Way up in the hills of Ladera Ranch, California, in the middle of a quiet suburban neighborhood, Scott and Ashton D’Avanzo have built one of the most elaborate father and son projects ever. It’s called Mystic Motel, and it gets a lot of (totally warranted) media attention, because, unlike most home haunts, this one features a fully functioning dark ride at the conclusion of its walk-through “abandoned” motel tour.

Scott, Ashton, and their cast were very gracious in opening the attraction for one final exclusive evening for us to film in HorrorVision 360, which you’ll find at the end of this article.

Perhaps it should be called Ashton’s starter theme park, because that is his ultimate dream; to build and run his own. At 9 years old, he was determined to have his dad help him start on it.

He saved his money, bought his Dad a drill and screwdriver set, and then patiently worked with him (under Mom’s guidelines) to create the wonderfully Twilight Zone-like Mystic Motel.

Here is an interview we did with them in the wonderfully mysterious motel diner.

This is a must see next year, where the team has big plans to move and expand the fun so others can experience it (without making the neighbors mad).

Yes, Mystic Motel has a video pre-show that explains the backstory.

After the video, you enter the motel.  The apparitions throughout are in various stages of materialization and awareness of what they have survived.

Wandering the halls, we even pass a gift shop.

Then, you get to the ride. A very small scale, self-powered dark ride, Mystic Motel’s basement tour is an ingenious use of space and classic dark ride gags.

We invite you now to pull up the following video on your smartphone. It’s a full 360º ride through of Mystic Motel, along with the walkthrough beforehand.

When Mystic Motel comes back again next year, don’t hesitate to make a reservation!