12 Terrifying Haunted Houses in Louisville and Kentucky (Updated for 2023)

Halloween is here, and that means it’s haunted house season! As the weather cools down and the leaves start to change, it’s time to think about where you’d like to be scared this year.There are tons of incredible Haunted Houses in Louisville, a fact that is directly tied to our thriving theater scene. Actors love a chance to douse themselves in fake blood and chase after terrified guests (usually me) while wielding chainsaws. And a good haunted house is immersive, disorienting, and includes a devilishly grotesque cast of characters, like some hellish play that you just walked into: incredible sets, costumes, and of course, scary ghouls!

So if you want some really convincingly scary haunted houses in Louisville we’ve rounded up the best ones – but prepare to be terrified! Below are the haunted houses in Louisville, some new and some that we’ve all loved for many years – all scary, of course. And if you’re looking to try something new, we’ve also included a few spooky-but-awesome haunted houses elsewhere in Kentucky, and a couple of haunted houses in Indiana just across the river, too.

Psst: Looking for more Halloween fun in Louisville and Kentucky? Take a look at some of our other posts:

Note: Dates, ticket prices and hours are all up to date as of September 2023.

Oh, also: The photos in this post are not from the attractions. Like, I tried, but the pictures were just … they were just really creepy, OK??

And one more thing: keep in mind that these haunted houses are chock full of potentially triggering and upsetting imagery. I also noticed with disappointment that a few haunted houses in Kentucky and Indiana seem to be using “gay” as a thematic element, to which I say, it is 2023, being gay is not ~spooky, can we all grow the f**k up please? Thanks.

Person standing spookily behind a door — Here they are, folks: the two scariest pictures I could bring myself to use in this post. Everything else was just like … weirdly bloody?

Man with a knife standing ominously in front of a doorway — Here they are, folks: the two scariest pictures I could bring myself to use in this post. Everything else was just like … weirdly bloody?

The Best Haunted Houses in Louisville

I have a confession to make: I typically prefer gentle, fun, slightly spooky fall activities – like the Jack O’ Lantern Spectacular. Not that I haven’t done my fair share of haunted houses in Louisville. Just because they scare me doesn’t mean they aren’t a Halloween tradition!

Lia and I have shrieked and screamed our way through plenty of Haunted Houses in Louisville, mostly because we were roped into doing them in order to support our horror-loving actress friend Casandre, who has played many spooky characters over the years.

If you think I’m a scaredy-cat, you should see Lia in a Haunted House. She once spent a full five minutes cowering in a corner screaming because she didn’t realize that the guy with a chainsaw wasn’t literally trying to get her – also, that chainsaws need, er, chains to actually work. She also once punched our actress friend in the face out of pure terror (sorry, Casandre, but to be fair, you were really creepy as Samara from The Ring).

One of the best things about the haunted houses in Louisville is that we all have stories to tell – because many of these haunted houses are so good, they’ve been running for years and years!

Haunted Hotel

Haunted Hotel is known around Louisville as the best and scariest haunt, which may have something to do with the fact that the actors can touch you. The thought of that alone will never not freak me out.

Haunted Hotel is also the longest-standing haunt in Louisville (they just had their 30 year anniversary) and consistently ranks as the scariest haunted house in Kentucky. In high school, it was the place to go (why am I talking about high school again, I’m 31…).

It’s extreme in every way, and yes, it’s extremely freakin’ terrifying. Need I say more?

So check into the Haunted Hotel if you want to be truly terrified… but beware, you may never check out! *shiver*

Dates: Friday and Saturdays, September 2 – October 28 & Sundays on October 8, 15, 22, 29, and open Tuesday, October 31, 2023
Operating Hours: 9pm – 12am Fridays and Saturdays (7pm Oct 6-28) & 8pm-10pm on Sundays, 7-9pm Halloween night.
Address: 3000 S 4th St, Louisville, KY 40208
Tickets: $25-35 General Admission (depends on the night), +$15 for Fast Pass, +$35 Front of the Line
Touching: Yup.
Accessibility: Not Accessible

Creepy alien in the mist — Listen, don’t take too many wrong turns while trying to complete the Danger Run scavenger hunt or you just might find yourself in the middle of a field somewhere, being chased by a giant alien. Don’t say I didn’t warn you.

Danger Run

Danger Run is a test to see how well your relationship can handle immense pressure. Just kidding. It’s a scavenger hunt across Louisville that takes you to real haunted places around town and, if you like, a few haunted houses, too!

You can start in two different places in Louisville (there’s also a Southern Indiana version, to keep Hoosiers across the river where they belong. JK!). Part of the game is to drive the exact route using the provided clues, and you’ll need get your speedometer to register the exact amount of miles to win a prize.

