All Things Travel Podcast
Listen in each week with Creating Magic Vacations Travel Advisors and destination experts Ryan and Julie.
He is your travel professor, teaching you everything you need to know to have a magical vacation. She is a Disney-loving, Maryland mom of 3 and a specialist in family travel.
Whether they're discussing incredible destinations, top vacation tips, or sharing personal stories…it’s always All Things Travel.
All Things Travel Podcast
Top 7 Spookiest U.S. Destinations: Haunted Hotels, Ghostly Lighthouses, and More
In this special Halloween episode of All Things Travel, Ryan and Julie take you on a journey to some of the spookiest destinations in the United States. From haunted lighthouses on the Oregon coast to the inspiration behind The Shining, these travel spots are not for the faint of heart!
Key Topics Covered:
- Hisita Head Lighthouse (Oregon): Stay at a haunted bed and breakfast where the ghost of Rue, the wife of a 19th-century lighthouse keeper, still roams.
- Stanley Hotel (Colorado): The inspiration for Stephen King’s The Shining and one of America’s most haunted hotels.
- Salem, Massachusetts: Visit the Witch House, the historic site of pre-trial examinations during the Salem Witch Trials of 1692.
- Ohio State Reformatory: Explore the real-life setting of The Shawshank Redemption and one of the most haunted prisons in America.
- LaLaurie Mansion (New Orleans): The notorious haunted mansion in the French Quarter with a dark and tragic history.
- Griffith Park (Los Angeles): Cursed land with ghostly sightings, strange creatures, and even the tragic death of an actress at the Hollywood sign.
- Kehoe House (Savannah, Georgia): A haunted bed and breakfast where the ghosts of children are said to laugh and play in the hallways.
Planning a spooky getaway to one of these haunted locations? Reach out to Ryan and Julie at Creating Magic Vacations to plan a hauntingly unforgettable trip!
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Hello and welcome to all things travel in honor of the Halloween holiday. We're discussing some of the spookiest us destinations for your next vacation, whether it's witches, ghosts, or ghoulish haunts, we have ideas for your. Creepy travel. Listen in with travel advisors and destination experts, Ryan and Julie. I'm your travel advisor, teaching you everything you need to know to have a magical vacation. And she's your Disney loving Maryland mom of three and a specialist in family travel. Whether we're discussing incredible destinations, top vacation tips, or sharing personal stories, it's always all things travel. All right, Julie, it is almost Halloween. Are you gearing up in the Shaver household?
j_1_10-20-2024_191513:Steven and I are not very like Halloween people. Steven especially is not a Halloween person unless you tell him we're dressing up as Star Wars, which he has full Halloween costume. Luke Skywalker getup.
ryan_1_10-20-2024_191513:So that just means it's Wednesday, not Halloween.
j_1_10-20-2024_191513:the first time I saw this outfit, I was like, where did that come from? Because it is legitimate. I have little kids, and They are just always so excited for Halloween, so it's just that constant in our house of like, well, I'm gonna be this, or I'm gonna be this, the kids are super excited, but we are not, full on Halloween people.
ryan_1_10-20-2024_191513:I'm not really either. I mean, my kids are to the age where that's not part of the calendar that much anymore.
j_1_10-20-2024_191513:Hmm.
ryan_1_10-20-2024_191513:last year I was going to pass out candy cause I'm living in town for the first time and it snowed.
j_1_10-20-2024_191513:What?
ryan_1_10-20-2024_191513:like snow storm on Halloween night when the trigger treating was, so I don't know what this year is going to be like. yeah, it was really weird cause I was all excited about it. So then I had a bunch of candy that, needed to be consumed over the next month.
j_1_10-20-2024_191513:did they reschedule? Like it never snows that early here.
ryan_1_10-20-2024_191513:know, and it doesn't hear either. It was just a freak thing. So speaking of spooky travel, have you ever been someplace on a trip? you consider spooky.
