Welcome to Spooky Season
Table of Contents
There’s something irresistible about the shift from summer into fall, when the air turns crisp, the leaves begin to change, and the whole country seems to lean into a little seasonal mischief. For those of us who love to travel with a purpose, autumn offers one of the richest excuses of the year to hit the road or book a flight, all in the name of chasing a good scare. And the beauty of spooky season travel is just how wonderfully varied it can be. Some travelers want dusty desert ruins and abandoned mining shafts, others crave candlelit walking tours through Victorian mansions, and still others simply want a theme park that goes all in on Halloween without sacrificing a single roller coaster.
That variety is exactly what makes this list so much fun. From coast to coast, America is dotted with towns and cities that have built entire identities around their haunted pasts, whether that means genuine abandoned settlements left behind after a mining boom went bust, historic districts still bearing the scars of war and tragedy, or lively cities that have simply leaned into their reputation as some of the most haunted places in the country. Along the way, there’s everything from solemn battlefield ghost walks to raucous voodoo and vampire tours, from Gold Rush time capsules to windswept coastal villages accessible only by ferry, proving that spooky season can look as different as the landscapes these destinations occupy.
Best of all, wherever you happen to be reading this from, chances are good that one of these thirteen destinations is closer than you think, whether that means a scenic weekend road trip through your own region or a quick flight for a longer autumn getaway. So as the countdown to Halloween begins, consider this your guide to thirteen of the country’s most captivating ghost towns, haunted cities, and spirited celebrations, each one ready to deliver its own unique brand of seasonal thrills.
13 Ghost Towns and Tours to Visit during Halloween Season
1. Salem, Massachusetts
Salem, Massachusetts earns its reputation as the ultimate ghost town destination for autumn travelers, and for good reason. This is a city where history and the supernatural intertwine so completely that the entire month of October transforms into a monthlong celebration known as Haunted Happenings. Nowhere else in America carries the weight of the 1692 witch trials quite like Salem does, where the tragic execution of twenty innocent people left behind a legacy that continues to draw the curious, the spiritual, and the simply spooked more than three centuries later.
What sets Salem apart from other reputedly haunted destinations is the sheer density of historical and paranormal experiences packed into its walkable downtown. Visitors can tour the Salem Witch Museum for an immersive look at the trials, walk the Salem Witch Trials Memorial to pay respects to the victims, or step inside the Witch House, the actual home of Judge Jonathan Corwin who presided over the trials. For those seeking a more visceral connection to the past, evening lantern-led ghost tours wind through cobblestone streets and old burying grounds, where guides share chilling tales of restless spirits said to linger in the shadows of centuries-old cemeteries like the Old Burying Point, one of the oldest in the country.
Beyond the witch trial history, Salem leans fully into its spooky identity with attractions that entice thrill seekers of every stripe. The Salem Wax Museum of Witches and Seafarers, the Witch Dungeon Museum, and the Peabody Essex Museum’s maritime and folklore exhibits all add layers of depth to a visit. Harbor cruises offer a different vantage point on the town’s eerie waterfront, while psychic readings and occult shops lining Essex Street let visitors dabble in the mystical energy that still seems to hum through the town. Add in the crisp New England fall air, blazing foliage, and the electric buzz of costumed crowds filling the streets each weekend in October, and it becomes clear why Salem isn’t just a stop on a ghost town tour, it’s the pilgrimage every lover of spooky season eventually makes.
2. Tonopah, Nevada
Tonopah, Nevada earns its place among the nation’s most compelling ghost town destinations by blending genuine mining history with an atmosphere so eerie that paranormal investigators travel from around the world just to spend a night there. Founded after a chance silver strike in 1900, Tonopah boomed into one of the richest mining districts in the West before the ore ran thin, leaving behind a townscape where the past feels remarkably close to the surface. Its high desert location, roughly halfway between Reno and Las Vegas, also happens to place it under some of the darkest, clearest skies in the country, making it a rare destination where travelers can chase ghosts by night and stargaze under a blanket of thousands of visible stars.
