The Hidden Hotel

I’m not sure if its what they were going for, but, this is more of a Disneyesque haunted house then a place for a real fright. There are things they did exceptionally well and bits that could be improved upon. Your kids will probably love it, you may find the $ 18 a bit steep considering the length of the walk through and the few unique moments.
Details and (WARNING) SPOILERS to follow…
What they did well:
*The build out of the space is tremendous. The exterior façade, in particular, is really well done, as well as the internal staging area.
*They had two unique effects I haven’t seen before at other houses: a dark elevator effect that relied on confined space, sound, and darkness to make it seem realistic and a mirror effect that was really two well place miming actors. They also has a couple of ghost like projection effects that you would have found in the old version of Disney’s Haunted Mansion which, although not that original, are not effects that you typically see at haunted houses in New England and blended well with the vibe of what they were doing.
*They executed a storyline element pretty well given the confined time and space.
*The guides in the walk through understood the story elements and the timing needed to execute and the staff outside we’re friendly and courteous.
*It was more «Casper» then «The Ring» or «Night of the Living Dead.»
*The proceeds go to Cops for Kids with Cancer.
. Which is cool.
*The Halfway Café is right there for an after-​beer.
Where it failed for me:
*The long wait for a relatively short line made it seem like you we’re going to get a nice long walk through. This, however, was not the case. The time inside ended quick and abruptly without any sort of finally and was quite disappointing.
*It was more «Casper» then «The Ring» or «Night of the Living Dead.» I’m hard to scare, I admit, but there was not even a moment here where I might be scared for half a second and my easily scared companion was outright bored. The only place where they were even set up for a real scare was the «elevator» but when light hit the room it was clearly a boring office room and the person they put in there with us didn’t even so much as boo when it was dark.
*The «maze» was terrible. It was more like the loop line you have to go through waiting for the TSA at the airport, except that the TSA is scarier the Hidden Hotel. It’s not a m are if you can see the way out from the start, takes a few second to navigate, and has no opportunity to get lost. What this was was a stall tactic to make the whole affair seem like it had more to it than it actually did.
*The $ 18 price tag is mad steep for the experience and the timing. I actually paid $ 15 because I had a coupon but really that was too much as well… HOWEVER given that the proceeds are going to charity, I considered it a donation and not a ticket price.
*There was one staffer who was exceptionally rude to one of my companions. My companion is boisterous by nature and this woman made accusations about her intoxication (which was nonexistent, we all had one beer before getting in the line which took forever) and stated she could smell alcohol on her breath. She stated she would walk through with us and we ALL said our companion was fine. She looked at me and said «are you going to hold her up?» to which I replied «No, she will hold herself up because she is FINE.» We interacted with several staffers outside the entrance who had no issue with us. This was unwarranted, unprofessional, and insulting. Furthermore, even if my friend was compromised, which she was not, making accusations and being unprofessional is not the way to handle it. If someone is legitimately over intoxicated, the decision not to let that person in at all and issue a refund out to be made by the door staff. This experience did not cloud my opinion on the rest of the house and I’m resisting my urge to deduct a star for it, but if you’re an adult without children, do not show any signs of being silly or having fun, especially if you have a beer on your breath! It’s funny, in the moment we were having fun with each other and we let this brief moment pass without much thought, but in retrospect, the more I think about it the more annoyed I am about it…
Overall I’d recommend that parents bring their kids. It’s a good fright, I think, for anyone from age 7ish to early teens. Late teens will find it entertaining, and adults have a place nearby for a drink. If you’re a haunted house aficionado, you might be a bit disappointed, but whats happening here IS unique and different compared to the competition, and maybe you should check it out for yourself to see what I’m talking about.
You can watch the video their website to pick up the vibe.