Haunted Attraction Reviewed: 301 Devil’s Playground
Website: www.301devilsplayground.com
Location of Attraction: Galena MD
Date of Review: 10/23/2020
Total Number of Attractions Available: 4
Overall Haunted Attraction Rating: 9/10
Entertainment & Food Rating: 8/10
Atmosphere Rating: 9/10
Overall Costume & Makeup Rating: 9.5/10
Overall Cast & Crew Rating: 9/10
Overall Set Design & Special Effects Rating: 9.5/10
Overall Scare/Thrill Factor Rating: 9/10
Overall Feedback: 301 Devil’s Playground has been an annual visit for our squad since our start back in 2016! These folks provide a top notch experience and continue to blow us away each and every visit! Somehow 301 Devil’s Playground still remains as one of the best kept secrets in the haunt industry! Our squad paid a visit to 301 Devil’s Playground on their 4th night of operation for the 2020 season! We arrived shortly after 8pm to a parking lot that was rapidly filling up with patrons. Due to Covid-19 safety protocols these folks changed up their midway area to prevent guests from congregating on the property. Before swinging by the ticket booth all guests have their temperature taken and are asked to utilize hand sanitizer. All guests and haunt staff were also required to wear face coverings.
As we approached the ticket booth a spooky fun vibe was buzzing through the air signaling the screamtastic experience that lies ahead. Music and screams could be heard off in the distance, helping to pump us up for the experience! For 2020 301 Devil’s Playground has FOUR attractions: House of Hell, 3D Phobia, The Barn of Torture, and NEW for 2020 The Harvest! At just $30 per ticket 301 Devil’s Playground easily offers one of the best “bang for your buck” haunt experiences! And for just $10 more, patrons can upgrade to VIP and skip the line. On the night we attended the general admission wait time was easily an hour long, so either arrive early or pay that extra $10 for the VIP upgrade!
Due to Covid-19 safety protocols guests are not permitted to roam throughout the midway area as they typically could in previous seasons. While waiting in line you can hop over to the snack shack and small merchandise shop to snag some goodies. Unfortunately we were bummed to see the absence of roaming scare actors this season! In previous years 301 Devil’s Playground had at least a handful of characters roaming about, startling guests before they even entered the attractions. We chalked this up as part of their Covid-19 safety protocols and hope to see these frightastic roaming scare actors back in action for 2021!
At 301 Devil’s Playground guests will experience all four attractions back to back with a very minimal wait in between the attractions. We personally love this approach as it helps keep the thrill and excitement pumping leading into the next attraction. To kick off your experience guests will wait in one queue line leading up to the House of Hell. Yes, it’s a longer initial wait, but then you receive a solid 45 minutes of in attraction experience.
The House of Hell sets up its terrifying atmosphere with a house facade that is large and decrepit looking. Open windows on the top floor show curtains flapping in the breeze, which definitely makes you feel as if you’re in a deserted town. The first scene of the attraction was extremely unique. As we entered the first room no visible exit point was found. Our squad began scouring the room, looking for an exit but had no luck. At just the right moment a well disguised actor popped out, delivered a spine-tingling scare and revealed the hidden exit… what an opening scene! The attraction itself is full of densely packed props, well-functioning animatronics and haunt actors who position themselves in dark and unexpected places, or hold extremely still until the perfect moment. These scare actors are relentless in their attack and are sure to startle each guest numerous times! Be forewarned, the scares come from ALL directions! Throughout the House of Hell we were mesmerized by the movie quality scenes, simply top notch set work from floor to ceiling. One of the creepier sections is the dark and eerie catacombs, with all sorts of spooks and surprises lurking around each corner.
After exiting the House of Hell guests flow directly into 3D Phobia, which was new to the haunt for the 2019 season! As guests enter a spookified school bus you’ll receive 3D goggles from the crazed bus driver. Right off the bat we received the first of our many scares on the school bus by several perfectly disguised scare actors. We were blown away by the incredible 3D effects utilized throughout the attraction. It’s clear that 301 Devil’s Playground did their homework on how to execute a top notch 3D attraction! We thoroughly enjoyed the cotton candy scene which possessed a sugary smell that had all of us craving sweets. Scene after scene we were continually impressed with the set design and thoroughly appreciated the unique touches the scenes possessed. The clowns and freaks throughout 3D Phobia were energized and ready to taunt the patrons. Between the scare actors and the props/animatronics be prepared for a frightening experience. It seemed like these folks added a few extra surprises and special effects to this attraction for 2020, helping to create an even more horrifying experience! We absolutely loved the final scene, which possessed a room with multiple doors. Only one door leads guests out of the attraction while the others are booby-trapped with pop scares! So for your sake, you better hope you choose the correct door first, otherwise be prepared to be startled.
