When The 17th Door debuted last year, it shook the SoCal haunt community to its core. With its very adult themes, gross out situations and its ability to literally get in your face while maintaining a story with immersive sets and totally unique situations, this haunt quickly became a fan favorite. Set in a market which is already heavily saturated with haunts that focus more towards boo-scares or theatrics, the 17th Door takes a step in a different direction, terrorizing your senses and aiming to make you feel as uncomfortable through the entire 35+ minute walk through, and not holding back.
Located in the former location of a furniture store at The Tustin Marketplace, right next door to a Party City, sits one of the most intense haunt experiences you’ll find in Southern California. Once inside the location you’re set in the world of Gluttire University, the setting for this year’s experiences. The 17th Door, this year, follows the linear story set at last year’s event and continues it as Paula returns to the school for her Sophmore year and continues to make questionable life choices. Clearly she hadn’t learned her lesson the first time around.
You follow Paula’s journey through a series of over 20 scenes (rooms) from her life from multiple perspectives. The haunt reuses about half the spaces seen last year, but themes them and sets them up in completely different ways, nothing feels rehashed, it all feels totally fresh if you had gone through in 2015. The rest are completely redressed, or just brand new additions all together.
Once inside the haunt you are in their world.
This is the type of haunt that is much better going in, not knowing what to expect, when you’re inside you are totally engulfed in this girl’s story wanting to know what happens next, but at the same time everything happening around you just makes you want to shout the safety word as loud as possible. It’s sick like that, and we love it. It’s also worth noting that this haunt does require a waiver signature to enter. You will be touched (not inappropriately), you will get wet, and be subject to some otherwise totally gross things.
Bear in mind this haunt is not for everyone. It’s pretty ruthless on topics that might be sensitive to some folks since we not live in this super PC society now all of the sudden. This should be evident by the giant Trigger Warning poster in the lobby of the haunt.
All in all, it’s another excellent year for this now 2 year old haunt. The sets are still top notch quality, the gross out moments are still… pretty darn gross. The actors love what they do and that’s completely apparent. The only minor complaint I had at the end of the night is that the ending for the event feels more like a cliff-hanger and doesn’t really feel like a big finsh, quite like it did the first year, however the subject of the finale room may have an effect on certain guests more than others so that opinion may vary from person to person.
Once again MUST DO HAUNT if you’re in socal. You definitely won’t find anything else like it any time soon! The 17th Door is open on select nights from now until October 31st, and tickets run from $22-$35 depending on the night.
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