Zak Bagans, Lead Investigator on “Ghost Adventures”
October is a big month for travelers in search of new haunts and things that go bump in the night. And speaking of hunting for the paranormal … new episodes of Ghost Adventures started airing on Travel Channel last week. In addition to visiting spooky places such as Lemp Mansion & Brewery, the GA crew packed their bags and headed across the big pond to investigate haunted Ireland. Watch the bone-chilling investigation in a 2-hour Halloween special on Friday, Oct. 31, at 9|8c.
Enter to win a trip for 2 to see some of the paranormal hot spots that the GA crew visited in Ireland. And don’t for get to stay connected to the GA crew and fans in the Ghost Adventures Fan Lair.
This month is a great month for Ghost Adventures, and it’s also a good month to check out our coveted list, Travel’s Best Halloween Attractions 2014. See our recommendations for the best haunts in America. Lead GA investigator Zak Bagans participated on our panel of advisors, and he tells us his top 3 favorite haunts and why you should add them to your must-see list.
The Fear Factory (Photo Courtesy of Breck Gonzales)
3. The Fear Factory
Salt Lake City, UT
A place that has a legitimate address of 666 (666 W 800 S, Salt Lake City, UT 84104) and one that we investigated and uncovered the fact that satanic rituals still take place there secretly, this location is my third favorite haunted attraction in the US. The Fear Factory is an old, abandoned cement factory that was once called “Homeless City” or “Bum City” because all the vagrants and homeless people turned this entire complex into their own city. The countless deaths, rapes, murders and drug overdoses that occurred here — in addition to the deadly accidents when it was a non-regulated cement factory in the early 1900s — really add to the haunted horror layers of this terror cake.
When we were filming there, the owner allowed us to walk the entire attraction. This attraction is extremely long, like the haunted house at the Trans-Allegheny Lunatic Asylum. It takes about an hour to go through the entire haunted factory. There’s a particular area where there are a ton of dolls scattered throughout this one area. When we were there, we interviewed one of the character actors — a very large Scottish man who works in the doll area. He was absolutely trembling when he told us how he experienced a ghost while working the attraction in that area, and this ghost followed him home and almost ruined his marriage. There’s also an area called the Hell Silo. This is the area where a mysterious satanic worshipping book was recently found, and where we were told by an actor/character in the haunted attraction that satanic worshippers do rituals in this area to truly give it the name the Hell Silo. So when you do go here and buy your ticket, people wearing masks aren’t the only things that may scare you. There may be real demons and other malicious spirits that may also follow you home and give you more than what your ticket is worth.
Trans-Allegheny Lunatic Asylum (Photo Courtesy of Trans-Allegheny Lunatic Asylum)
2. Haunted House at Trans-Allegheny Lunatic Asylum
Weston, WV
Trans-Allegheny Lunatic Asylum is one of the most memorable haunted locations I’ve ever investigated. We investigated it for our Ghost Adventures live event, where we spent 7 hours investigating this haunted insane asylum and captured some incredible evidence live. Just visiting there during the day will have you sinking your fingernails into the person’s back that you’re clinging onto as you’re walking through the asylum. The energy is palpable. The dark history is unlike any other. And the spirits that roam those halls are extremely active.
The owner of the Trans-Allegheny Lunatic Asylum — while we were filming there — asked us to go through the haunted attraction, which was one of the older buildings of the asylum that they designate to open exclusively for Halloween. It is undeniably the scariest overall haunted attraction that I’ve been to in the US, outside of the Fright Dome. It is a very long haunted house. So when you start it, it takes a good 45 minutes to an hour to go through the entire attraction. So your escape route is nonexistent. To take an already terrifying location that is truly haunted by ghosts and add the haunted attraction element that is full of some, no pun intended, mentally unstable haunted characters/actors makes for the ultimate haunted attraction. I also remember climbing up a set of stairs and entering a large room that is pitch black and having a feeling that you’re trapped by not the props, not the darkness, but the overall energy of that particular area in the haunted house. To also know that several of the characters in the attraction are attacked or have been attacked by malevolent ghosts definitely makes this attraction not for the young or the faint of heart.
Fright Dome (Photo Courtesy of Radiant Inc.)
1. Fright Dome
Las Vegas, NV
My friend Jason Egan owns Las Vegas’ biggest and longest-running Halloween attraction, called Fright Dome at Circus Circus, and this year, I will be attending the grand-opening, VIP black-carpet event. Fright Dome is located inside the Adventuredome at the Circus Circus. And to me, it is the scariest hotel casino on the Strip because not only is it old, but it is decorated with old clowns and real clowns walking around everywhere. This theme park is transformed into a pitch-black, lights-out haunted attraction with multiple haunted houses under a dome. When you walk around, you’ll see all these scary creatures that lurk in all the different dark corners. It’s so dark and full of fog. It feels like you’re walking in your worst nightmare.
I had one of the scariest moments of my life there last year. LOL! When I was young, I had a recurring dream where I was on top of my dad’s shoulders as a little kid, walking through a theme park. And as I looked to my left, there would be these clowns with glowing eyeballs that would be slowly marching around a table. I would keep staring at them as we would walk away. And when I turned my head straight, I saw the clowns circling my dad and me with their knives out and eyeballs glowing. That dream still haunts me today. It is one of the reasons why I have a phobia of clowns. Last year at Fright Dome, Jason had a clown-themed haunted house. We were going through the haunted house, and it felt exactly like my nightmare. I literally had the worst panic attack of my life. And for that reason, you can rest assured I will be there again this year, because it was badass.
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Ghost Adventures Fan Lair
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Travel’s Best Halloween Attractions 2014