TOLEDO, Ohio – The towering stone walls of the Gothic prison are scary enough in the daytime. Some say it looks like Dracula's castle.

Now add a crisp, moonlit evening, and mix in 50 demons and devils breaking out of rusted cells and it becomes the perfect setting for a haunted house.

Not even Hollywood can match the haunted houses.

Big-budget special effects, elaborate sets, and exotic locations are turning what once were neighborhood haunts into weekend destinations for those who love to scream.

In New Orleans, there's an old mortuary surrounded by cemeteries and the city's iconic above-ground tombs.

And there's a pair of haunted houses in Kansas City, Mo., that end with terrifying slides, one dropping visitors five floors down into the devil's arms.

Antique tractors take customers on hay rides to the different attractions where 150 actors roam about.

Animals play a role too – there are pythons and an anaconda at The Edge of Hell, and a live alligator inside the Beast. Watch out for the headless horsemen galloping on the streets outside.

"Haunted house fans are like roller coaster fans, they will travel" said Sean Kelley, program director of the haunted house at Eastern State Penitentiary in downtown Philadelphia. "When you walk into the old cell blocks, you really feel it," Kelley said. "You see furniture tipped over on side, the graffiti. You really get the sense that the people just left."

Near the end, those brave enough to enter are given flashlights and they must find their way out – with a few surprises along the way.

The old Ohio State Reformatory – midway between Columbus and Cleveland – has tours during the spring and summer.

Waverly Hills Sanatorium in Louisville, Ky., is another place that relies on its past to frighten anyone who enters. Perched atop a hill, it operated as a tuberculosis hospital until 1961.

"People say why don't you have a yearround haunted house," said owner Tina Mattingly. "I say 'I do. We just don't have actors in there year-round."

Other haunted houses with a unique story include:

 The USS Nightmare, in Newport. Ky., is a dilapidated 1934 steamboat that sits on the Ohio River across from downtown Cincinnati.

 The Winchester Mystery House in San Jose, Calif., isn't technically a haunted house, at least not the kind with actors in costumes.Built by the Winchester rifle heiress, the quirky mansion has stairs that lead into a ceiling and doors that lead nowhere. It's also said to be haunted.

Look for the stairs with 13 steps, the room with 13 windows, and a chandelier with 13 gaslights.