Did you know that according to a prominent YouGov study, a whopping 41% of adults in the US believe in ghosts – and one in five even claim that they’ve personally experienced “something paranormal” themselves!

As the end of the year approaches and the nights get darker and longer, the spooky season brings out both the thrill-seekers, the ghost hunters, and even the skeptics.

But Halloween isn’t just a night anymore, it’s an entire freaking industry. According to the National Retail Federation, Americans spent over $12 billion on Halloween in 2024, with 77% decorating their homes and nearly 70% dressing up for the occasion. Heck they could have bailed out Argentina nearly times with that!

Haunted tourism is also booming, with ghost tours and eerie overnights now accounting for up to 20% of tourism revenue in some destinations. Salem, Massachusetts – the Halloween mecca – welcomes over a million visitors every October during its famous Haunted Happenings festival.

So where should you go if you want to mix a bit of travel, history, and pure supernatural weirdness? We took a peek at TripAdvisor’s highest-rated haunted destinations and pulled together ten places where the spooky season truly comes alive.

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The 10 Spookiest Places to Visit on Halloween

1. Salem, Massachusetts, USA – Spooky Score: 4.9/5

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Every October, the pretty New England town of Salem turns into a real-life Halloween movie set. The legacy of the 1692 Witch Trials draws more than a million people, with around 87,500 people crowding its cobblestoned streets on Halloween night alone in 2024.

Despite its tiny population of just 44,000, Salem swells to 100,000 tourists every weekend in October. There are ghost tours, psychic fairs, costumed parades, and candlelit walks past the Witch House and Salem Witch Trials Memorial. Plus, some really cool places to stay, some of them haunted!

Of course, with the prospect of American Witch Trials upon us once more, a visit seems more pertinent than ever. Oh, and the whole of New England is just stunning in Autumn and well worth a road trip.

2. Corvin Castle, Romania – Spooky Rating: 4.9/5

Corvin Castle

Perched over Transylvania, Corvin Castle (a.k.a. Hunyadi Castle) is straight out of a Gothic nightmare. One of Europe’s largest and best-preserved medieval castles, it pulls in around 275,000 visitors a year, and October is prime vampire season.

Legend has it that Vlad the Impaler – the inspiration for Dracula – was once imprisoned here (You can also visit Vlad the Impaler’s “Bran Castle” near Brasov, should you fancy it) 

Paranormal groups have even recorded sudden 5°C temperature drops and disembodied whispers in the dungeons. It’s a highly recommended spooky spot if you’re travelling in the Balkans.

3. Lizzie Borden House, Massachusetts, USA – Spooky Rating: 4.8/5

Lizzie Borden House
Photo: David (Flickr)

The Lizzie Borden House isn’t your average B&B. Overnights sell out months in advance here, tours included, in this authentic true-crime landmark.

Investigators regularly capture voices and footsteps matching police reports from the infamous 1892 double murder. How’s that for spooky!

Some even claim that 70% of EVP sessions, a classic paranormal investigation technique, record something eerie there. You can even sleep in the “murder room,” if you dare…

4. Hill of Crosses, Lithuania – Spooky Rating: 4.7/5

Lithuania kryziu kalnas hill

In rural Šiauliai, Lithuania, rises the haunting Hill of Crosses, blanketed with over 200,000 crucifixes left by pilgrims since the 19th century. The wind clatters through them like whispering voices, and locals tell of ghostly lights flickering after dark.

Roughly 100,000 people visit each year, mostly whilst staying in Vilnius, especially in autumn, when the hill’s eerie beauty peaks. It’s more spiritual than sinister, but you’ll definitely feel something…. Or maybe that something is watching you…

5. Tower of London, England – Spooky Rating: 4.6/5

The Tower of London

Few places in Europe can compete with the Tower of London for sheer historical horror. Over 3 million people visit annually to see the Crown Jewels, and maybe catch a glimpse of Anne Boleyn’s ghost pacing the courtyard.

