12 haunted houses on Long Island, ranked by scare factor

Those in search of screams, look no further. This Halloween season, follow Newsday's Spooky Trail, pinpointing a dozen haunted attractions spanning from Westbury to Wading River. However, be aware of your tolerance for terror by paying attention to the scare meter on each one.

HALLOWEEN HOUSE LONG ISLAND

Broadway Commons, 358 N. Broadway, Hicksville

Scare factor: 💀

Venture through a dozen rooms each with a different theme and prime for photo-ops. However, the focus is on fun, not fear.

"There are no jump scares or live actors looking to scare you," manager Justin Schwartz says. "It’s an anxiety-free Halloween experience."

New rooms this year include Halloween House "Jeopardy!," which is a game show with three different podiums where each group gets to face off. Dance with skeletons and perform Halloween-themed karaoke at the Monster Mash Rave, then walk through cobwebs, spiders and a variety of theatrical lights in the Spiderweb Spectacle.

• HOURS 5 to 8 p.m. Monday-Friday; 11 a.m. to 8 p.m. Saturday; 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. Sunday through Nov. 2
• COST $35.42, $29.83 ages 13 and younger
• MORE INFO halloweenhouselongisland.com

BAYVILLE SCREAM PARK

8 Bayville Ave., Bayville

Scare factor: 💀💀💀💀💀

Get five haunted attractions for one price at this North Shore amusement park that’s celebrating 20 years of fear. Start with the original haunted house Bloodworth Haunted Mansion, which comes alive with creeps. Check in at the Bayville Asylum, where the inmates are twisted and the doctors unlicensed. Enter the warped circus of Uncle Needle's Funhouse of Fear in 3D, then witness an experiment gone awry in The Cage. Finally, come face-to-face with the undead in the Temple of Terror.

• HOURS 7 to 10 p.m. Wednesday-Thursday; 7 p.m. to 1 a.m. Friday; noon to 1 a.m. Saturday, noon to 11 p.m. Sunday (noon to 10 p.m. Nov. 2, 7 to 11 p.m. Nov. 7 -8) through Nov. 8
• COST $56.75-$60.75 (includes 5 haunted attractions)
• MORE INFO bayvillescreampark.com

LONG ISLAND HAUNTED FIREHOUSE

Farmingville Fire Department, 1080 Portion Rd., Farmingville

Scare factor: 💀💀💀💀

This outdoor haunt features a variety of experiences, from an evil petting zoo to a murder house to a blackout box. Sunday night has attendees walking through with just a glow stick. Go VIP and get an extra haunted house with eight rooms of doom.

"The entire haunt is heavily decorated, but there’s no overall theme," producer Marty Arominski says. "But when you least expect it, we are going to scare the hell out of you."

• HOURS 7 to 10:30 p.m. Friday and Saturday, 7 to 10 p.m. Sunday through Nov. 1
• COST $23.02, VIP $33.42
• MORE INFO 516-514-4792, longislandhauntedfirehouse.org

SCHMITT'S FARM HAUNT

F & W Schmitt Farms, 26 Pinelawn Rd., Melville

Scare factor: 💀💀💀💀💀

With 80 live actors in 40 different rooms, this farm haunt, which has been running for 31 years, aims to prey upon Long Islanders.

"Our theme this year is zombie pirates," general manager Scott Stoner says. "We also have a demonic church as well as a schoolhouse. There’s a clown section with a big top freak show as well as a slaughterhouse. In addition, there’s a 1980s murder house with DJ Casey Kill’em."

Don’t forget to hit the Haunted Corn Trail and the 3D Experience before you leave.

• HOURS 7 to 11 p.m. Thursday and Sunday, 7 p.m. to midnight Friday and Saturday through Nov. 1
• COST $47.11
• MORE INFO 631-271-3276, schmittsfarmhaunt.com

DARKNESS RISING HAUNTED ATTRACTION

800 Chettic Ave., Copiague

Scare factor: 💀💀💀💀

Take on the trio of terror as three haunts make up this wild Halloween ride. Dark Matter takes place on a spaceship where people are getting infected while Wasteland brings visitors into a postapocalyptic world and then there’s the mummy-themed experience called Pharaoh’s Curse.

"The opening of Pharaoh’s Curse will really freak out people who grapple with claustrophobia," creator Kevin Baird says. "There are multiple effects making the participant feel as if they are getting crushed by walls."

• HOURS 6:30 to 10:30 p.m. Oct. 26, 7 to 10 p.m. Oct. 30, 7 p.m. to midnight Oct. 24 and 25, 7 to 11 p.m. Oct. 31 and Nov. 1
• COST $36 ($5 more at the door), $51 fast pass
• MORE INFO 516-799-4747, darknessrising.org

DEEPWELLS HAUNTED MANSION

Deepwells Farm County Park, 2 Taylor Lane, St. James

Scare factor: 💀💀💀💀💀

Welcome to the Deepwells Freak Show where there are 14 rooms, such as the quarantine room, the insane asylum and the live experiments room, all filled with extraordinary creatures.

"The theme is based on the old freak shows from the circus," board member Denise Davis says. "The freaks include half man-half wolf, a sword swallower, a zombie-eating fat lady and a snake lady. They are all pretty scary."

Outside there’s a Blood Harvest Maze, the Graveyard of the Undead and the Trail of the Forgotten. Check out the fortune teller, an array of vendors and horror movie tent while waiting to enter.

• HOURS 7 to 10 p.m. Friday-Saturday through Nov. 1
• COST $30 advance, $40 at the door, 12 and under must be accompanied by an adult
• MORE INFO 631-862-2808, deepwellshauntedmansion.com

GATEWAY'S HAUNTED PLAYHOUSE

215 S. Country Rd., Bellport

Scare factor: 💀💀💀💀

Human harvesting is happening in Bellport. The Harvester is sewing body parts together from people he’s collecting, and building mutated creations.