j_1_10-20-2024_191513:Okay, we're gonna go way back because my answer was gonna be no and then this just popped in my head You know, I was in girl scouts for like my entire childhood. I know Are you forever? Okay, Oh, look at that. We're both learning new things. so, we would do a lot of local camping trips, and I feel like 1 of the local places we used to go, like, the campground, there was like big house next to it. that, was supposedly haunted. And I remember being Terrified by that for, for quite some time. Yeah, little, little traumatizing.
ryan_1_10-20-2024_191513:I do remember, traveling to Ireland, probably the spookiest place I've been, when I used to take college classes over there, we would always go to the Hill of Tara, an ancient ruin site outside of Dublin, you would climb up this hill, and there was a tomb there. That was older than the pyramids. you would actually go into it with the guide, and then get into the middle of it and he would turn the flashlight off Oh, that was spooky. the look on your face is like, why would you ever do that? That doesn't make any sense at all.
j_1_10-20-2024_191513:I'm probably gonna have nightmares just having this conversation. Thanks for a great night.
ryan_1_10-20-2024_191513:All right. So today we are going to talk about some of the spookiest places to travel in the United States. But first, if you have not listened to last week's episode, take a listen, because we give some really good tips to prepare you to travel to Europe. All right, Julie. the first location is in Oregon. So tell us about this spooky lighthouse.
j_1_10-20-2024_191513:Florence's Haceta Head Lighthouse is one of the most iconic and haunted spots on the Oregon coast. You can head over there and you stay in one of the old light keepers rooms. it's actually been turned into a really quaint bed and breakfast
ryan_1_10-20-2024_191513:Sounds charming.
j_1_10-20-2024_191513:I know, it's so charming. while you're enjoying your lovely bed and breakfast escape on the Oregon coast, keep an eye out for the resident ghost, Rue, who is the wife of the 1890s Lighthouse keeper, Frank DeRoy, she is rumored to roam the lighthouse searching for her daughter who suffered a tragic death. you would know if Rue is there because you would notice whiffs of a floral perfume, scents of roses. And some strange imprints on your bed, which, I mean, all of those things just sound creepy for multiple
ryan_1_10-20-2024_191513:so when you had your in laws on that big trip we talked about through Oregon, my guess is that you did not stay at this bed and breakfast.
j_1_10-20-2024_191513:No, they did not. And fortunately, I didn't know about this at the time.
ryan_1_10-20-2024_191513:I have a creepy spot for us to discuss, and I actually have a personal connection to this place. This is Estes Park, Colorado, and this is the Stanley Hotel, and it's the most distinctive building in Estes Park in one of the oldest. It was built in 1909. by F O Stanley, who along with his twin built the famous Stanley steamers, they decided to build a Grand Colonial Revival Hotel with innovations like electricity throughout the building. today it's a 140 room hotel. It has amazing views of Colorado and Estes Park. But it also frequently lands on America's most haunted hotels. The Stanley is famous for his ghostly guests, including Stanley and Flora, who plays her antique piano in the middle of the night, and for serving as horror writer Stephen King's inspiration for the Overlook Hotel from The Shining.
j_1_10-20-2024_191513:Oh, no.
ryan_1_10-20-2024_191513:Fun fact, I've been to Estes Park once, and I spent three nights there in an Airbnb, from my bedroom, literally from my bed, I could see this hotel, so this is a famous, famous hotel, but also famous for its connection to The Shining, and all of this haunting stuff. Yikes.
j_1_10-20-2024_191513:Where is Eskimo? Park in relation, is it close to Denver, Boulder,
ryan_1_10-20-2024_191513:It is a couple hours away from Denver, right next to the Rocky Mountain National Park.
j_1_10-20-2024_191513:what were you doing there? Okay.
ryan_1_10-20-2024_191513:we were there for a variety of things, but ended up in Estes Park so we could enjoy Rocky Mountain National Park.
