Tag Archives: travel

Salem, MA

I was so excited for this trip, and it definitely did not disappoint. I brought my best friend along with me – here’s what our time in Salem looked like!

WHERE WE STAYED:

We stayed at an adorable airbnb in Beverly – less than 10 minutes away from Salem. There is, of course, the Hawthorne Hotel and the Salem Inn right in town. There were several options of places to stay in the area, but I would suggest finding a place on airbnb because its generally cheaper to do so. We also decided to go in September instead of the very very popular month of October, making it slightly less expensive.

Our airbnb was called The Hideaway, and we were OBSESSED with it! Our hosts were so nice and there were just so many little details about their place to make their guests feel so comfortable. They literally thought of everything, it was just amazing. I definitely recommend staying here!

WHERE WE ATE:

During our weekend in Salem, we visited three coffee shops for coffee and breakfast in the morning and liked all three : Wolf Next Door, Brew Box, & Crave.

Out of the restaurants that we went to, my top two favorites were Fibber McGee’s in Beverly and The Tavern in the Hawthorne Hotel. The food and the atmosphere at both places were just so sooo good. We got to try a pumpkin martini at Fibber’s too – 10/10 recommend that. We also ate at Rockafellas, which I wanted to go to because I had remembered hearing a little bit about the building’s history before and how it is said to be haunted by “a lady in blue”. So, when I saw a drink called lady in blue, I had to order it. We also had drinks on our last night at Opus and loved the vibe there. There were so many options for restaurants, coffee shops, and bars and not enough time to try them all! Some other places we wanted to try, but didn’t have time for was The Roof and Settler.

WHAT TO DO:

  1. Hocus Pocus Filming Locations
    • yeah, this is just a must when in Salem and needed a separate post of it’s own, which you can read here.
  1. Salem Witch Museum
    • We really liked our visit to this museum, where you see two presentations on witches and the trials that took place in Salem. They do not allow videos and photos to be taken inside the museum.
  • The Witch House
    • This is the only building left in Salem with direct ties to the Salem witch trials. It was the home of Judge Corwin. You can buy tickets to tour The Witch House and gift shop! No pictures or videos were allowed inside!
  • Tarot Reading
    • When you’re in Salem, it only makes sense to go get a tarot reading done, right?! We decided to get ours at ASCEND Get Lifted – a really cute shop in downtown Salem. I won’t go into too much detail here, but we got separate readings and both of us cried during them because of how amazing it was. Things were said that were just so accurate and spot on, which really validated it for me and it was just incredible.
  • Shop
    • Speaking of shops, there are soooo many amazing places to shop in Salem! I already mentioned ASCEND where we got our readings done, and they also sell incense, crystals, jewelry, etc. and we loved it there!
    • Also right next door was The Coven’s Cottage which was so cool. They only allow a certain number of people in at one time to protect the energy in the room, so there’s most likely going to be a line to get in – but I would say that it is definitely worth it! You also are not allowed to take pictures or videos in the store as well. They have allll kinds of herbs, stones, books, tarot/oracle cards, and more!
    • Twilight House of Salem has so many cool t-shirts, hoodies, mugs, and whatever kind of souvenir you can think of!
    • Artemisia Botanicals, Haus Witch Home & Healing, Hive & Forge, Village Silversmith and Witch City Wicks are other great places to check out! It’s fun to walk around in downtown Salem – you never know who or what you’ll see!
  • Witch Pix
    • We just happened to walk by this costume studio early in the morning, and we knew we had to go in! You choose a set, get dressed up like a witch, and have a little photoshoot. It was so fun and we were glad we did it!
  • Old Burying Point/Charter Street Cemetery
    • Right before we left for home, we went to Charter Street Cemetery where several judges and residents from the Salem witch trials, as well as Revolutionary War victims, are buried – lots of history here, as it is the oldest cemetery in Salem(and, I believe, the second oldest cemetery in the country). There is also a memorial here for the victims of the witch trials. It’s a simple, but really beautiful, wall with granite benches and the name, date, and way that they were executed on each one. Before we left town, we stopped by to just take a moment and pay our respects to each of the twenty victims. We all go to Salem because we love Hocus Pocus and Halloween and all the history there – but we felt it was important to really take in and acknowledge what happened to these people because it was so horrific.

We did so much during our weekend in Salem, but I can’t wait to go back because I feel like there’s still so much more we didn’t get to do! Next time, I definitely want to do a candlelit ghost tour at night, visit The House of the Seven Gables, Winter Island Park, Salem Halloween Museum, Witch Dungeon Museum, and try more restaurants and coffee shops out! Until next time, Salem!

Hocus Pocus Filming Locations

During our trip to Salem, Massachusetts, we visited the filming locations for one of our favorite movies of all time – Hocus Pocus! I grew up watching this movie on repeat, and I loved getting to see these places in person. It feels so surreal to get to be there in real life! If you’re a Hocus Pocus fan (and how could you not be?!), you MUST check out these places during your trip to Salem!

  • “Max likes your yabbos. In fact, he loves them.”
    • Our first stop was Allison’s house, which is really the Rope’s Mansion. If you’re a huge Hocus Pocus fan like us, then you would love walking up to this beautiful house where Dani and Max make up and go trick-or-treating, only to find Allison inside! If you’re not into Hocus Pocus (somehow), this place is still incredible to go see because it’s stunning and also there is a huge, peaceful garden in the back that you can stroll through and explore! Located at 318 Essex Street.
  • “Well, it says to form a circle of salt to protect from zombies, witches, and old boyfriends.”
    • Next up was Max and Dani’s house. This one is my very favorite to visit because it just feels so surreal driving up to after growing up watching the movie all the time. I just remember thinking the house was so cool, and wanting a tower in my room too. It’s right next to the water on a beautiful, quiet street. It is located at 4 Ocean Ave, but it is someone’s actual home – so you have to admire it from a respectful distance!
  • “Hast thou seen my sister Emily?”
    • You can also visit good ol’ Thackery Binx’s house from the scene in the very beginning of the movie when he wakes up to find his sister is missing. The scene was filmed at Pioneer Village – Salem in 1630. You are able to take a self-guided tour here, and go in some of these structures that were built in 1930 to emulate what a village in Salem looked like in 1630. It’s fascinating and a little spooky, and there’s even a sign outside of the cabin that was used as Binx’s home in the movie! Located at 98 West Ave.
  • “300 years ago, the Sanderson sisters bewitched people. And now they’ve returned from their grave!”
    • The ICONIC scene where the Sanderson sisters sang I Put A Spell On You was filmed at Old Town Hall located at 32 Derby Square. This is such a beautiful and historic area, and I love all the brick buildings and roads!
  • “How many times do I gotta tell you, my name ain’t Ernie no more. It’s ICE.”
    • You should definitely head over to the cemetary where Max rides his bike after school and gets his new crosstrainers stolen. This cemetary is so beautiful, with a ton of history there. It isn’t technically in Salem, but is just a short drive from Max’s house. It’s called Old Burial Hill Cemetary and is located in Marblehead.

There you have it! If you’re a fourth Sanderson sister, you will LOVE visiting these places in Salem. You’ll be singing Come Little Children and Amok Amok Amok while exploring all day long!