Necropolis, the City of Perpetual Darkness

According to the Necropolis website, this haunted house is not for the young or faint-hearted. Founded in 1991, Necropolis is rated one of Haunted Attraction Magazine’s “25 Must See Haunts” for 2011 and is best known for paralyzing residents of Indiana with fear for 17 years.

There are three attractions available: Necropolis, the 30,000 square foot haunted house, Zombie Inn, a hotel-themed zombie-inhabited fright fest and Dark Terrors, a terror-inducing abandoned factory. In Dark Terrors, guests are given flashlights to navigate through the pitch-black factory; however according to the Necropolis website, they will soon discover their flashlights are controlled by Necropolis supervisors. The flashlights will flicker, strobe or could even stop working completely.

Tickets are available on location at the old Western Electric Plant (2525 N. Shadeland Ave., Indianapolis, IN 45219) or online. Prices are as follows: Combo (all three attractions) is $26 for adults and $15 for children (under 12), Single attraction (Necropolis only) is $18 for adults and $10 for children.

Hate waiting in lines? Get an “Almost Immediate Access” pass for an additional $9 to your ticket price. Group discounts are available but must be purchased in advance by Friday and must order a minimum of 20 tickets. Information on how to purchase group tickets is online. Necropolis is recommended for those who do not scare easily or those who enjoy being scared.

Haunted Trails at Cool Creek Park

This annual haunted adventure promises to combine nature with goblins and ghouls for a frighteningly good time. After trekking through a portion of the 90-acre woods of Cool Creek Park in Carmel, top your evening off with a campfire gathering for stories and music.

Junior Conner Dickerson worked at Haunted Trails last year and said that he would rate it a 5 out of 10 in terms of how scary it was.

“I don’t think that it’s actually that scary, maybe because I was working at it, but I did scare a lot of people,” Dickerson said. He worked at one of the stations on the trail and said that the theme last year was “Insane Asylum.”

According to the Hamilton County website, the trail is not recommended for kids under the age of 12 and the theme this year is “Ghouls and Goblins.” Tickets are $5 and available on location (2000 E. 151 St. Carmel, IN 46033). The Haunted Trails are open October 26 to 28 from 7 to 10 p.m.

“I would definitely recommend this event for older kids who like to get scared but not completely terrorized,” Dickerson said.

Hanna Haunted Acres

According to the Hanna Haunted Acre’s website, this haunted area of Indianapolis is home to six attractions: Hanna Haunted Hayride, Phantazmagoria: The Haunted House, Scare Crow Revenge, Carnevil, Blackout and this year’s brand new attraction, Medical Malpractice. The addition of Medical Malpractice brings the count to four haunted houses, one corn maze and one hayride.

Junior Moira Bellamy went to Hanna Haunted Acres last year and said that she would probably go back. Bellamy went to all five attractions that were offered last year and said that Blackout was her favorite and the most entertaining because of a mix-up in the group she went with.

“I like Blackout because we ended up getting lost since it was so dark and then somehow we came back out the entrance instead of the exit, so that was funny,” Bellamy said.

She rated Hanna Haunted Acres as a 6 out of 10 in terms of how scary it was, but says she does not get scared easily. “There were times when I was frightened but it wasn’t like ‘Oh my God, I’m gonna, like, pee myself or something,’” Bellamy said.

Tickets are available on location (7323 E. Hanna Ave, Indianapolis, IN 46239) and directions are available on the Hanna Haunted Acres website. Prices are as follows: Combo (all six attractions) is $27 for all ages and only sold on Fridays and Saturdays. Single attractions are $13 each and a “Fast Pass” is $40 for all six attractions. According to the Hanna Haunted Acres website, the attractions will open at “dark” and close at 10 p.m. during the week and midnight on Fridays and Saturdays.

“I like torturing myself and I watch scary movies like it’s my job, so I would only recommend (Hanna Haunted Acres) for people that really like to get scared,” Bellamy said.

Children’s Museum Haunted House

According to the Children’s Museum website, the Children’s Museum’s 48th Annual Haunted House will take participants on a “Vampire Vacation” tour of the nation’s most frightening destinations, including Count Rushmore, the Ghoulish Gate Bridge, Horrorwood, San Fang-cisco and New Gore-leans, among other “dead-stinations”.

The Children’s Museum Haunted House was voted one of the nation’s top 10 haunted houses in 2010 and is known for offering lights-on and lights-off hours in order to accommodate for children of all ages. All of the money raised from this event goes towards the Children’s Museum. It is not recommended for those who do not like being scared or those who get scared very easily.

Tickets are $5.50 at Marsh, $6 for members and $6.50 for nonmembers. Tickets are available at The Museum Store, online, at AAA locations and on location (3000 N. Meridian St., Indianapolis IN 46208).

Junior Cecilia Bouaichi went to the Children’s Museum Haunted House two years ago with her sister, parents and aunt from Morocco who had never been to a haunted house before.

“We went to the lights off one because we wanted (my aunt) to experience a haunted house since she had never been to one before. I wasn’t really scared but I screamed once,” Bouaichi said.

Lights-on hours are Tuesday, 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. and 3:30 to 9 p.m.; Wednesday through Saturday, 10 a.m. to 3 p.m.; Sunday, 11 a.m. to 5 p.m.; and Halloween, 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Lights-off hours are Wednesday through Thursday, 3:30 p.m. to 9 p.m. and Friday through Saturday, 3:30 to 9:30 p.m.

“I would rate it a 3 out of 10 for its scariness but I get scared really easily. I would probably want to go back again sometime in the future, but I don’t think I will be going back this year,” Bouaichi said.