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Markoff's Haunted Forest
Rating Details »
- Hours:
Fri-Sat. 7:00 p.m. - 10:30 p.m.
- Good for Kids:
- No
16 reviews for Markoff's Haunted Forest
This is a MASSIVE operation, and a really fun way to spend an October night. The drive from DC is a solid hour, and the anticipation builds as you realize you are driving to the middle of nowhere. There were about a hundred cars there when we arrived at 10pm on Sat night. They won't let cars in past 10:30. We had a 20-25 minute wait to get onto the trail. There are plenty of spectacles and distractions while you wait, so it didn't feel long.
The trail really is scary, especially if you are open to it. The price is steep, but they put a lot of effort into fueling your nightmares so I felt it was worth it. It would have been scarier if it was less crowded, but I guess that's what happens when you put on a cool show. They do try to space out the groups and have various trails.
FYI - alcohol is prohibited, but nobody seems to monitor the parking lot before you go in ;-)
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We have been here a couple of times they do a great job and it's a long haunted forest we had to wait like two hours to be called to go to the haunted forest it's expensive it cost $50 for the both of us and it's not worth the money.
Went there tonight, Halloween , for the first time. Place was huge, way bigger than I expected and the forest itself was very impressive. We went on trail 1 and started with two people, but very quickly found ourselves with a group of at least 10 very scared females. The production was very impressive and very scary. One person in our group actually cried. There was something to scare everyone. Our trail apparently was more on the physical scare end of the spectrum and trail 2 is supposed to be more psychologically disturbing. Nevertheless, from being chased with chainsaws to being stuck in a pitch black room with creatures brushing up against you and breathing down your throat, I thought it was definitely worth the price of admission. The prices are steep but we talked with a staff member and apparently the whole production is put on as a fundraiser for Cavella's adventure programs so that they can provide under privileged youth with quality adventure and teambuilding activities. So while it is a bit steep, its all for a good cause and it is defiantly still worth the price.
I could stand for them to lower their prices a bit, or at least offer more than just one trail for the price of admission, but Markoff's still provides one of the better haunted thrill experiences out there. I had heard horror stories about endless lines and huge crowds, but I didn't experience any of that on a Friday, Halloween night. I'm not sure if it was because it was Halloween, or a Friday so I can't provide a definitive rule of thumb for skirting crowds.
$25 gets you entrance into the main area with huge bonfires, access to funnel cake, and other various activities that charge you an equally crazy amount of money. These things should be free since you're just standing around with not a whole lot to do while you wait for your group number to be called out.
Once our number was called, you enter into the dark woods and, depending on the day, you will be assigned to a particular trail. They do a good job with keeping groups together and then spacing them out so it isn't just an endless stream of people being rushed through. Even with a group of 6, you really do feel isolated and on your own, though you can hear sounds and screams off in the distance.
As far as scares go, I'm gonna have to accept the fact that I'm just immune to being scared by these kinds of things. Psychological horror movies will freak me out, but people jumping out doesn't really do anything for me. Though I really do enjoy the creativity and they do an exceptional job. It seems like they focus on scaring the girls, so it's probably more suited for a group of guy-girl couples.
While I thoroughly enjoyed the experience, $25 is a big pill to swallow. When you consider that for just $7 more you could go to King's Dominion for 8 hours, riding all the rides and having a lot more trails and houses to choose from, it makes $25 for one 20 minute trail look like a ripoff.
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Not only do i have a very low spice tolerance, but i also have a very low "scare tolerance". I get spooked very easily, so its hard for me to judge exactly how scary this place was. however, i found it terrifying.
After hearing about long lines and waits, we were prepared to wait since we were going on halloween, we figured it'd be packed. We took the ferry over, and man was that worth it as it just added to the spook factor. We got there, signed our waivers, and bought our tickets within minutes. If it hadn't been for the fact we had to wait for friends, we would have been in the forest less than 30 minutes after we parked! I guess Halloween is the perfect time to go :)
The scares started immmediately as i was scared by my shadow and then the crazy man with a club who chased me into the bathroom! In the waiting area there were many people hanging out, waiting to scare the crap out of you.
Once in the forest, well lets just say i'm glad that i went to the bathroom before i went in! Chainsaws, clowns, mummies, ghosts and creepy sheds. I think my heart rate was significantly elevated when i left! It was definitely worth the $25! I especially enjoyed that they took our pictures, as it was a nice way to remember our scary experience.
only 4 stars instead of 5 since the "waiting area" activities suck. $12 to shoot some people in cameo with a paintball gun? $6 to jump off a piece of wood while attached to a bungy cord? $3 for some really gross fries? The only free things were the "last will and testament" and face painting, which definitely added to the creepy factor to see pictures of myself with my eyes bleeding.
overall, a fantastic way to spend my halloween!
