Markoff's was a big disappointment. It had been about 20 years since I last went to a haunted…read morehouse/forest and I had heard good things about Markoff's, so I was excited to visit. I found the Midway boring, the Town small, the Trail extensive but not very scary/surprising, and the prices outrageous. Markoff's charged $70 for a Town + Trail combo ticket. Ok, fine, for a unique experience I paid it. I don't think it's terrible compared to concerts, Renn Fest, and other experiences. But I thought the overall quality would be higher. At the Midway, I expected more entertainment and activities. Compared to a Renn Fest, which has tons of shows and activities going on, there is almost nothing at the Markoff's Midway. There were a few food stands (tacos, nachos, and pupusas; cotton candy; donuts; waffles; cotton candy; smores), one bar, a merch store, a small art store, face painting, a zip line, and a log rolling activity. The only entertainment I saw was a pretty tame fire dancer at one point. They played DJ music but song choices were often odd, like Elton John (doesn't say "Haunted Forest" to me). Everything cost more money to do. Beer was an outrageous $15. Tacos $8 for one (but did get good reviews from my friends). Lines were long because they only had one person checking IDs and one cashier, and no one had any hustle. Overall, it was boring. I did the Town first. You wait in a line to be driven in a group to the town. The ride there didn't have any decorations or scares which was a missed opportunity. The Town itself was a fairly basic path in and out of some rooms. Some of the decorations were neat. There were some attempted scares and surprises, but this heavily depends on where you are in your group and if you are close to the group ahead of you -- either people in your own group or the next group can spoil the scare/surprise. There were some actors and some dummies and animatronics. Actors were okay but some were overacting high schoolers. It was pretty short. My immediate reaction was, "That's it?" The Trail was much longer and more substantial than the Town. It is clear this is the main event. It was very long and winding, had lots of different themed areas, and lots of props, decor, animatronics, and actors. But everything felt a little low quality. Many of the themes were old timey, like a crypt; I would have liked a few more modern horror settings like a morgue or hospital. Some of my favorite decor was some old cars near the end because they felt more real than other area. I also would have liked some longer, more involved themed areas; instead, the themes felt short and shallow. Like, give me a whole haunted church to explore instead of just one room. They could also have more creative scares/surprises, like with people above you or below you. Scares/surprises could have been good if not often ruined by people ahead. I'm glad I gave it a shot but I don't recommend it. I would read reviews carefully before doing another haunted house/forest.

I love the haunted forest. It's fun every year. Recently, they've added a couple lights on nights…read more These are great for families. My 12 year old isn't quite ready for the real fun, but lights on gives her a chance to get used it. My favorite Markoff's event, though, is their new Christmas trail and village. If you have the chance to go, you must! It's a wonderful representation of various Christmas traditions. I can't recommend it enough!

A group of us went to Haunted Hollow on opening weekend, and it did not disappoint. The tickets for…read morethis haunted trail were only twenty dollars because it was so early in the season. I have been to a lot of haunted houses and trails at the beginning of October, and many places tend to be understaffed. Haunted Hollow was fully prepared and had tons of actors scattered throughout the trail and scares at all different levels (crawling, jumping down from a height, hiding behind props, etc.). They did a good job of keeping groups spread out through the use of a timer. We didn't encounter any other groups until we got closer to the end and made a wrong turn in one of the mazes. In the waiting area, we noticed they had a giant fire pit. Since the weather was nice, it was not in use, but will be great for cooler fall nights. It would be nice if they would add some things to the waiting area since it was somewhat dark. Maybe some additional lights and photo spots would be nice. The trail itself has some uneven spots and steps up or down that can be difficult to see so wear good shoes. It would be great if they marked these spots with glow in the dark paint or reflective tape so no one falls. If you're looking for a reasonably priced haunted trail that isn't far off from NOVA, Haunted Hollow is worth the drive.

Absolutely loved my experience. I will definitely go back next year. They did an amazing job!…read moreHighly recommended

A great little bar with great food options and screens that keep any mainstream event airing. The…read morestaff are hardworking and do their best to keep your needs met. The tap selection is surprisingly well stocked given the bars association with ADH. For deepest of film fans out there, Ghost Bar Cinema hosts trivia on Thursdays! And I recommend you come prepped because they will put you to the test in all the best ways. All in all, Ghost Bar Cinema is a great little bar in an ideal location for all. It's a great spot to kill an evening for all manner of occasions.