Along the way, you’ll solve clues to solve a murder mystery, and there are two starting locations, each with its own unique mystery. Oooooo. You have the optional add-on to go to two haunted houses along the way – and both the Indiana and the Kentucky routes have two different haunted houses!

I attempted to complete Danger Run a few years ago with Lia, Jeremy, and my husband, but we got horribly lost, gave up on the driving part, and just headed straight to the haunts because we are dirty rotten cheaters.

Don’t be us: resist the urge to Google the answers to the clues, give yourself plenty of time, don’t freak out if you think you’re lost (it’s all part of the game!) and bring your most organized, Type-A friend along so you can win!

Dates: Every day, September 28-October 31, 2023
Operating Hours: You can start in hour increments from 5-10pm weekdays, and 12-10pm Saturdays, and 12-8pm Sundays.
Address: There are two starting locations to choose from!
Tickets: $40 per person for two Haunts (Fridays and Saturdays), $20 per person for no Haunts. GROUPS OF 4 OR MORE save $15 by using code “CARLOAD” at checkout.
Touching: No Touching
Accessibility: Accessible since this is an activity completed in a car (though some games may require you to get out), but if you add-on the haunted attractions that may change – see each attraction for details.

Baxter Avenue Morgue

Baxter Avenue Morgue is the very first haunt I went to and one of the classic haunts of Louisville. Located centrally, it is very easy to get to and has been around for 20 years. It’s kind of the Goldilocks of haunted houses in Louisville: not too scary, not too boring, but jussssst right.

… But if you DO get scared, they offer a helpful out: just look for the chicken (get it? cuz you’re chicken!) There are 7 doors marked with yellow chickens – take them for an immediate end to your terrifying tour and a quick exit to the outside. But beware – your safety will come at a terrifying price: no refunds!

Baxter Avenue Morgue definitely does a good job with their sets and setup of the story, feeling a bit more theatrical than just noise and darkness. The good thing too is that it’s right by a bunch of restaurants, so after your scare, you can feast!

Also, fun fact: in high school, Lia spent the entire month of October in full zombie makeup dancing to Thriller for the lines in front of Baxter Avenue Morgue. Many years later, she still remembers all the moves to Thriller (a skill she pulls it out at every party opportunity)! If you see a group of dancers while you’re waiting in line, think of us.

Dates: Fridays and Saturdays September 22–October 28, 2023, & Sundays in October, and Halloween
Operating Hours: Fridays and Saturdays in September 8pm-11pm, October 8pm – 1am, Sundays 8pm – 11pm (and Halloween)
Address: 451 Baxter Avenue, Louisville, Kentucky 40204, United States
Tickets: $20 General Admission, $40 SpeedPass (here is a $5 off coupon, you must print and bring it!)
Touching: Touching (seems like more they may brush against you than grab you)
Accessibility: Accessible

Eerie train trestle in the woods on a foggy day — Meet Louisville’s own Pope Lick Monster, a demon said to haunt the Pope Lick train trestle in Fisherville. But whether he’s real or not, the fact that a LOT of kids have definitely died on this train trestle is scary enough, and you can be absolutely positive that these woods are haunted AF.

Legend at Pope Lick Haunted Woods

All good cities should have a good urban legend. Something that is creepy, sinister, and maybe a little bit ridiculous. Well, here in Louisville, we have the Goat Man: half goat, half man, all evil.

Also known as the Pope Lick Monster, this demon is said to haunt the Pope Lick train trestle in Fisherville, right across from the entrance to the Parklands (and next to where Lia grew up).

The Goat Man is said to hypnotize his victims into walking on the trestle to meet their fate in the form of an oncoming train, which is definitely based in reality because growing up, we were always hearing about dumba** kids who walked on the dang train trestle and met their untimely end. Walking on train trestles is so, so dangerous, y’all. Please do not do it, even if a Goat Man promises you something in return.

Lucky for you, you can experience this sinister folk tale WITHOUT having to sacrifice yourself at the train altar at the Legend at Pope Lick, where you can meet the Pope Lick Monster yourself!

This romp through the woods looks frankly terrifying, but most horrible of all, it’s actually IN POPE LAKE PARK. Which means you may get the chance to meet the real Goat Man. In person! Ahhh!

One other thing we love about this haunted attraction? There’s no line! The experience is self-guided, so everyone can go at their own pace and spend as long as they like.

Dates: September 29 – November 4, 2023
Operating Hours: 8pm – 1am
Address: 4002 S Pope Lick Rd, Louisville, KY 40299
Tickets: $30 for adults, and you seem to have to buy at least 2 tickets per time slot
Touching: No Touching
Accessibility: Not Accessible

Grim Trails

If there are two things that go together perfectly it’s horror and fairytales. While Disney has made fairytales palatable for younger audiences, the original source of most fairytales is Grimm (get it?!). So what better way than to get scared in a horrific fairytale setting?