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We went out to the haunted forest this past weekend - on Saturday night. I was anticipating a crowd because of the timing, but I couldn't have imagined how many people would be there. There were probably 10X as many people there on Saturday night as there had been in past years, when we had been out on Friday or Sunday nights.
We caught the ticket line at a good time, when it wasn't snaking out into the parking lot, and most people were in pretty good spirits despite the cold and the waiting. There were a couple of spooks walking through the line, freaking people out - that helped to pass the time - and it was fun to hear the screams of people up in the woods - eek. There were a few people cutting in line, though - WACK. We were pretty sure that one group of younger people cut in line in front of us but we didn't say anything because we weren't positive. Then, when we saw them making a move to cut even farther ahead, my fiance grabbed the bull by the horns, walked over to them and asked "Are you cutting in line?" One of the guys said "No..." and then my fiance posed another question for the ages: "Are you lying?" The guy said "Yes," went back where he had been in the line, and I nearly died laughing.
All things considered, the lines moved really quickly - for tickets, food and entrance to the woods. We got some hot cider and funnel cake while we waited by the bonfire - yum! - and watched people on the death jump, giant swing, etc. We were called to go into the woods much faster than we anticipated - score. I had a newbie friend along with me this year, and I was so excited to see her get scared out of her mind. Just before we went into the woods, she asked how many flashlights our group would have - when I told her they don't give out flashlights, her face went white. priceless.
Now, it was really nice that we didn't have to wait for hours on end to get our haunt on, but the consequence was that there were a lot of people in the woods on the trail. The groups were not well spaced out, so we had to wait to get through certain areas, and we could see the people ahead of us getting scared, which sometimes ruined the surprise for us. Guess what, though - it was still super scary!!
We went into one dark house where some guys had lights under their faces and had these weird pig nose things on. When I get really scared, I tend to yell either "whyyyyyyyyy?!?!?!?" or "nonononononono!!!!!!" but when these guys did a little oink/growl at me when I went by, for some reason I screamed "NO BITING!" I guess this inspired the dudes, who started to pinch my legs, sending me sprinting out of there - eeeeeeee!!
There were plenty of other scares in there, but I'll leave them to your imagination - don't want to ruin the surprises for anyone who's going to make the trip! If you are planning on going, have fun - and try not to go with the rest of the metro area on Saturday night.
Even though the big crowd made this year less spooky than previous years, Markoff's still gets 5 stars in my book.
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1 Previous Review: Show all »
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10/15/2008
We've made an annual tradition of the haunted forest - eeeeeee I love it! We're planning on going… Read more »
I came here a week before Halloween on a Friday night. We arrived around 10:30 and waited in the cold, rainy weather for 2 hours to enter the haunted forest tour. Luckily, it never down-poured. The tour itself takes about a half hour.
It's a fun way to celebrate Halloween for adults or teenagers. I was shocked to see a couple with a baby no more than a year old out at 12 am in such weather. They do have a lot to keep you entertained even if you're waiting - the zip line, wall-climbing, a trapeze, face-painting, fortune telling, etc. For an extra fee of course. We pretty much just ate some funnel cake and tried to warm up by the giant bonfires. Where do the colossal pieces of firewood come from, I wonder?
I had a fun time along the trail. While the costumes are elaborate and they clearly put a lot of work into the whole park, I can't say I was scared out of my pants. I guess I just don't get scared like I used to. What creeped me out the most happened even before we went into the forest - some of the costumed employees walk around the property sneaking up on you when you least expect it, to whisper something in your ear and catch you off-guard. Also, the chainsaws along the trail are seriously realistic.
The trail isn't cheap - $25 a pop, but a friend of mine had gotten free tickets and invited us along. I think the only downside is the price and the long wait on the night I was there.
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*3.5 stars*
I agree with Bill M. - kinda sparse on the scardeness for the $25 you pay for. If only they let you walk through both of the trails you can choose from once you wait long enough through all the lines to get into the thing. And it would've been nice if they light the path well enough so you don't risk slipping from the dirt or missing a step and landing on your face.
Besides that the concept is pretty cool. This place is HUGE with lots of big bonfires when you're inside. Plenty of booths inside with overpriced for stuff like ziplining, wall-climbing, and food to keep you busy during the long wait. If I wanted Domino's pizza, I'd sneak it in and not pay the $3 they charge here. For a popular a place as this, our wait wasn't nearly that bad. We got there probably at 930, were able to walk straight into the main area, and were in line for the forest by 11-11:15.
