostly a dark, quiet walkway, but it took us away from the circus effects.

Upon exiting the attraction, we entered a small gift shop area. This is a nice place to find some souvenirs to take home and remember this scary adventure! This is a nice exit point, as it makes you feel like you are welcome to stay and hang out.

The sounds inside the circus area were perfect! They play creepy circus music throughout the whole thing. Unfortunately, the sounds in the school were mostly quiet. We may have liked to hear a recess bell or some whispering, or even a teacher scolding as an overall sound in some areas. It may have intensified the spookiness.

Some of the scenes were created masterfully and some did not have very much detail. For example, there were a few areas of bare, black plastic or wooden pallets with nothing on them. Otherwise, there were areas that had some cool designs. For example, the circus area made use of black light and paint or red and white stripes to look like a circus tent.

AMS Haunted Attraction did not have any animatronics but they did have some props. Some of the props were things like lockers or desks in the school. They had a few gruesome and scary props, such as the crispy dead man in the science lab.

Lighting was very unique inside this haunt. We appreciated that they used things like fog, lasers, and black lights. It added to the spookiness of the haunt. The circus had the most unique lighting effects. We also enjoyed the green lighting in the science lab.

Overall, we felt like AMS did a good job of being scary. There were a few times we wanted to run away in panic or were overwhelmed by the amount of scary creatures bombarding us. This haunt relies heavily on their actors and if done well, actors can benefit a haunt greatly. They can also hurt a haunt if the actors don’t want to be there or they don’t care. This particular haunt had actors that cared and wanted to scare us.

Since there are two of us, and when a haunt has the option for a touch pass, we decide that only one of us should get it to have two different perspectives. The one with the touch pass had a scarier experience than the one without. This is usually expected since the touch pass can be much more intense anyway, but it seemed a bit too different. For example, there was a whole room without actors when my partner went through without the touch pass. When I went through with the touch pass, I encountered two actors.

The scares within the haunt were mostly unpredictable. Overall, the actors did a good job of providing unexpected scares. We did encounter one scene where the actors were chatting and didn’t expect us to enter the room, so we scared them instead of the other way around!

There was a variety of different scares within the haunt. Our favorite was the actor on stilts. They were in a dark corner and surprised us just by coming into the light. Very good hiding place! There were multiple jump scares and different uses of lighting.

The ending was similar to other endings we have seen before. We were chased out of the haunt with a chainsaw. It may be a classic, but it is effective. You typically want to run away screaming when someone is chasing you with a chainsaw.

This year, we felt the haunt needed to be longer. Last year the haunt was about 15 minutes, but this year it was only around 6 minutes. Because of the remodel, everything changed, including the length. It also felt like the actors were pushing us through quickly. This may be because there were other people behind us, but the haunt this year was certainly shorter.

Other than the haunt itself, the entertainment included with the ticket price were the queue actors and some music playing in the Midway area. They had games to play, but for an additional cost. The queue actors kept us quite entertained though!

The ticket price is $15.00 which seems appropriate for the experience. The only thing we would like to see change, is the length of the haunt, as mentioned previously. Otherwise, the haunt is worth the cost, especially compared to other haunts in the area. We will certainly be back again next year!