Official 2019 HHN-29 Thread

[Disxuni]

Unfortunately, I am not going this year. Which is why I like reading other people's reviews and opinions on houses. I have watched a few videos of the houses, not all, but I would have to say that one thing I found interesting is the many differences in Ghostbusters when it comes to Orlando vs Hollywood. Without spoiling too much, I felt in terms of production, effects, and scare actor wise is, that Orlando was better than Hollywood. A few of the set pieces / scenes / effects that I thought really stood out were cut out entirely at Hollywood's.

One thing I thought was surprising in one of Hollywood's vids that threw me off, which I'm sure rarely happens, so for most guests might not experience it, but seeing a regular TM in a huge room in very well lit scene, but what is considered I think to be intended as an intense / scary scene.

 

[keishashadow]

This will be the first time we are in the park during the day before HHN. I see US closes at 5 and HHN opens at 6:30. But as AP, we get to start at 5:30. What happens that half hour? Do we just stand and wait? Will the restaurants be open and can we get something to eat?

Simpsons & finnegans are open. They’ve been releasing scarezones earlier than 5:30 pm FYI. All depend on when it’s cleared of day guests

based upon past experience, it’s been relatively dead this week thus far. without EP got everything done in 2 nights. Left several hours early. You have to do the houses ‘smart’ and have a strategy

Skipped tonight as we did mgm and have lights on tour in am tomorrow. I expect things to amp up this weekend and just continue to get busier

 

[imprint]

Ok, got some rest.

I really enjoyed most of houses

Top 3 favorites had to be Ghostbusters, Universal Monsters, and Graveyard Games.

Least favorites/disappointments were Blood Pit, Yeti, Depths of Fear.

Blood Pit was one of the ones I was most excited for, and it just fell kind of flat for me. Some of the areas was neat, but didn't get much reactions from me overall.

I really enjoyed both Marathon of Mayhem and the Academy of Villains shows as well.

One of the unfortunate things about only having one run-through is that you might not get a great run in a (some) house(s). For example, last year, our first time in Dead Exposure was really "meh," but our second run was phenomenal. We had an almost perfect run and got almost all scares and interactions. It's truly a roll of the dice when you (we all) enter, but timing is everything. Sorry you didn't get a good run in a favorite house, but given another try, it might be one of your favorites.

I really believe that any house could be an individual's favorite, provided they get a perfect run. The work put into these houses is extraordinary, and I really think timing is the reason for particular house ratings. I'm absolutely not saying you are wrong in your assessment, I'm just saying that a few minutes sooner or later might have made this your favorite house. I hope you felt your time and money was well spent though. We are about to head there for 3 nights of HHN goodness, and my hope is that we are able to get a great run in each house before our time is done. It doesn't always happen, but my fingers are crossed.

 

[lborne]

Simpsons & finnegans are open. They’ve been releasing scarezones earlier than 5:30 pm FYI. All depend on when it’s cleared of day guests

based upon past experience, it’s been relatively dead this week thus far. without EP got everything done in 2 nights. Left several hours early. You have to do the houses ‘smart’ and have a strategy

Skipped tonight as we did mgm and have lights on tour in am tomorrow. I expect things to amp up this weekend and just continue to get busier

Guess I've been lucky in the past (5 visits past 6 years). Always have gone on a Sunday night in October, no EP, and no early entry for AP, and we've been able to see every house, all scare zones, usually a show and some rides. Hope it works out tomorrow as this is the first time taking my other son.

 

[Sanwich]

did u receive an email?

You can stop at guest services anytime before tour & have them print tix using g your order confirmation number. I had mine printed 3 days prior to tour

I have a 10:45 am one too. You need to be at blue man group theater courtyard.

Was specifically told they build in the referenced 30 min pre tour. You will be expected to present yourself by 10:15 for a 10:45 am tour

I haven't received an email yet, but our tour is in two weeks so I'm not sure if it's just too early to expect it. Does this mean we do need to pick up tickets after all? Previously it seemed like folks were saying you just go directly to the BMG entrance and give your name.