Probably the best haunted forest closest to this area, so I'd go back for this reason. If not I'd try looking elsewhere for a better deal.
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This was absolutely amazing. The wait was super long - we showed up at maybe 930pm or so and waited in line. At around 1030 they made an announcement that if you didnt have your forms already signed (waiver) somebody from each group should walk up and grab them to speed things up. This somehow turned into a mad bum-rush and everybody cut the line. I cut way to the front and we then got in. We probably had another hr to 45 min wait once in side. The forest trail its self was great.
Totally scary - a little laughing - lots of screaming - and by the time we got out our hearts were beating so fast. 100% 5 star attraction. I wont give away too many details but it was a $25 well well well spent.
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I LOVE LOVE LOVE the Haunted Forest, probably the best bet in the Metro-Area of things to do at Halloween Time. I would suggest doing it with a group of people, so that some of the scares are a little more comical (they work better w/ larger groups). I would suggest not bringing children under 10, (they will alter their scares and it will ruin it for the group you are with.) Be prepared to wait in-line, and dress warmly!
I was invited to come check this place out with a couple of friends. Coming from VA, we managed to take the Ferry across, it was a long, 30second ride across the Potomac. Why don't they just build a bridge?! Anyways.
When we arrived at the forest, there are people with glow sticks telling you where to park. Don't forget to try to remember where! We ended up walking around because we forgot to do this. We managed to get there around 10pm. So there was no long line really, and we filled out a group Waiver, so that went by really quickly. I heard that if you get there later, the line is crazy long and waivers are hard to come by, so you might be better off printing one from their website. We had to wait about an hour before the scary part began. In the meantime, you can sit around or walk around their mini carnival-like ambiance. There was a zip line, a high jump, pizza, hamburger and hotdog stands. Also funnel cakes! They were $4 and came only with powder sugar. Every activity cost a certain amount of tickets. So I really wasn't all that pressed to try any of them. If you're in a big group, you can easily pass the time chatting around one of their many bonfires or just people watching.
Finally our turn came, they announce numbers over a PA system and also have a screen up to show you. You enter through some broken down buses. After they call your name, you will wait a little more to get into the forest. Once you're near the entrance one of the costume clad volunteers will tell you which door to take, we got door 1.
This is where it gets awesome! I think they do a really good job with the effects and the spook factor. The trails are lit at strategic intervals, so that you have to adjust your eyes and WHAM! you get ambushed by scary things. I think the trail was just long enough, because after a while I just wanted to run through the whole thing and not stop til I was out. Yes, I was SCARED. So scared in fact, that despite the 40 degree weather, I was sweating bullets. I had a great time, I was scared and it went by fairly quickly. I too think that the price of $25 is a bit steep, but it actually goes toward their outdoor children's development programs, they have leadership courses, horseback riding and a snow club. I wish it included at least a free drink or something. Overall, if you're looking for a good scare, check 'em out and go early! I wouldn't recommend this for kids under 12.
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This place was very low on scares and high in price. I would be ok with $25 dollars for just the trail if the trail was worth $25. I wasn't expecting to be transported to a world of terror and screaming, but the experience was pretty weak.
Markoff's has the standard line up of ghouls, psychotic hillbillies and a animatronic monkey in a car crash, which is fine. And the fact that it was out in rural MD in a forest was a plus (for ambiance). Plus, the way it is run, your group you are with all gets a number and when your number is called, you enter the forest as a group. Good idea so far.
The problem is that when you get on the trail, you are almost immediately in a line that you shuffle through with everyone else, getting stepped on by the people behind you, and getting a preview of the scares as they are occurring four people ahead of you. I only went once, on a Saturday, so that experience may have been an anomaly. But considering the hellacious (see what I did there) line that we stood in to pay, I doubt it.
Although I didn't partake in anything, I liked their setup where you wait for your group number to be called. Big bonfire, snacks, zip line, rock climbing. Bathrooms that smelled gloriously unlike caca.
All in all, I am disappointed and will try something else next year. We did Goatman in 2006, and while it wasn't scary, it supplied us with quite a few jokes and quotes for a few months. One thing is for sure. They pull in a lot of money with that Haunted Forest.
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Wow! We screamed; we ran; we laughed; we felt 10 years younger. As group of thirty-somethings (including parents and a pregnant woman) we wondered if we would be too old to enjoy this but decided screaming was for all ages and went on closing night Nov. 1st after reading all the great reviews here and on other sites. We knew about the wait but for some reason it still surprised us. We waited 1.5 hours for them to call our number to enter the forest.
