Traumatica - Festival of Fear 2024
Event review coming soon
Very scary! My son and daughter in-law took me to Traumatica for my 68th birthday. I LOVED IT. Screamed the whole time I was in the Theme houses.
If they had asked me if I wanted to go I would have said no. So glad they didn't ask and just took me as a surprise. Best time I have had for such a long time. Everything was just done so well. The band were brilliant All the Clowns, Zombies, Witches and all of those in the crowds. Well done to all. Make up was extraordinary. Since I have come home I have told everyone about this event. I would thoroughly recommend a good fright to all. Amazing to be so scared but have such a good time.
If they had asked me if I wanted to go I would have said no. So glad they didn't ask and just took me as a surprise. Best time I have had for such a long time. Everything was just done so well. The band were brilliant All the Clowns, Zombies, Witches and all of those in the crowds. Well done to all. Make up was extraordinary. Since I have come home I have told everyone about this event. I would thoroughly recommend a good fright to all. Amazing to be so scared but have such a good time.
Europa Park Halloween 2024
Europa Park is one of Europe's best theme parks, and every year they embrace the Halloween season with new shows, makeovers of existing rides, some impressive decorations and of course LOTS and LOTS of pumpkins! Although the day event is clearly focused on family entertainment there is a "day maze which promises live actors, jump scares and more.
Located in a little plaza by the Wodan rollercoaster, NIflheim comprises of three darkened viking lodgings connected by a winding path. Inside, each lodge is dark and atmospheric, and the rooms are protected by viking warriors, trying to work out why we have entered their domain. Sadly on our visit, the attraction seemed a bit short on actors, but they still managed to elicit a few surprised grunts out of us! All in - Its not the scariest attraction ever, but it really is a fun stepping stone between the family nature of the rest of the park,and the shock and roll of the park's dedicated scare event - Traumatica.
The other real highlight of a day visit to Europa Park ( besides from the incredible rides including the fantastic new Voltron coaster) is the end of day Halloween Parade. We always make a point to watch this when at the resort and its great entertainment for everyone.
Unlike some parks that try to mix their family events with their scare events, it's clear that At Europa Park, the two audiences are completely different. Therefore families can enjoy the park safely, that the real scares and frights are behind a separate gate just oitside the park!
Located in a little plaza by the Wodan rollercoaster, NIflheim comprises of three darkened viking lodgings connected by a winding path. Inside, each lodge is dark and atmospheric, and the rooms are protected by viking warriors, trying to work out why we have entered their domain. Sadly on our visit, the attraction seemed a bit short on actors, but they still managed to elicit a few surprised grunts out of us! All in - Its not the scariest attraction ever, but it really is a fun stepping stone between the family nature of the rest of the park,and the shock and roll of the park's dedicated scare event - Traumatica.
The other real highlight of a day visit to Europa Park ( besides from the incredible rides including the fantastic new Voltron coaster) is the end of day Halloween Parade. We always make a point to watch this when at the resort and its great entertainment for everyone.
Unlike some parks that try to mix their family events with their scare events, it's clear that At Europa Park, the two audiences are completely different. Therefore families can enjoy the park safely, that the real scares and frights are behind a separate gate just oitside the park!
Traumatica - Festival of Fear 2023
Traumatica is back for Halloween with quite a diverse range of activities, so we shall break this review down into sections
Traumatica
Following the circus takeover of 2022, The Festival of Fear is back with two new mazes and two new shows, meaning there is a lot to do in one night.
Three of the mazes (Tarot House, Skin Deep,and Petting Zoo) are effectively unchanged from last year, whilst Grim's Funhouse has added the option to wear a glow-stick necklace to denote that you don't mind being touched by the actors. The big change has been made at House of Wax which has had a complete rebuild. In 2022 - this maze utilised two of the old Traumatica mazes together which led to a slightly jarring theming switch half way through. This rebuild keeps everything on the ground floor and keeps the story flowing much better. This has also meant that the cave system that has been used multiple times across the years, has now been ripped out and is being used for the brand new maze - The Unknown.
The Unknown queue line starts in a corn maze which leads to an amazing reveal as the massive spaceship facade finally comes into view. Tasked with trying to stop the potential invasion we were sent into the maze to hunt and search for a button to eliminate the aliens. And let's just talk about those aliens! The costumes and props used for this maze are sensational, and the sudden appearances and attacks of the massive alien creatures were as impressive as they were scary! As well as the scares , this maze definitely had an escape room feel as each room has a series of tasks to complete as we searched for the all important button.
The other new attraction is called the Last Stand and is set around the Greek ruins of the Poseidon water coaster.This was a fun laser tag style adventure, filled with lively zombies that needed to be shot to allow us to proceed. What really helped the tension was the frantic shouts from the Resistance fighters, urging us to move at pace through the attraction and shoot everything that moves!
ALL the mazes were densely populated with lively actors and we had a series of great scares throughout each one. As we would expect from Traumatica the sets and effects and predominantly the costume and make up, were all outstanding and really added to the realism of each maze. Outside of the mazes, there were a number of roaming actors around the site (although not as many as previous years it seemed) and a great selection of food and drink stands to satisfy your needs.
