For some, Halloween is just another holiday.
For others, it’s something to seriously celebrate, with hauntings, eerie stories and spooky decorations.
Both residents and tourists can get in the spirit with one of the area’s numerous ghost tours.
Here’s the rundown on the different tours, in no particular order:
Official Colonial Williamsburg Ghost Walk
The Colonial Williamsburg Foundation offers three official ghost tours for different age levels.
The Colonial Williamsburg Ghost Walk one-hour tour is recommended for ages 8 and older, and includes a walk through Historic Area streets and gardens and stories of “unnerving experiences” from employees, residents and guests. The stories cover lost love, murder, betrayal and more.
There is also an official “junior” ghost walk for children ages 4 to 7.
The third ghost tour, Ghosts Among Us, is for ages 13 and older and the only tour that goes inside the historic buildings.
Some tours run nightly. Visit the Colonial Williamsburg website for more information.
Cost: Prices vary by tour and age, from $7 to $18.
The Original Ghost Tour
The Original Ghost Tour offers five different tours in the area: three walking routes, one river tour and one carriage tour.
The walking tours vary by both location and theme. In Williamsburg, one uses ghost-hunting equipment to “hear” the spirits in the area, while the other features spooky stories. A third tour covers historic Yorktown with a 90-minute candlelight tour.
The Haunted River Cruise of Jamestown Island, the only river cruise ghost tour on the James River, tells stories about the island’s English Settlement in the early 1600s.
The carriage tour is adult-only and covers murder stories in Williamsburg.
For more information, visit the Original Ghost Tour website.
Cost: Prices vary by tour and age, from $10 to $25
Colonial Ghosts
Colonial Ghosts has tours through local cemeteries, traditional ghost tours, ghost hunts with equipment and a late-night “ultimate” ghost tour.
The basic ghost tour is one hour, starting at 8 and 9 p.m. and covers the streets of Colonial Williamsburg. The Ultimate Ghost Tour starts at 10 p.m. and covers additional locations and new stories.
Details can be found at the Colonial Ghosts website.
Cost: Prices vary by age, tour and season, but typically range from $10 to $21
Williamsburg Ghost Tour
Like Colonial Ghosts, the Williamsburg Ghost Tour offers traditional ghost tours and ultimate ghost tours.
The Ultimate Ghost Tour starts at 10 p.m. The other ghost tours are earlier, at 8 and 9 p.m.
Get more information on the Williamsburg Ghost Tour website.
Cost: Prices vary by age, tour and season, but typically range from $10 to $21.
Spooks & Legends
Spooks & Legends offers two tours, as well as a combination tour that features elements from both.
The Dead of Night Ghost Tour is led by costumed tour guides in 18th-century clothing. It focuses on ghosts, not history, and is interactive. During the fall, the tour runs Friday and Saturday only.
The second Spooks & Legends tour is the Witches & Pirates Tour, covering gruesome details of the witch trials and stories of Blackbeard and his crew. During the fall, the witches and pirates tour runs Friday and Saturday only.
More information is on the Spooks & Legends website.
Cost: One tour ticket is $14. The combination tour is $20.
AxWild Ghost Tours
AxWild’s Williamsburg ghost tours are led by a retired William & Mary employee.
The tours include history on Williamsburg’s politics, history, feuds, family life and more. The tours run through November.
Tour dates can be found on the AxWild online calendar.
Cost: Prices range from $10 to $20.
Williamsburg Walking Tours
Williamsburg Walking Tours offers a handful of themed tours throughout the year in Williamsburg, including Christmas, history and more.
The one-hour, lantern-lit Ghostly Tales walking tour visits sites in the Historic Area. Tour guides will “spin” historical ghost stories.
Visit the Williamsburg Walking Tours website for more information.Cost: $12.