The centerpiece for history lovers is the Tonopah Historic Mining Park, a sprawling hundred acre site filled with old mine shafts, rusting equipment, and weathered buildings that visitors can explore on a self guided walk or via a more immersive guided tour through the rugged terrain. The mining industry that built this town also claimed lives through fires and accidents, and many locals believe those miners never truly left, their presence still felt among the shafts and structures they once worked. Just beyond the park sits the Old Tonopah Cemetery, dating back to the early 1900s, where the graves of miners, outlaws, and early residents draw visitors curious about the harsher side of boomtown life, with some claiming to experience phantom voices and unexplained sensations while wandering the grounds.
No visit to Tonopah is complete without experiencing its haunted walking tours, which lead travelers through the town’s most spirited hotspots while guides share firsthand accounts of ghostly encounters. The legendary Mizpah Hotel, once the tallest building in Nevada and among the most luxurious hotels in the country, is said to still host the spirits of former guests wandering its halls. Downtown, the eccentric world famous Clown Motel sits directly beside the Old Cemetery, and even those who aren’t staying overnight often stop by simply to see its towering clown displays and soak in the delightfully unsettling juxtaposition of kitsch and history. Between the mining ruins, the ghost walks, and the star filled desert sky above it all, Tonopah delivers a spooky season experience that feels equal parts historical pilgrimage and genuine thrill ride.
3. Jerome, Arizona
Jerome, Arizona has earned its self proclaimed title as the Ghost Capital of the state, and it wears that reputation proudly. Once dubbed the wickedest town in the West, Jerome now stands as one of Arizona’s liveliest ghost towns, a place where haunted history and mountain charm collide in dramatic fashion. Proclaimed the wickedest town in the West back in 1905, Jerome earned that notoriety through a wild past of bordellos, saloons, gambling halls, and gunfights, all of which left behind a trail of tragic stories that still fuel its ghostly reputation today. Perched on Cleopatra Hill in the Verde Valley, the town once boasted a booming population of around ten thousand residents during the height of the copper mining rush in the 1920s, but today only a few hundred people call it home, leaving behind an atmosphere of faded grandeur that visitors find endlessly captivating.
What makes Jerome such a compelling stop for spooky season is the sheer number of haunted landmarks packed into its winding, hillside streets. Travelers can walk past the Connor Hotel, where restless spirits are said to linger in the halls, or stop by the eerie Spook Hall and the ruins of the Cuban Queen Bordello, tied to the tragic and unsettling story of Anita Gonzales. The town’s infamous Sliding Jail, a relic that literally shifted down the hillside due to mining blasts, still stands as one of its strangest and most photographed attractions. Guided evening tours lead visitors through these haunted hotspots while sharing tales of unsolved murders, fatal mining accidents, and paranormal encounters, and some outfits even provide electromagnetic field monitors so guests can try to detect otherworldly activity for themselves.
Beyond the ghost stories, Jerome rewards visitors with a rich sense of place that adds depth to any Halloween season itinerary. The Jerome State Historic Park, once home to mining magnate James Douglas, now operates as a museum detailing the town’s mining boom and its seedier underbelly, while the nearby Audrey Headframe Park lets visitors stand on a glass platform above a mineshaft plunging hundreds of feet into the earth. Interactive scavenger hunt style ghost tours give families and couples alike a playful way to explore landmarks like the Mining Museum and the Haunted Hamburger restaurant, uncovering local legends along the way. With art galleries, antique shops, and sweeping views of the Verde Valley rounding out the experience, Jerome offers travelers a rare mix of genuine Old West history, dramatic scenery, and spine tingling folklore that makes it an essential stop on any fall ghost town tour.
4. Terlingua, Texas
Terlingua, Texas is a genuine ghost town in every sense of the word, a place where crumbling adobe ruins sit scattered across the Chihuahuan Desert as reminders of a mining boom that came and went in the span of just a few decades. Founded in the late 1800s after the discovery of cinnabar, the ore from which mercury is extracted, Terlingua grew rapidly once the Chisos Mining Company moved in, swelling to roughly two thousand residents at its peak in the early 1900s. When the mine finally shut down in the 1940s as wartime demand for mercury dried up, the town emptied out almost overnight, leaving behind a haunting landscape of abandoned stone buildings that still stand along the desert floor today.