The final part of the event are the 2 shows. First up is the large circus stunt show in the big top. This was packed with jaw dropping stunts, fire effects and more - all presented in the slick Europa Park style we have become accustomed to. The other show on the smaller stage was a much more intimate (and grosser) set of acts which needed a strong stomach to watch. Both shows were enjoyable for completely different reasons and it was great to see the event aiming to do something more visceral for the audience.
All in - this was a really strong year for Traumatica, and we had a great night with a load of really good scares and character interactions.
The Witching Hour
The Witching Hour has replaced the Not Alone experience of previous years and takes place well after the main park has closed. In the Not Alone experience, guest were invited into the exclusive Forbidden nightclub to then be randomly selected to experience two of the event mazes with the lights off. It was a truly terrifying experience which had us close to saying the safe word last year. With Witching Hour there are a number of big changes such as the waiting area - now being within the new Eden Manor Club, and then that the experience is not experienced on your own. We don't really want to give away any of the mystique of this experience, but a group of about 10 people were led from the club, to experience a very special version of one of the key scare attractions. What then followed was a 20/25 minute show that has us separated, confused, grabbed, pulled around and generally tormented by a very lively bunch of "witches", which all then culminated in a big theatrical finale before being led back to the club.
Having experienced Not Alone and the Witching Hour - we do think that Not Alone was inherently more scary, but we understand the need to do something different and the park should be applauded for experimenting. Our experience was also slightly diluted by the different nature of the Eden Club (more on that below.)
The Eden Club :Balthazar's Secret
Although not officially a Traumatica product, The Eden Club is effectively a new semi permanent version of the Forbidden Club from previous years. Built in the same location as Forbidden - this room has a much larger capacity and sits in a more sexual fantasy world rather than the horror of Traumatica. In any night it is NOT recommend that you do the Balthazar's Secret experience as well as The Witching Hour as you wouldn't be able to experience everything . As it was - the park management wanted us to see the new activities to ensure we could review it all.
Again - we have to be careful what we say as this is intentionally meant to be a secret exclusive club and as such we all had our telephones removed before entering . What we can say is that the club is a mix of cabaret show, late night drinking lounge, and immersive theatre experience. The best way to enjoy it is to just go with the flow, and if anyone starts talking to you just realize they may be part of the experience and not another punter like you! We had a number of fun interactions throughout the night mostly with some surprise interactive elements that had us leave the venue to experience a couple of mystery magical adventures. We cant say any more than that it is NOT horror related.
As stated in the Witching Hour section - we actually really enjoyed Eden Manor and it was great to see something new at the resort, but if we are to be completely honest - we all agreed that the intimate and darker nature of the old Forbidden Club was more suited to an up-charge Traumatica experience.
Either way - we had a great night - even if we did only stumble back to our hotel around 4.30am!
Traumatica
Following the circus takeover of 2022, The Festival of Fear is back with two new mazes and two new shows, meaning there is a lot to do in one night.
Three of the mazes (Tarot House, Skin Deep,and Petting Zoo) are effectively unchanged from last year, whilst Grim's Funhouse has added the option to wear a glow-stick necklace to denote that you don't mind being touched by the actors. The big change has been made at House of Wax which has had a complete rebuild. In 2022 - this maze utilised two of the old Traumatica mazes together which led to a slightly jarring theming switch half way through. This rebuild keeps everything on the ground floor and keeps the story flowing much better. This has also meant that the cave system that has been used multiple times across the years, has now been ripped out and is being used for the brand new maze - The Unknown.
The Unknown queue line starts in a corn maze which leads to an amazing reveal as the massive spaceship facade finally comes into view. Tasked with trying to stop the potential invasion we were sent into the maze to hunt and search for a button to eliminate the aliens. And let's just talk about those aliens! The costumes and props used for this maze are sensational, and the sudden appearances and attacks of the massive alien creatures were as impressive as they were scary! As well as the scares , this maze definitely had an escape room feel as each room has a series of tasks to complete as we searched for the all important button.
The other new attraction is called the Last Stand and is set around the Greek ruins of the Poseidon water coaster.This was a fun laser tag style adventure, filled with lively zombies that needed to be shot to allow us to proceed. What really helped the tension was the frantic shouts from the Resistance fighters, urging us to move at pace through the attraction and shoot everything that moves!
ALL the mazes were densely populated with lively actors and we had a series of great scares throughout each one. As we would expect from Traumatica the sets and effects and predominantly the costume and make up, were all outstanding and really added to the realism of each maze. Outside of the mazes, there were a number of roaming actors around the site (although not as many as previous years it seemed) and a great selection of food and drink stands to satisfy your needs.
The final part of the event are the 2 shows. First up is the large circus stunt show in the big top. This was packed with jaw dropping stunts, fire effects and more - all presented in the slick Europa Park style we have become accustomed to. The other show on the smaller stage was a much more intimate (and grosser) set of acts which needed a strong stomach to watch. Both shows were enjoyable for completely different reasons and it was great to see the event aiming to do something more visceral for the audience.
All in - this was a really strong year for Traumatica, and we had a great night with a load of really good scares and character interactions.
