THE OVERALL EVENT…

WOO – side shows | WOO – Roaming Characters | BOO – operations

After a really successful visit last Halloween, we were excited to get back to Xtreme Scream Park for 2026. Whilst there weren’t any new mazes for us this time, the new overlay to Ash Hell Penitentiary sounded exciting. We visited on a sold out Saturday, so we expected big queues and operational challenges on our visit, but we were still interested to see how a sold out, experienced scream park manages as events gain more popularity.

Driving in, there was a queue on the roundabout outside showing how busy it was however, they managed the car parking well and it was very organised. After a quick bag check, your tickets are scanned and you can make your way into the event and head to the main event hubs area. On your way, this is where we had some of our first interactions with the roaming characters. We first saw drunk Santa, who told us to stop playing with ourselves as we had our hands in our pockets due to the cold weather. Throughout the night he was making funny, sarcastic comments with every group and is a standout, unique character. As the night developed, it seemed we just kept seeing more and more roaming characters, every corner another couple would appear. From stilt walkers, tooth fairies, clowns, mimes and everything in between. The cast was enormous!

As expected, operations was going to be a challenge. On one side, they are attempting to keep everybody moving swiftly, but for that to happen, group sizes for the mazes were large and about every 30 seconds, meaning congas and queues in the mazes themselves were highly likely. They have tried to keep queues down by providing a lot of entertainment and side shows, such as a Lucifer’s Lair spin the wheel feature, axe throwing, more rides than ever before and plenty of photo opportunities. We loved how many side show elements they had and felt it was a perfect blend to keep you enjoying the event.

Blutlust

WOO – Costume & Makeup

Blutlust just has great characters that make the costume and makeup fantastic to see. With the theme being vampires and based in Germany, they can really go for the scary side of the vampire theme. With leather jackets and clear vampiric features on their face, it’s clear and very effective.

BOO – Actor utilisation

Just due to the large and lengthy maze, it’s hard for them to utilise the actors once again here. It just seems they need a cast double, if not triple the size to make it effective. Some of the scenes are quite tight and narrow, meaning actors can only move around so much.

WOO – Concept

This concept is really enjoyed. Vampires, Germany, party atmosphere, it just works. Adding the splitting element and also the rare chance of doing the maze multiple times, adds a uniqueness to it too.

The Pie Factory

WOO – Theming

The Pie Factory is a staple attraction at Xtreme Scream and the theming in here had to be noted. They have so many different set scenes, with most of the attraction being very immersive with the sets. From entering the kitchens to the slaughterhouse, each area didn’t lack props, wall designs and just everything required to blend it all in.

BOO – Actor utilisation

The weakest feature of Pie Factory seems to be how the actors are used and where they cover. With it being a lot of space for cover, it seemed some actors were more stationed in one spot or area, instead of roaming around and covering multiple spots, meaning sometimes you go slightly longer with scares or actors interacting.

WOO – Lighting & SFX

The lighting inside Pie Factory blends from bright scenes to dark, dimly lit areas depending on what they are wanting you to see. There is plenty of special effects used in here, from a load of animatronics, air blasts, barrel drops and so much more. Every effect has been thought about and it just feels like they keep adding more and more each season.

The Village

WOO – Theming

Another iconic attraction here and The Village has so much theming in it. Every year it feels like more animatronics and props get added, making it better than the last addition. It has so many different scenes and sets here, recreating a whole village. From a village house, then a school and even a lab, each being done up to be fully immersive and all large sets.

BOO – Enjoyment

The actors here haven’t been the best utilised, with some being stuck on set scenes, such as the introduction using two members. There is a handful that do move around but they are covering such large spaces, it seems that it’s one extreme to the next, which we think can be mastered a little better to the standard they are normally at.

WOO – Lighting & SFX

As a large space to cover, they need some special effects to help fill the voids without actors and anything else that might happen. The use of animatronics is utilised well, with them being placed all the way through. They are absolutely huge and we definitely got to see some new ones or ones that haven’t worked for us before. They also had tunnels, lasers, smoke, self moving furniture and that’s just for starters.