What makes Terlingua so captivating for spooky season travelers is the eerie, almost otherworldly atmosphere that still clings to its ruins. Wandering through the old townsite, visitors pass roofless adobe structures, the crumbling remains of the Chisos Mining Company office, and weathered buildings that once housed a thriving community now reduced to silence and sand. The Terlingua Cemetery stands as one of the most evocative stops in town, filled with distinctly Mexican style graves marked by simple wooden crosses, elaborate stone shrines, and small altars holding trinkets left behind for the departed, a tradition rooted in the Mexican immigrant miners who once called this desert home. The cemetery becomes especially atmospheric each fall around Dia de los Muertos, when candles, marigolds, and offerings transform the graveyard into a moving tribute that blends history with living tradition.
Beyond its ghostly ruins, Terlingua has been reborn as a quirky, welcoming outpost for travelers exploring the nearby Big Bend region, offering a lively contrast to its abandoned past. The town sits just minutes from the western entrance of Big Bend National Park, making it an ideal jumping off point for hiking through sunbaked canyons, rafting the Rio Grande, or soaking beneath some of the darkest, most star filled skies in the country. Local galleries showcase folk art built from found desert materials, front porches buzz with musicians and storytellers most evenings, and the town’s famous chili cookoff tradition adds a festive energy that plays beautifully against its ghost town backdrop. It is this rare blend of genuine historical desolation and vibrant desert culture that makes Terlingua an unforgettable stop for anyone chasing a spooky, atmospheric fall adventure.
5. Columbia, California
Columbia, California offers a different flavor of ghost town experience, one where the Gold Rush era hasn’t simply left ruins behind but has been remarkably preserved in place as a living, breathing time capsule. Tucked in the Sierra Nevada foothills of Tuolumne County, Columbia State Historic Park is home to the largest single collection of surviving Gold Rush era buildings in California, and unlike so many mining towns that burned, crumbled, or were abandoned outright, Columbia was never fully deserted. Discovered in 1850 when a small group of prospectors struck gold while placer mining, the town exploded almost overnight into a bustling settlement of thousands and briefly became the second largest city in California, missing out on becoming the state capital by only two votes.
What earns Columbia a spot on any spooky season itinerary is the eerie sensation of stepping directly into the 1850s the moment visitors set foot on Main Street. Costumed docents in period dress wander the town conducting business as though the calendar never advanced, horse drawn stagecoaches rumble past instead of cars, and the clang of a working blacksmith shop rings out just as it would have a hundred and seventy years ago. Ghost tours held within the park have earned a reputation for genuinely unsettling guests, with visitors reporting an unshakable feeling that the town’s original residents never quite left. A walk up to the two story brick schoolhouse and the old cemetery overlooking the town adds a further layer of solemn, historic atmosphere, especially as the light fades and the shadows of the surrounding hills stretch long across the empty street.
Beyond the ghostly charm, Columbia rewards visitors with an immersive array of activities that make it easy to spend a full day exploring. Travelers can pan for real gold, ride the century old stagecoach through town, catch a live performance at the historic Fallon Theatre, and browse original brick buildings that now house saloons, an old fashioned candy kitchen, and specialty shops selling goods reminiscent of the era. The one mile nature trail winding through the surrounding hills offers a scenic escape for those wanting a break from the historic district, often rewarding hikers with sightings of mule deer among the wildflowers. With its blend of authentic preservation, hands on Gold Rush activities, and just enough eerie atmosphere to set the mood for fall, Columbia stands out as a ghost town that feels less like a relic and more like a portal into the past.
6. Ocracoke/Portsmouth Village, North Carolina
Portsmouth Village offers something few other ghost towns on this list can claim, an entire abandoned settlement frozen in time on a remote, windswept island accessible only by boat. Established in 1753 through an act of the North Carolina colonial assembly, Portsmouth grew rapidly into one of the largest and most important settlements on the Outer Banks, thriving for nearly a century as a lightering port where cargo from deep sea ships was transferred to smaller vessels able to navigate the shallow waters of Ocracoke Inlet. At its peak the village bustled with hundreds of residents, warehouses, an academy, and even a windmill, but the very forces of nature that shaped the Outer Banks eventually turned against it, as shifting sands, an 1846 hurricane that carved open a better inlet near Hatteras, and the decline of shipping in favor of railroads slowly drained the life from the town.