Formally, Madhaunters Madhouse! This is a dope attraction to check out. The drive for me was about…read more45min (coming from Waldorf Md) and it's so worth it. We arrived early around 5:45pm and went 4mins around the corner to Electric palm (yummy) for food. Parking spaces are available on site. I suggest to get there right when they open @7pm or earlier. Spaces do get tight and it gets crowded quick. The sooner the better and you don't have to wait as long. The general admission is $20. They give you a ticketed number. Then you have to wait til your ticket number is within the group numbers called on the tv screens to go on the trail. However, while you wait you can purchase paintball for a extra $7 & the escape room for $5. I do think they can approve with the extra add-ons. The escape room is in a little trailer & you have only 5mins to find a key. The paintball is set up in a little tent & you just hit zombies on a projector screen. I feel like they can improve the paintball by opening up another part of the field with stadium lights an actually have a game going on. If it be with two teams of customers at a time or customers against zombies. There is also a free movie playing to bypass time. Every night theres a diff movie. They also, have food trucks & a bar with two bartenders. I suggest they include one or two more bars to help with the lines. So, I say at least six bartenders. Also, need to have more selections in the alcohol ( they didn't have Hennessy). Anyway, the trial itself was really fun. It lasted a good 35-40mins or more. I appreciate that compared to other haunted attractions that are over in a blink of an eye. I loved all the props, the scenery, & actors. I was scared a good few times. My fav three parts was the sucken bridge ( feels like you're falling thru), the scene where its a green fog room like walking thru a pond or forest & the actual walk thru the diff parts of the jail! I will def recommend and will be back as long as they make improvements & change the trail every year. Websites for more info: https://www.virginia.org/Listings/Events/GhostBarCinema Ghostbarcinema.com

A+ A true sight to behold…read more The Ghost Town was fun, but the trail is beyond incredible you will not see anything like it. Go see this place! p.s. get some magnets in your gift shop

First things first. Markoff's is hands down the best haunted attraction I've ever been to. It is…read moreincredibly well done. I think I've been seven or eight times. However, I simply cannot give five stars at this time. Our group went to Markoff's on a Sunday night, which is clearly their slow night and least crowded night. But despite the fact that there were SIGNIFICANTLY less people than any other time we'd been in past years, we had to wait OVER TWO HOURS to be called for the trail. Then we had to wait approximately 20 more minutes to get to the trail entrance. We had anticipated being home from this adventure by 9pm, but now it is almost midnight and we are still en route. Unfortunately, multiple members of our group had to leave because they simply could not wait that long. Some folks had to bring their kids home and others had to relieve babysitters. We love you Markoff's, but really found this to be unacceptable.

Laurel's House of Horror is great, if you're looking for a screamin' good time! The escape rooms…read moreare fun (horror/spooky themed), but the star of the show is their haunted house. We've gone annually for the past 4 years, and it is so much fun every time. The scare actors engage you from the moment you step in line. It's one cohesive, spooky experience. Each year, a few things change. It's our reliable scare date. Highly recommend!

I haven't been to a haunted house in a couple years so I was looking forward to getting a few…read moreHalloween activities in for the month. My friend and I got the instant access pass for an extra $25 and to be honest, it was worth every penny. With it being spooky month, we knew it would be jam packed. The line got general admission was ridiculous. The line to express access was better but still pretty long. Instant access allows you to skip the line and go straight to the entrance of the haunted house. The music was too loud to hear the instructions but I guess the gist is, don't run and don't touch the actors. I loved the design and themes of most rooms. Some left a little to be desired. I do wish there were a little more actors and better system of separating the parties. There were quite a few times we were able to see ahead so we knew what was coming. My favorite times were any moment where the actors interacted with the guests, like when we were chased. After the haunted house, you're able to buy merch and take photos. Although we didn't do the escape room, I liked that there was an option to do so this adding to the whole Halloween experience. All in all, I enjoyed my time at the House of Horror. While there could be some improvements with setup, I would still recommend it for others wanting to check out a local haunted house.

