Bernie Baxter's Traveling Sideshow
Overview
Expert Summary
Detailed Insights
Bernie Baxter's Traveling Sideshow offers a surprisingly intense, professional-grade Halloween haunted house experience operating out of a residential home in Algiers. It's renowned for its high production value, dedicated volunteer team, and annually changing themes. Despite its small size, it delivers significant scares, yet offers the unique ability to customize the scare level for children by requesting no jump scares, making it adaptable for various fright tolerances. The experience is entirely free, relying on donations, and has been recognized as one of Louisiana's top scare attractions.
Key Highlights
- ✓Professional-grade set design and special effects, comparable to larger, more expensive venues.
- ✓Professional and courteous cast/crew, noted for being 'amazing' actors.
- ✓Theme changes every year, providing a fresh experience for returning visitors.
- ✓Ability to customize scare level for children: staff can be informed to avoid jump scares.
- ✓Rated as one of the top ten scare attractions in Louisiana.
- ✓Operated with passion and dedication, described as a 'work of love'.
Standout Features
- ⭐Free admission, with donations accepted and encouraged.
- ⭐High-quality scares and sights delivered in a compact, residential setting.
- ⭐Short duration (around 5 minutes) makes it a manageable and impactful experience.
- ⭐Customizable scare experience for children, allowing parents to tailor the fright level.
- ⭐Evokes a strong sense of community and seasonal joy, reinforcing the spirit of Halloween.
Perfect For
Ideal For
💡Pro Tips from Reviews
- →Let staff know upon arrival if your kids aren't comfortable with jump scares to ensure a modified, less intense experience.
- →Be prepared for a surprisingly high level of intensity and fright, despite its residential location and smaller size.
- →Verify operating dates and times annually, as the attraction has taken breaks in previous years.
- →Consider bringing cash for donations to support this free, passion-driven event.
- →Navigate to a residential neighborhood in Algiers; don't expect a commercial venue.
Things to Consider
- ⚠The haunt is not large due to its home-based nature, described as 'tiny' and 'not large'.
- ⚠Located in a residential neighborhood ('on a court in a neighborhood in Algiers'), which might initially cause confusion or uncertainty for visitors.
- ⚠Has taken 'a few years off' in the past, suggesting intermittent operation which parents should verify before planning a visit.
Price & Value
Bernie Baxter's Traveling Sideshow is entirely free to enter, though donations are accepted. Visitors receive a professional-grade, intense haunted house experience comparable to much bigger, more elaborate, and more expensive venues at no direct monetary cost, offering exceptional value.
♿Accessibility & Special Needs
- •Staff can adjust scare intensity for children (e.g., no jump scares on request), indicating an accommodation for varying comfort levels.
- •No specific information regarding physical accessibility (e.g., wheelchair access) is mentioned in the reviews.
🍎Food & Drink Policy
- •Not mentioned in reviews. As a short, home-based attraction, expect no food or drink services or a formal food policy.
🚗Parking Info
- •Located in a residential neighborhood ('on a court in a neighborhood in Algiers'). Expect street parking; no specific details on ease or availability are mentioned.
👥Crowd Levels
- •Not mentioned in reviews. Given its popularity and limited operating dates, it is reasonable to anticipate potential crowds, but no direct feedback is provided.
🛡️Safety Features
- •Staff is noted as 'professional and courteous', and can adjust scare intensity for children (e.g., no jump scares upon request), indicating attentiveness to guest comfort.
- •No other formal safety measures like dedicated first aid stations, security, or crowd control beyond the staff's presence are explicitly mentioned, which is common for home-based attractions.
⏰When to Avoid
- • If you are looking for a very long, multi-hour attraction, as this is described as a '5 minute' experience.
- • Families with very young children or those extremely sensitive to scares, even with adjustments, as the overall theme is a 'spook spectacular' designed to be 'scary'.
Pricing/Package/Events
Events & Schedule
Special Events(Last 2 months - Next 6 months)
Kids' Activities & Trick-or-Treating
October 31 (Halloween Night)
Free
A designated area for kids and a trick-or-treating opportunity will be available on Halloween night.
🛡️Safety Policy
- • Visitors are advised to bring running shoes, as 'one of Bernie’s minions might decide that you need to become part of the cast…'
- • Main haunt is known as one of New Orleans’ scariest haunts.
📅Booking Policy
- • No booking required; it is a walk-in attraction.
What People Say
What's Great
- Fun and entertaining activities (mentioned in 2 reviews)
- Spacious play areas (mentioned in 2 reviews)
Areas for Improvement
- Pricing can be high (mentioned in 2 reviews)
- Can get crowded during peak times (mentioned in 3 reviews)
Recent Reviews
Jamilee Sullivan
2 years agoThis place is wonderful. There is something special about those who run haunted houses at home as their endeavor is to be " that house" Places like this reinforce the joy of the season and encourage others to participate and have fun just by their existence. If you do this for Halloween, you do it out of love.
Kara Larson
2 years agoThe team behind Bernie Baxter puts on a great home haunt. Due to obvious size constraints, the haunt is not large, but don't let that dissuade you from stopping by. The cast and crew are professional and courteous, and the set design is professional grade. The theme changes every year, so there's something new to experience each year. If you have kids that aren't comfortable with jump scares, you can let the staff know, and the team won't pop out unexpectedly. The haunt is free, but donations are accepted.
Elli Ferguson
2 years agoBeautifully spooky work of love. I’m excited that it will be opening tonight after taking a few years off and I can’t wait to see what changes they’ve done. While free things still cost your time, they are fully a work of love by those involved making them. I’ve always seen the passion in the previous iterations of this haunt. Also, confused because this is literally on a court in a neighborhood in Algiers.
David Ambrogio
6 years agoAbsolutely awesome! It's in a residential neighborhood, so at first we weren't sure what to expect. As soon as we pulled up, I knew we had made the right choice. It's a full on spook spectacular with all of the frights and sights you'd expect to see in a much bigger, more elaborate, and more expensive haunted house, but packed into the backyard of a small suburban house in Algiers -- and it's every bit as scary! This haunt is guaranteed to be the scariest 5 minutes of your Halloween season. By the time it was over, I was literally running for the exit. Best little haunted house in New Orleans. Check it out -- you won't regret it!
Nat 20!
2 years agoAmazing experience. The place is built from love. The actors are amazing. It's tiny, but is very, very good. I can see why they were rated as one of the top ten scare attractions in Louisiana.