Haunted Attraction Reviewed: Scare Farm
Website: www.scarefarm.com
Location of Attraction: Hillsborough NJ
Date of Review: 10/10/2020
Total Number of Attractions Available: 3
Overall Haunted Attraction Rating: 7/10
Entertainment & Food Rating: 8/10
Atmosphere Rating: 8/10
Overall Costume & Makeup Rating: 6/10
Overall Cast & Crew Rating: 6.5/10
Overall Set Design & Special Effects Rating: 6.5/10
Overall Scare/Thrill Factor Rating: 6.5/10
Overall Feedback: On the second Saturday of October, our squad ventured to Hillsborough, New Jersey for our first ever trip to Scare Farm! By day Scare Farm is known as Norz Hill Farm & Market, featuring fall harvest days, a family friendly event - pumpkin patch, various kids activities, corn maze, farm market, and much more! But by night, this farm is converted into a multi-attraction halloween event known as Scare Farm!
We arrived at the Scare Farm property around 6:00pm and they were just winding down from their daytime activities. We had some time to paroze the farm market and snag some munchies before the ticket booth opened up at 6:30pm. Scare Farm features three haunted attractions; Creepy Hollow, The Slay Ride, and Paranoia. Tickets run for $35 a person with a fast pass upgrade available for an additional $25. We were among the first guests onsite for the Scare Farm experience so we snagged our general admission tickets and hopped into line around 7pm.
Typically Scare Farm would allow guests to enjoy the three attractions in their own preferred order. But due to Covid-19 safety concerns they’ve streamlined things, making the three attractions flow into one another for one long experience with minimal to no wait in between attractions! Shortly after 7pm they began allowing guests into the first attraction of the evening, Creepy Hollow. Small groups of four or so guests were being admitted into the ominous cornfield every minute or two. The line here filled up quickly, so you may want to consider arriving early or paying for the fast pass upgrade.
After a brief wait it was our turn to step foot into Creepy Hollow. The cornfield here possessed 10-12’ tall corn stalks, which made for a dark and eerie path to travel! Within a few minutes of our journey we immediately took note of the clear reliance on scare actors to drive the show here at Scare Farm. Minimal amounts of special effects were utilized, with a vortex tunnel and a few other surprises highlighting the special effects department. A rather underwhelming journey set design wise was made up for with an adequate amount of scare actors to engage with the guests and provide a few startles. Even with a few areas of dead space the eerie atmosphere stayed consistent, in large part due to the dimly lit paths and corn stalks rustling in the wind.
Next up we boarded the hay wagon for our journey on The Slay Ride! After rules for the ride were explained we set off into the cornfield. Things kicked off with a giant wisecracking skeleton, complete with low-blow humor and profanity, questioning our intelligence for being out and about during Covid season. This simple scene was a highlight of the night and certainly set the tone for the entertaining ride we were about to receive. Along our journey the wagon came to a halt at several different scenes. Despite minimalistic set designs, the scare actors once again stole the show and delivered an entertaining and thrilling experience. In one scene we nearly lost one of our squad members to the butcher, who was sold out of meat and looking for his next victim. Fortunately he deemed us unworthy of his services and sent us onwards. We were completely shocked when the hay wagon kicked up its speed and then a massive tractor came barreling at the hay wagon and a maddening chase sequence ensued! Nothing like a crazed tractor chasing the hay wagon to deliver a thrill.
After our near 20 minute thrilling journey on The Slay Ride we departed the wagon and set for our final attraction of the evening, Paranoia! Our journey through Paranoia kicked off with once again venturing into an ominous cornfield with corn stalks towering above us. Paranoia featured many of the same characteristics that we encountered in Creepy Hollow, but was a tad longer in length and possessed more memorable scare actors and set design! Loud crackle lights, another vortex tunnel, green murky laser light swamp, and a loud truck facade rounded out the special effects in Paranoia. Several scenes possessed elements to help disorient guests, like tunnels you had to duck through and a slippery slide you had to go down. Much like the other two attractions, Scare Farm relied heavily on the scare actors to provide an exhilarating journey! Definitely a few more startles were encountered during our journey through Paranoia.
After exiting Paranoia guests are funneled through the small farm market and back into the midway area. The farm market featured all sorts of goodies. Most of our crew snagged some apple cider donuts and other munchies to enjoy on the road. Once back in the midway we conversed as a group about our experience. Although we were a bit underwhelmed in terms of the set design at Scare Farm, the scare actors and old school style aspect of the attractions surely made up for it! We’d definitely consider Scare Farm a family friendly option but be warned that they do utilize profanity in one of the scenes. Overall we spent around 45 minutes or so in the attractions at Scare Farm, which helped justify the $35 admission fee. While not the scariest or most aesthetically pleasing haunted attraction in New Jersey, Scare Farm still finds ways to provide a unique, thrilling, frightening, and most importantly, an entertaining experience! If you’re in the Hillsborough New Jersey area we definitely recommend swinging by Scare Farm, you’ll have a SPOOKY FUN time!
Individual Attraction Ratings:
Attraction Name: Creepy Hollow
Overall Attraction Rating: 6/10
Cast & Crew Rating: 6/10
Set Design & Special Effects Rating: 6/10
Scare/Thrill Factor Rating: 6/10
Attraction Name: The Slay Ride
Overall Attraction Rating: 7/10
Cast & Crew Rating: 7/10
Set Design & Special Effects Rating: 7/10
Scare/Thrill Factor Rating: 7/10
Attraction Name: Paranoia
Overall Attraction Rating: 6.5/10
Cast & Crew Rating: 6.5/10
Set Design & Special Effects Rating: 6.5/10
Scare/Thrill Factor Rating: 6.5/10
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