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Salem Halloween 2024: Updates from the Witch City
We'll share photos, videos, and stories from Salem during Halloween week.
After a jam-packed month full of spooky activities in the historic city of Salem, Halloween is finally here.
Salem, famous for the 1692 Salem Witch Trials, welcomes more than 1 million visitors in October for its Haunted Happenings festival, and the Essex Street Pedestrian Mall is “like a magnet” for tourists, a local business owner recently told Boston.com.
Whether you’re visiting Salem for the first time or you’re a returning guest, our 2024 Halloween season in Salem guide will give you all the information you need to make the most of your experience.
Be sure to check back throughout Halloween week as we add photos, videos, and updates covering everything from the costumes to the crowds in what’s billed as the largest celebration of Halloween in the world.
What it’s like on Essex Street Halloween
It is obvious that the nighttime Halloween crowd in Salem has arrived. The costumes are elaborate and the lines at the shops, attractions, and restaurants are long.
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Check out some video and photos from Essex Street and around Salem.
The best Halloween costumes in Salem (Oct. 31)
Check out some of the costumes we spotted in Salem this year.
Salem visitors traveled from near and far this Halloween (Oct. 31)
The historic city of Salem draws fans from around the country and world on Halloween. Need proof? Check out some of the license plates we spotted in the South Harbor Garage alone:
- Quebec
- Ontario
- Texas
- Washington
- Illinois
- Missouri
- Maryland
- Florida
- Georgia
- Virginia
- Ohio
- Michigan
- South Dakota
- New York
- New Jersey
- Pennsylvania
- Maine
- Massachusetts
- Connecticut
- Rhode Island
- New Hampshire
Revelers share the best thing about being in Salem on Halloween (Oct. 31)
“The crowds. The festivities. The people. The Halloween vibe you get. If you want to feel Halloween, go to Salem.” — Daniele Spiezia of South Plainfield, N.J.
“The best costumes in the world.” — Abid Hossain, 24, from Dallas
“The ambiance. We like witches.” — Kasey August, 24, of Allenstown, N.H.
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“There’s no better place to be on Halloween.” — Ken Costa, 60, of New Bedford
“The spooky vibe.” — Jessica Cabrejos, 22, from Dallas
“The environment.” — Kami Eller, 16, from Tennessee
Flipping out on Essex Street (Oct. 31)
A large and enthusiastic crowd gathered around a high-energy show by Breeze Team Entertainment on Essex Street on Thursday. The performers brought comedy, break dancing, and acrobatics to the lunch hour crowd. Members of the audience were even brought into the circle for some dancing fun.
Salem garages fill up before noon (Oct. 31)
The Museum Place Garage and South Harbor Garage were full on Thursday morning, according to a Destination Salem app post at 11:31 a.m.
“Visitors to Salem are urged to travel via public transportation,” wrote officials in the post.
A warm Halloween on tap in Salem (Oct. 31)
On Thursday morning, Salem visitors took to the streets in short sleeves and shorts (and costumes, of course), as Salem is expecting a sunny day with “near record high” temperatures for Halloween, according to the Weather Channel: Salem will see a high of 78 degrees.
With the warm weather, the city is gearing up for record-breaking crowds on Thursday. Last year, Salem saw 1.2 million visitors during the Halloween season and the city expects a 5 to 7 percent increase in visits this year, according to Ashely Judge, the executive director of Destination Salem.
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It is “likely to be a record-setting Halloween,” Jeff Swartz, the assistant director of the Salem Chamber of Commerce, told Boston.com.
It’s Halloween in Salem (Oct. 31)
Welcome to Halloween in Salem, where the crowd is thick and the sights are strange. A 7-foot tall clown makes his way down Essex Street, past a headless horseman and scores of witches dressed in green, black, and purple. A man in a furry wolf costume pays his breakfast bill at the Witchside Tavern and a couple in full-body skeleton suits wander the Charter Street Cemetery. A man with a red face and horns holds a sign saying “Free hugs from Satan” and many folks are happy to comply.
Crowds pack the streets in Salem (Oct. 30)
Salem visitors packed the streets on Wednesday to shop, dine, snap pictures with roaming characters, and people watch. Check out the scene:
Costumes spotted in Salem on Halloween Eve (Oct. 30)
Samantha and Arturo Ayala, from Texas, told Boston.com they’re visiting Salem for the first time. On Wednesday, they were dressed as a Day of the Dead bride and groom.
“I love it,” said Samantha, 49, about Salem. “We are having an amazing time.”
She said she brought four different costumes, one for each day she is in Salem. Her other three costumes: a witch, a voodoo doctor, and a Victorian vampire.
