The city of Albuquerque and its residents love to celebrate all things Halloween. From trunk or treating to music, plays, and the most popular October event, the Balloon Fiesta. On a cold October evening, we ventured to 505 Central Food Hall, which is located on Route 66. The people eating in the food hall have no idea of the frights in the basement. At one end of the food hall, there is a table where you can buy your admission as well as purchase a book from a local author. Once you have your ticket, you can go down the stairs to see what frights await!
Haunted Scarecrow has a good-sized and varied cast. Throughout our journey, we encountered creatures of all types. Walking through the dark basement, each room we entered had at least one actor. We only saw two rooms that had no actors, but the actors had some freedom to travel between rooms.
For the most part, each actor we encountered interacted with us in character. The spiked hair clown had a delightfully demented conversation with us. We also loved how well the actors used their environment in the doctor’s room. The actors also used a good variety in regards to scares. We had one creature that was skittering across the floor. When we found out that the actors helped with creating their rooms, we did notice that some of them were thinking of scares when it came to room design.
Throughout your journey through Haunted Scarecrow, you will see some detailed costuming. The costumes were complete, and we appreciated the amount of wear on the costumes, making them look lived in. The masks were distressed with detail added since most of the masks we noticed seemed like they were not custom-made. We noticed that most of the actors with masks had eye makeup to help with blending the masks. The skull masked character on the bone throne had a very unique skull mask.
The attention to detail with the makeup, especially with the clown characters, had some small details that helped the makeup pop in the black light. Most of the costumes fit the theme of the room; there were a few that seemed like they might have walked into a scene that didn’t match their costume for the extra scare. We did see some clown actors when we were walking into the food hall that were scaring passersby. We also would suggest using a different chainsaw than the one that was used in the haunt; it was not too believable looking.
With Haunted Scarecrow being located in downtown Albuquerque, there is no free designated parking for the haunted attraction. There are several pay parking lots and garages, as well as parking meters. While we were at the haunted attraction, we felt safe, and there were emergency exits throughout the haunt.
All the staff we encountered were very friendly and helpful. They are happy to answer any questions you might have. The website is very user-friendly. There is a map, details about the haunt, and a detailed FAQ section. One suggestion we have is to have larger signage so potential customers can find the haunt.
When walking up to the 505 food hall, we only saw a letter-sized printout for the haunt; there was no advertisement for the haunt we could see. When you enter the food hall, there is a table for tickets, but no pre-haunt area. We would suggest possibly having a large banner or advertisement for the haunt, so it’s easier to find.
Walking through the attraction, there were details in each room, but the plastic sheet hallways could use a little more theming to keep the anticipation going. Also, consider adding markers to show customers which way to go throughout the haunt. The layout for some of the rooms, like the laser swamp, was a little hard to find the way out. There is only one attraction at this haunt, once you climb up a different stair case you are back in the food hall.
Walking through the Haunted Scarecrow, there was no soundtrack or sound effects we could hear. The actors did make some creepy sounds that could be heard throughout the haunt, but some creepy music could add to the intensity.
Each room in the attraction has a different theme. Some of the rooms had details on the flooring and scattered body parts that added some depth to the theme. There is one section that has hand-made creatures that are added to the scene. This theme was something we have not seen at a haunt before, and it was based on a Spielberg classic movie. There was a doctor’s room with many creepy concoctions on the shelf and real medical equipment. We appreciated the separate patient areas we had to navigate. We loved that several of the rooms had stuff in your face, adding to the believability of the room. There is also a creepy shack you enter, complete with a forest scene. There are also several circus rooms with some very energetic clowns.
We were informed that each actor helped create their own room, adding some personal touches to the haunt. Walking through the haunt, we did not notice any animatronics since this is an actor-driven haunt, but each room had several props and sets that fit the theme. There were some greatly timed strobe lights throughout the haunt and a very effective laser swamp.
21. How scary was it? (35% of score): 5
22. How well did they provide scares to everyone in the group? (15% of score): 6
23. How predictable were the scares? (25% of score): 5
24. How well did they provide a wide variety (types) of scares? (10% of score): 2
25. How strong was the ending / finale? (15% of score): 0
With Haunted Scarecrow being an actor-driven haunt, there are many jump scares. We did have some ground scares as well. The actors also did a good job of scaring everyone in the group, and we did have a few actors follow us through several rooms. Most of the scares we encountered were of the jump scare variety; there were a few crawler scares where the actor crawls on the ground.
At the end of the haunt, we did not notice a finale; there was just a door that we exited, and there was no final scare to end the haunt. We would suggest adding an extra themed area with some of the more intense actors to chase guests out.
Haunted scarecrow does give a decently long experience. The scares are good for anyone wanting a Halloween fright. With admission being twenty dollars and the haunt taking 10 minutes for us to walk through, that comes to two dollars for each minute of the haunt, which is a good value. The added benefit of the food hall is a variety of food options before or after the haunt.
Overall, we recommend Haunted Scarecrow to anyone who wants an old-school actor-driven haunted experience.
3013 Central Ave NE, Albuquerque, New Mexico 87106
