Scare City 2024 Review

23 October 2024

Scare City

Scare City Experience is back… bigger, better, and bloodier than ever before.

Scare City Experience is located in Chorley, near Manchester in the North West of England. The site has ample free parking and is easily found driving using a satnav. The attraction is linear and consists of 9 different scare zones plus the entertainment zone half way through, the experience is expected to take anywhere between 45 minutes and 2 hours, depending on queues and what pace you choose to take it at.

Tickets start from £27 per person and this is for a standard entry, meaning you must queue for each section throughout the trail. On busier nights, there can be queues in between certain zones, but at the beginning or on quieter nights, there may be no waits at all. Alternatively, you can buy a gold ticket that allows you to skip any waits on your night.

They run on selected dates throughout the end of September, October and ends in November. With plenty of time to experience Scare City, we were excited to head back to this event in October to see what they had to offer this year. Scare City Experience is extremely popular with majority of dates sold out already, so act fast to avoid disappointment.

Our First thoughts… 

The event was one the most unique attractions we experienced last year, and also took 1st place in the Best Scare Attraction awards from our good friends ScareTrack. Read on to find out more about why Scare City Experience should be on your Halloween radar.

Set in the grounds of the abandoned Camelot Theme Park, this is your unique chance to see what once was. Scare City Experience utilise this incredibly unique venue and have turned it into a beautifully haunted light trail, with several zones of terror and an entertainment hub along the way. Lights, special effects, themed environments and scare actors all work in perfect harmony to create the experience.

As you arrive, there are a few toilets and a bar in case you arrive early or need to have a nervous wee before you start your experience. Here you join either the standard queue or gold fast track queue at your allocated time slot. In order to gain entry you must sign a waiver confirming you understand the risks involved with the environments you’ll be entering with uneven surfaces etc. and then listen to a short health and safety briefing before being sent on your way.

Below we go into more depth about the attractions, giving you are thoughts and rating. Our ratings are completely separate and allows us to give a fair unbiased rating of each attraction. To know more about the ratings before you read below, do click here!

Enter into a hillbilly shack to meet some of the deranged family, before being thrown out into the yard where you have to play a game of red light, green light. Dodge the terrifying scarecrows as you stop on the red light, and run for your lives as it changes to green. We loved the interactivity and the intensity this unique scare zone brings, and something you’re unlikely to experience elsewhere.

Reapers Ranch – Theming 50% | Storyline 65% | Screams 50% | Laughs 70% | Actors 60% – 59% scare Score

Stepping into a containment zone, a breach soon makes things take an unexpected turn. Be sure to dodge the Fearsome zombies as you head through many stop scenes as the story unfolds in front of you. With this attraction feeling more structured, it did break up the flow a little, but did allow for some full on moments with scares from all angles.

Contained – Theming 50% | Storyline 75% | Screams 45% | Laughs 60% | Actors 70% – 60% scare Score

Walk through this weird and wonderful circus and see the twisted illusions for yourself. This zone utilities the old game stools that were for Camelot theme park, before heading inside a small shack which used clever lighting, and hiding spaces to create some scary moments, in this otherwise light hearted trail. The ending has great interaction and had us laughing out loud!

Carni Valley – Theming 75% | Storyline 65% | Screams 55% | Laughs 90% | Actors 80% – 73% scare Score

Based in the abandoned castle, this was repurposed as a cursed church. Whilst light on theming with winding black corridors, the lighting package and actors certainly brought the intensity. This was the standout zone of the night for us, and the finale is second to nun, which had us screaming in terror and running for the exit.

Basilica of Galgani – Theming 75% | Storyline 80% | Screams 90% | Laughs 75% | Actors 90% – 82% scare Score

Dare you enter this dark and disturbing building where the butchers inside can’t wait to meat you. This was the starting maze for the event to get you prepared for what else was to come. Whilst pretty weak, the dark corridors allowed for some unexpected jump scares.

Slaughter House – Theming 55% | Storyline 50% | Screams 45% | Laughs 45% | Actors 45% – 48% scare Score

Ahead of you lies a beautifully lit woodland which you could appreciate from the top. As you head down into the valley, things take a sinister turn with tormented nightmares hidden in plain sight. You only have one way to head, forward and out the other side. We particularly loved the creepy twins and the large 7ft monster that towered above us and blocked the exit.

Vallis Mortis – Theming 70% | Storyline 55% | Screams 60% | Laughs 65% | Actors 75% – 65% scare Score

We certainly wouldn’t want to be a patient in this twisted and desolate hospital. With creepy characters and some gruesome scenes with actors getting up close with their tools, it really put us all on edge. Featuring clever illusions which utilise the actors, it’s not something you often see within attractions.

Infirmary – Theming 65% | Storyline 55% | Screams 70% | Laughs 50% | Actors 60% – 60% scare Score

You find yourself in a dystopian wasteland with destroyed vehicles and other junk pilled up either side. Protected by the inhabitants that roam across this zone, prepare yourself for chainsaws and sparks and be sure to not look them in the eyes. Whilst one of the shorter zones, it still gives plenty of scares and impressive scenery.

Junkyard – Theming 65% | Storyline 45% | Screams 30% | Laughs 55% | Actors 50% – 49% scare Score

Dare to enter the lair of the sinister spiders with narrow and winding corridors, you’ll be sure to be caught up in their webs. These human size spiders can’t wait to trap you in a very confined space, appearing out of nowhere. These outstanding actors contort their bodies into inhuman shapes to mimic a spider. This left many guests not wanting to even enter.

Arakhne – Theming 45% | Storyline 55% | Screams 80% | Laughs 65% | Actors 80% – 65% scare Score

Overall, Scare City is a superb experience that provides a blend of scares, laughs and other entertainment. We are always left in complete awe when visiting, with just the scale of the zones and how the trail is presented with lights, smoke and other creative effects.

Luckily visiting at the beginning of the night we did not see many queues or large groups being batched together, however as the scare zones are quite short we would certainly recommend the gold fast track, as queueing time after time throughout the night may detract from the experience.

A big thank you to the team at Scare City Experience for inviting us to experience the attraction. They provided us with three gold tickets in return for our content. The opinions are our own. As you can see anyone is allowed to take photos and videos of the attractions, as long as if a light is not used.

The event is still as popular as ever with extra dates added, there may still be chance to visit in 2024, otherwise be sure to look towards 2025 where we’re sure they will return with more exciting zones of terror. Make sure you follow Scare City Experience on socials for the latest information, and if you want a little more information and insight into what you can expect during your visit, then watch our TikTok!

Attractions 70%
Entertainment 55%
Atmosphere 75%
value for money 85%
uniqueness 85%

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