Places which are haunted

The postcard-perfect hotel still welcomes guests to the heart of Banff National Park. This lighthouse became infamous during the Civil War when the light was removed to disrupt Union shipping — just part of the structure's long, and sometimes tragic, history. However, visitors have reported seeing the friendly ghost of a lighthouse keeper there.

Today, you can visit the lighthouse during the day or take a ghost tour at night. This West Village establishment is a New York City treasure, but some of the guests who frequent it may not be totally of this plane. The restaurant was once the carriage house of Aaron Burr, and it is rumored that his ghost still haunts the place. Many historic people have called the Tower of London their final resting place. The infamous fortress has been steeped in tragedy for over years, and it's home to many ghostly sightings of English royalty, including Anne Boleyn and Mary, Queen of Scots.

This tower is a must for anyone visiting London, but ghost hunters will also want to look out for any apparitions during their visit. One of America's most haunted sites, this plantation is reportedly home to at least 12 different ghosts, including that of William Winter, who was murdered in the house.

Over 24 acres of gardens make Tao Dan Park look like a paradise, but at night, locals have reported that the space takes on a different feel. Rumors say that the ghost of a young man who was killed in an attack still wanders the park, looking for his lost love. Borgvattnet is a small village in northern Sweden, known for having one of the most haunted houses in the country, the old vicarage.

Inhabitants of the home have reported a number of sightings, including a lady in gray, as well as unexplained sounds and moving objects. The house now serves as an inn and restaurant.

After the death of her husband, rifle magnate William Wirt Winchester, Sarah Winchester commissioned this dizzying labyrinth of a house in order to keep safe from vengeful spirits killed by her husband's guns. The home has four stories, rooms, 10, panes of glass, and 47 stairways — some of which go nowhere at all. There are several house tours available, including a spooky All Hallows' Eve tour. Many big-name celebrities have stayed at this old hotel since , so there's bound to be a ghost haunting the hallways.

Some of the most famous tales surrounding the property include two honeymooning women who took their own lives in the same room 20 years apart. The downtown Austin hotel still welcomes guests today. This medieval castle served as a defensive stronghold for the city of Oslo, and it is rumored to be the most haunted place in Norway. The most popular sightings include a demon dog named Malcanisen, who is said to guard the gates to the castle, and the ghost of a woman with no facial features, named Mantelgeisten.

It's free to visit the castle , so ghost-chasing travelers will want to check it out when they're in Oslo. This giant fortress originally served as a replenishment station for ships in the Dutch East India Company. Some of the most famous ghosts to wander the grounds include a tall man seen walking the ramparts and a "Gray Lady" seen crying in the halls.

Visitors can still tour the fortress to learn more about South African history. The Paris Catacombs are truly spooky, with the remains of more than six million people located in the underground tunnels.

You can still tour some of the tunnels today, but be warned, as they're not for the faint of heart. There are stories about a big black cat, the size of a dog who took on a priest and haunts the lodge. The most regular ghostly visitor is a young lady, believed to have been placed in a barrel, set on fire and rolled down the hill for fun.

Current situation: The Hell fire club is a popular stopping point on a walking trail through the Dublin Hills. Ghost tours of the site are also available, with extra tours running for the week of Halloween. The ghosts: There's a bride who fell down the staircase breaking her neck after panicking when her dress caught fire.

She is often seen in the ballroom dancing, with the flames coming from the back of her dress. A family were murdered in room The door to this room has since been bricked up, but the family can still be seen in the hallway outside the room. And former bellman, Sam Macauley who served at the hotel during the '60s and '70s still likes helping guests up to their rooms, dressed in his '60s uniform.

If you try to tip him or make conversation, he disappears. Learn more about Banff Springs Hotel. Is Poveglia Island the scariest in the world?

Well, we wouldn't be too surprised if it was The site: In the Venice Lagoon between Venice and Lido, this small island was a place where mainlanders fled to seek refuge from invaders. In the 14th century Venetians infected by the Bubonic plague were sent here to die — and, when they died, they were burned on giant pyres. The site was also used as a mental asylum during the s where patients were experimented on and tortured. The ghosts: Ask a local and they will tell you the island is full of ghosts and cursed with unhealthy spirits.

Voices and screams are often heard, and visitors have reported seeing dark, fleeting shadows. Many visitors say they begin to feel an oppressive evil feeling as soon as they step on the island. Current situation: Despite nearly being auctioned off to an entrepreneur, the island remains totally abandoned and off bounds to most visitors.