Grim Trails: The Haunt of Fairytales, Myths and Legends is located in EP Tom Sawyer State Park, and is the longest walkthrough attraction in town at a staggering 1/2 mile! Along the darkly lit trail, you’ll meet fabled legends like a witch in her gingerbread house, the horned Wendigo, and even wander into Gepetto’s workshop where you’ll find a string of horrors.

Something about the woods at night is already eerie, and pairing that with scary creatures and critters from lore makes it all the more nerve-wracking. So step into the enchanted forest for the scariest fairytale you’ve ever encountered!

Dates: Friday and Saturday September 22 – October 28, 2023
Operating Hours: 8pm – 12am
Address: 2600 Freys Hill Rd Louisville, KY 40241
Tickets: $25, plus $10 for a fast pass add on
Touching: No Touching
Accessibility: Not Accessible

A spooky abandoned asylum — The scariest thing about haunted houses is what they look like when you turn on the lights! Ahhh! Just kidding, this is an abandoned asylum.

The American Horrorplex

The American Horrorplex, as is implied by the name, is less of a single haunt but more of an ordeal.

The story revolves around Nazi scientists who were taken to America (for reasons which aren’t important to the plot) and then started their own round of gruesome experiments… on people! Ahhh! Those clinical trials don’t sound like they’ve been vetted by the scientific community!!

Screams fill the air as you wait your turn to explore the haunted halls, wander through a maze of maniacs, and try to escape with your mind – and soul – intact. Terror waits around every corner at The American Horrorplex, where the cure is the disease (because they’re definitely NOT waiting for FDA approval here…)

Honestly, we love a detailed haunted house plot, and this one is well written, based in terrifying history, and downright creepy. If it was made into a movie, we’d probably be too scared to watch it but we’d totally want someone else to watch it and then tell us about it.

Dates: Friday & Saturdays September 15 – November 4, 2023
Operating Hours: 8pm to 1am
Address: 2012 Northwestern Parkway, Louisville, Kentucky, 40203
Tickets: $25 General Admission, $45 VIP (shorter line, $5 towards merch and food), $65 Front of the Line
Touching: No Touching
Accessibility: Accessible

Devil’s Attic

The Devil’s Attic is by far the haunt I have gone through the most! This is also the location where Lia punched our poor friend in the face (please don’t touch the actors, y’all!).

The story goes that this haunt is where the Devil has collected souls, and as you begin the haunt, you are greeted by the Devil himself who sets the story!

This haunt does a good job having specific theming, but also changes up the cast of characters every year. This one always feels like a winner from the sheer dedication of the actors and the sets.

Dates: Friday and Saturdays, September 9 – October 28, 2023
Operating Hours: 8pm – 12am
Address: 647 W Hill St Louisville, KY 40208
Tickets: $25 general admission, $35 for speed pass (skip the line) / $2 off Coupon
Touching: No touching
Accessibility: Not Accessible

Hands gripping a tree in a spooky haunted forest — Legitimately cannot tell if this picture is spooky or just a couple of tree huggers on a nice romp through a forest

Haunted Houses in Kentucky

Venture out into the backwoods of Kentucky to meet your doom. From haunted houses in Lexington to towns who sound like they might be the setting for an unsolved mystery, here are all the best haunted houses in Kentucky!

Field of Screams – Brandenburg

Do you like corn mazes? Do you like being terrified in the dark while lost? Well, I have the place for you. The Field of Screams, located about 40 minutes from downtown Louisville, truly takes you into the middle of freakin’ nowhere. As you travel down dark country roads you begin to think I could actually be murdered out here and no one would know, which I suppose is the point.

The Field of Screams is the ultimate “bang for your buck” haunt, with its 7-acre corn maze, 6000-foot haunted barn, and haunted woods all included in your basic admission. When I went in high school, it took us about three hours to complete!

The field itself is filled with ghouls in the dark, as well as haunted sets you walk through (think the Freddy Kruger bus), as well as the haunted barn which is a huge haunted house in itself. The haunted woods is also a part of it; I literally remember leaving there completely drained of all my adrenaline.

So if you want a whole, spook-tastic experience, this is the place.

Dates: Friday and Saturdays, September 8 – October 28, 2023
Operating Hours: Dusk – 1am
Address: 132 Darnall Ave, Brandenburg, KY 40108
Tickets: $30 for Main Event (F.O.S, Haunted Barn, Haunted Woods), $15.00 for Hayride to Hell, $40 for All Events, and $20 for Fast Pass.
Touching: No touching
Accessibility: Not Accessible

Fright Nights – Lexington

Fright Nights in Lexington is so scary I literally didn’t even want to look at the web page to pull information for this post (I think something might be coming through my computer to get me???). All I can tell you is that you’ll be wandering through twisted corridors to uncover the dark secrets of Doctor Doom’s laboratory… and there will be clowns. Yikes.

