Haunted Mansion Haunt: 2019 Review
Haunted Mansion Haunt, Trabuco Canyon, CA
Hi, folks! Halloween may be over, but it lives on in our hearts. And in select home haunts and pro haunts operating this weekend for the final run of this extended haunting season! One such haunt that is still going is the Haunted Mansion Haunt, which we covered last year. This Trabuco Canyon hybrid yard display and haunted walk-through is a lovingly hand-crafted tribute to the iconic Disney attraction, and with the original Disneyland version turning 50 this year, it was most appropriate for this home haunt to operate again this season!
A projection show lights up the house this year at Haunted Mansion Haunt.
Guests arriving to this suburban Orange County home will find a cemetery in the front yard, with multiple ghostly figures scattered throughout. The figures are completely custom made out of fiberglass and resin and dressed to look the part of some of the happy haunts. The eerie graveyard is sumptuously lit, with aged stones and a few skeletal critters adding a sense of whimsy to match the iconic ride. There's also a little projection and light show--new for this year--cast upon the house facade and playing every so often, in tune with those singing busts who croon “Grim Grinning Ghosts.”
The real chills, however, come from the walk-through tour, which begins here, in the gallery--I mean garage. Both, really, because guests enter the left door of the three car garage and find themselves in a dim foyer. After the door closes behind them, they're invited into a second chamber, acting as the Stretching Room. And then, the show begins.
The ominous voice of the Ghost Host reads a familiar refrain, as a suspended ceiling slowly lowers onto guests, dropping menacingly from time to time, then rising back up. The shriek of the poor doomed soul caps off this chapter, and guests then move through the switchbacks of the haunted maze that follows.
Don’t feel too scared outside. The real chills come later!
Menacing figures lurk within the darkness, occasionally popping out for some moderate jump scares. But the interior of the Mansion also comes alive with recreations of the portrait gallery hallway, Madame Leota, and the grandfather clock, to list a few. The iconic Haunted Mansion wallpaper is also prominent.
Moving outside, guests slip into the attic, where Constance Hatchaway and the Hatbox Ghost can be seen. They're arranged to cordon off the path, steering guests out into the cemetery scene visible from the street, where the Graveyard Caretaker nervously peers through the scene.
Severe winds this season prevented an expansion of the Haunted Mansion Haunt, because most of the outdoor figures had to be put away every night, and some nights were cancelled altogether as those fierce Santa Anas blew through the canyon. But the Haunted Mansion Haunt is still a lovely and charming testament to the passion and creativity one can infuse into a labor of love. It's the Haunted Mansion come to life on a residential scale, and a fitting part of the Halloween season!
The Hatbox Ghost is one of many iconic characters in the Haunted Mansion Haunt.
Haunted Mansion Haunt is located at 8322 Millwood Rd, Trabuco Canyon, CA 92679. It runs one more night—tonight, from 7:00-11:00pm, subject to weather conditions. If you love Haunted Mansion, this is definitely an attraction you need to visit—if only to experience the creativity and passion put into recreating the beloved ride on a residential level!
Architect. Photographer. Disney nerd. Haunt enthusiast. Travel bugged. Concert fiend. Asian.
