Scare up a few spirits and have some spooky fun the whole family will enjoy on one of these ghost tours.
Fall in L.A. is one of the best times of the year. The air begins to cool, the leaves begin to change, and the ghosts come out to play! In a city with such a vibrant and storied history, it’s no surprise there are haunts and ghosts lurking in the darkest corners. Once Halloween rolls around, the spirits are ready to come out of the shadows, and what better way to check them out than on one of the 10 best ghost tours in the L.A. area?
We’ve rounded up a list of the spookiest, most haunted ghost tours Los Angeles and its surrounding areas have to offer, suitable for the whole family or just older kids and adults. (Need child care? Find a babysitter or nanny.) Whether you’re looking for a howling good time for the kids or you want to experience some adults-only frights, these tours of historically haunted places will give you a chance to experience the darker side of the city — and maybe even spot a ghost or two! Grab your camera and a flashlight, and prepare to be spooked!
Calico Ghost Tour
Address: 36600 Ghost Town Road, Yermo, CA 92398
Phone: 760-254-3719
Schedule: Saturday nights year-round | Check the website, as tour times vary.
Cost: Adults 10+, $12 | Kids ages 5-10, $6 | Kids ages 4 & under, free
Suitable For: All ages
Have you ever wanted to walk around an actual ghost town? Calico is located about an hour and a half outside of L.A., but it’s definitely worth the drive. It’s an Old West mining town that’s been around since 1881, full of abandoned mines and creepy buildings and outposts. Legend has it that the schoolhouse and Maggie Mine are both ripe with paranormal activity, and both are included on the nighttime walking tour. Make sure to wear comfortable walking shoes, as the terrain can vary greatly. The desert nights can get pretty chilly, so you’ll want to dress the family in layers.
Ghost Tours of Catalina
Address: 228 Metropole Ave., Avalon, CA 90704
Phone: 310-502-6131
Schedule: Every night at 8 p.m. | Daytime tours booked by appointment only.
Cost: Adults, $20 | Kids ages 12 & under, $15
Suitable For: All ages
Voted one of the 10 best ghost tours in the country, Ghost Tours of Catalina will introduce you to the dark corners of beautiful Avalon, California.This walking tour leads you through the historic village where some of the most famous landmarks on Catalina Island are rumored to be haunted, like the Saint Catherine Hotel and the Casino building. Many people have even claimed to see the ghost of Zane Gray along the Via Casino walkway! Gray was a prolific Western writer who spent summers on Catalina with his family. Their compound was transformed into the Zane Gray Pueblo Hotel after his death in 1939, and it remained open until 2014. Tour guides recommend participants bring their own fully charged digital cameras, which are sensitive to the infrared spectrum for catching paranormal activity.
The Queen Mary: Haunted Encounters & Twilight
Address: 1126 Queens Highway, Long Beach, CA 90802
Phone: 877-342-0738
Schedule:
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Haunted Encounters run daily at 12:30 p.m., 2:30 p.m., 4:30 p.m., & 6:30 p.m.
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Dining With the Spirits: Friday & Saturday, 7 p.m.
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Paranormal Investigating Aboard the Queen Mary: Friday & Saturday, 11 p.m. | Sunday, 10 p.m.
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Paranormal Ship Walk: Sunday – Thursday, 8 p.m. – 10 p.m. | Friday & Saturday, 9:30 p.m. – 11:30 p.m.
Cost:
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Haunted Encounters Tour included with Queen Mary admission. Prices start at $17.50 for children and $27 for adults. | Click here for details.
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Dining with the Spirits, $134 per person (includes 3-course dinner)
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Paranormal Investigating Aboard the Queen Mary, $79
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Paranormal Ship Walk, $44
Suitable For: Haunted Encounters are OK for all ages. Twilight events are for ages 16 and up. Parental guidance is strongly recommended.
As far as haunted places go in L.A., they don’t get much spookier than the Queen Mary. After the ship docked in its permanent home in Long Beach in 1967, the stories and legends about its ghostly passengers and creepy tales have taken on a life of their own, and much of the popularity in recent years comes from the ghost tours and haunted attractions the ship puts on for guests. Haunted Encounters takes place during daylight and is great for the whole family. You’ll tour the ship inside and out, see all of its most famous haunted hot spots, and learn about some of its ghastly permanent residents, like the infamous “Lady in White.”
When the sun goes down, the ghosts come out, and it gets pretty creepy! Fans of the paranormal will love the more mature events the ship puts on when it gets dark. Dine on a deluxe three-course meal before taking a tour of the ship’s most haunted spots, explore parts of the ship not open to the public with the help of a trained paranormal investigator, or take a walk around all of the most haunted places on the ship and see for yourself if ghosts really do exist! Due to the nature of some of the subject matter, these tours aren’t recommended for kids under 16. But older kids and adults are sure to enjoy the scares!
Santa Monica Ghost Tours
Address: Tours start at the Craftsman Kitchen and Bar, 119 Broadway, Santa Monica, CA 90401.
Phone: 424-299-4441
Schedule: Friday – Sunday, 9 p.m. (and some Mondays) | Check calendar for availability, as some dates may be blacked out.