 

[keishashadow]

I haven't received an email yet, but our tour is in two weeks so I'm not sure if it's just too early to expect it. Does this mean we do need to pick up tickets after all? Previously it seemed like folks were saying you just go directly to the BMG entrance and give your name.

Can’t say. We had tix today and all went smoothly checking in this am. Tour didn’t leave till 11:15 am.

 

[lborne]

We went Sunday September 29. Got into the parks around lunch time. About 4:30 we hung out at the Duff beer outside bar which is in one of the holding sections for HHN guests. We were released at 5:45 and were able to do 3 houses all before 6:30. They were walk-ons, but as usual, that requires lots of walking. We were able to do all 10 houses by 1:00 am and I am convinced that we could have done all by midnight had we not wasted time on a few rides, eating dinner, and just having a son who could not make up his mind as to which house to do next. For me, Stranger Things and Ghost Busters were my favorites just purely due to being a fan and nostalgia, not for scare factor. I thought the scare zones were sub par this year.

 

[Sunday]

Quick practical question...how do you dress for HHN when it comes to the heat (or lack thereof)? I'm looking at the day being 31C/90F but the nights at 23C/73F, so have no idea how to dress for that! I assume layers?

 

[soniam]

Quick practical question...how do you dress for HHN when it comes to the heat (or lack thereof)? I'm looking at the day being 31C/90F but the nights at 23C/73F, so have no idea how to dress for that! I assume layers?

73F in Orlando is fairly warm. The humidity makes it feel warmer. I am from Texas and get cold, but I plan to just wear shorts and t-shirts all day and night. Being from Canada, I think you will be fine.

 

[osufeth24]

Quick practical question...how do you dress for HHN when it comes to the heat (or lack thereof)? I'm looking at the day being 31C/90F but the nights at 23C/73F, so have no idea how to dress for that! I assume layers?

It's still in the lower 80s around 8pm-10pm. It's still humid. Dress like you would for the typical park day.

 

[Sunday]

Thank you both!

 

[contemporarymom]

I wanted to thank everyone for all their help. DH and I attended HHN on 9/26 and had a great time. We did the public RIP tour and when we go back and do it next year will do the same. Our guide was Kris and he was terrific. Lots of fun facts that we really appreciated. I wanted to give a quick synopsis of our night to help out others. If anyone has questions, don't hesitate to ask.

When we entered the park through the front entrance, there was an entrance all the way to the right, clearly marked VIP. They got us checked in, gave us our lanyards and badges and we waited for about 10 minutes before they let us into the park. We went through Vanity Ball, Hellbilly and Vikings Undead but not all the scare actors were out yet. Our check in at Cafe La Bamba was for 7:00PM with the tour scheduled for 7:30. We walked on MIB, Gringots and RRR and then walked over to check in. Check in was easy and we were assigned our guide. Had a few sweets (we had dinner before). The food consisted of nachos, street corn, arancini and a few other finger foods. Water, tea,soft drinks and lemonade plus a cash bar were available. Desserts were sugar cookies, pumpkin tarts, cupcakes and a couple of others. Definitely not a full meal and we were glad we ate before. We met Kris, our guide and the rest of the group and we were off. We did the back of the park first traveling through Vikings Undead (much cooler with all the scare actors and in the dark) and then to our first house Universal Monsters followed by Graveyard Games then Nightingales and Depths of Fear and House of 1000 Corpses. We then stopped at Lombards for a rest. After our rest we went through the rest of the houses and scare zones and ended right around midnight. The tour was excellent IMO. I'm not great at waiting in lines and even though we were told it was a fairly low capacity night I knew we wouldn't have enjoyedit half as much without the benefit of the tour.