Watch the story of Poveglia Island here. Taking inspiration from the works of British writer Jeremy Bentham, this panopticon-style prison block thrived on completely isolating prisoners to a torturous degree. Conditions were so unbearable that countless inmates would murder their fellow prisoners. They'd rather face the death penalty than spend another minute there. The ghosts: Hundreds of hooded inmates are said to wander the halls at night, a handful of the thousand people buried in the unmarked burial ground.

Current situation: Port Arthur is a now a historic site museum open to the public. Learn more about the Separate Prison. The site: Located in the Recoleta neighbourhood of Buenos Aires, the Cementerio de la Recoleta is regarded as one of the most beautiful cemeteries in the world.

First built in , it is full of ornately-designed tombs, elaborate sculptures and mature shady trees. The ghosts: There are reportedly multiple spirits wandering the grid-like aisles of Recoleta. One of the most famous stories is of Rufina Cambaceres, a wealthy year-old woman, the daughter of a beloved Argentine author.

Urban legend states that heavy rain postponed her burial. When the groundskeeper returned to the tomb to lay her to rest once the weather cleared, he found Rufina's coffin lid ajar, with scratch marks on the inside. The legend goes that she had been buried alive, and woke in her coffin after suffering a case of 'catalepsy'. If you hear a jangling noise in the breeze, they may be the ghostly keys of David Alleno, a gravedigger who worked at the cemetery for 30 years.

He killed himself at the cemetery, allegedly after his tomb was completed, and was buried on site. Current situation: While still a functioning graveyard, Cementerio de la Recoleta remains a popular destination for locals and tourist alike. Pick up a map at the entrance to help you negotiate your way around the 6, graves. Learn more about Cementerio de la Recoleta. Some say it was because of tribal conflicts, whole others blame the changing tides.

The most popular theory is that the residents were driven away by ghosts. The ghosts: Local legend has it that the ruins are haunted by malicious djinns who wander the dirt roads of the town disguised as animals. Built around , the acre Raynham Hall is one of the most impressive estates in Norfolk.

As is the case with most historic buildings, the home also has its fair share of legends and ghost stories, most notably ones surrounding Lady Dorothy "Dolly" Townshend. Dolly was the wife of Viscount "Turnip" Townshend, and the couple lived in Raynham Hall during the 18th century, during which time Dolly was reportedly locked up in the house by her husband.

Lady Dorothy's ghost is now said to haunt the estate, as "proven" by a photo taken of her in the s. The house has housed many other famous figures over the years, including Queen Elizabeth, Winston Churchill, and Marlene Dietrich, plus a handful of British ambassadors. It was one such ambassador who first experienced " The White Lady ," a ghost who many believe to be a victim of suicide.

The phantom lady apparently caused so much panic and distress, the ambassador persuaded the British Foreign office to sell the house immediately. No trip to Beijing is complete without a visit to the Forbidden City , China's former imperial palace that now serves as a museum. But you might not know that the popular tourist destination has quite the reputation among supernatural enthusiasts. During its year tenure as a palace, the complex had its fair share of murders, whether from jealous concubines poisoning one another or executions performed at the emperor's behest.

Needless to say, there have been many reports of strange phenomena since the palace opened to the public in the s. The most common story involves a woman dressed in white as most good ghost stories do strolling around the grounds and sobbing. During that time, it was the site of at least one murder, a sailor being crushed to death by a door in the engine room, and children drowning in the pool.

The city of Long Beach purchased the ship in and turned it into a hotel, and it still serves that purpose today—although the reported ghosts of the deceased passengers get to stay for free. For an extra dose of spine-tingling experiences, try and visit the ship's engine room, considered by many to be a "hotbed" of paranormal activity.

Built some time between the 13th and late 15th century, this Irish castle has seen more gruesome deaths than a Game of Thrones wedding. As legend has it, during a struggle for power within the O'Carroll clan which had a fondness for poisoning dinner guests , one member plunged a sword into his brother—a priest—as he was holding mass in the castle's chapel.

The room is now called "The Bloody Chapel," and the priest is said to haunt the church at night. The horror doesn't end there—at least not according to the macabre history outlined on Leap Castle's website.

During renovations in the early s, workmen found a secret dungeon in the Bloody Chapel with so many human skeletons, they filled three cartloads when hauled away. The dungeon was designed so that prisoners would fall through a trap door, have their lungs punctured by wooden spikes on the ground, and die a slow, horrific death within earshot of the sinister clan members above.

