The 17th Door Haunted Experience in Fullerton, California is a one-of-a-kind, hands-on, extreme haunt that you will be proud to finish and excited to return and see where the story progresses. I have been attending this haunt since it opened in 2015 and have been continuously impressed with the evolution that it makes yearly. The show starts before you even arrive, take a quick look at their website before you take the trek to Perpetuum Penitentiary. Never have you had so much fun being tortured in your life; once you have gone through you will be begging for more. This year was one for the books!
Our experience began as soon as we arrived. We were directed to the booth where we were instructed to sign the waiver, this being an experience all its own; the actors slammed on the table we were signing on, took my waiver from my hand dropped it on the floor, doing anything they could to make this a stressful process. It is important to mention that this waiver is meant to enhance your experience in the haunt and restrict you from acting in self-defense, remember we are all here for fun and we signed up to do this. Next, you get to the line and the fun begins. There is the option to skip the line with the VIP passes, but even if you don’t purchase this option, you will enjoy the wait. Warnings are posted in several locations with flashing lights that you may be exposed to various triggering scenarios, including but not limited to electrical shock, insects, and water.
This year they have also given you the option to add an additional 50-minute, more extreme, Field Trip full of maniacal mayhem. I did not get the opportunity to experience the addition this year, but you can bet that I will be making it a point to join the Field Trip next year. After speaking to a few of the people who did attend the Field Trip I found that, while I cannot provide you with details about this unique experience all I know is that it begins with a bus ride into the unknown horrors that await. When you purchase this add-on you attend the Field Trip prior to the main attraction, and my understanding is that this is one wild ride; so buckle-up, Buttercup!
As in previous years, the story continues to follow our friend Paula on her crazy journey of life through her continued spiral into the dark depravity that is Perpetuum Penitentiary, you will have to either face your deepest fears or cry “mercy”, but remember if you decide to cry mercy, you are truly missing a fantastically demented experience. As for the journey itself, be prepared for a fully immersive, hands-on experience; based entirely on your participation. You must remember that the scare actors will not do anything that you do not allow; you are complicit in your own torture and can choose to throw in the towel whenever you’d like, but where’s the fun in that?
I experienced something here that I have never experienced before in all my years of attending haunted attractions; true fear. While not giving away the method of the particular door, I would like to mention that I am a swimming instructor and a lifeguard in my professional life, and they brought out a fear that I never knew existed. I had a true lizard-brain panic moment… I will leave you with that.
In closing: I am looking forward to the new and inventive torture techniques that will be visited upon me in the future through The 17th Door Haunted Experience next year. With two weeks left in the 2022 season, there is still plenty of time for you to endure this chaos for yourself.
Go check out the website for dates and times and additional details.
