Red Oak, TX

OVERALL SCORE : 9.5

: Saturday, October 2nd 2010
: 11:00pm

General Overview

The Reindeer Manor Abusement Park houses three completely different haunted attractions, each to entertain all tastes. The atmosphere is also one of the best in the DFW area. Secluded on private property, the dark dirt road to the parking area is spooky enough, and you have not even seen the midway yet. You ride a trailer from parking to the entrance, and you should catch a few (if not several) glances of fire blasting into the night sky.

Everything in the midway is themed for Halloween – games included – and the concessions offer a variety of carnival food and treats. You could easily spend your entire evening just soaking in the great environment. Roaming actors, vendors, screaming patrons, and relaxing rural night skies above – all provide the spirit that is haunted house season.

Admission Price vs. Length (Entertainment Value)

Each haunted attraction is very reasonably price individually if you want to only visit one haunt. But we highly recommend the combo ticket for all three attractions – an excellent deal for how much unique variety and entertainment available.

Reindeer Manor

Set Design/Detail/Floor Plan

We always love Reindeer Manor because it is so unique. It is the only haunt in DFW that provides a theatrical event for each closed scene. Many skits and scene details have changed over the years, and we admit that we miss some of the older performances. But we still love every second that is Reindeer Manor. Special effects and surprising scare tactics demand attention in every room. Although, sometimes we could hear sounds from other scenes while trying to listen to the actors, and that was a little distracting. Overall, we did not notice any huge scene changes, but some fine-tuning and small changes to the scripting. Reindeer Manor is one of those places we can see multiple times and never get bored, though. Sometimes the group you are in can make all the difference in the quality of your experience.

Side note: If you do not like to see actors performing skits, then this haunt might not be for you. Give it a chance though, unless you cannot stay quiet. Talking during the performance will only ruin the experience for others, and it is extremely disrespectful to the performers.

Live Actors (Performance/Enthusiasm/Costumes)

Everyone should figure out just how Reindeer Manor is different by the first scene. The amazing Nosferatu delivers a humorous and authentic performance without fail, and he does great to identify opportunities for improvisation. In the second scene, the actors were a little hard to follow, but they still effectively portrayed the intended characters. The third scene where you peek through the walls is still one of my ultimate favorites. Actually, everyone performed very well, up until we left the rocking ship and crossed the bridge. From that point on, actor energy levels and interactions slowly declined. For instance, the auctioneers almost seemed bored, and the clowns seemed more like a stammering cluster of confusion. I honestly miss the BBQ kitchen. Then, the trail seemed to have a lot less actor involvement, so we were left with a nice walk through the woods admiring the occasional scene. I would love to see more scripted scenes in the trail eventually, too.

Overall Experience/Summary/Misc. Information

Reindeer Manor is one of those types of haunts that you have to see for yourself to fully understand. The scare factor is not as high, but entertainment value rockets into “Best-in-Class” standards. No other haunted attraction can compare to the unique type of show Reindeer Manor provides. That is why we continue to highly recommend Reindeer Manor every year.

Previous Reviews

Read the full review here. The link includes reviews to each individual Attraction!

Bookmark & Share