As far as the houses were concerned we honestly loved all of them with favorites being, Universal Monsters, Yeti, Depths of Fear and Graveyard Games. The other houses were also terrific but we just really appreciated the sets of these houses and that plus the scares we received (well, mostly I received ) just made them tops for us. The scare zones were fun and the makeup was amazing. I'm not a screamer but for some reason the scare actors loved me. I can't tell you how many times they snuck up on me. I guess I was so intent on seeing everything, my Spidey Sense wasn't working. LOL

All in all, as first timers we were both blown away. DH was so-so about going at first but wound up being a huge fan! We are already making plans to go back next year. We will definitely do the RIP tour again. For us it is just the best way to do it and get the most enjoyment out of the event but YMMV. Can't wait for next year! If you have any questions, ask away!

 

[Westcorkdisfan]

Hi, we have a very short 2 days at Universal. We are doing HHN on the 30th so need to prioritise houses. We will be in the park earlier in the day to get the rides done, take a break then back to HHN.

What time should we be back to Universal to be in the holding area?

Planning on Stranger Things, Ghost Busters and Clowns as most important. So which holding zone is best?

Also want to watch the show. First timer with 3 teens (and I am a bit of a chicken, they are fearless!)

Thanks so much for any advice!

 

[Gary2T]

I wanted to thank everyone for all their help. DH and I attended HHN on 9/26 and had a great time. We did the public RIP tour and when we go back and do it next year will do the same. Our guide was Kris and he was terrific. Lots of fun facts that we really appreciated. I wanted to give a quick synopsis of our night to help out others. If anyone has questions, don't hesitate to ask......

Great writeup of your night.

HHN first timers here too. We were on a 7:30 check-in tour that same night, and only had 8 people in our group. Hit the houses in a much different order. US, Yeti, ST, GB. Then a break at the lounge on the 2nd floor of Fallon. Pretty cool being out on the patio overlooking the music plaza. Got some good photos from there. Then did H1C, Nightingales, and DoF before another break back at Cafe LaBamba, followed by Marathon of Mayhem. Finished the night out with Graveyard Gamnes, Monsters and Klowns. After the tour we hung out in some scare zones and went to the last showing of AoV.

We had a terrible run through Klowns. The line was moving way too fast through the house. Every other run was good to great, so I can't really complain.

This trip was am early birthday present for me. DW had no interest whatsoever in attending and does not like scary things. She watched walkthrough videos of all the houses ahead of time to prepare. (I didn't to avoid spoilers.) With a later tour time, we decided we would do one house before the tour to get our feet wet. She chose Graveyard Games, despite my warning that it is considered one of the scarier houses this year. She must have gotten every scare in the house. A dream for many, but not for her. I wasn't sure she was going to go into another house the rest of the night. Luckily, US was our first house on the tour and our guide assured her that it was on the more mild side. DW gave it a go and enjoyed it. To her credit, she got through them all (even GG a 2nd time), and is open to coming back in the future years.

 

[contemporarymom]

Great writeup of your night.

HHN first timers here too. We were on a 7:30 check-in tour that same night, and only had 8 people in our group. Hit the houses in a much different order. US, Yeti, ST, GB. Then a break at the lounge on the 2nd floor of Fallon. Pretty cool being out on the patio overlooking the music plaza. Got some good photos from there. Then did H1C, Nightingales, and DoF before another break back at Cafe LaBamba, followed by Marathon of Mayhem. Finished the night out with Graveyard Gamnes, Monsters and Klowns. After the tour we hung out in some scare zones and went to the last showing of AoV.

We had a terrible run through Klowns. The line was moving way too fast through the house. Every other run was good to great, so I can't really complain.

This trip was am early birthday present for me. DW had no interest whatsoever in attending and does not like scary things. She watched walkthrough videos of all the houses ahead of time to prepare. (I didn't to avoid spoilers.) With a later tour time, we decided we would do one house before the tour to get our feet wet. She chose Graveyard Games, despite my warning that it is considered one of the scarier houses this year. She must have gotten every scare in the house. A dream for many, but not for her. I wasn't sure she was going to go into another house the rest of the night. Luckily, US was our first house on the tour and our guide assured her that it was on the more mild side. DW gave it a go and enjoyed it. To her credit, she got through them all (even GG a 2nd time), and is open to coming back in the future years.