Honestly, we didn't know what to expect when we realized this was in a neighborhood. We arrived by…read more7:30 pm, and the line was already rather long. We dropped off the non-perishable donations for the food pantry as was requested by the hosts of this haunt, and waited in line. They let you go in groups of up to 6 (that was our group 3 adults and 3 kids (13, 10, 9 y.o.). We were guided to the locked gate and upon entering were left to walk through a great variety of themed sections with costumed haunters popping out and playing their parts very convincingly. I do not want to spoil this by revealing the details, but all of us came out thoroughly impressed, occasionally spooked and overall pleased with the experience. We plan to bring more friends to enjoy this haunted experience next weekend! I highly recommend it if you love all things Halloween! It is incredibly well put together, with great attention to details.

This is a backyard haunted is in a residential neighborhood and is great. The homeowner and their…read morefriends and volunteers do a great job. There are several themes sections in the woods and they are all very intricate. Highly recommend for anyone looking for a scare. Admission is free, but they do take donations (food and/or monetary) for the Haymarket food pantry.

After enjoying our very first "Deadwood Trail" year before last but missing last year's due to bad…read moreweather, we returned this past Saturday evening since the weather was clear, cool, & autumn-crisp. We arrived around 7:30 or so, & were pleased to see it wasn't horribly overcrowded yet. Admission was $10 per person (which benefits the Culpeper County Sheriff's Office Santa Cop program), & we're glad that after hiking up from the front-field parking area we had cash on us, because admission was CASH ONLY, which we didn't find out until we had reached the window. (I checked their website afterwards & absolutely no mention of this is made anywhere on it. They may want to remedy this rather important omission next time around.) Two huge bonfires surrounded by seating areas were blazing away, & there were two food trucks - Buffalo Wild Wings & another whose name I don't recall, just that they were selling the usual burgers, hot dogs, wraps, & the like. (We both seemed to remember more food vendors the first time we did this.) Husband & I were in the front of our group of ten, which sent us into the abyss first. After going thru the dark snug winding wooden maze of the "barn", we came out on the trail where what, for me, was the scariest part of the walk (spoiler alert) - a line of scarecrows tied up against corn shocks, except at least one was a costumed person who jumped out at us. Since they had remained perfectly still at first, it was a surprise. Apart from that they had a camping scenario, a sawmill scenario, a "Deadwood" western town scenario, among others. It seems funny to critique something like this, but they had way, WAY too many "creepy clowns". It seemed like every other person was a creepy clown. In fact, they even had a "Welcome to Derry, Maine" section that had my husband wondering whether or not they were prepared for a lawsuit from Stephen King re: his Pennywise the Clown character - lol. There also seemed to be an awful lot of chainsaws. One other critique was the western saloon tableau where they had cowboy ghouls run thru the group firing off real guns (blanks, of course) & one guy shot his off so close to us that we both had sparks & gun frass (or whatever it's called) showering down on our faces & my left ear was still ringing the next morning. We heard another woman behind us complain about the same thing. They may want to rethink that a bit. One last thing we noticed was that during our last visit there was at least enough light so we could enjoy most of the costumes/props. This time everything was so dark you really couldn't see much of the masks/makeup. Except for all those clowns, of course - lol! All in all it was fun, & we'll definitely do it again next year if they hold it, except next time we'll wear ear plugs. It's for a good cause, & is infinitely less expensive than other "haunted" venues out there.

I was traveling from out of town, and I wanted to go to a haunted attraction. This attraction did…read morenot disappoint. The actors give a lot of personalized attention, and there is a story woven throughout the two spaces. I enjoyed the 3D room a lot. Definitely check it out this year. The staff is lovely, and everyone is super friendly and nice.

Outstanding! I go to…read morea lot of haunted attractions, and this one is definitely worth your time. It's very common for haunts to set up a long line and chase people through, which is okay if you don't really like haunted houses and just want to get it over with. But this place is different. They stick to small groupings which are very well spaced out. The rooms and make-up are great, but most important the actors really take ownership of their individual rooms and interact with you in a scary, but also fun, kind of way. Can't say enough about how much my daughter and I liked Darkwood Manor. Well worth the money and the drive!