Haunted trails, tours and passport programs provide a great way for tourism boards to market all that makes their destination intriguing. These self-guided offerings link these venues with fascinating histories and haunting legends together through providing the maps to do so. Here are some excellently eerie examples.
Stranger Things of SoIN
Last year, SoIN Tourism of Southern Indiana introduced the “Stranger Things of SoIN” passport to coincide with the hit Netflix series.
The digital passport program is returning for 2025 and with special events and offers tied to this fictional series set in Hawkins, Ind.
Held at the Culbertson Mansion State Historic Site in New Albany, the House of Anguish happens on Fridays and Saturdays now through October 25.
New Albany Wicked Walk’s Spooky Season tours tells shocking details relating to the history of downtown New Albany. They happen every weekend in October and include Halloween night tours.
During “SoIN Goes Upside Down” weekend, on October 24 and 25, participants are encouraged to dress in Stranger Things-inspired apparel. Fans can begin their journey at the Southern Indiana Visitor Center in downtown Jeffersonville and see recreated scenes from the hit show. Snap a selfie outside of Castle Byers, step inside the Byers’ living room, or test your pinball skills now through November 26.
West Virginia Paranormal Trail
Created by the West Virginia Department of Tourism, this paranormal trail made its debut in 2024 and has returned for 2025 with four new stops. The trail now totals in at 21 locations.
New stops this year are:
- Apollo Civic Theater – Alive with stage acts and roaring applause in 1914, it’s believed that some of the performers have never truly left.
- Carnegie Hall – One of only four Carnegie Halls in the world still in use, this Lewisburg gem has a legacy that runs deeper than music and art. Built in 1902 after a mysterious fire consumed the original Lewisburg Female Institute, there’s been reports of unexplained footsteps, flickering lights and spectral whispers.
- Greenbrier Valley Theater – Catch a showing of The Greenbrier Ghost, one of the many interpretations of the local Greenbrier County legend, where the trial of Zona Heaster Shue’s murder in 1897 was won based on the testimony of a ghost.
- Seneca Caverns – Long known as a gathering place for Native Americans, these vast underground chambers are said to hold secrets, and perhaps spirits, that linger in the shadows.
Visit this website to register for this digital passport. After signing up, the passport will be delivered to your phone via text or to the email provided.
Visit NC’s First In Fright
Visit NC, North Carolina’s tourism board, has unveiled “First In Fright,” an experience involving both a list and a podcast (10 episodes and two more arriving by Halloween) and connects intrepid travelers with a haunted trail that covers the entire state.
The tour’s webpage lists nine stops that are each noted for reportedly having unexplained activity. To start, The Country Squire Restaurant, Inn & Winery in Kenansville, is where guests and staff have had ghostly encounters. Then there’s the Black Pelican Restaurant in Kitty Hawk, which is said to be haunted by the spirit of a former station keeper.
Haunted History Trail of New York State
I LOVE NY continues their “Haunted History Trail of New York State” each year. Home to the New York’s largest collection of haunted attractions, the trail features over 90 spine-chilling experiences across the state’s different regions. Highlights involve a mix of haunted houses and accommodations and ghost tours.
In New York City, the Morris Jumel Mansion is Manhattan’s oldest house, dating back to 1748, with tours offering a glimpse into its rich and ghostly heritage. As Manhattan’s most haunted house, the Merchant’s House Museum is famous for its supernatural presence and ghostly stories shared through candlelit tours and Halloween events.
In the Catskills, Bannerman Castle is an early 1900s military warehouse on a secluded island with decaying grandeur and legends of ghostly apparitions while the Shanley Hotel is circa 1895 property whose extensive ghostly lore, including documented paranormal activity captured on video.
In the Finger Lakes, the Naples Hotel has a reputation for supernatural occurrences and Belhurst Castle is made up of three buildings that all are entwined with a past of love affairs, embezzlement and even death.
Spooktacular Arizona: Haunted Attractions Passport
Visit Arizona’s Haunted Attractions Passport is a free mobile experiential pass that presents a different side of The Grand Canyon State. The pass links to over 40 curated attractions and retailers and restaurants throughout Arizona. Instagram postings shared on this Visit Arizona webpage reveal locations such as Vulture City Ghost Town and Jerome Grand Hotel.
Passport holders can also enjoy Halloween events such as a Halloween Trick-or-Trail on Friday, Oct. 31, in downtown Flagstaff, with the first stop at Heritage Square.
While obtaining their passport, people can sign up to win prizes, including a Visit Arizona Grand Canyon poster, a State Forty Eight Visit Arizona T-shirt and Visit Arizona and Spooktacular swag such as stickers and magnets featuring beautiful illustrations of Arizona parks.
Travel Nevada’s Paranormal Passport
Travel Nevada has unveiled the latest iteration of its Paranormal Passport, offering visitors even more chances to explore an extraordinary side of The Silver State. From Western history to Area 51, the Paranormal Passport invites visitors to explore the state’s history with a chance to encounter the paranormal themselves.
Passport users can explore Nevada’s rich history through a rotating selection of historic and paranormal locations across the state. Download the passport here.
Newly-added stops for 2025 include:
- The Mob Museum, Las Vegas: Explore four levels of interactive experiences, hands-on exhibits, and innovative museum displays to get an insider’s look at the Mob’s history of organized crime and the U.S. law enforcement who fought it.
- The Clown Motel, Tonopah: This motel is notorious for its quirky, creepy clown decor, making it one of Nevada’s most unusual and unsettling lodging options.
- Genoa: As the oldest permanent settlement in Nevada, Genoa is home to historic homes and businesses, including Genoa Bar & Saloon, the oldest saloon in the Silver State.
- Jackson House Hotel, Downtown Eureka: Based along the Loneliest Road in America, visitors of this historic hotel may encounter the Lady in Red, who is said to float the halls and check in on guests.
Salem Heritage Trail
While many often come to Salem during October, the Salem Heritage Trail bridges together more than 400 years of its history.
Established in the eighties, this trail from does encompass the Salem Witch Trials but also the city’s entire history. It stretches back to Salem’s earliest settlement, to its Colonial era and Industrial heritage to modern-day Salem and also involves the area’s indigenous peoples, immigrant experiences, and African American stories.
Among other places, trail stops include Charter Street Cemetery, Salem Witch Museum, Charlotte Forten Park and The House of The Seven Gables.
Mysterious & Spooky Richmond Region
From Visit Richmond, this new self-guided, scary-themed tour puts this Virginian destination and its surrounding region front and center with a fright and fun suggested itinerary. The tour’s list includes The Poe Museum in Richmond, which honors its native writer through using the city’s Old Stone House as its base. During his time in Richmond, Poe frequently passed by this home and visited it during his boyfriend.
The museum now presents an accompanying Edgar Allan Poe animated bust that fully enhances the visitor experience.
Tour stops range from Hanover Tavern in Hanover, which may have lingering patrons, to Hollywood Cemetery in Richmond, with some noteworthy residents, to Rest In Pieces, a macabre shop that’s also in Richmond.