“Prepare to be chased by all the terrors of the season, including Krampus himself!
Haunted Scarecrow Entertainment Presents: Krampus Below a Christmas Haunt
12/18/25 – Team Brewhaha
Haunted Scarecrow has been bringing frights to the people of Albuquerque, New Mexico, for several years. Located in the basement of the 505 Food Hall, their Halloween haunt featured many twists and frights for guests. 505 Food Hall is on Central Avenue and very easy to find using a GPS. There is plenty of paid parking and parking meters right by the food hall. Once you enter, there is a table in the back of the restaurant, where you can buy your tickets to the haunt. The customer service is excellent, and they will happily answer any questions you might have. For the holiday season, Krampus Below features a guided tour that follows a night when Krampus came to visit a child. Throughout your journey, you and the storyteller are trying to find the child!
Once you venture down the staircase to the basement, you will meet your guide. Our guide was a very polite gentleman who led us through the experience. This storyteller tells you the story, guiding you through each room and also keeping you safe from the creatures you will encounter. The story is what happens to naughty children after Krampus takes them. Throughout the experience, each actor you encounter has their own unique dialogue when they interact with you and the storyteller. Each actor also has a unique costume that fits the story. Each costume looked custom-made, and the costuming extended from head to toe. The makeup is very detailed, with well-blended prosthetics that enhance their evil look. Krampus is imposing, with a unique mask. Throughout the experience, you can hear Krampus rattling his bells and chains, letting you know he is always near! The children that Krampus imprisoned had makeup that made them look like their life had been drained. They were also very creepy, following us before disappearing into the darkness. All the creatures and characters we encountered, as well as the costumes and makeup, fit perfectly with the theme. Each character has their own personality and uses their space well. The female Krampus-like creature had amazing horns that sprouted from her head. We couldn’t tell they were props; they looked so real. The storyteller wore a suit and no makeup that we could see, but the way they narrated the experience pulled us into the story and lore. The storyteller also knew the names of the other Krampus-like creatures.
From the moment you enter Krampus Below, the sets are, for the most part, different from the Halloween haunted house. Starting outside the house, all the way through the escape through the forest, each room is themed with holiday decorations. From demolished presents to holiday lights, each wall and scene is filled with nightmarish details. Pay attention to the TV, where a familiar, rather fitting holiday movie is silently playing. In the house, for example, there were details that showed the family was aware of the traditions surrounding Krampus.
The transition from the human world to the Krampus domain was very well done, transporting you through a portal. This portal used lighting and holiday decorations very creatively to transport you into this otherworldly place. Once in the realm of Krampus, you travel through the kitchen with gruesome meats and some angry gingerbread men. The hallways that lead to each room were festively decorated with themes that fit the area. In one of these hallways, the guide pointed out some disturbing details regarding the walls. Once you find the girl Krampus took, *if you get so lucky*, your guide leads you through a place with so many ancient props to look at. The actors in this room had us getting goosebumps with their performance. Towards the end of your journey, there is even a holiday-themed photo area where you can take your pictures with some of the actors. This room had the Christmas tree and lights, and would be perfect for a creepy holiday photo. Once you get your pictures, you exit through a forest to escape from Krampus. The forest was a great use of space, with trees on both sides, and reminded us of the Christmas tree lots we grew up with. If you are hungry before or after the experience, there is a wide variety of food options at the food hall. Walking through, we noticed the great use of space, almost like a labyrinth.
Krampus Below uses many effects throughout the attraction. Inside, Christmas music adds to the ambiance, at just the right level so you can hear the actors. Lighting comes in many variations, with Christmas lights throughout the haunt. Each scene is also well-lit so that you can notice all the details. With this being an actor-driven experience, there are some actor-driven props in the kitchen. The gingerbread men popping out of the cabinets were a pleasant surprise, and we loved the actor controlling them, who had a great cackle. There are some very well-timed strobe lights in white, red, and green. The ceiling of each room was themed as well to avoid a break in immersion. Light fog is also used in some areas of the walkthrough. The use of items hanging from the ceiling throughout helped create a claustrophobic feel in some areas. The actors did a great job of timing their jump scares, and we had a few actors follow behind us. There are definitely some scares to enjoy in Krampus Below. Having a guide through this experience really helped with the pacing and with our interactions with the actors and the environment. The finale had some excellent dialogue from the actor, and the actor gave us one last scare before we exited to the photo op.
We were informed that Haunted Scarecrow will have seasonal events throughout the year. If you live in Albuquerque or the surrounding areas, we highly suggest visiting Haunted Scarecrow for Krampus Below or any other seasonal event they offer to get some scares in the off-season. We can’t wait to see what they do for their next event!
To find more about Haunted Scarecrow, visit their page HERE.