Final Scores – By Category:

Cast (20% of Final Score): 8.23

Costuming (10% of Final Score): 8.39

Customer Service (10% of Final Score): 9.47

Immersion (10% of Final Score): 8.17

Special Effects (15% of Final Score): 7.63

Scare Factor (20% of Final Score): 7.57

Entertainment & Value (15% of Final Score): 8.71

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Final Scores – By Attraction:

Attraction 1: 8.21

Out in Lockport, Illinois, remains one of the most fun family experiences available during the Halloween season, Hayride of Horrors/ Curse of the Bayou. It is such a fun time seeing these tiny little haunters having a great time throughout the Hayride. It’s sort of the future superstars of haunting in Chicago who get their first taste of haunting.

Both parts of the attraction were full of actors. In some scenes, there were so many actors it felt like you were part of the show. Along the trails, in the waiting in line, and creeping through the midway we were always able to see an actor. One of the great parts of the show is the variety of scenes. All the actors could use dialogue that fit their scenes while keeping up with the tractor. The commitment to their characters seems very real. The actors were great at interacting with all the guests on the tractor. They would shout from different areas when they saw you coming, during the ride, and as you were leaving. They utilized creative dialogue even asking the guests questions at times, and made sure to have a lot of props and great energy.

The actors had great dialogue. One little girl walked alongside the tractor in a tattered but pretty dress sighing and smiling while saying menacing things as we left her scene. The neon-painted gang of girls all had great dialogue and used their props so well that it made you feel like you were about to be part of their gang. Some girls were singing and dancing around the pole and suddenly they all dropped to their knees and began crying and wailing. On the trail at the end of the show you stumble upon a ghoul selling wares that are spaced out on different tables and he is more than excited to describe all of them.

All in all, the actors knew exactly how to utilize dialogue to make a fun and spooky experience. There are a ton of different characters from voodoo priests, aliens, and dolls to ghouls, monsters, girl gangs, and cannibal families. There was someone here to get under the skin of everyone!

Hayride of Horror did an excellent job setting up costumes and makeup according to their respective scenes. We would like to give props to the actors who were outside in the chilly weather we have been having lately.

Hayride of Horror:
The actors had costumes that matched their scenes appropriately. The victims were dressed in street clothes while sporting blood and cuts. The culprits can be seen wearing masks to cover their identities while committing all these atrocities. An actor wore an oversized Gore Galore costume, which they controlled the arms. They were able to sneak up on both sides of the hayride. A new addition to this hayride is the astronauts that crashed and landed in the hayride. The actors wore typical astronaut costumes with helmets on. The helmets had extended lights in front of their faces, which made them look like angler fish.

Curse of the Bayou:
An actor greeted us by the entrance, offering us a meal of poop. He was fully covered from head to toe (yes, the feet were exposed) from his choice of food, and now I am convinced he has an eating problem where he cannot aim the food at his mouth.

The dark mazes were inhabited by actors wearing black clothing, which helped them to hide and execute their scares effectively. If not all black clothing, a few actors wore camouflaged Bushmen costumes. You would think that after coming here for a few years we would have gotten used to this, but that is not the case.

Parking was very easy to navigate as there were attendants to guide you with glowing wands. The attraction itself is an outdoor hayride inside of a park so it is easy to spot. There is plenty of signage to tell you where the attraction is. There are also plenty of food trucks that are lit up to guide you as well.

There are plenty of staff members and security guards to point you where you need to go. For being in a park district, the ground was well maintained and the trail was uneven but much more manageable than you would think. The tractor driver is safe with both actors and guests. Guests are given rules for how to behave on and off the tractor and trail. In between attractions, the actors are very informative and give you clear rules before the second attraction. The staff is extremely helpful and friendly. At the hayride portion, one of the actors tells you in a ghoulish way how to behave on the tractor and safety rules. The actor in front of the second attraction does the same and makes sure you’re aware of all safety precautions.

Hayride of Horror has a large social media presence. They operate a TikTok account where all the actors can have fun and are featured on TVs in the waiting area. They also have other social media platforms. They also promote the hayride during local events and fests.