A sprawling building near the shoreline of Table Bay, the Castle of Good Hope dates back to , making it the oldest colonial building in South Africa. Originally built by the Dutch East India Company as a replenishment station for ships, the site also served as a military fortress and prison during the Second Boer War from to Today, you can tour the fort's many rooms and buildings including the gruesome torture chamber but you might want to prepare yourself for a ghost sighting.

Back in the s, Governor Pieter van Noodt condemned several men to be hanged to death; one of the men cursed the governor from the gallows, and van Noodt died of a heart attack later that day. According to the Castle of Good Hope's official website , his ghost has been haunting the battlements ever since.

Crumlin Road Gaol, a Victorian-era prison in Belfast, is said to be one of the most haunted sites in Ireland. Often referred to Europe's Alcatraz, the jail contained some 25, inmates men, women, and children during its years of operation, publicly hung many prisoners, and buried their bodies within the prison walls.

The institution officially shut its doors in , but the ghosts of deceased inmates are said to still roam the iron walkways today. If this sounds like the sort of place you want to spend time in, you're in luck—Crumlin Road Gaol offers daily tours , live concerts, and reasonably priced meals at its in-house in-prison?

It even serves as a venue for conferences and Less than half a mile from the canals of Venice , Poveglia Island has served as a quarantine zone for bubonic plague victims, storage space for Napoleon's weapons, and the site of an early 20th-century insane asylum. The asylum played host to horrific medical experiments, reports The Travel Channel , and finally closed for good when a doctor threw himself off the institution's bell tower.

Locals still claim to hear echoing chimes from the island—even though the bell was removed decades ago. It's illegal to visit Poveglia today, but you can see the island and decaying hospital safely from the beaches of nearby Lido.

After a prolonged bout of heavy rains flooded and unearthed the overcrowded Les Innocents cemetery in the spring of , a wave of rotting corpses tumbled onto the property next door. According to Smithsonian Mag , this horrifying event started a year project to move bodies from Paris's cemeteries down into the city's former limestone quarries, eventually packing the underground tunnels with some 6 million bodies.

Today, about a mile of the subterranean labyrinth is open to visitors , who can take tours of the tunnels and artfully arranged displays of bones. Larnach was built between and to serve as the residence of William Larnach, a prominent local politician. Most notable is a 3,square-foot ballroom, which Larnach had built as a 21st birthday present for his favorite daughter Kate, who later died of typhoid at age 26, and is said to still haunt the ballroom.

Built in , England's Ancient Ram Inn has played many roles over the centuries: a former priest's residence, housing for masons and slaves, an inn, and a public house. It also happens to be one seriously haunted spot.

Visitors claim to see their apparitions wandering the corridors and hear mischievous whispers in abandoned cell blocks. Related: See eerie pictures inside a Namibian ghost town. How to Visit: Eastern State Penitentiary offers daytime tours year-round, as well as special events.

This retired ocean liner sailed the Atlantic Ocean from to At the conclusion of the war, it was restored to its former glory and traversed the Atlantic for nearly two more decades. On Halloween , the Queen Mary departed on its last cruise, eventually docking in Long Beach, California , its final resting place. The ship is reportedly haunted by the spirits of those who died aboard, including the young sailor crushed to death by a door in the engine room and a crew member murdered in cabin B Follow in the footsteps of its famous passengers and book a room in Return next year during the Halloween season to join the ghouls, spirits, and undead aboard the Queen Mary when it transforms into the frightening Halloween attraction, Dark Harbor.

On August 4, , the bodies of Andrew and Abby Borden were discovered bludgeoned beyond recognition in their home. The prime suspect: their youngest daughter, Lizzie. Despite growing public scrutiny and allegations that Lizzie had financial motives for the murder, she was ultimately acquitted due to lack of physical evidence and no one was ever charged for the murders. The Borden home has since been converted into a museum and bed-and-breakfast, where guests can see gruesome photos of the crime scene and sleep in one of its reportedly haunted rooms.

Related: These ghost towns may suprise you. The museum offers daily tours and a gift shop that sells spooky souvenirs, like an ax-wielding Lizzie Borden bobblehead doll. In , Massachusetts couple F. According to staff, Mrs. Stanley can be heard playing her Steinway piano in the music room at night, and Mr.

Stanley occasionally shows up in photographs. Too spooked to spend the night? Book a day tour or brave the tour at nighttime.