How to Choose a Haunted House Location

One of the most important items you need when you begin your quest for create a haunted house is a good location. A downtown area in a bright metropolitan area is probably not a good idea. What you are looking for is a place that is naturally spooky and plays into your guests collective imagination. So what types of places are going to be naturally spooky? Think about the old tales you heard about as a child. Old Growth forests with dynamic lighting and twisted trunks, cemeteries with mausoleums, old churches. Add one of those with a nice lake effect and a full moon and you've got yourself a good setup for one of the spookiest haunted houses around.

How about some non-standard locations? A museum oftentimes can houses scary exhibits that become especially so after sun down. You can find small local museums that have Native American artifacts, stuffed animals, and sometimes even human remains on display.

Getting permission to house your haunted house there could be a trick (or treat). Try to get to know your local curator a few months in advance. Many times, the local museum is looking for ways to bring visitors in after the travel season ends after Labor Day. Explain to them that this will be a great community event and will bring more people to the museum. Plan on charging admission - but not more than 5 dollars a person. A portion of each admission charge should be given to the museum as most of them are chronically short of funds.

Since they are short of funds, you need to plan all your own extra creepy crawlies. Visit the museum a in the beginning of October after the sun goes down and see how the moonlight and other light play in through the windows and into the exhibits. Doing this will allow you to determine exactly how to place other props and how move your guests through the exhibits in the way that allows them to create their own fears.

After figuring out the light, you can place things like spiderwebs in locations that catch the light in order to highlight them. You will know where the darkest shadows are so that you can have the hockey mask killer jump out of the shadows. You will know where to place the black lights and fake fog to its greatest effect. Remember too that witches use all kinds of rare and exotic animals in their brews; a witch is a fine addition to any exhibit.

So think about your local small museum to host your next haunted house. Not only will it be spooky and scary, but you will also be doing a community service.