Ghoulies Horror Bar no longer exists at the Liverpool venue detailed here, but since it was such a fantastic attraction, I thought I would share a review of the 2018 Love Bites event.
Before visiting, I first became aware of Ghoulies Haunted House on Twitter; a new permanent scare attraction and themed horror bar based in the centre of Liverpool. It was great to see a new scare attraction popping up, particularly in such a central & easily accessible location.
Very quickly I decided to visit their Valentines Day Love Bites event, despite some Facebook reviews leaving me a bit apprehensive. In the end I opted for the ‘Family Friendly’ slot. ?
When I went to Ghoulies, it had been a while since I’d last visited a scare attraction. So, I was nervous enough to struggle appreciating the sets/scare methods in too much detail. My partner and I went through alone together, which was great, as it was his first scare attraction.
A few specific things stood out about the experience…
The initial corridors leading down to the “Insidious” movie style red door were very creepy, and built up a good amount of suspense.
You were then lead by an actor to a room with seating, and a brightly lit frosted window. The metal music playing in this room was a nice touch – a refreshing change from generic horror soundtracks.
Throughout the attraction there were a good amount of actors, and all of them stayed in character really well.
There wasn’t a moment where you weren’t on your toes; you were either being followed, ‘strangled’, or jumped out on.
The actor playing the Count Orlok style character really held his own, serving as our guide through most of the attraction. I thought his makeup was great – so kudos to the actor, or whoever applied this.
There was also a segment incorporating animatronics. Animatronics often seem disjointed as part of many scare attractions, but they were integrated brilliantly with strobe lights and actors.
Overall, the attraction was a decent length and all the rooms/sets were atmospheric.
The ‘execution’ chainsaw scare method used at the end of the maze was… alarmingly funny. Definitely unlike what I’ve experienced in other attractions so far.
Ghoulies lived up to what their tagline described, “get grabbed by the ghoulies” – a very hands on approach to scaring. Many, if not most scare attractions implement a ‘no touch’ policy. This made Ghoulies Haunted House an experience that is not suitable for everyone – and you were required to sign a disclaimer before entering.
During the “Family Friendly” version of the attraction, I didn’t find it over the top, just a terrifyingly fun experience. My partner also enjoyed going through the attraction – particularly the animatronics & the main ‘guide’ actor.
Besides the excellent actors, the staff were all super friendly. We stayed in the bar for a drink afterwards, where you could also view other groups going through the attraction via CCTV.
Was great to see how busy it was in both the bar, and groups going into the attraction. Before the Ghoulies Liverpool venue closed, I was really looking forward to seeing new events there, & what different themes would be used in future.
Ghoulies closed the doors on their Liverpool venue in early 2019, though the company did run a Preston based Halloween event later in 2019. Ghoulies Haunted House seem to still be active on Facebook, so it’s possible they may run events again at some point. Fingers crossed that they do, as they have great potential for creating further amazing scare attractions.
