With Halloween just around the corner, haunted houses are on everyone’s minds. The 13th Floor is a trendy one in the Denver area. However, there’s a less expensive and scarier version on Englewood Parkway; The Ritual.
The haunting starts when you enter the rickety building and are greeted by a dooming figure disguised with a skeleton mask bursting out of the fog as he warns you about the upcoming scares that await you. With your blood pumping and your heart racing, he lets you enter in the unknown.
As soon as you enter, there’s an unsavory feeling that someone or something will pop out at any moment, or that monsters will pop out and scare you around every corner. Just as you think that the haunting is over, there is another corner waiting for you to turn down.
By far, the best and most unique experience throughout the whole house is the swamp. With fog clouding your vision, you have to walk through the swamp. Large blown-up barricades block most of your path, so you have to squeeze through to make your way out. Combining both the fog and the barricades creates an amazing optical illusion, and swamp monsters will pop out when you least expect it.
While all of those things might already persuade you to stop by and check it out, the price is what sold me to come and explore The Ritual.
For comparison, the 13th Floor prices range from $27-37 depending on what night you decide to go. However, for general admission, the Ritual is $25. While yes, that may not be the most extreme price difference, but the 13th Floor prices change every day, and the Ritual’s are stagnant.
The scare actors there are amazing, and they play their parts well – even though their job is to frighten you, they still keep it very respectful. Every single one of them makes their role feel real and terrifying.
I enjoy haunted houses and usually, they do not scare me, but The Ritual frightened me. It’s a small business, but the production and the acting make it feel as though they have been doing it for years. If you’re in the mood this spooky season to have your socks knocked off by how spooky this place is, and also support a small business, The Ritual is the perfect place to go.