 

[contemporarymom]

I must have had a brain freeze because I forgot to mention that we also saw MOM right after a break at Cafe La Bamba. Which is strange because we both loved it. LOL

 

[dstemm]

I wanted to thank everyone for all their help. DH and I attended HHN on 9/26 and had a great time. We did the public RIP tour and when we go back and do it next year will do the same. Our guide was Kris and he was terrific. Lots of fun facts that we really appreciated. I wanted to give a quick synopsis of our night to help out others. If anyone has questions, don't hesitate to ask.

When we entered the park through the front entrance, there was an entrance all the way to the right, clearly marked VIP. They got us checked in, gave us our lanyards and badges and we waited for about 10 minutes before they let us into the park. We went through Vanity Ball, Hellbilly and Vikings Undead but not all the scare actors were out yet. Our check in at Cafe La Bamba was for 7:00PM with the tour scheduled for 7:30. We walked on MIB, Gringots and RRR and then walked over to check in. Check in was easy and we were assigned our guide. Had a few sweets (we had dinner before). The food consisted of nachos, street corn, arancini and a few other finger foods. Water, tea,soft drinks and lemonade plus a cash bar were available. Desserts were sugar cookies, pumpkin tarts, cupcakes and a couple of others. Definitely not a full meal and we were glad we ate before. We met Kris, our guide and the rest of the group and we were off. We did the back of the park first traveling through Vikings Undead (much cooler with all the scare actors and in the dark) and then to our first house Universal Monsters followed by Graveyard Games then Nightingales and Depths of Fear and House of 1000 Corpses. We then stopped at Lombards for a rest. After our rest we went through the rest of the houses and scare zones and ended right around midnight. The tour was excellent IMO. I'm not great at waiting in lines and even though we were told it was a fairly low capacity night I knew we wouldn't have enjoyedit half as much without the benefit of the tour.

As far as the houses were concerned we honestly loved all of them with favorites being, Universal Monsters, Yeti, Depths of Fear and Graveyard Games. The other houses were also terrific but we just really appreciated the sets of these houses and that plus the scares we received (well, mostly I received ) just made them tops for us. The scare zones were fun and the makeup was amazing. I'm not a screamer but for some reason the scare actors loved me. I can't tell you how many times they snuck up on me. I guess I was so intent on seeing everything, my Spidey Sense wasn't working. LOL

All in all, as first timers we were both blown away. DH was so-so about going at first but wound up being a huge fan! We are already making plans to go back next year. We will definitely do the RIP tour again. For us it is just the best way to do it and get the most enjoyment out of the event but YMMV. Can't wait for next year! If you have any questions, ask away!

What time were you allowed in the park before your tour? I am doing a 6:30 public RIP tour and I wanted to know what time I should get there.
thanks

 

[contemporarymom]

What time were you allowed in the park before your tour? I am doing a 6:30 public RIP tour and I wanted to know what time I should get there.
thanks

We had dinner before so we didn’t enter the park until 6:00. They will not allow you to check in at Cafe La Bamba until 30 minutes before your tour time. Make sure you know your “check in” vs your “tour time”.

 

[dstemm]

We had dinner before so we didn’t enter the park until 6:00. They will not allow you to check in at Cafe La Bamba until 30 minutes before your tour time. Make sure you know your “check in” vs your “tour time”.

Did you have passes for the day to get into the park at 6? I know my check in time is 6 where as yours was 7 but you were able to do some rides before your check in. So my question is, would I be able to get into the park before 6 like around 5?

 

[contemporarymom]

Did you have passes for the day to get into the park at 6? I know my check in time is 6 where as yours was 7 but you were able to do some rides before your check in. So my question is, would I be able to get into the park before 6 like around 5?

We have annual passes. If you have park tickets/passes I believe you can do Stay and Scream but I'm sure one of the HHN experts can chime in if I'm wrong.