KTAR News takes a frightening look inside the 13th Floor in Phoenix

PHOENIX — In the haunted house business, only the scariest survive.

KTAR News 92.3 FM got an exclusive look inside the 13th Floor in Phoenix to see why it’s one of the most popular and longest-running haunted attractions in the Valley.

The 13th Floor near Bell Road and Interstate 17 used to be an Albertson’s. But don’t let the outside fool you. The inside is filled with every imaginable scare.

“The themes change year to year,” said Zack Busse, general manager. “This year our main show is called Creature Feature. It’s our homage to the classic monsters, so you’re going to see werewolves, vampires and Frankenstein’s monster.”

Those classic monsters lurk around every twist and turn inside the haunted attraction. Visitors pass through a graveyard, a haunted mansion, an asylum and a terrifying jungle.

Here’s a sneak peek of my visit to the 13th Floor today. Tune in Thursday morning on ⁦@KTAR923⁩ to find out why it’s one of the most popular haunted attractions in the Valley. pic.twitter.com/GTgiybQjQ0

— Griselda Zetino (@GriseldaZetino) October 31, 2019

There’s also the “Rise of the Dead” haunted attraction right next door that’s filled with zombies.

“When you walk into that one, you’re kind of in this post-apocalyptic city,” Busse said. “As soon as we open the doors and send you in, it’s chaos, it’s loud and there are people everywhere. You’re in the middle of a zombie-torn city.”

The 13th Floor has been around for nearly a decade. Busse said a lot has changed since it first opened, starting with the rise of social media. He said haunted attractions that don’t engage with customers through social media — whether that’s posting photos or videos previewing their shows — are not going to make it.

Horror movies have also gotten more intense, he said, and people have grown numb to violence and graphic images.

“Everybody is expecting more, and they want you to push the boundaries,” he said. “Without going too far, we try to do things like that — make it better, make it gorier, make it more intense.”

Busse said the technology inside the 13th Floor also gets upgraded every year.

“We go really big with the lighting, with the audio, with the animatronics and things like that,” he said. “We want it to be very visually pleasing.”

“Every inch of the show has something new you can look at,” he added. “So you can go through the show 10 times and you’re probably going to notice something different every time.”

The 13th Floor is open 7-11 p.m. on Halloween and offers a special “Blackout” attraction Nov. 1-2. General admission tickets cost $30 and are available online.

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