Stranger Things, US, Killer Klowns what more
could you ask for in Halloween frights?

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Tampa Bay Gay headed to Universal Orlando's Halloween Horror Nights; the 29th installment of Orlando's best Halloween event. Honestly, I am a big fan of Halloween and HHN in general so I may have a slight bias of opinion. I would also point out that I am far any type of Halloween professional or critic. I will however try to give you some fair and positive things to look forward to when visiting this year's HHN event. The Universal staff invited us to experience this year with Express Passes so we thank them very much for the chance to visit and share our experience with our readers. #HHN29

Even though we had Express Passes for the evening I watched the wait times and they seemed to average about 30 minutes. In my opinion, that is not that bad of a wait time for haunted houses, some of the ride attractions wait times were longer. As we get closer to Halloween, I am sure that line wait times will increase. With that being said, if you want to get everything done and hit up some rides, consider the Express Pass, it is a very nice added feature as the event picks up in attendance. That is enough on the upsells and on to the good stuff. If you have the Official Universal App you can you can get up to date wait times and also play the TERROR TRIVIA game using the free WIFI in the park.

I am going to break my report down into five categories, Houses, Scare Zones, LIVE Entertainment, Ride Attractions, and Merchandise/Store.

HOUSES
Conveniently, I can do a Top Ten list for the houses since there are ten. This is no way should decide how to make your night at HHN; I am hoping that it shares what I experienced without giving away too much (I do not think I need to put SPOILER ALERT). In case you want to be in the dark about any of the event until you get there STOP READING. Getting stated, I have listed my Top Four, these are my favorites and they are split into two groups (Movie/TV Themed and Original Scares). The rest just follow in order to my preference.

 
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1 - Universal Monsters: (Movie Themed House) By far my favorite overall. It was nice to see that the traditional Monsters were center stage in this house. Get ready for all of your favorite Monsters, a whole lot of them: Dracula, Frankenstein, Wolfman, Mummy, Creature from the Black Lagoon, and more. There are frights to the very end.

2 - Ghostbusters: (Movie Themed House) My second favorite in the "Movie/TV Themed" houses. There are some really great visuals and classic scenes from the movie. Just like in the movie there are parts where you are not expecting to be scared. Say "HI" to the Marshmallow Man and hopefully he will not get to you; he is not in the greatest mood, a little HOT!

3- Yeti: Terror of the Yukon: (Original Scare House) My favorite in the first "Original Scare" house category. The creatures are terrifying and the environment is similarly distorted. Maybe you will rethink camping out in Canada out in the middle of nowhere. Snow is on the horizon, time to bunker down.

4 -Nightingales: Blood Pit: (Original Scare House) Second on my list of "Original Scare" houses. Universal has done a great job once again with some really scary and frightening characters. The que line visuals are disturbing enough so you can imagine the terror once you are inside.

5 - Killer Klowns from Outer Space: (Movie Themed House) One of my all-time favorite movies is now a haunted house; I am ecstatic! Yes, I probably just aged myself but this is a classic horror movie. Universals team once again deposits you right in the movie. All of your favorites including a puppet show, cotton candy and lots of scary Klowns. There is even a photo op with the Klowns and the Ice Cream Truck before you go in just in case you do not come out.

6 - Stranger Things: (TV Themed House) If you have not seen this show on Netflix start binge watching before you go. There are great theatrics and effects. At some points, I actually felt like I was on the set. I am pretty sure they have something from every season included. You will see your favorite characters helping direct you through the chaos and the Upside Down.

 
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7 - House of 1000 Corpses: (Movie Themed House) Rob Zombie at his best, this house is just as clown crazy as you would expect from the mastermind. Captain Spaulding invites you into a terrifying crazy house where you will get to meet the entire family.

8- US: (Movie Themed House) I have not seen this movie from Jordan Peele yet so I am not sure that I really understood the house, however with that said it is creepy. One thing I did understand was the alternate universe with you! It is a bizarre twist on reality.

9 - Depths of Fear: (Original Scare House) This house has a lot of good visuals and you really do feel like you are in the depths. Stale wet air with a chance you may get a little sprinkle here and there. The creatures are scary, something brought up from the dark abyss.

