Howl-O-Scream 2012, Experiencing Alone and Conquering Clowns

This past Friday was the opening night of Howl-O-Scream at Busch Gardens Tampa Bay. This was also September's Yelp Elite event which really excited me as we had already planned on attending for our third consecutive year.

We entered into the Yelp tent where we were we "unlocked the fear inside". At the Yelp event, we drank and ate for free for two hours. We received VIP passes which got us front of the line access all night to every haunted house and ride. We also received two free drink passes after our party commenced. Talk about treating us right!! I have to give it to Busch Gardens and Yelp - you truly threw an amazing party, so many thanks to Lauren & Bret.

Unlocking the Fear

We grabbed a few (ahem) cocktails and bites to eat with our friends Katie (Ruffles and Truffles) and Justin. Katie suggested getting our yard glasses filled with wine vs. beer but we didn't get very far with that. Prior to the event, we were notified of a contest which would award two winners four tickets to Alone. All you had to do was tweet the most useful tips for Howl-O-Scream, using the hashtag #howloscream. I only lost 30 followers from my two hour long tweets every 5 minutes.....and this was the outcome:

Justsin & Katie - Megan & Gabe, prior to Alone

If you look at the sky, that is not just dusk upon us, those are really fast moving clouds. It started monsooning shortly after. Between the howling wind and rain, it seemed like Busch Gardens was able to orchestrate the perfect setting to this experience (although I could have done w/o the rain). We met a few peacock friends while wating out the storm.

Baby Peacocks

Once inside of Alone, we experienced an up-close and personal Haunted House. Since only 4 people can go at a time, you have actual interaction with the actors inside of the house. All we had knowledge of prior to entering was that Alone had a deranged Master who hoarded  “cultural” remains and stockpiling people. I do not want to give away any details of Alone as I wouldn't want to spoil it for anyone. I will state that a slide is involved ;) It was such a neat experience and I am so happy Busch Gardens offers this. Alone tickets are $50 for one person, and $10 for each additional guest (up to 4). A party of four can split the cost at $20 each. Make sure you pre-purchase your tickets, they sell out fast.

Don't worry Katie, the Poncho will protect you!

We had the full VIP experience with front of the line passes all night for the rides and haunted houses. Even with the rain, the lines for the houses were pretty long so we were very grateful for this. Thank goodness for the Ponchos because we were drenched! Oh how I wish I wore my Sperry's.

Remember when I said that I would not under any circumstances go into the Circus of Superstition 3-D Clown Haunted House? Well, when I start taking photos like this, you know that the Liquid Courage has kicked into full gear.

From what I remember, the house wasn't that bad. I shut my eyes a lot & let Gabe lead the way. The ending got to me - but overall, it was a neat house. Ultimate Casino Vampire Condemned Casino is still my favorite from all of the houses. This year, one person in your party was given a flashlight to guide your way through the house. We ended the night with the obligatory visit to see Gabe's favorite act of Howl-O-Scream Fiends, starring Dr. Freakenstein & his naughty nurses.

Once again, Howl-O-Scream did not let us down. We love going to this event. It was an above and beyond this year with the VIP package, which you can get as well by upgrading your ticket!

Do you have Halloween events like this in your city and do you attend them?