Cost: Adults, $35 | Kids 12 & under, $15
Suitable For: All ages
It’s no secret that the pier and bluffs overlooking Santa Monica Bay are some of L.A.’s most beautiful treasures. But could they also be haunted? That’s the question the tour guides with Santa Monica Ghost Tours aim to answer. With the history behind those beach landmarks, it shouldn’t be a surprise that there are spooky stories and legends about spirits haunting the area. The guides who will lead you on this nighttime walking tour all have backgrounds in education and parapsychology, so if there are ghosts, they will find them! This tour isn’t too scary for kids, but it does last about two hours, and you’ll be walking for at least a mile, so keep that in mind when considering whether to bring along very small children.
Watson Adventures Scavenger Hunts
Address: Haunted scavenger hunts offered in Hollywood & at the Getty Center
Schedule: See calendar for dates and times
Cost: $21.50
Suitable For: Adults only
Why not combine the fun of a group scavenger hunt with the spooky history of some of L.A.’s most famous ghost haunts? This adults-only adventure will take you around Hollywood or help you explore the macabre art history at the Getty. Learn about the ghost that haunts the Hollywood sign, or hear a few of the truly ghoulish history lessons behind some of the most recognizable art displayed at the Getty. You’ll be on a team of six with a map and clues. The winning team gets medals and bragging rights for being the creepiest! Hunts are added every month, so make sure to check the schedule regularly to find one to join.
Downtown L.A. Walking Tours Haunted Tales
Address: Tours meet at 424 N. Main St., Los Angeles, CA 90012
Phone: 213-399-3820
Schedule: Tuesday, Thursday, & Saturday, 6:30 p.m.
Cost: Adults, $17 | Kids ages 12 & under, free
Suitable For: Children are welcome, but parental guidance is strongly recommended due to the graphic subject matter.
Experience the dark side of downtown L.A. with this walking tour of all the creepiest spots. You’ll hear ghost stories and unexplained tales that make up the storied history of DTLA and see where some of our most famous ghosts call home. Learn about the Haunting of Pio Pico and the Chinatown Massacre of 1871, and get some of the gory details on the Black Dahlia Mystery, L.A.’s most famous unsolved murder. This tour can get pretty disturbing, so while kids are welcome to participate, we suggest leaving the little ones at home and saving this experience for older kids.
San Gabriel Ghost Seekers
Address: 250 S. Mission Drive, San Gabriel, CA 91776
Phone: 626-627-1057
Schedule: Saturday, 7 p.m. – 9 p.m. (beginning Aug. 26)
Cost: $15
Suitable For: Adults and kids 12+
San Gabriel Ghost Seekers is a local group of friends who love teaching others about the history and hauntings behind some of San Gabriel’s spookiest places. The walking tour takes you around the San Gabriel Mission museum and church and even into the cemetery. You’ll learn all about local folklore and some of the spirits and paranormal activity rumored to take place. If you’ve got a hankering for all things haunted and want to learn more about some of L.A.’s lesser-known ghost hangouts, this tour is right up your alley. The creep factor and late hour make this one best saved for older kids.
Haunted Hollywood Bus Tour
Address: Tours start at Starline Bus terminal, outside TCL Chinese Theater, 6925 Hollywood Blvd., Los Angeles, CA 90028
Phone: 800-959-3131
Schedule: Friday & Saturday, 6:30 p.m.
Cost: Adults, $50 | Kids ages 3-11, $40
Suitable For: All ages
No list of ghost tours in L.A. would be complete without including one of the most memorable tours around, the Starline Bus Tour! Hop on one of their iconic double-decker buses and hit up all the most haunted spots on Hollywood. From the Roosevelt Hotel — said to be haunted by the spirit of Marilyn Monroe, to the Halloween House — made famous by the 1978 classic horror film “Halloween”, you’ll see all the spookiest places in the city. This is a great tour for kids of all ages because it’s spent riding on the bus and there is very little walking. Plus, the subject matter is kept PG for the younger riders.
Dearly Departed Tours
Address: 5901 Santa Monica Blvd., Los Angeles, CA 90038
Phone: 855-600-DEAD (3323)
Schedule: Tragical History Tour, daily at noon | Helter Skelter, Saturday at 9 a.m.
Cost: Tragical History Tour, $50 | Helter Skelter, $75
Suitable For: Tragical History Tour not recommended for kids under 12 | Helter Skelter not recommended for kids
No ghost tour in L.A. comes close to the level of gore and macabre offered by Dearly Departed Tours and Museums. These tours are strictly for older kids and adults, as both are centered around some of the most famous (and infamous) celebrity deaths and hauntings in the history of the city. The Tragical History Tour is a multimedia bus tour that takes you to some of the homes and locations in Hollywood, Beverly Hills, and the Sunset Strip where stars met their often untimely demises. The Helter Skelter tour is all about the Sharon Tate and LaBianca murders, carried out by the Manson cult. These tours are not for the squeamish, but they are full of some of the dark, seedy history that makes L.A. the perfect city for ghost hunting.
