Haunted houses: Airbnb names its top seven to spend Halloween night in
- The site of a civil war field hospital and a refuge for slaves are among the holiday rental website’s spooky listings
- For fans of Nightmare on Elm Street, Airbnb has found 841 homes on Elm Street
Touring a haunted house is one of the most popular ways to celebrate Halloween. But there’s a spookier way to experience a haunted house: by spending the night in one.
With Halloween approaching, online holiday rental marketplace Airbnb has listings for those in the United States who want to celebrate by staying in houses, cottages, mansions, manors or castles that are believed to be haunted.
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And for fans of the movie franchise Nightmare on Elm Street, Airbnb has 841 homes located on Elm Street throughout the country.
These are Airbnb’s top seven haunted listings in America.
A vintage estate in La Cañada Flintridge, California: This home was built in 1929 by Robert T. Moore, an ornithologist who kept thousands of exotic birds in aviaries on the property.
Its mysterious aura began before its construction was even completed. Legend has it no one labourer could repeat a work day so as to protect the secrets of the house. Its owner died in his bedroom on Halloween Eve 1958.
According to Airbnb, no record of his burial place has been found.
Maison Vitry in New Orleans: This 3,700-square-foot home in the historic Treme neighbourhood was built in 1855. It belonged to Louise Vitry, a free African-American woman, who lived there with her French consort and their four children. The house has appeared on FX’s American Horror Story and HBO’s Treme.
Captain Grant’s in Preston, Connecticut : This home near the Mystic Coast served as a shelter for continental army soldiers during the revolutionary war and for escaped slaves during the civil war. Since becoming an inn, guests have reported seeing apparitions and hearing strange noises in one of the rooms, called the Adelaide.
In one instance, a guest said she woke up in the middle of the night to find a woman dressed in colonial-era clothing holding hands with two children. Another guest described feeling, but not seeing, hands caressing her face. Other visitors have said they’ve seen the TV turning itself on and off.
Parks-Bowman Mansion in New Orleans: This Garden District home has what the hosts call the haunted bedroom on the third floor. It’s a quaint room with a private balcony shaded by a live oak tree.
It is haunted, the hosts say, by a young girl in a yellow dress from the 1890s. But, the listing says, she is “very shy”.
The Manor in St. Paul, Minnesota: The St. Paul Pioneer Press once called this manor, built in 1883, the “most mysterious house” in the city. In addition to having a dark, castle-like exterior, it also has a Doberman named Scorch guarding it.
Laura’s Cottage, Savannah, Georgia: This cabin, built in 1799, is a frequent spot on ghost tours of this historic Georgia town. It had an appearance in Robert Redford’s film The Conspirator.
The David Stewart Farm in Gettysburg, Pennsylvania : This farmhouse and its barn were used as a civil war field hospital after the Battle of Gettysburg during the civil war.
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The ghosts are apparently friendly and won’t bother you too much.
