HHN: How frightening is it, honestly?

[keishashadow]

I do not enjoy being scared, I do not like clowns and dolls with sinister expressions. I have read accounts from visitors who wished they'd never gone to HHN, who wish they could un-see what they saw. OTOH, many, many people cite HHN as their favorite Universal event. Keeping in mind that this is meant to be entertainment, I'm torn being wanting to see for myself and thinking I should avoid the entire evening.

So my question: If I decide that I cannot venture into any of the "houses" or shows, what's it like to just be at the park on a HHN night, ride the rides as usual, walk around? I've been to Universal during the day when everything HHN-related is shrouded, but what will I encounter out on the streets, as it were?

I don't mind owning up to being easily frightened and I'm 60, not 13, but I don't want to spend the rest of my time in Orlando with all the lights on. Any ideas?

Thanks for your help.

lol, struck me funny re the lights.

If you don't enjoy being scared, etc., I'd honestly skip the event, plenty else to do in the Orlando area. If game to give it a go, why not watch some of the videos you can find on youtube, will give a framework of the events past.

I'm no spring chickie either, but being scared helps me know I'm still alive.
Have always loved a good scare & spend the majority of evening somewhere between screaming, jumping in fright & nervous laughter, loving every minute of it. No shame letting your scared-y cat flag fly @ HHN. Heck, grown men scream like little girls. IMO, the bigger the guests' reaction, the better! Akin to applause, it lets the scareactors know they are hitting it out of the park.

 

[Imagineer22]

I have only gone to HHN once, back in 2002 during Islands of Fear at IOA. I didn't know what to really expect back then. I was doing the WDWCP and a bunch of us decided to go one night. I HATE horror films and don't like being scared but I love theme parks so I went with the group. I had been to six flags fright fests before and a couple of local haunts, but HHN is on a completely different level. 2002 was a long time ago and I'm sure the event has changed a lot but back then I was in awe of how the park was transformed. Hearing the chainsaws and screams coming from dense fog clouds and dramatic lighting were just amazing to me. I didn't want to venture in but you had to in order to get anywhere in the park. We only did 3 houses: Maximum Carnage, Scream House, and Evilution. I actually remember 'tricking' my group from doing Scary Tales II because I was the only one in the group familiar with the park and Scary Tales II was off the beaten path. I didn't want to do anymore houses (too scared) so I told them I didn't know where it was (even though I knew exactly where it was). Now I wish we had done it. Scream House was pretty intense but the other two were just 'meh'. I loved the details right down to how the Caretaker would say "Your time has come". I hear Scream House was an iconic house of HHN history and really set the tone for the years to come. Scream House wasn't 'scary' in the sense of psychological stay with you scary but it was 'startling'. There was a lot of startle scares and distractions that keep you guessing what is around the corner. There were a lot of moments where I thought I was 'safe' and something would jump out and then there were areas I thought for sure there would be a scare and nothing happened. Not sure if they still use this trick but the mirror gag at the end of Scream House got me good. You walk down a long hallway with a hidden mirror at the end that makes it look like the Caretaker is at the end scaring people and next thing you know he is actually right next to you even though he appears far away. So simple yet so effective!

Even though at the time it wasn't 'fun' for me to be anxiously walking around the park not knowing what was awaiting me in the next patch of fog or dark corner, I was still just completely taken in by the details and atmosphere. Ever since that visit I have wanted to go back. We are finally going to the event again this year. I am anxious about going but can't wait at the same time. I am excited to see how the event has grown but also not sure how I will handle the anxiety. I hope to just focus on the details of the event and try to ignore the startle scares now that I know what to expect. I have also been watching a lot of Youtube videos to prepare myself mentally....

 

[janicept]

The houses can be a little scary but since it's not real you shouldn't have a problem. You could always wait for people that are acting really scared and go in behind them. The actors really play up with people that are screaming. The scare zones can be almost as bad as the houses since it's really dark and the actors jump out and get up in your face. I go by myself frequently and sit and watch everyone. Some of the actors will come up but when they see I'm not giving them a scared reaction they go to find someone else. The ride lines can still get pretty long on busy nights. The shows are not scary at all.

Another idea is to go early so you can walk around before the sun goes down so you can check everything out. Then when you go back around later it won't be so bad. It's worth trying once since the characters are amazing.

 

[AbbyDoesFL]

https://www.facebook.com/orlandoweekly/videos/vb.126350010721202/967970109892517/?type=2&theater
http://www.orlandoweekly.com/Blogs/...ando-halloween-horror-nights-24-media-preview