Best places to have a ‘ghostly’ Halloween experience in the USA

Friday, October 28, 2022

Observed at the end of October to mark the beginning of the shorter days and the change in the seasons, here are some of the top locations across the USA to enjoy Halloween this year!

Why do we celebrate Halloween?
The origin of the word “Halloween” can be traced back to the ancient European festival of All Hallows’ Eve, which was observed on the eve of All Hallows’ Day (also known as All Saints’ Day), a Christian holiday. People celebrated the hallows (saints, not supernatural things!) during this festival. Even today, Trick-or-Treating has its roots in this practice of people dressing up as saints and knocking on doors while reciting songs and begging for “soul cakes.”

It was observed at the end of October to mark the beginning of the shorter days and the change in the seasons. People had the impression that there was a particularly thin line separating this world from the afterlife. With the arrival of Irish and Scottish immigrants, this festival eventually changed into a lighter-hearted event. By the 20th century, it had evolved into the candy-loving, pumpkin-carving, costume-wearing holiday that everyone is familiar with today. Even though Halloween has a complicated and lengthy history, it is widely observed in vivid and exciting ways. Here are some of the top locations across the USA to enjoy Halloween this year!

Sleepy Hollow, New York
Since its publication by Washington Irving in 1820, “The Legend of Sleepy Hollow” has been ingrained in popular Halloween culture. Fortunately for us, the town at the core of the tale is in fact very genuine and comes to life for a month-long Halloween celebration. Visit the historic cemetery by lantern light to learn about Irving and other prominent people, or go to the old Philipsburg Manor, now a horrific haunted house called Horseman’s Hollow. If you enjoy carving pumpkins, you definitely shouldn’t miss the Great Jack O’Lantern Blaze, which includes over 7000 of the fruits of your labour, the Museum of Pumpkin Art, and a pumpkin windmill.

Chicago, Illinois
Chicagoween in Illinois is another thrilling location to visit over the Halloween holiday. People in Chicago simply adore this festival, and the city is further enhanced and imbued with a mystical air by the addition of pumpkin decorations to the streets, the colouring of the fountain water yellow and orange, and the incorporation of witches’ images on the buildings. During Halloween in Chicago, one can participate in a variety of events and make wonderful memories. A historic home that has been turned into a haunted house, the Basement of the Dead is located in the heart of Aurora. In fact it has been christened as “Illinois’ most haunted structure”. This haunted mansion in Chicago is open for Halloween, allowing guests to see some of the building’s most hidden and ominous spaces.

Salem, Massachusetts
Salem, Massachusetts, lies at the centre of the nation’s most visceral Halloween legends as the site of the gruesome witch trials of the late 1600s. However, visiting Salem in October brings with it a unique kind of energy as the town seizes the biggest chance of the year to explore its past. Visit the Salem Witch Museum and the Witch Trials Memorial, delve into the paranormal at the Psychic Fair, and top it all off by attending the Witches Ball, an annual masquerade hosted in the venerable Hawthorne Hotel. And if you’re wondering what Salem does for Halloween, the town’s October events explore local history and witch lore as well as Halloween monsters, eerie urban tales, and locations from witch movies shot here.

Anoka, Minnesota
One of the first American localities to host a Halloween celebration that forbids trick-or-treating and other mischief has earned Anoka, Minnesota, the moniker “Halloween Capital of the World.”
In Anoka, Minnesota, a weeklong festival was instituted in 1920 in a bid to desensitise trick-or-treating. A Mass Band, made up of bands from four high schools, participates in the Grand Day Parade. The Grey Ghost 5K Run is another highlighted event; it was created in response to reports of Bill Andberg, a 70-year-old marathon runner who is frequently spotted running through a nearby cemetery while wearing a grey outfit.

Croton-on-Hudson, New York
Everyone is welcome to come out and carve (see Carve for the Carillon above) the weekend before Halloween. The following weekend, 2000 hand-carved pumpkins will be on display around the Carillon and the Washington Park Botanical Garden. There are special Carillon music, lighting, sound effects, vendors, and more at this event. Over 7,000 illuminated jack-o-lanterns, all hand-carved and crafted on location by a team of artists, are on exhibit in an amazing display. This unique event is not to be missed, complete with synchronised lighting and an original soundtrack!

St. Helen’s, Oregon
St. Helens in Oregon may be familiar to viewers of the Disney Channel Original Movie “Halloweentown.” At the Spirit of Halloweentown Festival on Halloween, there are haunted houses, a costume parade, a gigantic pumpkin lighting ceremony, a monster fun run, and a haunted hearse and automobile exhibition, among other events. Spirit of Halloweentown is a festival that celebrates the town’s eerie past and the areas where Halloweentown and Twilight were filmed, and it takes place primarily on weekends. The giant pumpkin, which is located in the courthouse square, is lit on the first Saturday in October after the Big Halloween Parade and remains lit for the entire month.

Stowe, Vermont
Vermont is well-known for its breathtaking fall foliage and covered bridges, but it’s also a terrific spot to go if you’re looking for a scare, especially in the festival of the dead – Halloween! A woman is rumoured to have died in the 1800s near Emily’s Bridge. She allegedly haunts the neighbourhood, scratching passersby and gnawing on cars. Additionally, several have reported hearing footfall coming from the tunnel! Legend holds that Emily grows angrier by each day. People in the area will caution you to cross the bridge carefully, and many will outright forbid you from going near it after dark. Events at the bridge have been reported for the past 150 years, including trembling cars, animals and people being sliced to the point of drawing blood by invisible claws, and cameras frequently malfunctioning.

« Back to Page