j_1_10-20-2024_191513:And the view
ryan_1_10-20-2024_191513:The view, the view of the, inspiration for the Overlook Hotel.
j_1_10-20-2024_191513:gets there and is like, who didn't read the reviews?
ryan_1_10-20-2024_191513:exactly, exactly. Alright, so you're going to take us way back into U. S. history with this next spot, famous for being spooky.
j_1_10-20-2024_191513:and this is kind of on my side of the country Salem, Massachusetts the witch house So a lot of people, New England is on their bucket list for travel at Halloween time to go to the town of Salem and immerse themselves in all things spooky. Salem is famous for the Salem Witch Trials from back in the 1600s. it always makes me think of the movie Hocus Pocus, too. Like, that's kind of what I associate that with. While you're in Salem, if you're there at Halloween, they are go all out with decorations and haunted houses, all sorts of things on every street. It's like full on immersive experience. if you're looking for a real horror story, you want to go to the infamous Witch House. It was purchased by Jonathan Corwin in the late 1600s and was the site of pre trial examinations, series of dehumanizing acts performed on those accused of being witches. During the Witch Hysteria of 1693, Corwin then later served on the court, which would ultimately send 19 people to the gallows.
ryan_1_10-20-2024_191513:I think if any place is going to be haunted or a little freaky, that might make the list.
j_1_10-20-2024_191513:I don't know, specifics. I wonder, they let you go in the house.
ryan_1_10-20-2024_191513:I think we are letting listeners in on the fact that you and I are kind of, Lightweights when it comes to scary things, Julie.
j_1_10-20-2024_191513:my gosh, absolutely. There are some houses in our neighborhood that we can't even Go to and the kids are like, we don't want to go there. We're like, That's fine. Keep walking.
ryan_1_10-20-2024_191513:All right, let's head to my part of the country the midwest and go to chicago to the niederlander theater This theater opened in 1926 as a motion picture and vaudeville theater It's a beautiful old time theater that hosts pre and post Broadway shows, concerts, other events, that classic kind of 1920s architecture, which I absolutely love. But where the theater now stands was once home to the Iroquois Theater, the site of one of the deadliest fires in U. S. history, claiming around 600 lives in 1903. both performers and audience members report mysterious activity, particularly in Death Alley, the narrow passageway behind the theater, where Ghostly figures are seen and even captured on camera, cries are heard, and hands reaching out and touching you happen. why don't you come over my way, we'll drive up to Chicago, we'll take a stroll down Death Alley, and see what happens.
j_1_10-20-2024_191513:No, no, no, no, no. Mm hmm
ryan_1_10-20-2024_191513:on to some of the other scariest places in the United States to travel I want to talk about where in the world is all things travel My guess is this next place is not scary as I looked at locations from listeners these last couple weeks Portland, Oregon jumped out. And I, I could not remember if we had talked about Portland, Oregon. So I decided to feature them And one of the places you're learning all sorts of things about me today, Julie, because one of my favorite places, if I am in a spot that has a Japanese garden, I absolutely love going and seeing it. I love the style. the tranquility and Portland has what's considered the most authentic Japanese garden outside of Japan.
j_1_10-20-2024_191513:Wow,
ryan_1_10-20-2024_191513:a haven of tranquil beauty and all four seasons. In 2017, it opened a cultural village complete with garden spaces, classrooms, exhibits, galleries. And a cafe. Does that not sound like a great place to meet our listener?
j_1_10-20-2024_191513:it sounds better than most the places we're talking about
ryan_1_10-20-2024_191513:Hey Portland, we are so excited. You're listening to all things travel. Do me a favor. Cause I would love to send you a little thank you gift for being featured on the show. So reach out to Julie or myself. via email or on our all things travel podcast, Facebook page. All right, Julie. This next one is interesting. I actually drive by this almost every time I go see my daughter now, because she's in college in Pennsylvania. Tell us about Mansfield, Ohio.
