Maddeningly Marvelous Mazes
I recently had the opportunity to go to Ripley’s Marvelous Mirror Maze. As this was the first mirror maze that I had been to, I didn’t quite know what to expect. We parked the car on River Road near the Mysterious Mansion and walked through one of the shopping complexes to get to the Parkway, near Ripley’s Mirror Maze. We (my wife and I) approached the ticket booth and paid for our admissions. The young lady that was working the booth told us that our stay in the maze could take as long as we wanted it to but most people found that it took 30-45 minutes to make your way through the maze. She also gave us gloves to wear so that we didn’t leave finger prints in case we ran into one of the mirrors with our hands. I thought to myself: “I think I will know before I run into a mirror.” I was wrong.
We stepped into the maze area and we were both amazed. I knew the concept and that I would be in a room full of mirrors but I was unprepared for how disorienting it would be. You are literally lost once you step away from the light coming through the main entrance. As the door shut we were all of a sudden left to figure our way through a maze where we saw images of the same thing and of mirrors reflecting the image of other mirrors. The lights are low, the mirrors and some of the walkways are framed with faux-stonework that seems to repeat forever. As you begin to work your way into the maze you get a sense that you are in a much bigger place then you really are. The illusion of size and of extra passages is held up the entire time you are in the Mirror Maze.
You are also in the maze with other people. You will round a corner, at least what you think is a corner, only to find yourself face to face with another person. You both decide to turn away from each other and try another route only to find that your next turn puts you back face to face with that person again. We determined very quickly that this was not going to be as easy as we thought. We found that we were hopelessly disoriented and lost. The feeling of not knowing your way out, was exhilarating and exciting. We quicken our pace and found that we were only getting more and more lost. After 25 minutes of roaming through the maze, running into mirrors and scaring ourselves when we ran into mirrors, and ourselves we finally found our way out.
I recommend taking the whole family to Ripley’s Mirror Maze. The kids will love it, the adults will love it and you will find that you all have the same sensation of being lost and the joy of helping each other find a way out. Tell the kids not to worry because it is dark and to just have fun trying to find the exit – we did.
Ripley’s Marvelous Mirror Maze
623 Parkway
Gatlinburg, TN
865-430-1834
Enjoyed the Mirror Maze I visited on June 24,2014. I will not return because the supervisor at the Mirror Maze and the supervisor from Guiness World Records were all over each other. The cashier was great she was kind and very helpful. I feel like he should have been helping the cashier with the crowd instead of flirting with the other supervisor. I went to the rest room and they were all over each. If this is how Ripleys conducts business I wont return and my friends and family will not return.
Not satisfied because had to watch 2 supervisors all over each other that’s disgusting. The supervisor over the Mirror Maze he should have been helping the cashier with the crowd instead of flirting with the supervisor from Guinness. She was rubbing his arm hand and patting his rear and even kissing at the rest rooms like they were going to do the nasty right there. Me nor my family will not return to any Ripleys attraction if this is how the managers run their business.