Ride the Phantom 13 Into Nightmares Haunted House

Somewhere on the edge of Bentonville, the fog settles in heavy every October night. The dark feels a little closer than it should. Nightmares Haunted House has been waiting all year for this, and it wants you to come find out why.

THE DEETS

From Hayride to Full-Blown Haunt

The scares you walk through tonight trace back to a hayride two neighbors started in 1987. Chris and Linda Michaels weren’t trying to build an empire, just a fun night for friends and family. Nearly four decades later, it’s a fully immersive haunted house, still entirely volunteer-run, and it still gives back to the Northwest Arkansas community behind the scenes.

Buckle In for the Phantom 13

Your night starts on a bus, not in a hallway. The Phantom 13 pulls out from the haunt and winds through the back roads of Bella Vista in the dark, past graveyards and empty fields. Lights flicker. Sounds rattle the walls. By the time the doors open again, you are already off balance, and that is exactly the point.

Step off the bus and you are in a fully built haunted world, complete with detailed sets, real makeup and props, and actors who get right in your space. The layout and characters change every season, so even a repeat visit throws you something new.

Know Before You Go

Lines get long as Halloween creeps closer, so get there early if you can. Once you’re through the gates, expect a mix of jump scares and slow-burn creepy stretches that keep you guessing all the way to the exit.

Nightmares Haunted House pulls in visitors from Arkansas, Missouri, and Oklahoma every fall, and plenty of them make it a yearly tradition. Every wall, set, and monster inside gets rebuilt from scratch each season by local volunteers, so whatever gets you this year, a neighbor built it.