The Witching Hour
The Witching Hour has replaced the Not Alone experience of previous years and takes place well after the main park has closed. In the Not Alone experience, guest were invited into the exclusive Forbidden nightclub to then be randomly selected to experience two of the event mazes with the lights off. It was a truly terrifying experience which had us close to saying the safe word last year. With Witching Hour there are a number of big changes such as the waiting area - now being within the new Eden Manor Club, and then that the experience is not experienced on your own. We don't really want to give away any of the mystique of this experience, but a group of about 10 people were led from the club, to experience a very special version of one of the key scare attractions. What then followed was a 20/25 minute show that has us separated, confused, grabbed, pulled around and generally tormented by a very lively bunch of "witches", which all then culminated in a big theatrical finale before being led back to the club.
Having experienced Not Alone and the Witching Hour - we do think that Not Alone was inherently more scary, but we understand the need to do something different and the park should be applauded for experimenting. Our experience was also slightly diluted by the different nature of the Eden Club (more on that below.)
The Eden Club :Balthazar's Secret
Although not officially a Traumatica product, The Eden Club is effectively a new semi permanent version of the Forbidden Club from previous years. Built in the same location as Forbidden - this room has a much larger capacity and sits in a more sexual fantasy world rather than the horror of Traumatica. In any night it is NOT recommend that you do the Balthazar's Secret experience as well as The Witching Hour as you wouldn't be able to experience everything . As it was - the park management wanted us to see the new activities to ensure we could review it all.
Again - we have to be careful what we say as this is intentionally meant to be a secret exclusive club and as such we all had our telephones removed before entering . What we can say is that the club is a mix of cabaret show, late night drinking lounge, and immersive theatre experience. The best way to enjoy it is to just go with the flow, and if anyone starts talking to you just realize they may be part of the experience and not another punter like you! We had a number of fun interactions throughout the night mostly with some surprise interactive elements that had us leave the venue to experience a couple of mystery magical adventures. We cant say any more than that it is NOT horror related.
As stated in the Witching Hour section - we actually really enjoyed Eden Manor and it was great to see something new at the resort, but if we are to be completely honest - we all agreed that the intimate and darker nature of the old Forbidden Club was more suited to an up-charge Traumatica experience.
Either way - we had a great night - even if we did only stumble back to our hotel around 4.30am!
Europa Park Halloween 2023
Europa Park really go over board for the Halloween season, with thousands of pumpkins scattered around the park, whole new shows in, a spooky makeover of a couple of ride s and a small day maze called Niflheim
First up - we just have to call out one of the main shows. The Darkness magic show was a jaw dropping experience with ten major illusions knocked out back to back. No talking or sleight of hand - this was ten of the sort of tricks that would be the finale of any other show. If you are at the park for Halloween and you love magic - you MUST see this show!
In fact - if you can - make a point to see ALL the shows at the park as the Ice show and The Checkmate show in the Globe were just as incredible. Europa Park really are famed for their production values and their temporary seasonal shows are just as strong.
We also love the Halloween themed parade at the end of the night which will be joined later in the season by the fire and fountain show on the main lake.
But of course - most important for this site is the Niflheim day maze. Unfortunately last year one of the main rooms was closed, so this year we were able to experience the full show. For a bright sunny day - it is amazing how dark and claustrophobic these rooms were, and we were treated to some great scares along the route. Its a simple maze with just a few actors in but fits perfectly in the area and gives a great starter maze fir those not brave enough to experience Traumatica next door!
Finally - when you add all the rides and rollercoasters that the park has - there really is a lot to do at Europa Park at Halloween, and with Traumatic opening at 6.30 (often before the main park actually closes) - prepare yourself for a very long and tiring day!
First up - we just have to call out one of the main shows. The Darkness magic show was a jaw dropping experience with ten major illusions knocked out back to back. No talking or sleight of hand - this was ten of the sort of tricks that would be the finale of any other show. If you are at the park for Halloween and you love magic - you MUST see this show!
In fact - if you can - make a point to see ALL the shows at the park as the Ice show and The Checkmate show in the Globe were just as incredible. Europa Park really are famed for their production values and their temporary seasonal shows are just as strong.
We also love the Halloween themed parade at the end of the night which will be joined later in the season by the fire and fountain show on the main lake.
But of course - most important for this site is the Niflheim day maze. Unfortunately last year one of the main rooms was closed, so this year we were able to experience the full show. For a bright sunny day - it is amazing how dark and claustrophobic these rooms were, and we were treated to some great scares along the route. Its a simple maze with just a few actors in but fits perfectly in the area and gives a great starter maze fir those not brave enough to experience Traumatica next door!
Finally - when you add all the rides and rollercoasters that the park has - there really is a lot to do at Europa Park at Halloween, and with Traumatic opening at 6.30 (often before the main park actually closes) - prepare yourself for a very long and tiring day!
Traumatica 2022
Several years ago, when Europa Park changed its name from Horror Nights to Traumatica, we were impressed with the whole new story world that was introduced. Originally, we loved the idea of the 5 different warring factions, and the first couple of years of the new event were some of the best we had experienced. And then something happened - you've all heard the old expression "familiarity breeds contempt?" well we started to realise that the creative team had backed themselves into a corner with the story. After all - there were only so many variations on the same five sets of characters that we could experience.
So then we heard the rumours that the Traumatica war was over, and that for 2022 - a whole new bunch of characters would take over the site. What would this mean for the whole attraction, and how this would fit in with the existing infrastructure? We couldn't wait to find out.