The final chapter of Portsmouth’s transformation into a true ghost town is as haunting as its origins. As Union troops advanced during the Civil War, residents fled to the mainland and many never returned, leaving a shrinking population that clung on for another century despite isolation, hurricanes, and a fading economy. By the time the last two residents departed in 1971 following the death of longtime islander Henry Pigott, Portsmouth had become entirely uninhabited, its clapboard cottages, one room schoolhouse, small church, and combined general store and post office left standing empty, exactly as they were the day everyone walked away. Wandering its sandy lanes today feels like stepping into a place suspended between memory and abandonment, with weathered buildings that seem to hold their breath, waiting for residents who are never coming back.
What makes Portsmouth such a compelling addition to any fall ghost town tour is the sense of genuine, undisturbed desolation that surrounds the entire experience. Reaching the village requires a ferry ride from neighboring Ocracoke Island, adding a sense of adventure and remoteness that heightens the eerie atmosphere the moment visitors step ashore. Guided walking tours are offered seasonally, giving travelers insight into the daily lives of fishermen, lifesavers, and families who once called this fragile strip of land home, while several preserved buildings house exhibits that bring the village’s story to life. Beyond the historic structures, Portsmouth Island’s desolate, undeveloped beaches offer a striking contrast of natural beauty against human abandonment, making this hauntingly quiet corner of the Cape Lookout National Seashore an unforgettable stop for travelers drawn to the eerie stillness of a town the modern world has completely left behind.
7. Savannah, Georgia
Savannah, Georgia has long carried the title of the most haunted city in America, and once travelers spend an evening wandering its moss draped squares, it becomes easy to understand why. Founded in 1733 as the colonial capital of Georgia, Savannah’s centuries of history have been shadowed by yellow fever epidemics, Civil War occupation, and countless untimely deaths, all of which have layered the city in the kind of tragic backstory that ghost hunters and history lovers alike find impossible to resist. Unlike an abandoned mining camp or a deserted island, Savannah is very much alive, yet its historic downtown feels perpetually caught between past and present, with antebellum mansions, ancient oak trees, and flickering gas lamps setting an atmosphere that feels custom built for spooky season.
The undisputed centerpiece of any haunted visit is Bonaventure Cemetery, a sprawling hundred acre burial ground so beautiful it is regularly named one of the most stunning cemeteries in the world, and so eerie that it has earned a reputation as Savannah’s most haunted site. Visitors can take guided walking tours through its winding, moss draped lanes to learn about famous residents like songwriter Johnny Mercer and poet Conrad Aiken, along with the legend of Little Gracie, a child’s grave said to weep in the night, its statue rumored to shed tears of blood. Beyond Bonaventure, downtown’s Colonial Park Cemetery adds another layer of unsettling history, having served as the city’s primary burial ground for nearly a century and having endured the disturbance of graves by occupying Union soldiers during the Civil War.
What truly sets Savannah apart, though, is the sheer variety and quality of its ghost tours, which range from lantern lit walking tours through the historic district to trolley rides past reputedly haunted mansions like the Mercer Williams House and the Sorrel Weed House. Guides weave true crime, Southern Gothic legend, and documented history into every stop, giving travelers far more than a simple scare, they leave with a genuine understanding of the tragedies that shaped the city. Add in candlelit restaurants rumored to host restless spirits, ghost hunting excursions using real paranormal equipment, and the sheer beauty of Savannah’s squares glowing under string lights each October evening, and it is clear why this Southern city consistently ranks as one of the top destinations in the country for anyone chasing a truly spooky season experience.
