Many people go to Salem to gain an understanding of the history of the town. Some go searching for ghosts from the past. One of the most popular activities in Salem is to go on a night tour. I took the time to scout out one of the best night tours for you to take when you visit Salem.
When in Salem we had the opportunity to go on one of the night tours. If you’ve ever been to Salem or have a chance to go in the future you will find that there are an incredible amount to choose from. In fact, even though it was still off season when I went our tour guide was carefully timing his tour so as not to interfere with other tours or have them distract us.
I chose to go with Bewitched After Dark Tours in Salem and I am happy to report that all of his stellar reviews that I read are absolutely true. Jeff is amazing and definitely knows the stories of Salem. Being a New England girl I have read pretty much all I find on Salem and he shared some things that I had never heard of and was able to answer some questions that I had about stories that I heard. He was fantastic.
I loved that the first thing that he said was that his tour wasn’t a ghost tour. It doesn’t need to be because what happened in Salem is definitely more frightening than any ghost story could or would be. He had so many interesting stories to point out and did an amazing job of showing where things use to be and how Salem had evolved over time. If you want an amazing overview of Salem and all that went on with the witch trials I would book your time with Jeff. He was better than any of the museums that we attended that weekend. I also loved that he let us know solid recommendations on places to eat, shop and see while we were there. If you are in Salem for a few days I recommend that you make him your first stop.
In the picture above he is showing us where the original witch dungeon is in Salem. I’ve been going to Salem for over 20 years now and have parked in the parking lot right behind where we were standing and I never knew it was here! Another favorite place that he took us to was behind some buildings where Bridget Bishops apple orchards were. I am someone who is always interested in the paranormal but I am also interested in logical explanations for ghost sightings and he had me laughing so many times when he debunked many of the local ghost tours and some of what was happening like the smell of apples in Bridget’s Old Orchard likely coming from a nearby restaurant that I believe he said was a pastry shop!
Of course what night tour wouldn’t include a trip to the Old Burial Grounds at night. He will show you the graves of many people who are there to include the Judge John Hathorne who Nathaniel Hawthorne’s Great Grandfather. He will show you where Nathaniel Hawthorne stayed with Sophia Peabody, his future wife, and point out some names you will recognize from his books. My favorite though was the story of a man who was killed by lightning and the tree that is part of his grave that keeps getting hit. You must take his tour to hear him tell the whole story.
Jeff is amazing and has incredible knowledge of the city. I love how he manages to give you the whole story of what happened in Salem including the fishing industry and how much information that he passes along to you that isn’t general knowledge. If you are looking to learn about Salem this is most definitely the tour that you want to take. You might even find that you meet another witch along the way.
If you are interested in booking a tour with him, you can find his website here:
Bewitched After Dark Walking Tours of Salem
Have a magickal weekend!
Much Love and Many Blessings,
Jasmeine Moonsong