First off - the key difference in this year's event is that EVERYTHING is held in the main event arena, and there is no entry to the partially closed theme park as before. This means that all guests are in the same area, and has given the event the chance to have a centralised food court and stage show. Each night we visited, the bars and food carts were rammed, and the atmosphere was buzzing. It was nice to not be wandering through a partially empty theme park trying to find a way back to the scare attractions. There are also multiple scare actors throughout this area and we experienced a number of great startle interactions with a very lively bunch of characters.
As for the scare attractions themselves, although the facades and venues looks the same - the new residents have really made some changes. So although the Silverbullet bar remains - this has now been taken over by the residents of Skin Deep. The impressive church that housed The Fallen is now Tarot House, and the home of the Resistance has been taken over by some killer clowns. Each maze has either an impressive facade - or in the case of the House of Wax - a detailed sign hiding the attraction behind.
Firstly, we were amazed at the subtle references back to the original event. A perfect example was Petting Zoo, which had a few of the werewolves from The Pack chained up. To anyone new to the event - these would just be some werewolf guys - but to Traumatica fans - this was a great Easter egg to discover.
We also loved the use of animatronics this year, as it was clear, they have moved many of the existing effects that used to appear randomly throughout the mazes, and have made a feature of them all together. The opening scene of Grim House and the cage scene in Petting Zoo, worked so well because of the sheer number of effects.
Across each maze - we saw some incredible theming and set design, and the costumes and make up throughout are really some of the best in the industry. Our only comment? Perhaps some extra direction for the actors wouldn't go amiss, as several times we stumbled into an actor either looking bored or not quite ready to scare. There's no excuse for this in any scare event - but certainly not one as big and important as Traumatica!
One other slight criticism is that the detailed story that we were told afterwards for House of Wax - didn't come across when visiting. The maze is a combination of the home of the vampire Shadows and the cave dwelling Ghouls, but the switch from the Gothic sets upstairs to the caves was a bit jarring. There really were some great scares through both sections, but the whole maze didn't flow narratively compared to the others.
Another big thing this year, with the move to being a self contained event outside the park, was that the ice arena wasn't available. Therefore a circus big top show has been introduced. This is completely in theme with the whole new Traumatica story line, and contained a number of impressive acts including musical interludes from Leon Fuller, multiple stunts and effects, some incredible performances and a jaw dropping motor bike finale. One small complaint as a non German speaker - there was one comedy scene that played out for too long. We really don't expect everyone to speak English, and have enjoyed many shows at the park completely in German, but with no other physical cues as to what was happening/being said this left us a bit confused!
After the main event we experienced The Vampires Club which remains as loud and boisterous as ever. It's a great fun way way to finish out the night, and the opening show with the hand held fire cannons has to be experienced to be believed.
So there - despite us picking up on a few issues - this really was us nitpicking. Traumatica made the big decisions to jettison its original story-line and characters for 2023, and for that they have to be commended. Everything around the event felt fresh and exciting, and we cant wait to see where they go with the story next year. We know the team aren't resting on their laurels, and we are sure they are already working on the 2023 incarnation!
Finally, at the end of a long night, we experienced the Not Alone experience this year. We just aren't allowed to say what happened inside the Forbidden Club, or within the terrifying scare attraction itself. Just know that each of the team were VERY close to saying the safe word during the darkness, as the actors were completely relentless throughout. Once out, and with a drink in our hands, we enjoyed (but felt strangely aroused) during the erotically charged production in the club.
Not Alone is not a cheap experience in any way, and is more of a total scare and entertainment experience as opposed to something more niche or extreme. The whole night and the associated benefits will not suit some - but it really is something completely unique. If you ever get to try it - you wont regret it!
So then we heard the rumours that the Traumatica war was over, and that for 2022 - a whole new bunch of characters would take over the site. What would this mean for the whole attraction, and how this would fit in with the existing infrastructure? We couldn't wait to find out.
First off - the key difference in this year's event is that EVERYTHING is held in the main event arena, and there is no entry to the partially closed theme park as before. This means that all guests are in the same area, and has given the event the chance to have a centralised food court and stage show. Each night we visited, the bars and food carts were rammed, and the atmosphere was buzzing. It was nice to not be wandering through a partially empty theme park trying to find a way back to the scare attractions. There are also multiple scare actors throughout this area and we experienced a number of great startle interactions with a very lively bunch of characters.
As for the scare attractions themselves, although the facades and venues looks the same - the new residents have really made some changes. So although the Silverbullet bar remains - this has now been taken over by the residents of Skin Deep. The impressive church that housed The Fallen is now Tarot House, and the home of the Resistance has been taken over by some killer clowns. Each maze has either an impressive facade - or in the case of the House of Wax - a detailed sign hiding the attraction behind.
Firstly, we were amazed at the subtle references back to the original event. A perfect example was Petting Zoo, which had a few of the werewolves from The Pack chained up. To anyone new to the event - these would just be some werewolf guys - but to Traumatica fans - this was a great Easter egg to discover.
We also loved the use of animatronics this year, as it was clear, they have moved many of the existing effects that used to appear randomly throughout the mazes, and have made a feature of them all together. The opening scene of Grim House and the cage scene in Petting Zoo, worked so well because of the sheer number of effects.
