For Halloween enthusiasts, it’s the most wonderful time of year. We’ve shared Boulder’s most famous haunts (charge your electromagnetic field detectors and take them to these spirited spots). And we’ve got a treasure map for where you’ll find the plumpest pumpkins in and around the city. But to round out your spooky season bucket list, and for a screaming good time, we dare you to hit the haunted house circuit.
Here’s four haunted house attractions in and around Boulder to check out this fall:
13th Floor Haunted House
For a haunt that’s so well done it’s like a Hollywood production, check out the 13th Floor Haunted House in Denver. There’s a storyline behind the scare that includes a cryogenics lab that reanimates the dead and an abandoned house of a deceased doll maker whose creepy Victorian dolls still lurk. The Bad Blood section involves an ancient feud between vampires and werewolves? The scares start before you enter the haunted house, with characters lurking about in the waiting area just waiting for their moment to photobomb your photos. Did we mention there’s a pop-up bar inside this haunted house, too?
13th Floor Haunted House, 13thfloorhauntedhouse.com, 3400 E 52nd Ave. in Denver
Terror in the Corn at Anderson Farms
Anderson Farms rolls out the, err, orange carpet during the fall, with a slate of events that range from cute (combine slides and pumpkin cannons!) to frightening (a haunted hayride that serves as your chauffeur to the middle-of-nowhere attraction). Terror in the Corn has been rated one of the top haunted attractions in the country by the Haunted Attraction Association, with reviewers raving about the duration of the haunt and the skilled actors. To round out the experience, add on the Zombie Paintball Hunt or for a cozy finish to the night, rent a firepit and toast some s’mores.
Anderson Farms, andersonfarms.com, 6728 County Rd 3 1/4 in Erie
Fright Fest at Elitch Gardens
By day, it’s all family-friendly fun at Elitch Gardens, with a trick-or-treat trail and costume contests. By night, the amusement park in downtown Denver becomes a Halloween lover’s paradise. Themed haunts include an insidious hotel, a creepy carnival graveyard, Seance (where a ghost story comes alive), and Terrortories, which is inhabited with fiendish killers, ghouls, clowns and demons. On Oct. 23, Elitch Gardens is also hosting a “Witch Fest” with tarot and oracle readings, aura readings, broom makers and ritual demonstrations.
Fright Fest at Elitch Gardens, elitchgardens.com/fright-fest, 2000 Elitch Circle in Denver
The Frightmare Compound
The Frightmare Compound is nearby in Westminster and, with nearly 40 years in operation, this is a spot that has aced the science of scares. The history of this haunt sets it apart from others: In 1983 Brad Holder founded The Frightmare Compound, turning the swampland into a Halloween attraction, and was so obsessed with his work that he stated he wanted to be buried on the property grounds. Legend has it that his ghost haunts the compound. The haunt is cluttered with all the makings of a scary movie, things like antique cars and old mining equipment and donated grave markers (typos occasionally happen!) The Frightmare Compound also has a monster museum and mini escape rooms.
The Frightmare Compound, thefrightmarecompound.com, 10798 Yukon St. in Westminster