After exiting 3D Phobia guests will experience the Barn of Torture. Say your prayers before entering the Barn of Torture as you may not be lucky enough to survive! The Barn of Torture begins with an outdoor portion featuring a pallet and barrel maze and several slaughter scenes. Once stepping foot inside the barn all hell breaks loose! Pop scares around each and every corner certainly make for an exhilarating experience. From start to end we didn’t have a second to collect ourselves as this attraction was action packed! Like the other two attractions, the Barn of Torture possesses top notch and truly movie quality set design. Be prepared for an experience full of blood and gore! We can’t forget to mention the numerous HUGE animatronics this attraction possesses, many of which left us in awe. Again, the scare actors were relentless and were lurking in the shadows waiting for the perfect moment to deliver a fright. Special shout-out to the spook lurking in the swamp scene… this fellow's quick movements caught us off guard, delivering multiple pop scares to our squad!
To round out our evening we headed for the fourth and final attraction, The Harvest! Located in a dark and desolate appearing cornfield, The Harvest has a perfect location for providing a blood-curdling experience. At least 10 foot corn stalks towered above us, making for extremely dark pathways. In between scenes scare actors lurked in the shadows and waited for the perfect moment to pounce on us, providing numerous spine-tingling scares! Multiple unique set designs were encountered along our journey. As we strolled past a decrepit house facade a chainsaw wielding maniac came barreling after us, sending a few of our members running through the cornfield. A long stretch of barrels lined a portion of the pathway and as we maneuvered through this section many of these barrels came toppling down towards us. Another unique section was a pitch black maze housed in a large shipping container. The darkness coupled with snake-like paths sure made for a disorienting experience. Not to mention a portion of this maze possessed a mattress as the flooring, which really threw us out of whack. Massive hay bales stacked on one another made for another maze-like section, which also had us nearly on our hands and knees crawling through the mud. 301 Devil’s Playground definitely succeeded at disorienting guests along their journey through The Harvest. The scare actors encountered were timely in their attacks, delivering quite a few hair-raising startles. We’re eager and excited to watch the 301 Devil’s Playground team continue to expand and enhance The Harvest into what we're sure will be one of the best corn maze attractions in the area. As you exit The Harvest guests are funneled back to the parking lot, helping to prevent folks from congregating in the midway area.
301 Devil’s Playground is the true definition of a hidden gem in the haunt industry - we’re amazed how many folks have still yet to experience the madness that these folks provide! Their set design is among some of the best we’ve ever seen. The scare actors are downright sinister and provide countless blood-curdling scares. Costuming and makeup is realistic and near movie quality. What’s even more impressive is knowing they are only in their 7th year of operation! Don’t let their off the beaten path location deter you from visiting. With boasting FOUR full sized attractions for a solid 45 minutes of horrifying fun, 301 Devil’s Playground is well worth the visit! These folks certainly have a bright future ahead in the haunt industry. We can’t wait to keep tabs on their growth and see what they add to the experience next; maybe a hayride?
We REQUIRE that all haunt goers pay 301 Devil’s Playground a visit! This place is a MUST SEE haunted attraction and is sure to please all haunt goers! Unfortunately these folks have closed up shop for the 2020 season, but have no fear they’ll be back in action next fall, serving up a spooky fun time! We hope to see these folks expand their schedule for the 2021 season, as they historically are closed on Sunday’s and only open limited dates in October! 301 Devil’s Playground is by far one of the best haunted attractions in our coverage area (PA, MD, NJ, & DE) and being open more frequently is a must!! If you’re crazy like us and have already begun thinking about the 2021 haunt season, make sure to plan a visit to 301 Devil’s Playground - you won’t be disappointed!!
Individual Attraction Ratings:
Attraction Name: House of Hell
Overall Attraction Rating: 9/10
Cast & Crew Rating: 9/10
Set Design & Special Effects Rating: 9.5/10
Scare/Thrill Factor Rating: 9/10
Attraction Name: 3D Phobia
Overall Attraction Rating: 9/10
Cast & Crew Rating: 9/10
Set Design & Special Effects Rating: 9/10
Scare/Thrill Factor Rating: 9/10
Attraction Name: The Barn of Torture
Overall Attraction Rating: 9.5/10
Cast & Crew Rating: 9.5/10
Set Design & Special Effects Rating: 10/10
Scare/Thrill Factor Rating: 9/10
Attraction Name: The Harvest
Overall Attraction Rating: 8.5/10
Cast & Crew Rating: 8.5/10
Set Design & Special Effects Rating: 8.5/10
Scare/Thrill Factor Rating: 8/10
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