But make no mistake about it, the Tower has a pretty dark history and over the millennia it has stood has seen any enemy of the crown imprisoned, tortured and even beheaded (rumour has it they are currently hard at work constructing an ‘Andrew-shaped cell’). British ghost societies have logged over 200 sightings here since the 1800s, making it statistically one of Europe’s most haunted sites. 

The Tower is one of the top places to visit in London all year round, and night tours sell out fast in October.

6. Eastern State Penitentiary, Pennsylvania, USA – Spooky Rating: 4.6/5

secret places in philadelphia eastern state penitentiary

Built in 1829, this crumbling Gothic fortress was once the world’s most ambitious prison (HOW?) And it’s just as terrifying now, drawing over 300,000 visitors a year, with “Halloween Nights” transforming it into a hybrid of theatre and terror.

Ghost researchers have recorded more than 60 paranormal incidents, from shadowy figures to cold spots in solitary cells. It’s not safe, even for sceptics (though it is statistically safer than an American Elementary school).

7. Edinburgh Castle, Scotland – Spooky Rating: 4.4/5

fountain in front of edinburgh castle, scotland
Photo: @taya.travels

Edinburgh Castle dominates the city skyline, but also its ghost lore. A 2001 paranormal study by the Edinburgh Ghost Project found that over half of participants felt something otherworldly inside its vaults, whether that was touches, chills, or just moving shadows. It seems it’s one of the best places to visit in Edinburgh for both the living and the dead!

From the phantom piper boy who vanished in the tunnels to restless prisoners of war, this fortress is a timeless hotspot for things that move when they’re not supposed to.

Oh, and if you want to see some real horror, go and take a peek at the ‘other side’ of Edinburgh City that we keep hidden from tourists behind that big castle.

8. Charleville Castle, Ireland – Spooky Rating: 4.4/5

Charleville castle, Tullamore
Photo: Trenchspike (WikiCommons)

Deep in County Offaly’s woods, Charleville Castle is said to be Ireland’s most haunted building. The tours here are small as they cap them at a few hundred guests each Halloween, but they are guaranteed to tingle your spine.

The spirit of Harriet, a little girl who died on the staircase in the 1800s, is often heard laughing or crying in the halls. Paranormal investigators report energy spikes around her old room and the crypt.

On a stormy night, this is Irish Gothic at its finest, and you may even hear the banshees shrieking on the wind. It’s well worth a visit if you are taking a trip to Ireland.

9. Banff Springs Hotel, Canada – Spooky Rating: 4.8/5

Fairmont Banff Springs Hotel

The Fairmont Banff Springs is nicknamed the “Castle in the Rockies, and… you guessed it, it’s haunted to its core. Guests report sightings of a ghostly bride dancing in her burnt gown and a phantom bellman named Sam Macauley who helps guests before vanishing.

Even Google Street View lists it as one of Canada’s most haunted spots. Staff confirm frequent reports, especially from the sealed Room 873, which is permanently closed after a grisly tragedy.

10. Aokigahara Forest, Japan – Spooky Rating: 4.3/5

Aokigahara Forest

At the base of Mount Fuji lies Aokigahara, the “Sea of Trees”. It is a dense, sound-absorbing forest steeped in ghost stories. Japanese folklore says the woods are haunted by yurei, spirits who cannot rest.

Visitors describe unsettling silence, whispers in the wind, and fleeting shadows between the trees. The forest’s eerie legend has been immortalised in literature, including Seicho Matsumoto’s 1961 novel Nami no To. It ain’t for the faint of heart, but it’s definitely one of the best unique places to visit in Japan. Plus, visiting Japan in October is peak time if you ask me… cus I’m literally there now!

Final Thoughts

From East to West, the world is filled with stories and experiences which can spook even the most sceptical humans.

Because you don’t have to believe in ghosts to feel these things. You just need to be there. 

The line between history and haunting is thinner than you think… So plan your trip to one of these spooky locations and let us know how it goes!

Bonus point if you can make it during Halloween 😉