Not only is there a laboratory, but there is a second outdoor attraction. The website says “Fright Nights is an extreme haunted house experience that features indoor and outdoor haunted attractions with terrifying creatures, shocking scenes, and unexpected challenges.” It’s also a FULL CONTACT haunted house, which means yes, there is touching!

If you make it out alive, will you let me know how it is? I’m way too scared to go myself.

Dates: Friday and Saturday, September 22 – October 29, 2023. Open Thursday-Sunday during the last two weeks of October, including the week of Halloween.
Operating Hours: Fridays & Saturdays 8pm-12am, Sundays 8pm-10pm
Address: 1209 E New Circle Rd, Suite 190, Lexington, Kentucky
Tickets: GA single attraction $30, $40 both haunts, Two Person Scream PAss (Get two tickets with all options, Touch Pass and Speed Pass included!).
Touching: FULL CONTACT
Accessibility: Not sure

Black Orchard Haunt – Shelbyville

Black Orchard Haunt revolves around a demented story about a backwoods slaughterhouse, cannibalism, and religious zealots. Which, honestly, ticks all of my boxes. Fun!

Here’s the sitch: Brothers Stitch and Theodore Black now have control of the family business Black Orchard Meats. They bring a message from their savior The Vultures: the meat is still rancid and doesn’t taste quite right. Step inside and see if you can figure out WHAT’S IN THE BARN! (Care to take a guess?)

This haunt is guaranteed to turn anyone’s stomach and leave them grossed out – Black Orchard Haunt is definitely the place to go if horrific gore is for you.

Dates: Fridays and Saturdays September 29 – October 28, Sunday October 29, 2023
Operating Hours: Sept 29-Oct 7 8pm-11pm, Oct 13-28 8pm-12am, Oct 29 8-10pm
Address: 704 Kentucky St, Shelbyville, KY 40065
Tickets: $25 General Admission, $40 Fast Pass, $60 Front of the Line
Touching: No Touching
Accessibility: Not Accessible

Sinister Tombs – Eastview

Sinister Tombs is not the name of a comedy about quarreling zombie neighbors, but a haunted house out by Eastview, KY roughly an hour from Louisville.

Though it’s a bit of a drive, it’s more time to get you scared and ready! This haunt has a very long background story involving trains, ancient Egyptian artifacts, wolves, “The Sinister Lord of Darkness”, Native Americans, and at one point, werewolves, vampires, zombies and witches. Honesty, it’s … a lot. I mean, this plot reads like the plot of an HBO TV series.

It also may or may not be a true story, but we didn’t bother to fact-check because nothing ruins a good haunted house like some lame-ass blogger pointing out plot inconsistencies.

One thing that’s pretty special about this haunt is that it is longggggg. One Google Reviewer said it took about an hour and a half to get through the entire experience, so that’s like, a lot of scare time! Apparently they also have over a hundred people every year not able to go all the way through the event. Eek, literally!

They also give 100% of their profits to local charities from the volunteer fire departments to the Hardin county Search and Rescue unit! So grab a cup of blood-red wine and dive into the story, or better yet, go to Sinister Tombs and experience it yourself!

Dates: Fridays and Saturdays September 15 – November 4
Operating Hours: 8pm to 11:50pm until October 7, then 7:30pm – 11:50pm through the remainder of the run.
Address: 3246 Meeting Creek Rd, Eastview, Kentucky 42732
Tickets: Adults: $17.50, Children 5-12: $13.50, Double-Take: $25.00 (Two Trips Through!), Speed Pass: $35.00
Touching: Some Touching, but the actors will back down if you are too scared!
Accessibility: Not Accessible

Bonus: Haunted Houses in Southern Indiana

From a few minutes across the bridge to an hour north on I-65, here are the best haunted houses to check out in southern Indiana.

Spooky haunted mansion under a full moon — OK, so this is not a picture of the attraction, but I definitely felt like it gave off “Malice Manor” vibes. Or possibly Hogwarts…

Malice Manor – Clarksville

Malice Manor is one of the newer haunts in southern Indiana, with over 10,000 feet of insanity. It’s also brought to you by the same minds that created Haunted Hotel, so you know it’ll be scary good!

At Malice Manor, which is totally what I’m naming the next house I build in The Sims, terror lurks behind every luxurious corner. What’s hiding behind these walls? Do you dare to find out??

Dates: Friday & Saturdays September 1 – October 28, 2023
Operating Hours: 8-11pm until September 30, then 8pm to 1am the remainder of the run
Address: 640 Providence Way, Clarksville, IN 47129
Tickets: $25 General Admission, $40 VIP Access Pass, $60 Front of the Line
Touching: Touching
Accessibility: Not Accessible

Which of these haunted houses in Louisville, Kentucky, or Indiana are you headed to this year? Drop your comments below!