Haunted Attraction Network

It's another episode divisible by four and that means we're doing the news and what a news week we have. Has the nation and world begin the process of reopening, haunted attractions and similar locations are starting to open back up as well. As such, we have a lot of news about various attractions opening their doors for the first time in many months. But it's not just about that. We have some new...

Like it or not, the haunt industry is almost certainly heading into a period of great turmoil that is likely to be followed by a recession or even a depression. While that means some rough times are ahead, they are also an opportunity to change the way we work and prepare ourselves to grow. But what changes should we be eying? What adjustments can we make to elevate this whole industry? There are...

When a global crisis happens, like COVID-19 and similar contagious pandemics, haunted attractions and entertainment venues can suffer. Customers can become fearful to attend close-quarter events like concerts and attractions. State regulations may be different for your event this year and they’ll probably keep changing weekly. You may be feeling a bit uncertain about what this year’s season will a...

Right now is the time of year many haunts are starting to think about actor recruitment, retention and training. It's the time we touch base with our crews, start recruiting replacements and training everyone up. However, this year presents a special set of challenges. The days of 100+ person cattle calls are gone for right now and there are LOT of new things you need to think about training. So h...

This week's Haunt Weekly begins with something of a programming note. Originally, we had planned to have Japes Palles on to talk about actor recruitment and training while working remotely. However, some severe weather struck his area and he was not able to come on. So, we will have that conversation next week, same time, same channel. In the meantime, we wish Japes the best of luck with the clean...

Scott chats with his old friend and colleague, Alex Crow, about working together at Howl-O-Scream, his career after Busch Gardens and the future of the seasonal attractions industry. Enjoy their poignant observations and silly stories.

"Remote" brings you into a horror experience without leaving your house. But you'll feel like you're there. Learn how a"Remote" type of interactive digital experience can be used with your customers. Each year we always try to add something unique to our Haunted Attractions. Sometimes we need to think outside of the box so that we can prepare for the experiences customers want and crave...they jus...

Haunters, just like any profession, have a language and jargon all of our own. But for 228 episodes we've been using a lot of the lingo without making any attempt to actually define what any of it means. This week we are fixing that by going through some of the more common terms and expressions used in the haunt industry and among its members So, get your jargon hat on as we're opening the book on...

We ask Bart Butler and Michael Edwards from Terror in the Corn about their preseason preparation, scare acting, timed ticketing, surviving a pandemic, outdoor haunting, and more Haunt stuff! This was recorded from our LIVE virtual prepared summit. You can find more trainings and master classes at HauntersToolbox.com Follow Terror in the Corn at https://terrorinthecorn.com/ This was recorded LIVE d...

Even as the quarantine drags on and haunters find themselves either worrying about the upcoming season or occupying their time with whatever projects they can do, Haunt Weekly marches on. To that end, we started thinking about what haunts might be doing if things weren't sideways and quickly realized that it's Easter and, for many haunts, that means special holiday openings. While they may not be...

Scott discusses ways to think differently in the face of changing times. This episode is dedicated to those who are concerned about their professional, personal and artistic futures.

This week on Haunt Weekly, we're continuing the proud tradition of finding people smarter than ourselves to discuss the topics at hand. Today, that means sitting down with Chris Gay, an EMT and rescue chief that is also the brains behind Haunt Tech Tips and a regular speaker to the haunt community about how to prepare for medical emergencies. With everything going on with COVID-19 and the concerns...

Recorded on March 16, 2020, Scott shares his thoughts and opinions about how the COVID-19 situation can and should affect the Haunted Attraction Industry. I also got your text. I am pretty open this week and I would love to see what virtual stuff we could do to compensate for the postponement of Transworld

One of the biggest issues we found when we asked you "What is one of your biggest challenges as a Haunter?" We kept seeing this answer: time and money. In this podcast episode, we cover ways to save time AND money as you start and grow your haunted house. This was recorded LIVE during one of our Master Classes. You can find all of our past seminars, classes, and workshops at HauntersToolbox.com Gr...

What a week to have a news podcast. Though we were hoping we would be able to completely avoid talking about the coronavirus and leave that to the experts, the impacts on the haunt industry are officially far too great to ignore. So, for better or worse, that is the bulk of this week's news episode. I'm sorry it's a bit of a downer and just one more piece of COVID-19 news to throw on the pile, but...

During part of a long car journey from Orlando to Tampa, Scott talks about the important topics to discuss at the first meetings of the season (aka "The February Meetings"). By identifying challenges and changes early in the year, haunt owners and operators can avoid being caught off guard in the Fall.

This week on Haunt Weekly it's time to do the news! Since we had to skip the news last month we actually have two months of content to go through so this is going to be one packed episode to say the last. We have some difficult news from Field of Screams, an update on the Joilet Prison and an interesting Valentine's Day promotion for one haunted attraction. Couple that with some other big haunt st...

Hear Scott's observations from the 2020 HAuNTcon trade show in New Orleans. Also included in this episode is a round table discussion about the importance of creating a team with cast members from Dark Woods Haunted Attraction ( www.darkwoodshaunt.com ) and a really fun interview recorded at The Vampire Bar on Bourbon Street with Deanna and Phil Raybourn of Raybourn Creative ( www.raybourncreative...

HAuNTcon 2020 is in the books and what a weekend it has been. There was much education to be had, parties to attend, drinking to be done and, most importantly, haunt fellowship to be had. As amazing and chaotic as it was, we're going to try and recap it all in under an hour. Impossible you say? That's because you're right. But it won't stop us from trying. We're sorry to anyone we forgot but our b...

When you build and run a haunt, you buy a lot of things. Some of those purchases work out and become worth their weight in gold, others... not so much. Even though we're overgrown home haunters, we've made a LOT of purchases in the past 15 years and, as we reflect on our buying choices, we see some savvy moves and some major mistakes. Today, we're going to tell you both kinds of stories. So, on th...

A Dark Little Gift to my listeners. A rather twisted retelling of The Night Before Christmas!

It's the holiday season and that means presents, cold weather and trips to visit family and friends. But just because this is the season where no work gets done doesn't mean that you can't do things to improve your haunt. Even better, there are things you can do no matter where you are. If you've got a laptop, or even a cell phone in some cases, there is much that you can to improve your haunt and...

Scott has assembled his recorded musings from the year's largest gathering of Theme Park professionals. The IAAPA Expo takes place in Orlando FL every year and draws visitors from around the world.

We've had a pretty serious few episodes so let's take a break shall we? We haunters are a strange, weird and borderline insane bunch. Best of all, we're proud of it. Still, it's sometimes fun to take a step back and look at all of the ways we are decidedly not normal. I mean, working year-round to scare people a few nights of the year is crazy enough. But to throw in all of the things we do to get...

What is HAuNTcon? HAuNTcon will push your attraction business out of its comfort zone and introduce you to game-changing new products, ideas, and concepts. Improve your Haunted Attraction, start a new Haunt related business, or get ideas for next season. It’s more than a tradeshow, it’s an innovative experience where the haunt community creates the future of the industry. The Haunted Attraction Na...