Summary:

13 Terrors is a collection of scenes of varying themes.  The tour started at the "Bates Motel", which had a detailed porch facade, with the appearance of weathered wood.  Continuing on, I was surprised by an actor at the reception desk.  The area was dark, which helped with that initial scare, but unfortunately it was so dark, I couldn't see the rest of the scene that was set up, off to the right.  Walking into the bathroom, patrons had to push aside a shower curtain to continue.  Just about the time we exited the scene, there was another scare from an actor with a great hiding place. 

Another one of themed areas was the "Municipal Sanitarium", which was a collection of rooms with blood-smeared white walls, hospital gurneys and mental patients.  Some of the actors were a bit more aggressive, while others were not.  The Egyptian scene had a nice amount of detail.  Toe-pincher coffin lids were affixed to the walls, which were covered with pharaoh artwork and hieroglyphics.  A few actors were wrapped in white cloth strips to look like mummies and they used a hidden exit to regulate the flow of groups from one room to another.  Also, there was a nice surprise scare at the end of the scene.  In the haunted house there was also a rocking room that swayed from side-to-side.  Illuminated by green floodlights, this room also had a couple of clown characters to keep you entertained.  There was also a dark area with trees, draped with camo-netting, that resembled a swamp.  Weaving my way through this section, I was attacked by a swamp monster of some sort.  I also liked the cave with textured "rock" walls and burlap strips that hung down.  Other notable areas included the flashing cockroach hallway, glowing dot room where the dots come alive and the strobe light mirror maze. 

Throughout the haunted house, the actors stayed in character and were eager to scare.  There were a couple of scares that were poorly timed; however, the actors all did a great job, for the most part. On the night of my visit, they had a good number of actors throughout the attraction, so there were very few dead areas (no pun intended).    

I had a really good time at 13 Terrors Haunted House.  It was an entertaining show.  They had a lot of diverse themes and some clever scares.  Also, this event was quite a value, compared to some other local attractions I have been to this October.  Be sure to check this one out, if you get the chance. 

To find out more about this event, visit:

http://www.chicagoparkdistrict.com/