Falls Witchy Wonderland

Summer is slowly coming to an end. The leaves are turning glorious colors of yellow, orange, and red. The warmth of summer is slowly fading away. Many people like the fall, but my particular interest is not fall itself but that Halloween is around the corner.

This is one of my favorite holidays as it gives license for adults to dress up in costume, without the neighbors thinking they have gone off their rocker.

The biggest Halloween party you will find is in Old Salem Inc, Massachusetts. Back in the 1950’s a group of dedicated people began restoring the town. You will find brick sidewalks and cobblestone streets. Tall black lanterns dot the corners of the streets. Many of the buildings are restored to their former glory and are absolutely beautiful.

This town, famous for the witch trials back in the late 1600’s now has another event called Haunted Happenings that runs the entire month of October. Every year they have events planned that celebrate this famous town.

We visited Old Salem on vacation one year. One tour we took was the House of Seven Gables. Nathanial Hawthorne, torn by the guilt of his family partaking in the Salem witch trials, wrote this novel and added themes of witchcraft and supernatural. The time we were there, they re-enacted the novel. Not only was the acting wonderful, we were privy to a tour of the quaint house.

On another tour, a cast of actors reenacted the trial of Bridget Bishop who was the first person to be condemned of witchcraft during the Salem witch trials. That was our first experience with the horrors of the witch hunts in this town. The tours they have depicting the witch hysteria are eye opening. I’d recommend taking one or two tours. It will put the witch trials in the proper perception.

The town itself is a home to many witches and psychics. And in a town like Salem, it would not be complete without a list of witch shops. One shop has a human skull on a pedestal with many signs indicating ‘do not touch’. Two of my favorite places to visit are ‘Crow Haven Corner’ and ‘Hex Old World Witchery’.

Of course, no town would be complete without a list of eateries. One favorite comes to mind is Brodie’s Seafood. However, there are many places to eat and include a food court containing your favorite festival items.

Each year over 250,000 visit Salem during the month of October with the most amount of people coming for the week of Halloween itself. Any week you choose to visit during this month will provide many delights and activities.

To go to the website,

Note: I am not affiliated with the website and do not receive monetary compensation for listing this information in my blog.