j_1_10-20-2024_191513:so in Mansfield, Ohio is the Ohio State Reformatory If you've ever seen the movie the Shawshank Redemption It's then you should be familiar with this
ryan_1_10-20-2024_191513:Yep, yep. As you're driving through Mansfield, there's a sign that says, get off and take tours
j_1_10-20-2024_191513:Oh, head this way, No thanks.
ryan_1_10-20-2024_191513:after you tell us about it, I'm not going to want to do that.
j_1_10-20-2024_191513:So this is an intimidating prison. It gained its notoriety as a filming location and a hub for paranormal activity. It was first built in the 1800s and it was operational up until about 1990. The interior hasn't been restored. So when you go, if you do a tour there, Things are peeling off the walls. It's a maze of prison cells and offices. not pretty inside. It's open for tours and you can check out the calendar for any sort of extra terrifying Halloween events if
ryan_1_10-20-2024_191513:sure.
j_1_10-20-2024_191513:So the tragic past of the prison, which became increasingly violent over the years with the rampant mistreatment of prisoners. still makes itself felt today. Both guides and visitors reformatory have been pushed by invisible hands. An eerie chill can be felt while on the premises and it's not uncommon to hear voices and cell doors slamming or to see shadowy figures in the halls. They even have said that a ghost of a local hermit roams the driveway and the ghost hunt manager says that grown men have been seen crying of fear while on the tour.
ryan_1_10-20-2024_191513:Okay.
j_1_10-20-2024_191513:Was it you, Ryan? Was it you that they
ryan_1_10-20-2024_191513:so seriously, if your tourist location needs a ghost hunt manager, you know, this place is pretty hardcore.
j_1_10-20-2024_191513:It's pretty legit.
ryan_1_10-20-2024_191513:Well, I, actually want to stop there sometime, not because of all the haunting stuff, but I really love Shawshank Redemption. So I think that'd be a fun place to stop. I will not do it at night or on any ghost tours or anything like that. All right. So let's head down to the big easy to New Orleans. Now, if folks have been listening to all things travel for a long time. Since many moons ago, they will remember Shane and I talked about haunted travel many years ago, and Shane swore up and down that the one place that he has felt like he's been that's haunted was in a hotel in New Orleans. While I'm not going to talk about the same type of hotel that Shane talked about, I'm going to talk about a famous haunted mansion in New Orleans. The Curious Gray LaLaurie Mansion has a dark history. While it's not open to the public, it is usually included on walking ghost tours offered in the French Quarter. And the French Quarter has kind of an eerie atmosphere. Creepy feeling all of itself. Julie, if you've ever been there, especially at night, if you're off the main drag, it gets a little creepy. notorious mansion was once owned by the twice widowed, madam Delphine McCarty and her third husband, dr Louie lalaurie after a fire broke out in the mansion in 1834 Newspapers reported that several of the men and women they kept enslaved there were found in the attic Tortured, starving, and chained as word spread of the mistreatment, a mob gathered intent on damaging the mansion. To evade punishment, Delphine and her family fled to Europe, where she supposedly died several years later. Over the decades, the building has served as the headquarters of the Union Army, a gambling house, and this is random, and the home of Nicolas Cage.
j_1_10-20-2024_191513:Like, of course!
ryan_1_10-20-2024_191513:Through all of its incarnations, the mansion has often been the source of ghostly tales, moaning, phantom footsteps, flickering lights and sightings of apparitions.
j_1_10-20-2024_191513:Mm mm. Mm mm.
ryan_1_10-20-2024_191513:maybe next time you go to New Orleans, you'll just stick with the po boys and the beignets and leave the haunted mansions be.
j_1_10-20-2024_191513:I've done some research for New Orleans trips for clients, and that is always something that's on the list, so I guess it's a thing people like to do, but no thanks.
ryan_1_10-20-2024_191513:was surprised about this next one on the list, Julie.
