By Chloe Cramutola
Darkness slithers in the halls. The lobby sits still –– “OUT OF SERVICE,” a sign reads. Animatronic ghouls and ghosts rise from the dead, and skeletons lay scattered beneath the floorboards. Every step taken feels like a descent into a horror film. A hall of doors knocking and calling for entrance; mind tricks and illusions; a swirl of blue light leading into another dimension; a maniacal captain, a crooked ship deck and the thrashing of waves and thunder.
What’s spooking the public with chills and thrills –– it’s the OC Haunted Hotel on the Ocean City boardwalk.
“It is the first haunted walkthrough on the boardwalk in 40 years, and it’s what we call ‘frightfully fun,’” said Mark Benevento, president of OCNJ Entertainment. “We try to keep it family friendly. No blood and guts, just a bunch of jumpscares and some cool illusions in there.”
Upon entering the hotel, family members and friends will grab a rope that will keep the party together, ensuring a safe and scary walkthrough. A TV display of Ursula, the tour guide, will welcome the visitors, but as the screen fizzles out, it becomes clear that this hotel has become a host for uninvited guests.
Cameras on the wall flicker into ghostly spirits glaring at guests. Green lights and a thick fog shoot from the walls of a dark room, creating the illusion that the party will be wading through the depths of a swamp.
“There’s not a lot of scary things on the boardwalk, so it’s a big attraction because everybody’s looking for a good scare, some adrenaline,” said employee Sarah Ramos.
A ribbon cutting ceremony launched the attraction for “hotel guests” and beachgoers this summer. Complete with animatronics and visuals, spine-chilling effects, lights and sounds, this haunted walkthrough has it all.
OCNJ Entertainment owns and operates many attractions on the boardwalk, including Haunted Golf, OC Escape, Congo Falls, Frenchy’s, Encounters lazer maze and mirror maze and Pirate Island. The hotel, golf and escape rooms are connected, inviting beachgoers to try each site individually or a combination of the three.
With the Haunted Combo, visitors can save $7 per person by purchasing the Haunted Golf and Haunted Hotel for $19.99. With the Escape Combo, guests can save $13 per person when they purchase the Escape Room, Haunted Golf and Haunted Hotel for $39.99.
“If you asked me two years ago if we would ever own a haunted walkthrough, I would say no,” said Benevento. “But I was away in Tennessee and went between Gatlinburg and Pigeon Forge, and I experienced a haunted attraction there. I just saw the synergies between our existing haunted golf, our escape rooms and the haunted hotel, and thought it would work wonderfully together. So that’s why we brought it up here.”
While the attractions are sure to thrill visitors, Benevento describes the golf and escape rooms as “not scary” and the hotel as “somewhat scary,” so each experience is appropriate for all ages.
Over the course of two years, Benevento traveled everywhere to collect ideas for effects such as that one, allowing him to cultivate and craft this spooky experience.
“I went to every haunted attraction I could find, all over the country,” he said. “I talked to the owners, I went to a convention in St. Louis two times, and I got some wonderful ideas.”
Benevento hired Imagine Art Studios, a company based in New York. He said the studio helped design and build the hotel and that they did a “phenomenal” job.
“I really like the energy. I feel like everybody’s really happy coming here,” said Ramos. “People leave in a good mood. It’s just really nice, making people happy and seeing their reactions to the attractions.”
Benevento started on the boardwalk in 1984, so this is his 41st season working with OCNJ Entertainment. He said he is happy to be a resident of Ocean City and to be a business owner, and to have had the chance to work on these attractions for customers.
Chloe is a multimedia editor and journalism major at Boston University, where she is Editor at The Daily Free Press. She will be graduating Spring ’25. Connect with her on LinkedIn @chloecramutola
