Château de Brissac; France, Brissac-Quincé
The “Green Lady,” who is described on the castle’s website as the illegitimate daughter of King Charles VII, is claimed to reside in the seven-story Château de Brissac, one of the tallest castles in France. Her husband killed her after learning she was having an affair. She allegedly died while wearing a green dress, and she now prowls the castle in the early hours while wailing.
La Recoleta Cemetery, Argentina’s capital city
That a cemetery is supposedly haunted comes as no surprise. Several famous persons are buried in Buenos Aires’ La Recoleta Cemetery, including Eva Perón, past presidents of Argentina, Nobel Prize winners, and even a Napoleonic granddaughter. It’s filled with beautiful and unsettling statuary, mausoleums, intricate grave markers, and stone walks. One of the most famous ghost tales surrounds David Alleno, a former gravedigger who spent decades working at the cemetery before taking his own life in a haunted house in Ohio. Others claim to have heard him jingle his keys.
Canada’s Banff Springs Hotel
This well-known Canadian hotel, which is situated in Banff National Park and is recognized as a UNESCO World Heritage Site, has a sordid past. Numerous visitors have claimed seeing ghosts, including Sam the bellman, who is still working today after passing away in 1975. The elevator now occasionally opens on floors without the buttons being pressed, according to legend, where he once assisted visitors who were trapped out of their rooms.
Japan’s Aokigahara Forest
Aokigahara, often called Suicide Forest, is a Japanese location at the base of Mount Fuji. Since the 1950s, the BBC has received reports of more than 500 suicides in the woodland. Some claim that it’s due of significant subterranean iron concentrations that mess with compasses and cause people to get lost. Some attribute this to the forest’s link to demons in Japanese folklore. Who knows what ghosts may be hiding?
London, England’s Tower of London
The Tower of London is a fortification well-known for its brutal past as a jail and a place of execution. It is a popular tourist destination in England. The tower is haunted by ghosts of all centuries, including two young princes who were imprisoned and vanished in 1483—only for their bodies to be found there in 1647.
Georgia’s Savannah, Forsyth Park
Savannah, Georgia is home to countless haunted locations, and Forsyth Park’s enigmatic underground tunnels play a significant role in the city’s reputation. According to Savannah Magazine, experts from the Candler Hospital (now the Savannah Law School) performed autopsies in the corridors. Some claim that when they tour the tunnels today, they see spectral figures. On October 20, watch episode 4 of Dark House to learn about one of the most infamously haunted homes in the area.
Africa’s Cape Town is home to the Castle of Good Hope.
This castle, which the Dutch East India Company originally constructed as a ship replenishment station, operated as both a military stronghold and a prison during the Second Boer War from 1899 to 1902. The castle’s official website describes its horrible past, which included hanging men. One of them cursed governor Pieter van Noodt, who executed them; the following day, the governor passed away from a heart attack. You can explore the castle’s many rooms, including the torture chamber, if you’re up for it.
Chinese capital Beijing’s Forbidden City
You probably had no idea that this imperial palace, which is a very famous tourist destination, is also a hub for paranormal activity. The location witnessed its fair share of poisonings and executions when it was a palace. People have reported a variety of ghost sightings since the palace first opened to the public in the 1940s, one of which involves a wandering, wailing woman wearing white.
United States; California; Alcatraz Island
One of the spookiest prisons in the United States is located on Alcatraz Island. Although being erected in the San Francisco Bay in 1859, Alcatraz didn’t become a federal prison until 1934. The fact that Alcatraz housed many of the most notorious criminals in the world up until 1963 and was the scene of escape deaths, inmate suicides, and killings of prison staff helps to explain why so many people experience the heebie-jeebies when they are there. All the typical indicators of paranormal activity are present in the former prison. Along with the usual crying and moaning, traditional spirits in chains are said to make a commotion at night. The most terrifying allegation comes from a prisoner in D-block who claimed to have seen crimson eyes in his cell. He screamed all through the night, and the next morning, he was discovered strangled to death, dead and all by himself.
Mexico’s “Island of the Dolls,” Isla de las Munecas
Not for the faint of heart, this haunting place. It was never planned for Mexico’s Island of the Dolls, also known as Isla de las Munecas, to draw tourists. According to legend, the island’s keeper Don Julian Santana Barrera discovered a girl who had inexplicably perished there. He discovered a doll close by, and thinking it belonged to her, he hung it from a tree out of respect. After that, he hung more dolls in an effort to win the girl over since he was reportedly haunted by her ghost. Some claim that her ghost has taken over the dolls. The island’s website claims that some people even claim to hear the dolls whispering to one another.
Isle of Poveglia; Venice, Italy
Poveglia Island in Venice once served as a station for the quarantine of the plague and as the site of a mental hospital. The island has grabbed the attention of ghost hunters and paranormal investigators from all over due to the number of fatalities and bad deeds that have occurred there. The island is totally off-limits to any tourists, and the ruins of the mental hospital are still visible today, according to Atlas Obscura.
United States, Colorado, Stanley Hotel
The Stanley Hotel, built in 1909, served as the basis for Stephen King’s book The Shining, which pretty much sums it up. The hotel was created and run by the brilliant inventor Freelan Oscar Stanley and his wife, Flora, and served as a haven for wealthy Eastern urbanites as well as a symbol of scientific progress (it had electricity and telephones). The Stanley Hotel had lost much of its luster by the 1970s and was rumored to be haunted. As it turned out, years after their passing, Freelan and Flora continued to be involved in the management of the hotel. The billboard room is being watched over by Freelan, and Flora’s prized Steinway can be heard playing late at night. Book a stay if you dare; the hotel has been rebuilt and is currently operational.
Castle Larnach in New Zealand
The Larnach Castle in New Zealand, which was featured on a 2008 episode of Ghost Hunters International, was constructed for William Larnach and his family. According to legend, his favorite daughter Kate haunts the home’s ballroom. She received the room as a 21st birthday gift from him, but tragedy struck when she passed away from typhoid a few years later.
United States, Oregon, Pittock Mansion
In 1914, Portland, Oregon, newspaper editor Henry Pittock and his wife Georgiana constructed this mansion in the French Renaissance style. They passed away a few years later, but some people believe their souls are still present. The house was still owned by the family after they passed away until 1958, when it was decided to sell it. The mansion sustained significant damage in 1962 due to a hurricane. It was slated for demolition by developers, but the locals stepped in to pay for repairs and turn it into a historic landmark that is still open to the public.