Charter Street Cemetery sold out on Wednesday (Oct. 30)
Folks lined up in front of Charter Street Cemetery on Wednesday, which was sold out. The cemetery is the oldest European burial ground in Salem and among the oldest in the country. Visitors need online reservations to tour the cemetery during October. Reservations for Thursday, Halloween, start at 8 a.m. and are expected to go fast, a worker said. The cemetery is open from 10 a.m. until 5 p.m. and admission is free. Visitors are asked to stay off the grass and refrain from touching the stones.
A very Boston costume (Oct. 30)
Buddy Lawruk from Nashua, N.H. Channeled his inner Ben Affleck on Wednesday in Salem, donning a “DunKings” costume made famous by Affleck, Tom Brady, and Matt Damon in the much talked about Dunkin’ Super Bowl commercial earlier this year.
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Lawruk, who said he never dresses up for Halloween, was inspired when he saw the costume at Dunkin’, where he stops every morning for a coffee. Because it is a special year — his adult son Chris flew in from Oregon for his grandfather John’s birthday (which is on Halloween) and the pair made a plan to explore Salem — he thought he’d go all out. He paired the famous orange, pink, and white tracksuit with a Boston hat and a chunky Bruins necklace on a chain.
“I just thought it was funny,” Lawruk said. “I saw it for sale and said, ‘I gotta do it.’”
His son Chris said, “I love it” about his dad’s costume. It is Chris’s first time in Salem for Halloween. Standing on Essex Street, surrounded by visitors taking pictures with characters such as Freddy Krueger and the Grinch while folks in witch hats strolled by, he said about the experience, “I like the vibe. I like everything about it.”
Never too early for scares in Salem (Oct. 30)
Salem visitors were already lining up on Wednesday morning for Count Orlok’s Nightmare Gallery Monster Museum on Essex Street, where guests are taken through the history of horror cinema.
Other early lines were at the Trolley Depot, billed as “a strange little store in a great little city” and for the next trolley ride through the area.
Visitors squealed in delight coming out of Frankenstein’s Castle. a haunted house located in Salem’s Haunted Village, on Wednesday morning.
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Anna, 12, from NY, ran from the exit screaming and made it halfway up the street before turning and going back to wait for the rest of her group to exit. She was all smiles by the time they came out.
“He was chasing me!” She said.
“I got scared!”
Her group came out laughing and clearly didn’t mind the morning scare. Their next stop: the nearby Salem Wax Museum.
Salem officials update Halloween visitors about brush fires (Oct. 29)
As brush fires continue to burn across Massachusetts, Salem fire officials responded to a fire in the Salem Woods area on Tuesday morning, the city posted on its website. Some of the largest blazes have been near Salem and Middleton in recent days.
“This is a different fire than the weekend brushfire near Spring Pond,” officials wrote Tuesday on the city’s website. “There are no structures at risk at this time. Avoid outdoor activity in that area and close windows to maintain indoor air quality.”
City officials alerted Salem residents and Halloween visitors on social media Tuesday that a National Guard helicopter would take to the skies in the area of Highland Avenue and Salem Woods in response to the fire.
Officials posted the following update at 2:48 p.m. on Tuesday on the Destination Salem app:
“Haunted Happenings events are downtown, while the brush fire is 1.5-2 miles away. Visitors may notice smoke; those sensitive to air quality should consider a mask. Avoid wooded or fire-affected areas for safety and allow first responders space to work.”
Crowds pick up in Salem over weekend prior to Halloween (Oct. 27)
Visitors in Salem took to social media over the weekend, sharing the costumes and crowds taking over the historic city. Here’s a quick look ahead of Halloween:
Salem police: ‘Do not drink too much and find yourself in trouble’ (Oct. 27)
Salem police reported Sunday that the crowds have increased as expected and the city is well prepared for it.
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Those traveling to Salem should take public transportation if possible, said Captain John Burke, public information officer for the Salem Police Department. If driving, pay attention to signage, he said, especially to resident sticker zones because cars parked in those zones without authorization will be towed. Once on foot in the city, parents and caregivers should keep children close because they can easily get lost and scared in the crowd, Burke said.
Burke had the following advice for those who plan on drinking in Salem this week: “The Salem Police Department will be enforcing all laws related to public drinking, being disorderly, and operating under the influence. Do not drink too much and find yourself in trouble.”
Salem businesses brace for Sunday’s lines, say patience is key because ‘it’s not Disney World’ (Oct. 27)
Businesses in Salem are booming this weekend as folks shop for everything from wands to books to crystals to silver.
“October is just punishing,” Denise Kent, owner of Wicked Good Books on Essex Street, told Boston.com. “It’s just exhausting. But October allows us to thrive.”
