I Survived My Stay at the Stanley Hotel
It’s October, and with that comes the arrival of spooky season. What higher time to have fun the month of frights and chills than by immersing your self in them? Fortunately, simply that chance arose when Peacock and Blumhouse invited Collider (particularly, me) to attend their two-night immersive, inaugural horror occasion, dubbed Overnightmare, in Estes Park, Colorado. When I requested if I may convey a buddy alongside — as a result of why not have firm if you are going to a distant location in the mountains? — they graciously allowed my husband (who’s arguably a good greater horror fan than I am) to accompany me on this journey of dealing with my fears firsthand. What I did not know at the time was that the total Overnightmare expertise could be precisely the dose of spooky I wanted.
Overnightmare Is Set in an Iconic Horror Location
Any horror fan’s ears may need perked up as quickly as I namedropped the location for Peacock and Blumhouse’s Overnightmare — and that is as a result of the total occasion performed out at the iconic Stanley Hotel, which many will acknowledge as the identical resort that after impressed Stephen King to jot down The Shining throughout his temporary and haunting keep there. With that form of horror pedigree, it naturally made the good place to function the backdrop for the thrills and chills that awaited us all through our two-day keep. While friends of the Overnightmare expertise got lodging in the neighboring constructing often known as The Lodge, we have been additionally allowed comparatively free entry to the remainder of the property and given downtime to discover the arguably beautiful, mountainous ambiance. (During the safer daylight, I could not resist snapping some pics of the Stanley in all its glory!)
Out of the many actions we got to select from to fill our packed schedule, we clearly had to decide on the Stanley Hotel’s Shining tour, which is obtainable to friends even exterior of the Overnightmare occasion and permits you an up-close look at a number of of the constructing’s most well-known places — from the caretaker’s cottage, which as soon as used to deal with employees year-round and comprises a number of welcome surprises for Shining followers (no matter whether or not you’re keen on Stanley Kubrick‘s movie or the legacy connected to King’s e-book), to the notorious Room 217, the place King and his spouse Tabitha had what’s arguably considered one of the most memorable stays of their lives. If you are extra of a Shining professional, none of the anecdotes shared on mentioned tour could also be shocking, however for somebody like me, who considers herself a nascent horror lover, it nonetheless made for a enjoyable and informative tour.
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Horror Fans, Now Is Your Chance to Have a Nightmare Experience at ‘The Shining’s Stanley Hotel
The weekend-long activation will embrace methods and treats from franchises like ‘Insidious,’ ‘Happy Death Day,’ and extra.
Overnightmare’s Scare Experiences Are Customized To Your Fear Level
Before we even arrived at Overnightmare, we have been despatched waivers to fill out upfront — in addition to a questionnaire about which “scare experience” we needed to have throughout our keep at the Stanley. The choices ranged in fright degree, with Happy Death Day coming in with the lowest attainable variety of scares, whereas Insidious had clearly been designed to check even the hardest of horror lovers. Having little sense of what these experiences would truly entail, I determined to go along with Freaky as my most well-liked degree, which additionally allowed me to take a look at Happy Death Day as a second scare possibility. It additionally meant that our keep could be themed to whichever expertise we might chosen, so once we have been proven to our room, the partitions have been coated in newspapers about the Blissfield Butcher and posters promoting the upcoming homecoming dance. The TV had additionally been programmed with Peacock’s streaming library of Halloween content material, permitting us to maintain the spooky temper going.
Before your designated scare expertise begins, you are instructed to be in your room quarter-hour forward of time to lie in wait. (It’s necessary to not overlook to place the Please Do Disturb signal on the deal with, too!) Once you hear a knock, you open the door to find whoever’s been despatched to gather you, and that is the second when your scare expertise formally begins. With Freaky, you are tasked with tagging alongside to a raging get together seeking the wayward Millie Kessler (performed by Kathryn Newton in the movie), however she might not be who she appears at first. Meanwhile, over the course of the Happy Death Day expertise, Ryan Phan (performed by Phi Vu in the movie) stops by and asks you if you wish to hand around in his dorm room — though there is likely to be somebody dressed up as the college mascot, Babyface, operating round stabbing individuals. Later on, my husband was even allowed to get in on a good scarier expertise designed round The Purge, kneeling in a tarp-covered, blood-spattered room, the place members of the New Founding Fathers of America examined his willingness to torture and even kill. No expertise is ever overlong or outstays its welcome, and the actors additionally stay in character at all occasions, which provides to the total immersion issue. Whether your coronary heart is racing from pleasure or real worry at the finish of all of it, you actually do really feel such as you’ve been by one thing.
There’s Never a Dull Moment at Overnightmare
Mostly, there’s a lot to do at Overnightmare that it looks like two days are simply not sufficient to sufficiently indulge in all of it. Even when there’s relative “downtime,” there have been nonetheless loads of areas to take a seat and soak in the spooky ambiance, from the Teacup lounge bearing all method of fuel masks and ominous painted indicators to the Blumhouse Bar, which served up some scrumptious themed cocktails and in addition offered invitees with the likelihood to check out the new Blumhouse online game, Fear the Spotlight. In these open areas, the possibilities of operating into any considered one of the Overnightmare’s identically dressed “conci-scare-ges,” all of whom have been named Avery and supplied themselves up for any wants we’d have, have been very excessive. They may typically be seen lurking round the entrance foyer as nightfall fell, exhibiting new arrivals to their rooms, popping into time for supper, or ready for the proper second to pounce on an unsuspecting visitor for a scrumptious jumpscare. Their dedication to their roles was the good punctuation for our total expertise, and we frequently discovered ourselves in search of out an Avery for some enjoyable (albeit unnerving) interactions all through our keep.
Overnightmare additionally made certain to maintain us well-fed, with menu gadgets named for the most memorable points of The Shining that weren’t solely appropriately themed however completely scrumptious. Our private favourite was Wednesday’s breakfast served at the Lodge’s Brunch & Co., that includes choices like the “Mrs. Grady,” the “Rise and Shining,” and the “Room 217,” a redrum-soaked biscuit that actually got here served with a knife protruding of the high. We additionally made time for some calm amid all the worry and pressure in the air, having fun with a pair of stress-free, hour-long massages at the Stanley’s Aspire Spa.
Overall, our time at Overnightmare was the good expertise, permitting us to customise our scares whereas nonetheless consistently discovering methods to shock and thrill. Against the storied backdrop of the Stanley, Peacock and Blumhouse managed to stage an immersive occasion that felt equally unique and accessible for horror newbies and diehards alike. Here’s hoping that is solely the starting of the Overnightmare, and that future years will present much more alternatives to return to the Stanley — or maybe one other iconic horror location — to face our fears head-on.
Peacock and Blumhouse’s Overnightmare occasion happened October 18-20 at the Stanley Hotel Lodge in Estes Park, Colo. Collider attended from October 15-17.
