From sinister abandoned asylums, forests infested with phantoms and folkloric monsters that roam the landscapes, to houses that were once home to homicidal maniacs, museums devoted to the macabre and castles haunted by their harrowing pasts, The Traveller’s Guide to Cursed and Creepy Destinations is an essential companion to any budding paranormal investigator, amateur historian and dark tourist. If you’re not afraid of what might lurk in the shadows you’ll find a bucket list of hair-raising sites that’ll send shivers down your spine. Why not plan a weekend escape to one of our Cold Spots – cities and towns that are a hotbed of supernatural activity with enough spooky sites to keep you occupied (and awake) for days on end? Or perhaps road trip through the USA on the hunt for Bigfoot, take a tour of the UK via its high-spirited (and highly spirited) pubs, or simply book a stay in one of the world’s most haunted hotels… Just don’t hold us responsible for what you discover hiding in the dark!
WELCOME
WHAT DO WE MEAN BY CURSED AND CREEPY? • For as long as man has walked the Earth, there have been matters of the strange and unexplained to frighten and excite us
THE RISE OF HAUNTED TOURISM • Humans have a natural tendency towards the macabre and a curiosity that would kill a cat, leading to an insatiable appetite for the supernatural
WE WANT TO BELIEVE
A FIELD GUIDE TO SPOOKS • When dipping your toe into the world of investigation, knowing what to look out for can be pretty overwhelming. Luckily, the most important tool of all is your own senses; what can you see, hear, smell? And of course, how does it make you feel? Here’s what to look out for…
PERFORMING A PARANORMAL INVESTIGATION • Investigating the paranormal can be fun and easy, but to enhance the experience, you may want to add a few items into your spooky toolkit
HOUSES OF HORROR • Check out these haunted locations around the world and find out what makes them spooktacularly scary
SHADOWS OF THE SHAMBLES • Founded in 71AD, the city of York has been at the centre of a rich, varied and often brutal history
SLEEP WITH ONE EYE OPEN • Don’t like to sleep alone? Check into one of these haunted hotels, and you might find your room already occupied…
RAISE YOUR SPIRITS! • Whatever spirit you choose to chase, the UK’s most haunted watering holes are sure to whet any serious ghost hunters’ appetite. From the crags of Scotland, through the moors of England and into the mountains of Wales, explore the haunted mainland of the British isles the way our ancestors intended – with a pint in hand!
BRITAIN’S MOST HAUNTED VILLAGE • Pluckley in Kent holds the exciting honour of being Britain’s most haunted village, a title that saw it enter the Guinness Book of Records in 1989!
THE WORLD’S CREEPIEST CASTLES • What terrors lurk in the walls of the world’s most fearsome fortresses? Castles weren’t just opulent homes, they were citadels; strongholds designed to endure invasion, built not only to fight off their enemies but to capture, imprison and torture them. If you are seeking spine-chilling spectres, these palace phantoms won’t disappoint…
WELCOME TO DRACULA COUNTRY • Transylvania, the homeland of Count Dracula, is a historic region in the heart of Romania–a country riddled with not only vampires but ghosts, witches and more
PUBLIC SPECTRES • Ghosts don’t discriminate when it comes to haunts, and with so many people coming and going inside these public spaces it’s no surprise that they are teaming with poltergeists…
SHOCK TREATMENT! • If Victorian hospitals weren’t creepy enough with their derelict halls, wards, clinics, and equipment, why not add the tortured souls of those who never left?
PHANTOMS OF THE OPERA • It’s not just the Paris Opera House that boasts a legendary...