This haunted experience is housed on a working farm in Bucks County and features one of the longest hayrides in the area. After a 1.25-mile ride through the woods, traverse the abandoned “House in the Hollow,” make your way through the Field of Fright and swap stories in the safety of the family-friendly fire pit area.
This Bucks County attraction — serving up scares for more than 30 years — offers three thrilling experiences for 2022: the original haunted hayride, a pirate-themed shipwreck cove and the return of the Miles Manor haunted house, reopened for the first time in eight years.
When thinking about the scariest places on Earth, the basement of a 120-year-old factory has to be near the top of the list. That’s the setting for this adult-themed creepy crowd-pleaser in South Philly. The 25,000-square-foot space is split into three themed areas: Industrial Nightmare, South Side Sanatorium and Fright Factory Unholy.
The Bates Motel
Hollywood-grade special effects take center stage at this Delco scarefest. Wander through an abandoned motel, hitch a ride on a 25-minute haunted hayride and look out for stalk-ers in an overgrown cornfield.
I scream, you scream, we all scream … because we’re inside an abandoned prison. Eastern State Penitentiary opens its cell blocks after dark to create an immersive and terrifying Halloween experience full of thrills and chills. The 2022 iteration features five different haunted house attractions inside the 10-acre historic site, including two brand-new ones: Big Top Terror sees you outrunning circus performers and murderous clowns while the sleep paralysis-themed Nightmares will have you losing sleep for days.
This terrifying attraction — on the grounds of a former mental hospital — is chock-full of adult-oriented thrills and chills. After incorporating feedback from disability and mental health advocates in recent years, the modern Pennhurst experience turns the traditional asylum story on its head. Paranormal investigation tours and daytime history tours of the site are also available.
One scream by foot, two if by wagon. In addition to a classic haunted hayride, this Bucks County farm offers two hair-raising walk-through attractions — the Corn Walk of Horror and the Haunted Hay Maze — where characters chase you into a seemingly never-ending series of dead ends.
This Montco ski resort moonlights as a spooky season favorite each fall. Hitch a ride on the haunted ski lift before making your way (read: screaming) down the mountain to the haunted hayride where you’ll catch your breath just in time to scream some more.
October 7 – November 5, 2022 (select dates)
This brand-new haunted house in Manayunk establishes its lore around the supposed discovery of bodies at the site during recent construction — findings that uncovered a dark and gruesome past. Carefully make your way through the defunct textile mill as you avoid the lingering spirits of workers who were subject to torment and experimentation by their disturbed boss 100 years ago.
Ghost Tours
Ongoing (Fridays & Saturdays)
The paranormal stories on this ghost tour are “one part history, two parts haunt.” Guests on the walking journey stop at 20 of Philly’s definitely historic and possibly haunted sites to hear chilling and grisly stories from the city’s past. Outdoor stops include Independence Hall, Holy Trinity Church, the Merchants’ Exchange building and Washington Square Park. (Plus, some less-spooky local film settings from The Sixth Sense and National Treasure.)
Ongoing
Historians, authors and professors lead these highly researched, R-rated, off-the-beaten-path walking tours. Halloween-season tours include the nightly Dark Philly Adult Night Tour, which features risque tales about ghosts, sex and vampires; the Serial Killers and Cemeteries Tour (Saturdays); and the ever-popular Haunted Pub Crawl (Fridays).
Through Saturday, November 26, 2022 (select dates)
These lantern-lit tours of New Hope are led by author and paranormal investigator Adi-Kent Thomas Jeffrey. The one-hour tours feature surprising stories about the town’s spine-tingling hauntings. Group tours are available every Friday and Saturday night in October and every Saturday night through November. Private tours can be aranged year-round.
Through Wednesday, November 30, 2022
Do spectral spirits really inhabit Independence Hall and other historic landmarks? Visitors find out when they listen to the ghost stories and visit real haunted houses during this candlelight walking tour of Independence National Historical Park, Society Hill and Old City. Private tours are also available.
October 7-30, 2022 (select dates)
This bare-bones Halloween experience is free of decorations and costumed characters. It’s just you, a tour guide, a few candles and whatever ghosties might be roving the historic fort near Philadelphia International Airport. Tours depart about every 20 minutes, and advance tickets are strongly recommended. While you wait, grab a few spirits from the pop-up bar. On October 22, 2022, experienced paranormal investigators (18-plus) are invited to spend the night during a one-night only Sleep with the Ghosts event.