When walking on the park grounds, we see this great transformation from a regular park into a haunt event. The small trail leading to the ticket booth is visible and easy to spot. Right away we have a large opening with food vendors and art dealers as well as a casket experience. There are plenty of groups running around followed by all sorts of queue actors roaming the midway area.

The actual lines are just to the right of all this and end up extending for quite some time. There is a big screen with classic horror film clips playing so guests remain entertained. This event is all outdoors, and a bulk of the queue entertainment has been listed. The Hayride is the first of two attractions, so the tent before entering the attraction holds a few TVs with the Hayride’s TikTok channel playing, as well as great promo videos.

The Hayride itself is as immersive as a hayride can get. We are guided through separate scenes that come up to either side of the trail and occasionally find an actor on the ride with us. What remains cool about this attraction is how much fun it is and how they separate attractions and make the walkthrough trail a bit more scary than the hayride. It gives a great opportunity for families to come and venture, maybe the little ones aren’t yet old enough for the more tense stuff. Well, there are plenty of activities to do throughout the park grounds to keep the little ones entertained while the older ones venture through the Bayou.

The Bayou line is a bit darker-themed and meant for actual scares. It is a whole different approach and works great for the older crowd needing their scary fix! It is an outdoor trail so immersion can naturally slip by catching glimpses of the hayride or even the midway, though it’s rare this happens.

With how big the park is, it is impressive how much detail is put into every scene throughout both The Hayride and Curse of the Bayou. It is a perfect combination of being both an actor-driven haunt and using all types of special effects to complete the scenes.

Hayride of Horror:
The hayride consisted of different scenes with different interactions coming from both sides. The opening is a circus/ freakshow, which is colorful and extremely high energy.

Lights perfectly accentuated the sets and main characters of the scenes. A thick fog rolled in, which complemented the sudden drop in temperature. The silence between scenes was very unsettling.
The Demon Daycare was a new addition that included a younger age group. Scattered strollers can be seen from afar, and a few actors are holding onto dolls while wearing childlike dresses. There was a tiny little actor (we initially thought was an animatronic) riding a little horse rocker. This was a cute but unique experience.

A group of actors hold on to ribbons attached to a maypole. The light shines down on them to bring your attention to them as they dance around in unison. A very well-done scene!

Curse of the Bayou:
The path throughout is uneven since it is on a gravel path. There were a couple of mazes inside this attraction. One of the mazes was out in the open, the strobe lights were blinding enough to disorient us and sirens were blaring. Another maze down the line was mostly all dark. The quietness was also very ominous, leaving us to our thoughts while trying to find an exit. A little room engulfed in fog is set after this maze. The fog was so dense, yet it was not suffocating which helped us with navigating the exit easily.

What is a bayou without a little voodoo table filled with offerings? There were tables with trinkets displayed such as candles, jars, and heels that I tried to convince an actor would look great in!

The attraction itself was not very scary except for some truly scary moments on the Bayou trail and some great jump scares on the tractor ride. What it lacks in scariness is made up in creativity and spooky fun. The attraction is very much like an old-school haunt and relies on the actors pushing the show forward with predictable but effective scenes.

Being on a trail and depending on how quickly you were walking the actors got to scare everyone at least once. The tractor itself held a lot of jump scares both on and off the tractor. The abundance of actors adds to it as well.

They utilized their environment by hiding and jumping in and out of the trails and taking advantage of the outdoors. They were able to use dialogue, body movement, the space around them, and the natural light into darkness.

The scares were predictable but it does not diminish the fact that there are scares for every age group. The hayride delivers a more spooky family fun vibe which makes predictable scares work well,

The finale is fun. Actors popping out till the end and following you through the midway makes the whole experience that much more fun.

Our walkthrough time for both attractions was just at the 38-minute mark. With both attractions priced at $25, that brings our Minute Per Dollar value at a whopping 1.52 for two attractions in one spot, this is an insane deal. Hayride of Horror/ Curse of the Bayou remains a must-see during the season as it is very entertaining and can make for a great family night out with younger kids, at least for the Hayride portion as the Bayou can be a bit more tense for younger kids. This is worth a visit for friends and family!