It’s getting close to Halloween, so in the spirit of the holiday, we’ve decided to feature some Ghost Tours. These tours are usually done throughout the year and involve taking a night-time guided visit to eerie and reputedly haunted locations. The guides are good storytellers that will tell you tales of the gruesome past histories of these places and modern day paranormal activity that’s been created as a result.
I’ve been on one ghost tour myself – Edinburgh’s City of the Dead tour with Black Hart Entertainment, but we’ll also mention several other ghost tours that you might find suitably frightening or entertaining.
Edinburgh, Scotland, United Kingdom
Aside from being a wonderful city with a castle and some great festivals, Edinburgh is home to the Mackenzie Poltergeist. George Mackenzie was a 17th century lawyer and Lord Advocate who was known for his brutal persecution of the Scottish Presbyterian Covenanters. He gained the nickname “Bloody Mackenzie” after being responsible for the deaths of around 18,000 covenanters. He was buried in a mausoleum in the Greyfriars Kirkyard, also home to many of the covenanters that he persecuted. Greyfriars was featured on Fox’s Scariest Places on Earth.
In 1999, a homeless man broke into Mackenzie’s tomb to look for shelter on a rainy night. He fell through a hole in the floor and after regaining his breath realized he had fallen on a bed of corpses. He ran terrified and bleeding out of the tomb and ran into the caretaker, who thought a ghost or undead creature had come out of the tomb. They both ran screaming in different directions out of the graveyard. It is said that this disturbance awoke the Mackenzie Poltergeist, and since then there have been over 500 reported supernatural attacks, with over 200 people collapsing and others suffering unexplained bruises and cuts.
The Edinburgh Council thought it was best to close off this part of the graveyard, but the ghost tour company convinced them to allow them to lead groups of people into the tomb during these ghost tours. The above mentioned City of the Dead tour goes into Greyfriars and allows you to get into the Covenanter’s Prison as well as the Black Mausoleum which the Mackenzie Poltergeist is now said to haunt.
Edinburgh, Scotland, United Kingdom
Aside from being a wonderful city with a castle and some great festivals, Edinburgh is home to the Mackenzie Poltergeist. George Mackenzie was a 17th century lawyer and Lord Advocate who was known for his brutal persecution of the Scottish Presbyterian Covenanters. He gained the nickname “Bloody Mackenzie” after being responsible for the deaths of around 18,000 covenanters. He was buried in a mausoleum in the Greyfriars Kirkyard, also home to many of the covenanters that he persecuted. Greyfriars was featured on Fox’s Scariest Places on Earth.
In 1999, a homeless man broke into Mackenzie’s tomb to look for shelter on a rainy night. He fell through a hole in the floor and after regaining his breath realized he had fallen on a bed of corpses. He ran terrified and bleeding out of the tomb and ran into the caretaker, who thought a ghost or undead creature had come out of the tomb. They both ran screaming in different directions out of the graveyard. It is said that this disturbance awoke the Mackenzie Poltergeist, and since then there have been over 500 reported supernatural attacks, with over 200 people collapsing and others suffering unexplained bruises and cuts.
The Edinburgh Council thought it was best to close off this part of the graveyard, but the ghost tour company convinced them to allow them to lead groups of people into the tomb during these ghost tours. The above mentioned City of the Dead tour goes into Greyfriars and allows you to get into the Covenanter’s Prison as well as the Black Mausoleum which the Mackenzie Poltergeist is now said to haunt.
Beechworth, Australia
The Beechworth (Mayday Hills) Lunatic Asylum was a psychiatric hospital that operated from between 1867 to 1995. It held up to 1200 patients, and over 3000 people died within the asylum. You only needed two signatures to be committed, and eight to be released, so few people made it out alive. Many patients did suffer from mental illnesses (including addictions), but others were committed due to refusing to answer questions from authorities.
In the asylum, there have been reported ghost sightings of former workers as well as various patients that lived and died here. There are many unmarked graves of patients in the Beechworth cemetery, and for some unknown reason, patients were buried in the opposite direction from other people.
While the asylum site is used for one of La Trobe University’s campuses these days, you can also take a night-time ghost tour of the asylum with Beechworth Ghost Tours. You will be taken through the deserted halls of the old asylum and get a chance to experience the mysteries of the hospital and look in the wards. There are many stories and tales that the guides will tell you, and you’ll get a chance to imagine what life was like there over a century ago.
The Beechworth (Mayday Hills) Lunatic Asylum was a psychiatric hospital that operated from between 1867 to 1995. It held up to 1200 patients, and over 3000 people died within the asylum. You only needed two signatures to be committed, and eight to be released, so few people made it out alive. Many patients did suffer from mental illnesses (including addictions), but others were committed due to refusing to answer questions from authorities.