j_1_10-20-2024_191513:Yeah, I agree. When I was reading through this, I was like, what's this doing on here? And this is a destination out in LA, and this is Griffith Park. So Griffith Park feels far away from the hustle and bustle of the LA that you think of. This is a place that you can lay a blanket, read a book, eat a lunch, hike a couple trails. It's refreshing, but apparently also cursed.
ryan_1_10-20-2024_191513:It's refreshing, but also cursed.
j_1_10-20-2024_191513:you know, Okay, so it's cursed because legend has it that a curse was placed on the land in 1863 by Dona Petronilla Feliz, the niece of the original landowner, who believed that she was the rightful heir to the land. Well, it's hard to say if, all the years of suffering out there, like drought and wildfires could be from a supernatural cause. The eventual owner, Griffith J. Griffith,
ryan_1_10-20-2024_191513:What a name.
j_1_10-20-2024_191513:donated the property to the city to rid himself of the tainted land after a particularly bad ostrich stampede.
ryan_1_10-20-2024_191513:We've got Nicholas Cage's house in New Orleans. We have an ostrich stampede in L. A.
j_1_10-20-2024_191513:apparently ghosts have been sighted here for decades, including the spirits of Peg and Twistle, the actress who jumped from the Hollywood sign to her death in 1932, and even James Dean, whose film Rebel Without a Cause was filmed at the Griffith Observatory. The strangest story, though, because it hasn't been weird enough.
ryan_1_10-20-2024_191513:yep.
j_1_10-20-2024_191513:Is that coyote like beast that stalks the park rumored to be a demon unleashed by the original curse.
ryan_1_10-20-2024_191513:Yikes.
j_1_10-20-2024_191513:I feel like so much of this I can picture being made up, but then you go there and you're like, Okay, never mind.
ryan_1_10-20-2024_191513:Alright, so our last one we're going to talk about is in Savannah, Georgia. guests of the Kehoe House have reported hearing children laughing, running, and playing in the hallways. A Queen Anne Brick Mansion designed for the owner William Kehoe in 1892 is one of Savannah's premier bed and breakfasts. So we have two bed and breakfasts on the list, so don't stay at bed and breakfasts, Julie. Thanks, Julie. It's also a former funeral home, which of course makes sense, right? With a creepy history of reported hauntings, some of the Kehoe children died in the house, including the twin boys who, as legend goes, were trapped while playing in the chimney. So part of the haunting is children laughing, running, playing in the hallways even when no children are present, especially in room 2 0 3. So make sure you and Steven request this room. Guests have claimed to have seen a child at the foot of the bed. Felt as if someone was kissing their cheek and touching their hand and watch lights go on and off all by themselves. These are some creepy destinations. Pretty much any type of place you want to go in the United States, there's going to be something creepy for you to check out if that's your travel style. So as we wrap up Julie, which of these sound most spooky to you?
j_1_10-20-2024_191513:there's like top two to me. Salem with the witch house. Of course, in Ohio, that prison, they're both just rooted in, little more legitimate history.
ryan_1_10-20-2024_191513:I get that. I get that.
j_1_10-20-2024_191513:Yeah.
ryan_1_10-20-2024_191513:I think a haunted mansion in New Orleans sounds pretty hardcore spooky to me. would you ever travel to see a place like this?
j_1_10-20-2024_191513:Nope.
ryan_1_10-20-2024_191513:I wouldn't either, but I'm we have listeners that would love to do that. if you want to make that trip, we would love to hear about it. and. Learn all about your creepy experiences when you travel to some of these haunted places in the United States.
j_1_10-20-2024_191513:You want to plan a trip to an amazing destination, like one of these spooky places we've talked about, but don't know how to get started? As your travel advisors, we work with you to create a customized itinerary for your vacation and take the stress of planning away so you can focus on the fun and creating memories. You can reach me at Julie at creatingmagicvacations. com.
ryan_1_10-20-2024_191513:You can reach me at Ryan at creating magic vacations. com. We look forward to talking to you next week on all things travel. when we discuss why travel makes the best holiday gift.
