We recently checked out the Stranger Things Experience here in Toronto! As a huge fan of Stranger Things, I was incredibly stoked to go and was not disappointed. The Stranger Things Experience is one of the coolest events I’ve attended, and I didn’t want it to end. If you’re a fan of the Netflix show and are thinking about checking it out, go; you won’t regret it. If you need a little push, read on.
Thank you to Fever for the Stranger Things Experience tickets in exchange for an honest review!
I’m not going to go into depth about what occurred during the interactive experience because I believe it’s something everyone needs to go into as blindly as possible. It lasted 45 minutes and took place over four locations within the Hawkins Lab. The staff and scientists we dealt with did a fantastic job making it feel genuine, and they never broke character. There’s also some interaction with the show’s cast that was a treat. But the cherry on top was the special effects.
They were done so well throughout the whole experience. It includes a 3-D segment, and as someone who isn’t usually a fan of 3-D at movie theaters, the Strangers Things Experience 3-D was on another level. It even made me flinch a couple of times.
If you want the full experience, I’ll recommend dressing up! We wore Stranger Things clothing to the event, creating a personalization that I’m glad we didn’t miss out on. I wore my Hellfire Club shirt, and one of the Lab Technicians saw that and treated me accordingly: with disdain and almost disgust. I was uncomfortable (and it was great). Another Lab Tech approached us to ask questions about our sleeping habits and also asked us to do some Rorschach tests. She was so unsettlingly creepy and over-the-top friendly, which added so much to the experience for us.
Following the Experience, we exited into the Mix-Tape, a large hall full of nostalgia I didn’t even know could be nostalgic for me, as I was born in the ’90s. There were arcade machines, pinball, a bar, restaurants, and all the neon you could ask for with ’80s tunes blasting over the PA system. Of course, Surfer Boy Pizza was there, representing the good name of ‘za (and surprisingly delicious ‘za it was). Scoops Ahoy was there to set sail with us on an ocean of flavor.
There were photo-ops galore, including sets from the show. Fans can pose with a life-sized Vecna statue and in the Byers’ living room, complete with Joyce’s Christmas lights she used to communicate with Will in the Upside Down in season 1. There was also a booth from the Scoops Ahoy restaurant complete with the carving “You can’t spell America without Erica,” a Rink-O-Mania photo booth, and even a “Best Dressed” class yearbook photo-op.
Of course, no fan event is complete without a gift shop! There was a ton of cool merch to buy, and the prices were surprisingly decent. We also grabbed some mocktails at The Upside Bar (because there are no downs here). I had “The Mall Rat,” which is a delicious drink I recommend.
Without question, the Stranger Things Experience is THE bucket list item for any Stranger Things fan. The tickets may be expensive, and the area is a pain to get to by public transit (at least for Toronto). However, with what went into the event and everything offered afterward, it is absolutely worth it.
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