The winners of the 2016 Cadavers: the Southern California Haunt Awards, were revealed throughout the day Thursday on CreepyLA’s Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram accounts. Winners included Knott’s Scary Farm for Best Scream Park, Halloween Horror Nights for Best Mazes and “Krampus” for Best Maze, and Reign of Terror for Best Professional Haunted Attraction.
Started in 2015, the Cadavers are intended to honor the hard work and passion of the Southern California Halloween community by recognizing that haunted attractions are artwork and worthy of critical and serious recognition.
The Cadavers are not selected by CreepyLA, but instead by dozens of fans and genre journalists and reviewers. Voters are required to have attended a minimum number of haunted attractions to participate, and promise to not have a financial stake or personal involvement in any of the attractions they voted on. Select awards were determined by reviewers/journalists only, others only by fans, and others by all voters, as labeled below.
Participants in this year’s voting included writers from the following outlets: Sinful Celluloid, Horrorbuzz, Gaming Shogun, Dread Central, Westcoaster, HalloweenEveryNight.com, Haunted Attraction Network, Golden State Haunts, We Are Indie Horror, Nightmarish Conjurings, Spooky Little Girl, Jill Kill, All Hallows’ Haunts, ScareZone.com and Morbidly Beautiful.
In order to be eligible, attractions needed to have a minimum number of voters who attended. Winners are determined by voter ratings. This system is intended to avoid “vote stuffing” and allow lesser attended attractions to be graded fairly against better attended events.
Below is a full list of winners and the “eligible” attractions they were up against.
Best Maze
Krampus (Halloween Horror Nights)
Best Halloween Themed Theatre Attraction
Delusion: His Crimson Queen
As chosen by reviewers and fans.
Eligible: Delusion: His Crimson Queen; Fallen Saints; Urban Death Tour of Terror (Zombie Joe’s Underground Theatre Group); Wicked Lit
Best Kid Friendly Attraction
Knott’s Spooky Farm
As chosen by reviewers and fans.
Eligible: Boo At the Zoo (LA Zoo); Knott’s Spooky Farm; Mickey’s Halloween Party
Best Home Haunt
The Haunted Rose (Whittier)
As chosen by reviewers and fans.
Eligible: Boney Island (Sherman Oaks); Boot Hill (Irvine); Higgins Manor (Mission Viejo); Rotten Apple 907 (Burbank); Spooky Hollows (Van Nuys); The Backwoods Maze (Burbank); The Haunted Rose (Whittier); The House at Haunted Hill (Woodland Hills); VanOaks Cemetery (Sherman Oaks)
Best Scream Park
Knott’s Scary Farm
As chosen by reviewers.
Eligible: Field of Screams the Haunted Stadium; Halloween Horror Nights at Universal Studios Hollywood; Knott’s Scary Farm; Los Angeles Haunted Hayride; Queen Mary’s Dark Harbor; Scream Kingdom at Splash Kingdom Waterpark; Six Flags Magic Mountain’s Fright Fest
Best Professional Haunt
Reign of Terror
As chosen by reviewers.
Eligible: Creep: Entry; Devoted (Shine On Collective); Gorlesque!; Motel 6 Feet Under; Reign of Terror; Sinister Pointe’s Fear The Mark; The 17th Door; The Fleshyard; The Tension Experience: Ascension
Best Scare Actors (all eligible Scream Parks or Pro Haunts)
Devoted (Shine On Collective)
As chosen by reviewers.
Best Atmosphere (all eligible Scream Parks or Pro Haunts)
Reign of Terror
As chosen by reviewers.
Best Deal Scream Park
Six Flags Magic Mountain’s Fright Fest
As chosen by fans.
Halloween Horror Nights at Universal Studios Hollywood; Knott’s Scary Farm; Los Angeles Haunted Hayride; Queen Mary’s Dark Harbor; Six Flags Magic Mountain’s Fright Fest.
Most Fun Professional Halloween Attraction
Creep: Entry
Eligible: Creep: Entry; Motel 6 Feet Under; Reign of Terror; Sinister Pointe’s Fear The Mark; The 17th Door
Scariest Professional Halloween Attraction
Motel 6 Feet Under
As chosen by fans.
Eligible: Creep: Entry; Motel 6 Feet Under; Reign of Terror; Sinister Pointe’s Fear The Mark; The 17th Door
Best Mazes
Halloween Horror Nights at Universal Studios Hollywood
As chosen by reviewers and fans.
Eligible: Field of Screams the Haunted Stadium; Halloween Horror Nights at Universal Studios Hollywood; Knott’s Scary Farm; Los Angeles Haunted Hayride; Queen Mary’s Dark Harbor; Six Flags Magic Mountain’s Fright Fest
Best Horror Themed Escape Room
Cross Roads Escape Games
As chosen by reviewers and fans.
Cross Roads Escape Games; The Bunker Experience; Trap House (Think Tank Gallery).
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