8. New Orleans, Louisiana
New Orleans has spent centuries earning its reputation as one of the most hauntingly atmospheric cities in America, and when fall arrives and the air finally cools, that reputation only deepens. Founded in 1718 along the banks of the Mississippi, the city’s layered history of yellow fever epidemics, devastating fires, piracy, and the transatlantic slave trade left behind a legacy of tragedy that locals believe still lingers within its crumbling courtyards and wrought iron balconies. Add in the city’s deep rooted voodoo traditions, brought by enslaved West Africans and blended with Catholic and Creole influences, and New Orleans becomes a place where the line between the living and the dead has always felt remarkably thin.
At the heart of the city’s spooky season appeal are its legendary above ground cemeteries, often called Cities of the Dead because rising water tables long ago forced residents to bury their loved ones in elaborate stone tombs rather than in the ground. St. Louis Cemetery Number One, the oldest in the city, draws visitors eager to see the tomb of Marie Laveau, the legendary Voodoo Queen whose spirit is still said to grant wishes to those who leave the right offering. Guided cemetery tours, some held after dark by bus or lantern light, walk travelers through these ornate burial grounds while explaining the unique architecture, burial customs, and ghost stories tied to the city’s most famous residents.
Beyond the cemeteries, the French Quarter itself becomes a stage for some of the country’s most immersive ghost tours, blending true crime, folklore, and the supernatural into a single unforgettable evening. Visitors can walk past the infamous LaLaurie Mansion, often cited as the most haunted building in the city and the inspiration behind a season of American Horror Story, or duck into hidden courtyards tied to centuries old rumors of vampires and restless spirits. Many tours combine multiple themes into one outing, weaving together ghost stories, voodoo history, and vampire lore while guides lead small groups through dimly lit alleys and past candlelit windows. With live jazz spilling out of open doorways, the scent of chicory coffee and beignets drifting through the Quarter, and centuries of ghost stories waiting around every corner, New Orleans offers travelers an experience that is equal parts eerie, educational, and endlessly entertaining heading into Halloween.
9. Gettysburg, Pennsylvania
Gettysburg, Pennsylvania holds a somber but undeniable place among the most haunted destinations in America, and its reputation is rooted in some of the darkest days of the Civil War. Over three brutal days in July of 1863, the Battle of Gettysburg claimed roughly fifty thousand casualties, making it the bloodiest battle ever fought on American soil. That staggering loss of life left an indelible mark not just on the nation’s history, but, many believe, on the town itself, where soldiers who fell here are said to remain, still wandering the fields, streets, and buildings where they once fought and died.
Ghost tours in Gettysburg offer far more than simple thrills, weaving together documented Civil War history with generations of eyewitness accounts of paranormal activity. Visitors can walk through downtown Gettysburg after dark to visit the Jennie Wade House, where the only civilian killed during the battle is said to still linger in the basement, or explore the old Soldiers Museum, known for unsettling encounters that have sent paranormal investigators running through its darkened hallways. Out on the battlefield itself, storied locations like Little Round Top and the Triangular Field carry reputations as some of the most active paranormal hotspots in the country, with visitors reporting phantom soldiers still locked in combat and the distant, mournful sound of a bugler playing Taps drifting across the fields at dusk.
For travelers who want an especially immersive experience, Gettysburg offers everything from candlelit walking tours based on bestselling ghost story collections to full scale ghost hunts complete with EVP recorders and K2 meters for detecting paranormal energy. Guides lead groups past bullet scarred buildings, through courthouses that once overflowed with wounded soldiers, and into historic homes where restless spirits are said to interact directly with visitors. Beyond the ghost stories, exploring Gettysburg means walking across genuinely hallowed ground, where history, tragedy, and legend combine to create an atmosphere of quiet reverence and lingering unease. It is this rare blend of profound historical significance and widely reported hauntings that makes Gettysburg an essential stop for any traveler seeking a spooky season experience rooted in real American history.
10. Eureka Springs, Arkansas
Eureka Springs, Arkansas has proudly claimed the title of the Halloween City, and it backs up that boast with an entire month of October dedicated to delivering, by the town’s own description, more thrills and chills per square mile than anywhere else in America. Tucked into the Ozark Mountains, this Victorian era town has preserved its nineteenth century charm so thoroughly that its winding streets, gas lit lanes, and ornate architecture feel plucked directly out of a golden age ghost story. That authentic Victorian backdrop, combined with more than a century of documented local legend, has earned Eureka Springs a genuine reputation as one of the most haunted small towns in the country.
