Haunt season is officially underway as many huge theme park haunts have kicked into high gear, with many more kicking off this weekend. One of the first, however, was Howl O Scream at Busch Gardens Williamsburg. This year the event is “Cursed” as a mysterious song infects anyone who hears it with a curse that eventually kills them. This year, while screams are everywhere with an all new “Terror-tory” it’s the shows that really shine. Returning favorites have been kicked up several notches, while new shows mix horror and music to surprising new effects.
Our friends over at BGW Memories went out to the media preview at Busch Gardens Williamsburg to check out Howl O Scream as the event kicked off for 2014. While the event didn’t add a whole lot of new material this year, it did polish the entire event, bringing back several of the very good from last year, and making them shine. Last year Howl O Scream embraced the countries that Busch Gardens Williamsburg has built the park around, and has shown the “darker” side of each with TERROR-tories. Each country has a different theme, and each TERROR-tory builds on that themeing.
An all new TERROR-tory this year is Wendigo Woods. The area of New France has been taken over by a research facility that was designed to study the Flora and Fauna of the area. The area was shut down when mysterious sightings of a creature. thought to be only legend, started to pop up and cause chaos. Now the spirit of the Wendigo is infecting everything, and terrorizing all who enter. The TERROR-tory uses the area very well. It’s a great mash up of a “Resident Evil” type of chaos with the the woodsy feel of a slasher flick. The Wendigo is caged, and creates a great distraction. While people are trying to take pictures of the creature, actors rush up from behind to scare the living hell out of them.
The rest of the TERROR-tories have had extra little features added. They bring not only a sense of fright, but a great feel of a party. Demon Street, by far, is the most fun with the entire France area on fire. The whole area has been turned into a Euro-style rave, with actors roaming around and scaring while the music is absolutely pumped throughout the entire area.
One real interesting aspect of Howl O Scream at Busch Gardens Williamsburg is the fact that the park is open during the day, and does not close in between, for Howl O Scream like many others do. The transition between night and day is absolutely flawless. While some may worry that the props in the streets might be too much for little ones, the park does a nice job of balancing the two out.
Video-Night and Day:A walk through the TERROR-tories at Howl O Scream Williamsburg
Howl O Scream has two new shows this year, but they have amped up the rest of the shows by leaps and bounds. The shows are the standout feature of this year’s event.
Williamsburg has adopted Fright Feast from Busch Gardens Tampa. The park offers guests the chance to have a huge buffet, as well as see a show. In Tampa, which has been doing Fright Feast for years, the show is Fiends, something that every guest has the chance to see. In Williamsburg, Fright Feast features a show just for attendees of Fright Feast. Igor from.the Fiends show is back with some of his friends fro a fun musical, Monster and nurse filled review. Fright Feast is not included with theme park admission, but it also gives you early access to some of the Howl O Scream houses.
Fiends is back and bigger than ever at Howl O Scream. The doctor and Igor are back with a huge singing review with tons of pink haired nurses.
A highlight from last year, Blood Banquet, has returned. Blood Banquet is yet another dinner show, but this time it’s full of vampires looking to get you stuffed before they stuff themselves…In you. The entire party is headed up by Count Vladtastic, who sings with his choir of vampires.
Video-Get Vladtastic with Blood Banquet
The show is still outstanding, with a great dining experience.
Night Beats returns to Das Festhaus for another year with tons of energy and great music. The show features Hugh energy dancing, pyrotechnics and lots of fun.
The big show this year is Monster Stomp, a crowd favorite in past years. The show takes over for London Rocks, and uses huge set pieces, projection, and of course highly energized dance numbers. It’s really the perfect blend of music and horror. There are some gory parts on stage, but it really gives the show the edge it needs for a Halloween event.
Video-Get a glimpse at the Shows of Howl O Scream at Busch Gardens Williamsburg
For fans of haunted houses, Howl O Scream has some really great haunts. If you’ve never been to the event, it’s really a lot of fun seeing the different themes that the park works into each if their mazes. If you’ve been, and have seen the event before, you’ve seen all these houses before. It’s still great to relive your favorites, and get some great scares.
Slideshow-Check out even more from Howl O Scream at Busch Gardens Williamsburg
Howl O Scream at Busch Gardens Williamsburg happens every weekend in September and October. The event park is great for families during the day, but at night Howl O Scream is recommended for those 13 and up. Admission to Howl O Scream is included with theme park admission.
Stay tuned for more from Busch Gardens Williamsburg, and be sure to get social with us Facebook and follow along with us on Twitter @BehindThrills for the latest updates!