Across each maze - we saw some incredible theming and set design, and the costumes and make up throughout are really some of the best in the industry. Our only comment? Perhaps some extra direction for the actors wouldn't go amiss, as several times we stumbled into an actor either looking bored or not quite ready to scare. There's no excuse for this in any scare event - but certainly not one as big and important as Traumatica!
One other slight criticism is that the detailed story that we were told afterwards for House of Wax - didn't come across when visiting. The maze is a combination of the home of the vampire Shadows and the cave dwelling Ghouls, but the switch from the Gothic sets upstairs to the caves was a bit jarring. There really were some great scares through both sections, but the whole maze didn't flow narratively compared to the others.
Another big thing this year, with the move to being a self contained event outside the park, was that the ice arena wasn't available. Therefore a circus big top show has been introduced. This is completely in theme with the whole new Traumatica story line, and contained a number of impressive acts including musical interludes from Leon Fuller, multiple stunts and effects, some incredible performances and a jaw dropping motor bike finale. One small complaint as a non German speaker - there was one comedy scene that played out for too long. We really don't expect everyone to speak English, and have enjoyed many shows at the park completely in German, but with no other physical cues as to what was happening/being said this left us a bit confused!
After the main event we experienced The Vampires Club which remains as loud and boisterous as ever. It's a great fun way way to finish out the night, and the opening show with the hand held fire cannons has to be experienced to be believed.
So there - despite us picking up on a few issues - this really was us nitpicking. Traumatica made the big decisions to jettison its original story-line and characters for 2023, and for that they have to be commended. Everything around the event felt fresh and exciting, and we cant wait to see where they go with the story next year. We know the team aren't resting on their laurels, and we are sure they are already working on the 2023 incarnation!
Finally, at the end of a long night, we experienced the Not Alone experience this year. We just aren't allowed to say what happened inside the Forbidden Club, or within the terrifying scare attraction itself. Just know that each of the team were VERY close to saying the safe word during the darkness, as the actors were completely relentless throughout. Once out, and with a drink in our hands, we enjoyed (but felt strangely aroused) during the erotically charged production in the club.
Not Alone is not a cheap experience in any way, and is more of a total scare and entertainment experience as opposed to something more niche or extreme. The whole night and the associated benefits will not suit some - but it really is something completely unique. If you ever get to try it - you wont regret it!
Halloween at Europa Park 2022
Halloween really is a big season at Europa Park. Not only do they have their full scale scare event in Traumatica, but they also like to celebrate the season within the main theme park. Like other years, this means a ton of pumpkins scattered across the whole resort as well as a number of Halloween characters and statues.
The park's event schedule also gets a complete overhaul with spooky themed versions of their shows, a load of roaming characters, and a great fun parade and the new fountain and fire show on the lake. All of these were incredible in their own right and can be seen in the first look video below.
The park also hosts a family friendly scare attraction during the day, and this year they introduced Niflheim in the Icelandic sector. The new experience is a mixed indoor/outdoor trail with several actors and a couple of jump scares along the way. At the main entrance, we were greeted by a couple of elaborately dressed actors who pretty soon invited us inside the first room. Now granted, there isn't a lot of ways to scare people in the daytime, but Niflheim had a few tricks up its sleeve including a smoke filled room that we had to just fumble around to find out way out!
All in - for a family scare attraction we think this did the job and gave us a couple of scares along the way!
So. if you are visiting Germany for the Traumatica event next door, we would say its definitely worth checking out the main park too. It may not be super scary, but it is fun!
The park's event schedule also gets a complete overhaul with spooky themed versions of their shows, a load of roaming characters, and a great fun parade and the new fountain and fire show on the lake. All of these were incredible in their own right and can be seen in the first look video below.
The park also hosts a family friendly scare attraction during the day, and this year they introduced Niflheim in the Icelandic sector. The new experience is a mixed indoor/outdoor trail with several actors and a couple of jump scares along the way. At the main entrance, we were greeted by a couple of elaborately dressed actors who pretty soon invited us inside the first room. Now granted, there isn't a lot of ways to scare people in the daytime, but Niflheim had a few tricks up its sleeve including a smoke filled room that we had to just fumble around to find out way out!
All in - for a family scare attraction we think this did the job and gave us a couple of scares along the way!
So. if you are visiting Germany for the Traumatica event next door, we would say its definitely worth checking out the main park too. It may not be super scary, but it is fun!
Review - Traumatica Not Alone 2019
New for this year, Traumatica have introduced a EUR 250 experience, marketed as "Not Alone". We knew absolutely nothing about what we were about to experience, and for the interests of this review we will try to keep away from any spoilers. We will, at first, mention that this experience included a dedicated viewing area for the opening show (with a drink), ultimate Fast Track to all the five scare attractions, VIP seating for the ice show and VIP access to the Vampire Club and entry to the upstairs VIP area. This alone would have been special enough, but at 12.15am we were escorted directly to The Forbidden Club - a very select members only joint, where characters from the ice show and the enigmatic Myra Moon mistress were waiting.
Invited to sit down and served a drink, we were presented with random playing cards. These would decide our order for the alone part of the experience and as the show started we began to get more and more nervous. The show itself can easily be described as down and dirty, as many of the acts from the ice show performed erotically charged routines that left very little to the imagination. We have photos but to retain the mystery, we will refrain from posting them! These acts were definitely raunchier than the usually sexy shows the park put on, but stayed the right side of the line and gave us all and entertaining time.
