Badge: Halloween Haunted Creator

Do you prefer your Halloween to be filled with “fear” or “fun?” After exploring what others are doing in “Halloween Haunted Explorer,” you can take those ideas to develop and host your own event or activities for others. This badge program is for creating an event that lasts longer than a single night like a party.

Steps

Determine Your Own

1. Overview.

Do you want to do a single activity or multiple activities for your event? Are you looking at creating items that will last a full weekend, a couple weeks or even a month. Keep in mind storage and size concerns during the times the items will not be utilized. What other considerations do you need to make choices on so you can create something truly memorable?

2. Type.

Looking at the events presented in the “Halloween Haunted Explorer” badge program and perhaps a few you’ve experienced but are not listed, try to determine what kind of an event you would like to host.

3. Activities.

Look through your notes and determine which things you want to have. You can also look through the other badge programs from the Enrichment Project’s Halloween set and pull things from those as well. Sort your ideas by difficulty to accomplish, where they fit into your theme or other criteria you determine. Prepare a plan to start your own haunted location.

4. Zoning and laws.

You will need to find out what you can and cannot do not only at your location (zoning) but also per the laws of the city, county, state, etc. where you will be having your event. You will find other regulations as well. For example, if you serve food, you might need to have restrooms, food has to be made / presented a certain way, etc. Review the rules and regulations for your area.

NOTE: You may find that you are required to have a law enforcement presence at your event. If so, be sure this person knows what is happening so they can deal with panicked patrons.

Getting Help

5. Create.

Creating something larger than a party requires help. The help can be anything from building sets and planning out the layout to doing test runs to make sure everything works properly. Check with local organizations, high school clubs, senior groups and others who are likely to volunteer. Often, offering free tickets at the beginning is a good enough incentive. As you build a reputation and make money, you’ll be hiring people instead of just getting volunteers. Some of the jobs might include:

Building props and haunts
Repairing props and haunts
Cleaning
Testing the entire haunt to make sure it is safe

NOTE: Some of the people you need to help you may be professionals like electricians or carpenters. They are less likely to volunteer, but an experience professional can accomplish a lot more than a handful of people who don’t know what they’re doing. This is one area where the cost is worth the investment.

6. Event.

Extended events need even more planning than just the setting up and manning the stations. For even the most enthusiastic volunteer, a full weekend is a lot for one person or even a family to do. Doing the same task constantly can also start to bore some volunteers Be sure to mix it up and have additional helpers available in case someone can’t attend, needs a break, etc. Some of the jobs you might need done include:

Checking for contraban (weapons / cameras / etc.)
Manning ticket booth
Manning haunts (attractions)
Making and serving food
Proving information
Stamping hands (to come back in)
Emptying trash cans

Since your event is unique, you may have even more jobs.

7. Perform.

For variety in your event, you might choose to add a fortune teller, magician. musician, walking minstrel, storyteller, clown or other performers who fit into your theme without being a full attraction. These interactive possibilities engage your visitors and add to the overall feel of your event. How do they fit with the theme of “fun” or “fear?” See who you can find locally who might be willing to volunteer at first or work for little to help you get it off the ground.

Haunts, Attractions and Activities

8. Brand.

Your initial step should be a simple design to build a positive brand. No, I’m not talking about the actual haunts You want to make sure that people enjoy themselves. Keep this in your mind as you design your haunts. Be sure to set up warning signs for areas that children shouldn’t go into. Be sure to have activities for entire families if that’s the audience you’re hoping to attract. Building a good brand means your attendees will share their experiences with their friends and family what went well. The reverse is true as well, so test every haunt before you open each day to make sure the experience is as positive as possible.

9. Build.

Start small. Perhaps you start with cleaning out a trail through the woods for a wagon. It doesn’t need to be extravagant, but a story helps not only your audience get into the mood, but your volunteers as well. We did a haunted wagon ride and the thing that creeped me out the most was the fishing line hanging from the tree branches that brushed against your skin as you rode under them.

Pick a number of items you want to do the first year and do them well. If something goes wrong with a particular haunt, shut it down. Remember, you’re building a reputation. Items not working reflect poorly on you.

The next year, add a few more things. This will allow people to see something new when they come back, fix issues you had the previous year and allow the community to be involved.

In addition, you might choose do to something like create one attraction each year. For example, last year the Niles Park added a zip line for an extra activity. It wasn’t scary, but the kids loved it.

10. Recycle.

People recycled and donate the strangest things. One of the haunted “trails” we went on included climbing thru a hearse including the split open coffin with the remains inside. You could tell the hearse didn’t run . . . flat tires and the like. It added to the atmosphere, however.

Asking your community for left over decorations, items they are no longer using, etc. can keep your costs down. For example, a normal kitchen might be on a tour when mom turns around covered in blood with her ladle full of fingers. Pictures of abandoned buildings might decorate a hall. Really bad paintings might be adjusted to make them eerie. Well, you get the idea.

11. Rules.

Post rules for your visitors. This starts from when they walk into your attraction until they leave. For example, if you have people helping you create a full experience, flash photography can be very bad. You may not want people to touch items and cause damage. What other rules might you include? Remember that you want this to be a positive experience for everyone!

12. Other items.

As you explore different venues, events and add-on activities, here are a few to start thinking about to add to your event:

Food
Games of chance
Rides (or equivalent)
Haunted scavenger hunt
Seating area for adults
Stage for performers (so they don’t all have to wander)
Movie screen for a scary film
Unsupervised play area
Portable toilets

13. Badges.

Review other badges in the Halloween set for ideas and information for your own haunted attraction. You’ll want to especially check out “Halloween Crafts” and “Halloween Decor.”

14. Inspiration.

Find additional information on venues, props and more, you can go to your local library for books or you can find information online. You’ll often find instructions for different haunts and inclusions as well.

Supplements

SUPP_HH Creator_2in_12up_larajla

Avery 2” round label printable, 12 up

SUPP_HH Creator_Checklist_larajla

Badge checklist

SUPP_Printable_Haunt Explorer_larajla

Track the activities / attractions you find and want to recreate for your own haunt

Sites to Explore

Get the infographic here > larajla blog post

Get the PDFs of the badge program / supplements here > Full badge PDFs