At the center of it all sits the legendary Crescent Hotel, widely known as America’s Most Haunted Hotel. Built in 1886, the Crescent later served as a fraudulent cancer hospital under the direction of Norman Baker, a self-styled doctor with no real medical training whose questionable treatments led to the deaths of numerous desperate patients. Today, visitors can take a guided ghost tour that winds from the top floor of the hotel all the way down to the basement morgue, where the original autopsy table still remains. Along the way, guides share tales of Michael, an Irish stonemason who fell to his death during the hotel’s construction and is said to still wander its halls, as well as Theodora, a former cancer patient whose presence is still felt by guests generations later.
Beyond the Crescent, Eureka Springs offers an entire ecosystem of haunted experiences that make it easy to spend several spooky evenings exploring. Historic mansion tours lead visitors through some of the town’s finest Victorian homes, many still believed to be inhabited by their original owners, while cemetery tours dig into the darker corners of local history. Theatrical performances like Intrigue Theater bring turn of the century mentalism and Victorian era mystery to life on stage, and interactive scavenger hunt style ghost walks lead families and couples through eerie landmarks such as Basin Spring Park and the historic Carroll County Courthouse. With zombie parades, séances, and haunted attractions rounding out the calendar each October, Eureka Springs delivers a rare combination of genuine Victorian atmosphere, well documented ghost stories, and a town wide commitment to embracing its spookiest season in full.
11. San Diego, California
San Diego might not fit the traditional image of a spooky season destination, but as the birthplace of California, it carries a wealth of historic ghost stories that rival any haunted town in the country. As California’s oldest city, San Diego’s Old Town district still holds onto its nineteenth century roots, complete with adobe buildings, dusty streets, and centuries old cemeteries that set the stage for some of the most compelling ghost tours in the American West. At the center of it all sits the Whaley House, widely recognized as one of the most haunted houses in the entire United States, drawing visitors eager to experience its long documented history of paranormal activity firsthand.
Old Town alone offers travelers an atmospheric evening’s worth of exploration, from walking past El Campo Santo Cemetery, San Diego’s oldest and eeriest burial ground, to standing outside the Whaley House itself, where guides recount the site’s dark history as a former courthouse, theater, and family home marked by tragedy. Visitors can go beyond simply observing the exterior by booking sanctioned tours that grant access inside the house itself, including specialized ghost hunting experiences that let guests search for paranormal evidence alongside experienced investigators. Nearby, the elegant Victorian mansion Villa Montezuma adds another layer of intrigue, having been custom built as an art palace for a spiritualist performer who claimed to channel the spirits of legendary musicians during live performances.
Beyond Old Town, downtown’s Gaslamp Quarter delivers a completely different flavor of haunted history, blending well documented true crime with decades of reported ghost sightings across more than thirty locations. Evening walking tours guide visitors past sites connected to Wyatt Earp, unsolved murders, and even a rumored World War II era spy hideout, all set against the backdrop of the district’s beautifully restored Victorian architecture and glowing gas lamp style streetlights. Travelers looking for a lighter, more festive approach can hop aboard a haunted trolley tour that winds through both neighborhoods in a single outing, or join a spirited pub crawl that pairs themed cocktails with ghost stories at some of the city’s most notoriously haunted bars. With mild fall weather, walkable historic districts, and enough documented hauntings to fill several nights of exploration, San Diego offers a uniquely West Coast twist on the classic spooky season getaway.
12. Galena, Illinois
Galena, Illinois may be best known today for its charming shops and scenic river bluffs, but this perfectly preserved nineteenth century town also carries a reputation as one of the Midwest’s most haunted destinations. Tucked into the rolling hills of northwest Illinois, Galena rose to prominence in the 1850s as the busiest port between St. Louis and St. Paul, its fortunes built on the lead mining boom that filled the town with elegant homes and grand commercial buildings. When demand for lead eventually declined and the river connecting Galena to the Mississippi silted up, the town’s growth came to an abrupt halt, effectively freezing it in time. That very stagnation turned out to be a gift, since Galena avoided the modernization that reshaped so many other American towns, leaving an astonishing eighty five percent of its buildings still standing on the National Register of Historic Places today.