Soon we were called one by one to experience the "Alone" section - a tour of two of the Traumatica mazes with the lights switched off, a tiny lantern to light the way and a barrage of actors to scare us. Nothing could prepare us for just how dark and scary this experience was. There was something about feeling so vulnerable and alone, that terrified each of us and even now we must apologise for some of the terrible names we called the actors as we made our way through! The whole experience switched from terrifying to hilarious and then back to terrifying in the blink of an eye. We haven't even mentioned the mission that we had to retrieve something, or that our phones etc had all been placed in envelopes so we couldn't use them in the darkness!
We have no idea how long the experience lasted, but by the time we reached the 3rd entrance doorway, all of us had agreed that we had come very close to saying the safe word so we could be extracted back to safety and not have to go in (it turned out we were just heading back into Forbidden!) Whilst back in the club, we also got to experience an impressive VR game which we really cant divulge the details of - but if you get invited to try it - just say yes! Around about 2.30, the tours and show had finished and we were led back to the Vampires Club to end the night.
All in - we loved every part of the Not Alone experience. From accessing the very exclusive club, through to the maze benefits and the final "alone" experience, we felt like scare royalty for the night. It really isn't a cheap experience, but does offer something that usually "money cant buy" and would really appeal to hardened Traumatica fans who really want to push the boat out and celebrate. As a test run on opening weekend - there were only 6 of us participating, so it will be interesting to see what the uptake is like going forwards....
Invited to sit down and served a drink, we were presented with random playing cards. These would decide our order for the alone part of the experience and as the show started we began to get more and more nervous. The show itself can easily be described as down and dirty, as many of the acts from the ice show performed erotically charged routines that left very little to the imagination. We have photos but to retain the mystery, we will refrain from posting them! These acts were definitely raunchier than the usually sexy shows the park put on, but stayed the right side of the line and gave us all and entertaining time.
Soon we were called one by one to experience the "Alone" section - a tour of two of the Traumatica mazes with the lights switched off, a tiny lantern to light the way and a barrage of actors to scare us. Nothing could prepare us for just how dark and scary this experience was. There was something about feeling so vulnerable and alone, that terrified each of us and even now we must apologise for some of the terrible names we called the actors as we made our way through! The whole experience switched from terrifying to hilarious and then back to terrifying in the blink of an eye. We haven't even mentioned the mission that we had to retrieve something, or that our phones etc had all been placed in envelopes so we couldn't use them in the darkness!
We have no idea how long the experience lasted, but by the time we reached the 3rd entrance doorway, all of us had agreed that we had come very close to saying the safe word so we could be extracted back to safety and not have to go in (it turned out we were just heading back into Forbidden!) Whilst back in the club, we also got to experience an impressive VR game which we really cant divulge the details of - but if you get invited to try it - just say yes! Around about 2.30, the tours and show had finished and we were led back to the Vampires Club to end the night.
All in - we loved every part of the Not Alone experience. From accessing the very exclusive club, through to the maze benefits and the final "alone" experience, we felt like scare royalty for the night. It really isn't a cheap experience, but does offer something that usually "money cant buy" and would really appeal to hardened Traumatica fans who really want to push the boat out and celebrate. As a test run on opening weekend - there were only 6 of us participating, so it will be interesting to see what the uptake is like going forwards....
Review - Traumatica at Europa Park 2019
Traumatica as an event, is now in its third year and it has been interesting to see the way it has morphed over the years. The concept of the 5 main factions has remained static, but each faction has brought a brand new maze for 2019 which mix elements of previous mazes with new scenes and effects to leave us guessing around every corner.
One thing that really struck out was the abundance of new animatronics throughout all 5 attractions, with some of them being especially large and imposing. Think whole walls of zombies lurching through doors, or (our favourite) the horde of zombie babies chomping around your kneecaps! The problem is - like any animatronic, they aren't always as effective as a live actor, and we felt a few times that the electronic scare would have been complemented better by a live scare. Not saying that the live actors weren't very lively, as everyone we saw was throwing themselves around, but in one maze we had 5 animatronic events in a row, which would have been better with a live scarer along the way.
We experienced the mazes across two nights and we definitely think that by the 2nd night the team were hitting their stride. It's funny that each year at Traumatica we have a different favourite and this year saw Ghouls take the crown every time we went through. We are sure it will change again next year!
As well as the mazes there are the three scare zones which were all fun and well populated. The Battle for Traumatica is a favourite as the different factions walk through and give each other hell - it's a nice touch that the characters aren't just after the guests, and really helps build the mythology of the event.
And yes - talking of mythology, this years event include two shows - Portal - the ice show and Myra's Show, which supposedly tell more of the back story of the event. The ice show was genuinely stunning in places with some incredible acrobatics that left the audience gasping. The Myra show, on the other hand, was beautifully produced and choreographed, but lacked any really story or purpose, in keeping with the whole Traumatica event. It didn't help that this area, which has been used for multiple scare zones in the past, was just open and empty, so not many people actually stopped to see the show.