The waiting area is large and has a lot of options for an extra fee -- ziplines, death jump, face painting, food, movie screen, dance crew, wandering mummies and such.
Then -- they called our number. I don't want to ruin the surprises but it is amazing. They do a great job starting the moment you enter the trail. The staff's costumes are great. The trail is just long enough - took us maybe 40 minutes or so to get through. We only ran into another group towards the end.
Please wear sneakers or at least rubber soled shoes (we did see some women in high-heeled boats -- really i know they look great but what were they thinking?) The trail is not well lit (a few candles planted every 10 feet or so). Even though the path is not bumpy or full of things to make you trip, the fact you cant see the path makes you feel as if you will fall any minute. Then when you get scared - well you may run like you have not run since you were 10 years old.
All in all a great trip and well worth the money!
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My lesson from going to this forest was that I don't scare easily but I do get sick easily. We waited in the cold for over 2 hrs for it to be our turn to go into the forest. The forest itself is about 30 minutes long which is a good length. Maybe it's just that I am an adult but I definitely wasn't scared in the forest. I think for high schoolers it would be more fun. It is $25 and then more for you to do other activities while you wait. It is a bit steep for what it is but it is something to experience so I recommend it.
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We hit the haunted forest last night -- a group of five us came from Arlington, VA, all adults and well over 21 -- and were all in agreement that it was screaming good fun and worth the trip.
I've done plenty of great mansions before but have never experienced a trail in the forest, so I was anxious to give it a go. Not relishing the idea of long lines, we loved their Fast Pass option and planned our trip accordingly by having dinner in Poolesville before we headed to Dickerson. Woops, bit of a problem: a downed power line had plunged that ONE particular town block into darkness (no lie, there were lights on across the narrow street!) and the restaurant had lost power about five minutes before we pulled up. I spoke to a wonderful waitress there about our main reason for stopping by (though the place smelled great and we were sorry we couldn't partake), and she snagged the manager for us who sold us the fast passes anyway given the circumstances. So setting the tone for the rest of the eve, in the glow of a keychain black light we signed waivers and paid our cash in the dark dining room, then felt our way back out to the car with growling stomachs.
After avoiding a run-in with a deer on the deserted road in, we encountered parking attendants at crucial turning points, so it's difficult to get lost. Tickets and entry for the attraction are right next to the parking lot. Thanks to the FP, we bypassed all ticket lines and scooted right through the entry gate, after which there was no waiting for a number to be called, and we could take our trip through the forest whenever we wanted. (We showed up at the forest entrance just after 7 and were walking out exactly an hour later.) Once you leave the ticket area and entry gate you walk along a dirt road toward the forest entrance. Just heading down that was fun... a long, dark path with lighted festivities beckoning in the distance made for nice early intruigue, but you're walking with other people peppered here and there and you can never tell who's mortal and who isn't -- and who might breathe down your neck. (Simple advice: Keep up with your group! Or don't, bwa ha haaaaa.) Once you reach the clearing by the forest entrance, it's hopping with a great bonfire, concession stands, fire dancers and plenty of activities, all of which has already been described here.
Before they send you down a trail (there are two), you're in line for ten minutes or so as they attempt to spread out the groups. We appreciated this because too many people on a trail means spoiled surprises and scares; even in our little group we kept switching positions so everybody got a chance to be first and last, etc. They did a great job spreading us out, it took exactly 25 minutes for us to complete the freaky trek, and we never felt rushed. I'm not going to spoil anybody's good time by mentioning anything we encountered on the trail because the surprise is all a huge part of the frightening fun. But I will tell you that hiking boots or tennis shoes are a must because the paths are purposely dimly lit, you encounter stone and wood steps here and there, it can be muddy -- and there are occasions where you might need to break into a sprint! Expect to have tactile encounters.
It'll suffice to say we were indeed scared, screamed our butts off and were all steamed up when we got out of the forest. (From there I was escorted -- more like fleeing for my life -- toward the clearing by the grim reaper on a horse, and I was screaming the entire time! I have a bone to pick with that... thing.) It will be some days before we get our voices back. Given the cause, we were fine with the cost of entry, not to mention the fact that you can apply the cost of the ticket toward another Calleva adventure. I wouldn't take kids under ten -- or ANYbody who scares to tears, is afraid of the dark or doesn't like confined spaces, because you'll experience it all. They do a fabulous job while still keeping it safe. Kudos to Calleva, we'll definitely go back next year.
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This place makes me pee my pants and cry every single year. And I'm 24. My friends and family feel the same way. It's terrifying! The people that grab your legs when you cross bridges and the chain saws get me every time. Plus the fried dough, climbing wall and bonfire are a blast while you wait for your group to be called.
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