I was wicked excited to head up north to experience Salem, Massachusetts, 3 days before Halloween. My inspiration was, of course, myself…while doing my Fall Foliage post, I realized I had hardly explored the New England Territory.  I messaged one of my dear friends, pleading to not only stay with her but to drive me around and show me what Salem has to offer. It took no time before she was convinced that one day in a haunted witch town was all we needed. Plans were set, costumes were being made and my excitement was now on a new level.

Before we get to the real shit we did, I need to recognize my wonderfully, talented friend Brooke who designed some kick ass hats for us to wear. Let’s all take a moment and appreciate her brilliant work.

Please feel free to ooooohhhhh, ahhhhhhh and ask because she will be selling these next year!

As heavy as they look, the hats were surprisingly light and easy to wear all day 

Now the good stuff…here is our one day spooky, spontaneous, Salem adventure…

Walk the streets

Just walking down the roads you will find lots of fun things to snap pictures with!! My favorite being this huge art installation of some tumbleweed lookin’ shit. Aside from the children jumping all over it, these were the perfect selfie backdrop. Salem might be known for its “out of the ordinary” exhibits and by simply going around on foot, you will stumble upon everything it has to offer. During this time, we ran across a street fair filled with lots of greasy carnival food and extra sweet drinks which was cool to see, but I don’t ever trust those half-assed rides with this precious life, no ma’am.

Before I made the journey to this haunted town, I saw online that if you follow the red line painted on the ground, it will take you to all the major highlights of the city. We didn’t do this, but I’m sure it’s true and if you don’t like just going with the flow then I suggest you try it! (and then let me know how it goes)

This little town in itself is beautiful in the fall, so if witchy shit isn’t really your style, you can enjoy the colorful foliage and quaint houses that line the streets. (but really, who comes here for anything other than the witch stuff?)

 Hunt for Witch Shops

The beauty of Salem is that the town itself is not that big. Easily walkable which allows you to stumble upon shops and stores. We hit up almost every single store in that entire city, meeting locals, finding potions and learning about the witch culture.

Some favorites included:

• Crow Haven Corner The oldest Witch Shop in the city. The ladies were extremely sweet in here and the first ones to really push Brooke to sell her amazing hats. Business and pleasure in this place 😉
• Hex Old World Witchery- This place had everything from herbs to candles, to spell books and voodoo dolls. I know a couple of people I wouldn’t mind sticking some pins in. 
• Wynott’s Wands- For all my Harry Potter fans out there, this is the Diagon Alley of Salem. A large display of wands that goes all the way to the ceiling. Makes you feel like you are standing in Ollivander’s Wand Shop!

Go to Salem Witch Museum

Yes, witches, we all know I hate, highly dislike museums, and honestly thought this would be a boring walk through where you had to read plaques and actually pay attention to things. Hallelujah, it wasn’t like that at all. Well, it is a little like that, but you get brought into a huge room where you are given a visual representation and audio show on all the events during the Salem Witch Trials. I very much enjoyed it and recommend it to anyone! During peak time though, buy tickets ahead of time and make reservations for shows because the lines will be long. You also aren’t allowed to snap pictures inside but I never listen to the rules.

 Eat a good lunch

This goes for any place in the world you visit…but just to be clear, we had a very nice lunch at Salem Beer Works. Nothing fancy and fairly priced, this was the perfect place to get our drink on before walking (or stumbling) around all day. Tv’s line the bar area if you need to leave your nagging husbands inside somewhere. As any smart person would do, we got some food and washed it down with plenty of mimosas. My recommendation? POTATO BACON CHEDDAR SPRING ROLLS. Yes, they are just as good as they sound, like a mouth orgasm or something. Try them!

Get a Tarot or Psychic Reading

I keep it real with y’all on every single post I do, so just know I tell you these things to learn from my mistakes kkkkkkkkk? I have gotten readings in the past, in a very professional environment and I swear that lady knew me like the back of her hand. In my eyes, Salem would be the perfect place to give this another go. Well, Brooke and I looked up “Best place for reading in Salem” and found Magika. Before you crazy witches start gettin ya stories mixed up, the lady who has 5 stars at this place was not there. We got another lady but assumed that her work was just as good considering the number of reviews.

It was getting later in the day we both scheduled a reading. Tarot Reading to be exact. I’m no psychic, but damn, when a lady pulls out 10 different cards and interprets “You are heading in the right direction” for each card, you start to wonder WTF she’s doing. Not only was the reading painfully boring, but I started to get anxious by how scatterbrained she was. I do remember her saying one small thing that seemed true, but obviously, it wasn’t that important since I have no idea what that was. Regardless, I am sure she was just having an off day, or life…but do some research (not the day of) before you go!

Go to the cemetery

Or even a run down house while you’re at it. Or what about a run down house beside a cemetery? This town is made for the daring and bold, and don’t think of it as morbid, the cemeteries are beautiful here. And those old run down looking houses? Way more character and story behind it than some new construction type of place. These little details all over the city make it that much more intriguing. Leaving a lot to the imagination. Don’t be afraid!

 Visit The Witch Dungeon Museum

 Sooooo, we didn’t actually get to do this. When walking around the city we lost track of time and this place closed at 5, bummer. I have no idea if you would like it or not but figured I’d at least let you know it was there! 🙂 That’s definitely something to keep in mind when traveling anywhere. Be aware of closing times and judge your leisurely items like lunch and dinner on that!

 Visit the Hocus Pocus House

Ohhh, the nostalgia of this movie. I remember watching it growing up, always my favorite thing to do around Halloween. It’s funny because looking back now, the production and special effects are so shitty compared to that today, but nonetheless, still a classic! This was the last thing we did before heading back to Boston. It was pouring rain and really dark but I just so happened to snap an eerie picture of it. I think someone might live there??

Whatcha think witches?? For having no real set plan, but wandering the streets of Salem, I’d say we did pretty damn good! You might want to go to different places or explore other shops, but regardless just have fun. The city is small enough to enjoy in one day…I went the Thursday before Halloween which made it very calm compared to the weekend activities starting on Friday. If a crazy party is what you are looking for then definitely plan on going then. Otherwise, the whole month of October offers spooky treats for everyone.

Have you been to Salem? Does the city thrive off of Halloween or is it completely different once the holiday is over? Let me know!

xo Bonvoyage Witches