Audio By Carbonatix
By Martin Cizmar
Ghoulfland Country Club and The 60 Mesa
The good: Lots of startles throughout maze-like house, other fun activities at Golfland.
The bad: Fairly short, scenery is often a little cheesy.
When news happens, Phoenix New Times is there —
Your support strengthens our coverage.
We’re aiming to raise $30,000 by December 31, so we can continue covering what matters most to you. If New Times matters to you, please take action and contribute today, so when news happens, our reporters can be there.
The ugly: None.
Who knows why Glendale and Mesa – the Valley’s two largest suburbs – have so many haunted houses, while Phoenix itself is pretty much barren. Whatever the reason, only about a mile from Shadowlands at Fiesta Mall, you’ll find Ghoulfland.
They’re close geographically, but the attractions couldn’t be more different. While Shadowlands has three attractions, only one of which I enjoyed, and concerns itself more with storylines than scares, Ghoulfland’s The Gauntlet is all about the “gotchas,” packing a big batch of startles in to a fairly short maze. Shadowlands has some great scenery though, while Ghoulfland has only a few good scenes, with the rest of its props looking like they were picked up at a Halloween store the week before the attraction opened on the second floor of the amusement center, which normally houses Laser Tag.
The house itself is $12, which isn’t bad, but the unlimited fun pass is a great deal at $30, including unlimited trips through the house as well as bumper boats, race cars and golf.
The indoor house has well-designed corridors that have more places for people to pop out from than anyone could predict. My companion, Kirsten – we dropped by about 8 on a Friday night, but don’t wait in much of a line – thought the house was way too well lit, and that darker hallways would increase the scare factor exponentially. I agree, though I still found myself jumping back after a few well hidden monsters jumped out.
Though most of the props were a little cheesy, several torture themed scenes were cool. Rooms with a guillotine and a rack were well done, each packing a good scare while you looked on at the spectacle. Overall, it’s a good house, surrounded by even better attractions, and I wouldn’t hesitate to go back.
I’d be careful what I wore on the bumper boats though – turns out it’s easy to get wet on those, even if you gracefully outmaneuver your opponent at every turn.
If you operate a Phoenix-area haunted house you think will stand up to a New Times review drop us a line and send tickets to Music Editor Martin Cizmar:
Martin Cizmar Haunted House Review c/o Phoenix New Times 1201 E. Jefferson Street Phoenix, AZ 85032