10 - Graveyard: (Original Scare House) Out of all of the haunted houses I placed this one on the bottom. No particular reason as stated before, I just feel of all the other houses this was least impactful for me. If you like venturing through a graveyard and playing games, this is the house. I hope you do not pick up a soul when visiting.

SCARE ZONES
I am going to list my top two favorites; I am not trying to discredit any of the zones but these were by far my favorite.

 
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1 - Anarch-cade: My favorite because visually was so nostalgic. I hope you brought quarters and your 80's apparel. Step into the 1980's with lasers, neon, video games and some creatures lurking around every corner and just a touch of fear.

2- Rob Zombies: Hellbilly Deluxe: Second favorite and again for me it has a lot to do with the visuals. There is so much going on that you get distracted from the street walkers that come and scare you. As you can see there are a few Rob Zombie touches this year. He is definitely able to bring gore and horror in every twist and turn.

3 - Vikings Undead: This scare zone is really dark just outside of Central Park. Keep your eyes open you never know when there will be someone around the corner. Be sure to check out some of the stations throughout there are some creepy creatures looming.

4- Zombieland: Double Tap: Zombies, Zombies, and more Zombies. Everywhere you turn there is a zombie that is searching for your brains, who can you turn to for help?. I should tell you, if you need to use the bathroom, consider a different place. You may not come out alive; some of those portable bathrooms are deathly ill.

5 - Vanity Ball: Where is Ru when you need her? Oh wait, maybe this is a different kind of runway show. Now is your chance to photograph some of the leading "Deadly" Models in "Hollywood". Walk the streets of Califonia, pull up and chair and watch the HHN Fashion show. Fancy a little Nip here or a Tuck there? They have the perfect surgeon for you. Step right up and become HHN's "Next Dead Model".

LIVE ENTERTAINMENT
There are two LIVE shows that happen every night of HHN.

The Academy of Villains: Altered States, this is a high energy theatrical and dance performance with four of five shows per night. Get there a little early if you have a specific seat that you want.

This year there is a new waterfront show; grab a spot in Central Park as the Universal Lagoon turns into Halloween Marathon of Mayhem. This water based show happening three times a night is a sensory explosion of sound and visuals with flashbacks of our favorites from Halloween.

RIDE ATTRATIONS
If you are not a fan of haunted houses, or if you have finished up the houses, you will want to visit many of the Ride Attractions that are open during HHN. Seven attractions are available including Hollywood Rip Ride Rockit, Transformers: The Ride-3D, Fast & Furious - Supercharged, Harry Potter and the Escape from Gringotts and others. Universal has some of the best and newest ride attractions in the nation, so if you have some time you should definitely check out some of the rides.

MERCHANDISE/STORES
Traditional HHN29 Merchandise:
This year as with other years, Universal has created themed memorabilia for sale. They have some traditional items like a T-shirts, shot glass (my favorite, as you see below), and tumbler cup; but wait there is more. If you enjoy Stranger Things you can buy the baseball cap, or maybe a fan of Killer Klowns, this year there is a collectible figure of Shorty. Additionally they have collectible Pins and two drinking glasses. Other merchandise is available but these are exclusively and limited to this event.

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Tribute Store:
This is the coolest store at HHN but it is only here during the event. When you walk in you will see each area has been themed like the houses in the park with all sorts of merchandise available. One of my favorite things is the Artisan Painted Sculls that are for sale. These are EXCLUSIVE and one of a kind for HHN 29. If you really want to bring a little piece of HHN this is your opportunity the Tribute store has so much to offer.

 
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Overall HHN29 was great; if you enjoy Halloween and getting scared (or watching others scare) you should head on over to Universal and check out the event through November 2, 2019. Thanks again to Universal and their staff for this horror filled adventure. We have some additional pictures and later in October, as we get closer to Halloween, we will be posing all of our images to INSTAGRAM (@RealTampaBayGay) so be sure to follow us there.

-Dave Borman, Writer (events@tampabaygay.com)

Purchase Tickets & More Info on HHN29: https://orlando.halloweenhorrornights.com/site/

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