That remarkable preservation is exactly what makes Galena’s ghost tours so compelling. Walking down its gas lit Main Street feels like stepping directly into the nineteenth century, and history here comes loaded with the kind of tragedy that fuels genuine ghost stories, from deadly lead mining accidents to steamboat disasters and Civil War casualties. Candlelit walking tours lead visitors past the town’s most storied buildings, including the historic DeSoto House Hotel, while expert storytellers share tales of local legends, unsolved mysteries, and the spirits believed to still linger within Galena’s beautifully maintained Victorian architecture.
Beyond the classic walking tour format, Galena offers an impressive range of ways to explore its haunted side. Visitors can hop aboard a theatrical haunted shuttle bus complete with EMF detectors and ghost boxes for a hands on paranormal investigation experience, or join a haunted pub crawl that visits some of the town’s most notoriously spirited taverns over the course of an evening. Interactive app led ghost hunts send travelers wandering past eerie landmarks like Jail Hill Inn, the Old Market House, and Turner Hall, solving riddles and photo challenges along the way for a more playful, self-guided twist on the traditional tour. With its dramatic bluffside setting, meticulously preserved streetscape, and genuinely dark history hiding behind its picturesque storefronts, Galena offers travelers a uniquely immersive stop for a fall getaway steeped in both charm and chill.
13. Disney World and Disneyland
For our thirteenth and final destination, we’re breaking from the traditional ghost town format entirely to include the ultimate bonus stops for spooky season, Walt Disney World in Orlando and Disneyland in Anaheim. No list of Halloween worthy destinations feels complete without acknowledging that Disney simply does every holiday better than almost anyone else, and Halloween is no exception. Both parks transform into full blown seasonal wonderlands each fall, offering families and Disney lovers of every age the chance to combine world class rides, immersive theming, and genuinely spectacular Halloween programming into one unforgettable trip.
At Walt Disney World, the crown jewel of the season is Mickey’s Not So Scary Halloween Party, a separately ticketed after hours event at Magic Kingdom running on select nights from August through October 31. Guests are encouraged to arrive in costume and spend the evening trick or treating around the park, watching the exclusive Boo to You Halloween Parade led by the Headless Horseman, and catching the Hocus Pocus Villain Spelltacular featuring the Sanderson Sisters alongside a lineup of beloved Disney villains. The night builds to Disney’s Not So Spooky Spectacular, a fireworks show hosted by Jack Skellington that lights up Cinderella Castle in eerie, playful style, while select attractions receive spooky lighting and music overlays that add just the right touch of atmosphere without losing that signature Disney charm.
Out in California, Disneyland brings its own seasonal magic with Halloween Time running from late August through October 31, highlighted by the beloved Haunted Mansion Holiday overlay, now celebrating its twenty fifth year of blending Nightmare Before Christmas whimsy with the classic attraction’s spooky elegance, complete with a brand new gingerbread house display each season. The ticketed Oogie Boogie Bash at Disney California Adventure takes things even further, introducing an all new Haunted Mansion inspired street party this year called Madame Leota’s Swinging Wake, alongside immersive trick or treat trails, a villain filled Villains Grove walkthrough, and rare character appearances that only show up during this event.
Whether travelers choose the East Coast magic of Orlando or the original California charm of Anaheim, both resorts offer a rare blend of family friendly fun, theatrical spectacle, and just enough spookiness to round out any fall ghost town itinerary with a night of pure, unapologetic Disney magic.
Ready to Plan?
Now that you have 13 Ghost Towns and Tours all across the country to get your spooky on this season, which one will you be visiting? Between the storied streets of historic towns, the hallowed grounds of battlefields, the haunted buildings still standing, and of course, the magical streets of Disney, there’s a Halloween-themed destination for everyone on this list! And whether you’d like to go on a spooky holiday getaway, or you’re more into a cozy fall foliage roadtrip for the season, I’d love to help you plan; email me today at gina@lotmv.com.