Having visited for multiple years, we must say that we always have a great time at Traumatica, and put this down to a number of elements. First off, the set and designs are amazing and these are populated by beautifully dressed and made up actors who know how to scare and are relentless through the night. The event also has a great festival atmosphere with loud music, good food and beers, which all add up to a must visit Halloween experience!
Review - Halloween at Europa Park 2019
Alongside the main Traumatica event, Europa Park also celebrate Halloween with a number of additions and upgrades across the theme park. Most of these are family friendly, and include the spooky parade, the abundance of pumpkins and the makeovers of certain flat rides, but the park like to also introduce some daytime scares in the line up.
In the past, this has either been a daytime tour into one the evening mazes with a different story, or like last year, a small horror walk through called Jack, in the England section of the park. This year has seen Jack upgraded to Bloody Mary's Mansion, and the scares inside have definitely been ramped up a lot!
The walk through starts in a long dark tunnel that is soon occupied by demons from beyond, while special effects such as strobe lighting and smoke are released. It's a fun start which sets the mood for what happens in the actual house itself.
The main room is nicely themed with a number of lively actors waiting to jump out and scare, but unfortunately is a little short to provide more than a handful of jumps along the path. It's a great extra addition to the line up and would certainly appeal to people too scared to visit Traumatica, but its not the defining experience of Halloween at Europa Park.
Review - Traumatica at Europa Park 2018
Review - Traumatica at Europa Park 2017
Following 10 years of growth and good reviews from everyone in the past, we were slightly underwhelmed when we visited Europa Park Horror Nights last year. In our review at the time, we commented on the incredible sets within the mazes but thought the outside design (large white marquees in the main event arena) and underpopulated scare zones, let the experience down. So we were pleased to hear that the whole event was getting a massive makeover for 2017, and as it got closer to opening night, more and more details about Traumatica were released.
First off – the event was due to follow one overarching story, as five warring factions of supernatural entities battle it out for control of Traumatica. Based on classic characters such as werewolves and vampires, the evening started out in the holding area with the different sides shouting abuse at each other, and from there, the theme continued throughout the whole experience.
When the gates were opened, the majority of the waiting crowd were funnelled through the long and well themed Battle for Traumatica scare zone. Populated with characters from all factions, this was a great intro to the event, as well as effectively spreading the opening crowds around the site. The pathway was well themed with “junk” and disused vehicles to create a suitably grungy post-apocalyptic vibe.
Traumatica, as an event, is basically split into two halves with two mazes and some rides in the main park and then three mazes in the event area outside the main park layout. The only way between each side of the event is to pass through the scare zones, so in an evening of back and forth we passed both ways through all the zones, and really got to enjoy Battle for Traumatica and Gypsy Hollow. Sadly the Shadow Bay scare zone was woefully underpopulated and was disappointing every time we went through.
We must mention the Gypsy Hollow scare zone though – we are not sure what any of the actors were saying, especially the mother style leader of the clan, but she was genuinely terrifying as she barked in our faces! She could have been reeling off her shopping list for all we knew, but her demeanour and body language really had us on edge!
As well as the scare zones, a number of the park’s rides were open along with a new horror themed ice show that continued the Traumatica storyline in a story of doomed love. However, of course, the main draw of the event are the five main scare mazes – one themed to each of the 5 factions.
The Fallen: House of the Familiars
Behind the incredible façade of a rundown church, lay a community of undead creatures with hearts as dark as blood. The maze featured some incredibly well designed and themed sets including a stunning set piece, as a whole room transformed into a black light nightmare following an actot-led ritual. Although the house wasn’t as scary /jumpy as some of the others, it was good fun throughout.
The Resistance: Operation Rage
This was genuinely our favourite maze of the bunch – once inside it was completely chaotic in places as the resistance fighters imitated a lockdown, and every scene included some great scares and some fun characters. The highlight had to be the room with the actors on bungees. This room was so busy, and genuinely frightening, as characters dropped in and out of view, inches from our faces. Easily the best scene in the whole event. One small note – it wasn’t until after the event that we realised that the main queueline for the this attraction utilised a corn maze, which wasn’t accessible from the Shoxterpass (fast track) queue. We understand from people that went through here that there were a couple of fun scares in the corn before the main indoor section of this maze but sadly missed them on our visit.
The Pack: Silver Bullet
Elements of The Pack reminded us of last year's Big Shoe Casino - especially the large bar room that we first entered. From there on, we were hunted and attacked by numerous werewolf type creatures offset with some comical scenes such as the female stripper gyrating her wolf tail! Alongside some genuinely gory and scary frights, we have to mention the exciting transformation scene which cleverly mixed shadow projections and live actors to create a truly believable set piece that got us every time we went through
Ghouls: Journey into Darkness
Ghouls was very similar to last year's Cave Unleashed, but located in a more permanent structure within the park. Because of this, the walls were more sold and permanent than the foam theming from previous, meaning we did not have to walk around with our arms crossed against our chest! The attraction itself had a large number of glowing eyed creatures that managed some effective jump scares as they appeared from hidden positions in the catacombs. Although we had some scares this was probaly our least favorite of the 5 main mazes.
Shadows: Legion of Blood
The main vampire themed maze was probably more theatrical than scary but had a number of impressively themed scenes through some detailed sets. We particularly liked the alluring vampire in the bath tub scene and the vampire we interrupted chewing on the entrails of a victim in a four posted bed! The maze also used a couple of over sized puppets to create great “WTF" moments as something so large and apparently static lunged at us in the dark!
