Salem, MA

61 Days Remaining

We have nine weeks till Halloween. If you're like me, you already feel behind in everything you want to get done. So, for the next nine weeks I'll be helping you and myself get ready. Each week will have a theme and this week I'll be suggesting various Halloween places you might want to travel to this year. I don't think any country celebrates Halloween quite like the United States. We have our own style of Halloween kitsch that is strangely endearing.

You're probably thinking Travel? Who has time to travel? but hear me out. Sometimes we get so involved in planning Halloween at home we forget to enjoy what other people are furiously planning. Last year, my husband and I went to New Orleans for Halloween. It was a big decision not to be here to hand out candy to the kids, but I'm so glad we did it. It was fantastic. It's not something I'll do every year, but every handful of years won't hurt.

Salem, MA

Salem, MA has to be on the top of your Halloween travel destinations. It's where it all begins for us, really. The great thing about Salem is that you don't necessarily have to visit on Halloween day. You can experience the spookiness all year long.

Be prepared, however. Salem these days does tend toward the kitschy.  You need to go with a sense of humor which sounds odd even to me since Salem is the site of such a horrible time in our history. The first time I visited, I was taken aback by the lack of seriousness concerning the people who were killed due to mass hysteria. The history is there if you want to seek it out and I suggest that you start your visit at the Salem Witch Memorial.

The memorial was designed by Cutler Anderson Architects and dedicated in 1992. The memorial includes 20 granite benches each inscribed with an accused witch's name and date of death. I also recommend visiting the Salem National Park Visitor Center to watch a 35-minute film on the history of the Witch Trials. Once you're suitably depressed, it's time to go have some fun.

Salem isn't a very big town so you can easily walk to what you'd like to see. Before you go, look through the official Salem Haunted Happenings website. Salem gets inundated with tourists during October and the website can steer you to exactly what you'd like to do. Shopping is lots of fun and you can purchase anything from witch t-shirts to herbs for that particular spell you've been meaning to cast. Have your Tarot cards read and visit the Wax Museum. Make sure you visit the Bewitched Statue of Samantha and wiggle your nose.

If you want to search out some real haunted places check out this article from WhereTravelor.com. It features seven haunted sites around Salem chosen by ghost hunters.

I'm saving the best for last. Buy your ticket for the all-male drag parody of The Golden Girls: The Lost Halloween Episode. I'm not kidding! I'll bet you'll never forget your visit to Salem.