Spooky safe
San Antonio attraction scares up spot among top haunted houses in the U.S.
What’s scarier than a haunted house? An unsafe haunted house.
Fortunately, the Haunted Attraction Association (yep, it’s a thing.) has come up with a safety-minded list of the 45 top-rated haunted attractions in the U.S., and a San Antonio spot — 13th Floor Haunted House — is among them.
The association certifies haunted attractions based on 10 criteria, including protection of customers and education of industry professionals — because there’s nothing more frightening than an unschooled haunted house carney, except maybe an actually hazardous spook show.
An attraction must be a member of the association to be considered for the list.
“The safety of our guests is the No. 1 priority,” says John Eslich, owner of Factory of Terror in Canton, Ohio, and former president of the association. “The certification is a symbol of excellence that honors those attractions that are making strides above and beyond to focus on the safety and education of their employees while developing a world-class haunting experience for guests.”
Aside from being certified by the Haunted Attraction Association, the 13th Floor Haunted House at 1203 E. Commerce St. has been ranked among the most terrifying haunted attractions in the U.S. The 13th Floor Haunted House opened September 17 for this year’s Halloween season and will close November 6.
The 2021 version of the haunted house offers two new features: The Dollmaker and Bad Blood. The Dollmaker showcases an abandoned house that is filled with a massive collection of Victorian dolls and is inhabited by the spirit of the person who crafted the dolls. Bad Blood highlights the long-running feud between vampires and werewolves.
Two other places in Texas appear on the Haunted Attraction Association’s list of certified haunted houses: Creepy Hollow Haunted House, near Houston, and House of Torment in Austin.
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