In the asylum, there have been reported ghost sightings of former workers as well as various patients that lived and died here. There are many unmarked graves of patients in the Beechworth cemetery, and for some unknown reason, patients were buried in the opposite direction from other people.
While the asylum site is used for one of La Trobe University’s campuses these days, you can also take a night-time ghost tour of the asylum with Beechworth Ghost Tours. You will be taken through the deserted halls of the old asylum and get a chance to experience the mysteries of the hospital and look in the wards. There are many stories and tales that the guides will tell you, and you’ll get a chance to imagine what life was like there over a century ago.
Prague, Czech Republic
While Prague is a beautiful city, the dark alleys of its old town contain many secrets and a long history. Part of Prague’s history involves violence. In fact, the term “defenestration” was created due to some incidents in Prague. Defenestration means the act of throwing someone out of a window, and one such incident in Prague involved throwing seven members of the town council out of the Town Hall to their deaths. The medieval core of Prague combined with its sometimes bloody history has created hauntings and a creepy atmosphere.
McGee’s Ghost Tours offers walks led by costumed guides through the cobbled and twisting streets of the gothic Old Town, and you will learn about some of the haunted theaters and churches, as well as the murders and paranormal activities that occurred as a result. One highlight is going into underground catacombs, with only your lanterns for light.
While Prague is a beautiful city, the dark alleys of its old town contain many secrets and a long history. Part of Prague’s history involves violence. In fact, the term “defenestration” was created due to some incidents in Prague. Defenestration means the act of throwing someone out of a window, and one such incident in Prague involved throwing seven members of the town council out of the Town Hall to their deaths. The medieval core of Prague combined with its sometimes bloody history has created hauntings and a creepy atmosphere.
McGee’s Ghost Tours offers walks led by costumed guides through the cobbled and twisting streets of the gothic Old Town, and you will learn about some of the haunted theaters and churches, as well as the murders and paranormal activities that occurred as a result. One highlight is going into underground catacombs, with only your lanterns for light.
Sydney, Australia
The Rocks are an old district of Sydney that was founded in the late 18th century, making it one of the oldest parts of Sydney. It has had a rough history, having been often frequented by sailors and prostitutes, dominated by the Rocks Push gang in the late 19th century and swept by the bubonic plague at the beginning of the 20th century. It is into this area that the tours will take you. Many of the original buildings still stands, and some of the lanes are cobble stoned from that period as well.
The Rocks Ghost Tours have broken up the Rocks experience into two parts – The Dark North Side and The Dark South Side. The two tours visit different locations within The Rocks and tell different stories. In either case, you will hear stories of the murders, hangings, and treacherous dealings that went on in this area, as well as visit haunted houses and other locales.
The Rocks are an old district of Sydney that was founded in the late 18th century, making it one of the oldest parts of Sydney. It has had a rough history, having been often frequented by sailors and prostitutes, dominated by the Rocks Push gang in the late 19th century and swept by the bubonic plague at the beginning of the 20th century. It is into this area that the tours will take you. Many of the original buildings still stands, and some of the lanes are cobble stoned from that period as well.
The Rocks Ghost Tours have broken up the Rocks experience into two parts – The Dark North Side and The Dark South Side. The two tours visit different locations within The Rocks and tell different stories. In either case, you will hear stories of the murders, hangings, and treacherous dealings that went on in this area, as well as visit haunted houses and other locales.
New Orleans, United States
New Orleans was founded by the French in 1718 and didn’t become part of the United States until 1803. It has the most unique character of the major American cities, and is contains the famed French Quarter. The French Quarter contains many buildings from the late 18th/early 19th centuries, a period where New Orleans was under Spanish rule. In the French Quarter’s long and storied history, there have also been periods of vice and strife.
Haunted History Tours offers New Orleans Ghost tours that examine the dark history of the French Quarter. You’ll visit a haunted bar as well as hear stories about the slaves that were secretly kept at the infamous LaLaurie House, which became haunted after their deaths. There’s certainly a lot to find out about the French Quarter.
New Orleans was founded by the French in 1718 and didn’t become part of the United States until 1803. It has the most unique character of the major American cities, and is contains the famed French Quarter. The French Quarter contains many buildings from the late 18th/early 19th centuries, a period where New Orleans was under Spanish rule. In the French Quarter’s long and storied history, there have also been periods of vice and strife.
Haunted History Tours offers New Orleans Ghost tours that examine the dark history of the French Quarter. You’ll visit a haunted bar as well as hear stories about the slaves that were secretly kept at the infamous LaLaurie House, which became haunted after their deaths. There’s certainly a lot to find out about the French Quarter.
Source : http://blog.geckogo.com/2010/10/5-of-the-worlds-scariest-ghost-tours/
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