During October, Kent boosts her staff to seven due to the steady stream of customers, she said.
On Sunday morning, folks were already lined up at several businesses before the doors opened.
HausWitch Home + Healing on Washington Street, which offers a curated selection of witchy and handmade products, told Boston.com that there was a line waiting outside the store when it opened at 10 a.m.
Paige Curtin, retail manager and spell specialist at HausWitch, said Sunday morning that her shop has “consistently had a line of lovely, patient people waiting outside to check out the treasures” this weekend. The store’s Personal Rainbow Aura Photography appointments have been fully booked every day, according to Curtin, who also noted that her store keeps an occupancy limit “so everyone can feel comfortable while shopping.”
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“My best advice for visitors in Salem during Halloween week is take the train instead of driving, and make sure you have your tours, dining reservations, museums, and psychic readings booked ahead of time as walk-in availability is EXTREMELY limited,” Curtin said via email. “Bring your patience and have fun!”
Village Silversmith, a family-owned business on Essex Street that sells handcrafted sterling silver and natural gemstone jewelry, reported that a line had formed by 9:45 a.m. on Sunday. The store opens at 10 a.m.
“Have patience,” said AJ Mariano, manager of Artemisia Botanicals on Hawthorne Boulevard, about shopping in Salem this week. “Yesterday we had a bunch of people that did not want to be patient. Understand that people live here and it’s not Disney World.”
There was not a line at Artemisia Botanicals when the store opened at 10 a.m. because it is “off the beaten path a little,” said Mariano, but workers expected a line to form within the half hour. The shop carries organic herbs, essential oils, tinctures, salves, and more.
Salem parking garages filled up fast on Saturday (Oct. 26)
City officials have been urging visitors to take public transportation, especially during Halloween week when attendance in the Witch City is at its highest.
On Saturday, South Harbor Garage was full at 9:45 a.m., the MBTA Garage was full at noon, and the Museum Place Garage was full at 12:15 p.m., city officials posted on X. On top of that, officials warned of several road closures to accommodate the crowds.
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Those braving the roads on Saturday were instructed to head to three free satellite parking lots at 225 Canal St., 77 Willson St., and 108 Jefferson Ave. behind Salem Hospital. Free shuttles run all day between the lots and downtown Salem.
A peek into the Official Salem Witches’ Halloween Ball 2024 (Oct. 26)
The ball, which took place Friday night at the Hawthorne Hotel, is part of the annual Festival of the Dead and included a laser light show in the Grand Ballroom, hors d’oeuvres, free psychic readings, live performances, an authentic Salem seance, costume contests, and more.
Everything you need to know about Halloween season in Salem
If you’re heading to Salem during Halloween week, it’s worth downloading the Destination Salem app full of information about parking, traffic, attraction tickets, and more. Travelers should also have a solid plan for how to get there, experts say, and public transportation is the best bet. Get info about taking the MBTA and ferry and where to park and get a shuttle for those brave enough to drive.
Hungry visitors should check out Flying Saucer for pizza, Bella Verona for “old-school Italian,” Turner’s Seafood for classic seafood, Howling Wolf Taqueria for Mexican food, and Sea Level Oyster Bar along the harbor, according to Ashley Judge, executive director of Destination Salem.
For witchy things to do, take your pick between The Witch House, the Salem Witch Museum, the Witch Dungeon Museum, the Salem Wax Museum, and the Witch History Museum.
Haunted Happenings schedule
Salem is brimming with Halloween fun, and visitors can choose between tours, haunted houses, costume balls, and more this Halloween season. Guests can shop and people watch at Salem Common and Derby Square during the Haunted Happenings Marketplace, which features more than 200 artisans and makers.
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The Festival of the Dead, an annual event series that explores death’s macabre customs and rituals, brings events such as a witches ball on Oct. 25, graveyard magic on Oct. 26, dinner with the dead on Oct. 27, and a witch’s magic circle on Oct. 31.
Dozens of walking tours crisscross the city daily, and options include a Candlelit Ghostly Walking Tour, Salem Witch Walk, and the History & Hauntings of Salem Guided Walking Tour. Or guests can hop on a trolley tour such as the Ghosts & Legends Trolley tour and the Tales & Tombstones tour, the latter of which explores Salem at night.
Finally, it’s worth checking out a haunted house in Salem this year, such as Frankenstein’s Castle, the Chambers of Terror, and the Witch Mansion.
More on Halloween in Salem:
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Everything you need to know about Halloween season in Salem
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4 things you should know before visiting Salem this fall
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Here’s what to know about traveling to and around Salem this Halloween season
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Salem business owners have a tip for avoiding the October crowds
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Getting in the Halloween spirit? Check out these Salem movies (and one TV show).
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