As before – all the mazes were themed beautifully inside, but this year the main three mazes also had amazing facades. Built into more permanent buildings both the Fallen and The Pack looked stunning and helped add weight to the whole event. Alongside the roaming characters, queue line entertainment and pounding rock music – the atmosphere in this area will be buzzing come the busier days closer to Halloween.
Therefore, in summary – we thoroughly enjoyed our visit to Traumatica. The change to a more cohesive event has worked in the events favour, but there were certainly some areas that could do with some work. For an opening weekend of a new product, the team should be proud of their achievements.
First off – the event was due to follow one overarching story, as five warring factions of supernatural entities battle it out for control of Traumatica. Based on classic characters such as werewolves and vampires, the evening started out in the holding area with the different sides shouting abuse at each other, and from there, the theme continued throughout the whole experience.
When the gates were opened, the majority of the waiting crowd were funnelled through the long and well themed Battle for Traumatica scare zone. Populated with characters from all factions, this was a great intro to the event, as well as effectively spreading the opening crowds around the site. The pathway was well themed with “junk” and disused vehicles to create a suitably grungy post-apocalyptic vibe.
Traumatica, as an event, is basically split into two halves with two mazes and some rides in the main park and then three mazes in the event area outside the main park layout. The only way between each side of the event is to pass through the scare zones, so in an evening of back and forth we passed both ways through all the zones, and really got to enjoy Battle for Traumatica and Gypsy Hollow. Sadly the Shadow Bay scare zone was woefully underpopulated and was disappointing every time we went through.
We must mention the Gypsy Hollow scare zone though – we are not sure what any of the actors were saying, especially the mother style leader of the clan, but she was genuinely terrifying as she barked in our faces! She could have been reeling off her shopping list for all we knew, but her demeanour and body language really had us on edge!
As well as the scare zones, a number of the park’s rides were open along with a new horror themed ice show that continued the Traumatica storyline in a story of doomed love. However, of course, the main draw of the event are the five main scare mazes – one themed to each of the 5 factions.
The Fallen: House of the Familiars
Behind the incredible façade of a rundown church, lay a community of undead creatures with hearts as dark as blood. The maze featured some incredibly well designed and themed sets including a stunning set piece, as a whole room transformed into a black light nightmare following an actot-led ritual. Although the house wasn’t as scary /jumpy as some of the others, it was good fun throughout.
The Resistance: Operation Rage
This was genuinely our favourite maze of the bunch – once inside it was completely chaotic in places as the resistance fighters imitated a lockdown, and every scene included some great scares and some fun characters. The highlight had to be the room with the actors on bungees. This room was so busy, and genuinely frightening, as characters dropped in and out of view, inches from our faces. Easily the best scene in the whole event. One small note – it wasn’t until after the event that we realised that the main queueline for the this attraction utilised a corn maze, which wasn’t accessible from the Shoxterpass (fast track) queue. We understand from people that went through here that there were a couple of fun scares in the corn before the main indoor section of this maze but sadly missed them on our visit.
The Pack: Silver Bullet
Elements of The Pack reminded us of last year's Big Shoe Casino - especially the large bar room that we first entered. From there on, we were hunted and attacked by numerous werewolf type creatures offset with some comical scenes such as the female stripper gyrating her wolf tail! Alongside some genuinely gory and scary frights, we have to mention the exciting transformation scene which cleverly mixed shadow projections and live actors to create a truly believable set piece that got us every time we went through
Ghouls: Journey into Darkness
Ghouls was very similar to last year's Cave Unleashed, but located in a more permanent structure within the park. Because of this, the walls were more sold and permanent than the foam theming from previous, meaning we did not have to walk around with our arms crossed against our chest! The attraction itself had a large number of glowing eyed creatures that managed some effective jump scares as they appeared from hidden positions in the catacombs. Although we had some scares this was probaly our least favorite of the 5 main mazes.
Shadows: Legion of Blood
The main vampire themed maze was probably more theatrical than scary but had a number of impressively themed scenes through some detailed sets. We particularly liked the alluring vampire in the bath tub scene and the vampire we interrupted chewing on the entrails of a victim in a four posted bed! The maze also used a couple of over sized puppets to create great “WTF" moments as something so large and apparently static lunged at us in the dark!
As before – all the mazes were themed beautifully inside, but this year the main three mazes also had amazing facades. Built into more permanent buildings both the Fallen and The Pack looked stunning and helped add weight to the whole event. Alongside the roaming characters, queue line entertainment and pounding rock music – the atmosphere in this area will be buzzing come the busier days closer to Halloween.
Therefore, in summary – we thoroughly enjoyed our visit to Traumatica. The change to a more cohesive event has worked in the events favour, but there were certainly some areas that could do with some work. For an opening weekend of a new product, the team should be proud of their achievements.
Links:
Official Website - www.traumatica.com/en/
ScareTOUR Review of Horror Nights 2016
ScareTOUR Review of Horror Nights 2015
ScareTOUR Review of Horror Nights 2014
ScareTOUR Review of Horror Nights 2016
ScareTOUR Review of Horror Nights 2015
ScareTOUR Review of Horror Nights 2014
Scare Review
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