"There was an excavation around Gateway when all the cesspools were being changed. In the process, some toxic gas was released and this guy Edmund Ryker inhaled it then began to mutate," haunt director Paul Allan says. "Everyone coming to the haunt is unwillingly being cataloged for the harvester’s evil antics."

An active midway with a shooting gallery, coffin ride and Fear Garden round out the experience.

• HOURS 7 to 10 p.m. Oct. 26 and 29, 7 to 11:30 p.m. Oct. 24-25; 7 to 10:30 p.m. Oct. 30-31 and Nov. 1
• COST $46 ($52 at the door); $66 ($72 at the door) for a fast pass
• MORE INFO 631-286-1133, fearli.com

DARKSIDE HAUNTED HOUSE

5184 Rte. 25A, Wading River

Scare factor: 💀💀💀💀💀

Since 1998, this haunt has aimed to not only scare but fully entertain, using over 30 rooms, more than 40 live actors and eight outdoor areas.

"We focus on people’s deepest fears and the things that keep them up at night shivering," owner and founder Mike Meola says. "It’s complete immersion. Once you get out of your car, the experience begins because you’re in the middle of nowhere and you enter our world."

A new midway offers concessions, vendors and games like the Zombie Brain Game and Angry Crows.

• HOURS 7 to 11 p.m. Oct. 29 and 30 plus Nov. 1; 7 p.m. to midnight Oct. 24 and 31, 6 p.m. to midnight Oct. 25, 6 to 10:30 p.m. Oct. 26, 7 to 10:30 p.m. Nov. 2
• COST $46.56, $63.70 fast pass
• MORE INFO 631-369-7227, darksideproductions.com

RESTLESS SOULS HAUNTED HOUSE COMPLEX

301 W. Hills Rd., Huntington Station

Scare factor: 💀💀💀💀

A swamp creature, evil scarecrows, killer clowns and hillbilly cannibals are what visitors will face at this four-part haunt that includes The Dark Colony, Klownkatraz 3D, The Shack and Alien Autopsy Escape Room.

"Klownkatraz 3D is a black light haunt that completely throws off your vision," co-producer Justin Wilmot says. "Clowns have broken out of the psych ward and medical bay. A judge who sends you to your execution using clown prisoners and prison guards. It’s crazy."

• HOURS 6 to 10 p.m. Oct. 24-25 and 31 plus Nov. 1; 5 to 9 p.m. Oct. 26
• COST $35 (all four haunts), $27 (three haunts), $10 (individual attractions)
• MORE INFO 631-319-9662, restlesssoulsli.org

HAUNTED HOUSE OF HAMBURGERS

330 Fulton St., Farmingdale

Scare factor: 💀💀

Enjoy a Halloween-themed meal in a haunted house setting. The walls, the ceiling, the corners and even the exterior  feature horror icons like Dracula, the Wolf Man, the Mummy and other creatures.

The menu contains fun food like the Tarantula Burger ($23.99), Fettucini Afraid-O ($19.99), the Shellraiser Lobster Roll ($32.99) and Parm-ageddon Chicken ($22.99). There are also day-of-the-week themed cocktails and mocktails.

"On Tim Burton Tuesday, we serve Tim’s Lemonade consisting of Jack Daniel’s, triple sec, sour mix, Sprite, blackberries and black sugar [$11.99]," new co-owner Brianna Greco says. "For kids, there’s the Beetlejuice Mocktail with pineapple juice, sour mix, ginger ale and lime [$8.50]."

• HOURS 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. Sunday- Thursday; 11 a.m. to 10 p.m.
• Friday-Saturday
• COST Appetizers: $14.99-$20.99, entrees: $15.99-$32.99, desserts: $8.99-$9.99; reservations are encouraged
• MORE INFO 516-777-1031, hhhamburgers.com

NIGHTMARE IN NASSAU

1500 Old Country Rd., Unit 207, Westbury

Scare factor: 💀💀💀💀

Located on the second floor of Samanea New York, this 10,000-square-foot haunt features over 20 rooms themes of different haunting scenarios. The Werewolf Room, an Evil Egyptian Room, a Scary Baby Room, a Brutal Butcher Room, a Nasty Nurses Room and Jekyll & Hyde Room are just a sample — all using up to 25 live actors.

"Each room gets more in depth with various scary experiences," owner Frank DiGiacomo says. "Attendees get hit with a lot of scares right from the beginning. There are animatronics, special effects, theatrical lighting and puppets."

Live haunt actors interact with people on the queue line plus photo-ops with them are available and a merchandise table has items for sale.

• HOURS 7 p.m. to midnight Thursday, Friday, Saturday and Sunday through Nov. 2
• COST $34.99, $49.99 fast pass
• MORE INFO nightmareinnassau.com

ESCAPE FROM THE PENITENTIARY

155 W. Main St., Smithtown

Scare factor: 💀💀💀💀💀

Bull Smith’s Tavern in Smithtown has opened a new haunt in its parking lot called Nightmare on Main Street Presents: Escape from the Penitentiary. This 6,000-square-foot facility, designed by Abracadabra NYC, will use a dozen live actors plus animatronics within a series of rooms, mazes and hallways.

"We are focused on the storytelling aspect. This is not just a haunt where you open the door, walk through and get scared," co-owner Max Feinberg says. "It’s very immersive, where the guests become part of the storyline. That starts from the minute they get their ticket to the minute they escape ... if they are able to."

• HOURS 7 to 11 p.m. Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays through Nov. 1
• COST $46.19 per person
• MORE INFO nightmareonmainstreetli.com