Get inspired by destinations chosen in this year's Best in Travel list.
Experience Europe's ancient history, amazing beauty, divine food and incredible culture.
Uncover Asia's iconic attractions, must-visit places and epically awesome experiences.
See the city's iconic sites, sample famous foods and marvel at world-class museums.
With big city energy, wide open spaces and thousands of beaches, Australia has it all.
Lose yourself in Morocco's medinas and explore its breathtaking mountains.
These islands have unique personalities that go beyond gorgeous beaches.
This holiday season, give everyone on your list the gift of travel.
Tick off the biggest bucket list trips with this definitive guide to 100 of the world's greatest travel adventures.
From spotting throngs of penguins on South Africa's Boulders Beach to seeing Hong Kong's dazzling festoon of lights at the city's seasonal Winterfest, Where To Go When With Kids is the comprehensive trip planner of inspiring month-by-month adventures to spark your family's curiosity.
Explore 100 of Australia's most beautiful beaches in this stunning photographic guide with fascinating insights from local writers and adventurers.
These ready-to-book itineraries are crafted by our team of experts all over the world. Pick a destination, and we'll take care of the rest.
The best trips happen when everyone else stays home. Explore where to go in each month of the year.
The exterior of the haunted Marshall House in Savannah, Georgia. Darryl Brooks/Shutterstock
Lonely Planet may earn a commission from affiliate links on our site. All recommendations and reviews reflect our own independent opinions.
While many people celebrate Halloween with elaborate costumes, pumpkin carving and fun parties, there are others who take spooky season up a notch by trying to connect with spirits and get back to the heart of this pagan holiday's meaning.
If you want to make this Halloween season the spookiest yet, consider a trip to one of these eerie, unsettling locations that have had so many bumps in the night they're known as the most haunted places in the US .
If you’re on the hunt for a hotel with amenities that tap into another dimension, the Marshall House in Savannah should be at the top of your list. The inn occupies a building dating back to 1851 and is notorious for being haunted. Once used as a hospital for Union soldiers and then yellow-fever patients, the Marshall’s rooms and hallways are known for many paranormal occurrences. Guests often report strange encounters throughout the building, the sound of ghostly children running through hallways and sink faucets that mysteriously turn on.
Spirits are included with your meal at The Whitney restaurant , both liquid and ethereal. One of Detroit ’s most upscale dining destinations is also one of its most haunted spots, known for many strange encounters throughout its famed dinner service. If you’re lucky enough to snag a reservation, look out for tableware that has been known to move, eerie footsteps heard on the restaurant’s grand staircase and a few shadows of David and Flora, the ornate mansion’s original owners.
The inspiration for Stephen King’s The Shining, The Stanley Hotel ’s haunted lore is alluring indeed, with guests checking in to spend the night among the spirits that roam its halls. Visitors often report the presence of ghosts of service workers past, while plenty of creaky wood gives a thrill to those in search of hair-raising encounters. A warning: screams are a bit of a challenge here, as the hotel’s high elevation (7522ft) puts you in dizzyingly thin air.
The oldest continuously occupied European settlement in the USA, St Augustine dates back to 1565 – so you better believe there are spirits that linger throughout the area. Start with a tour of the Huguenot Cemetery, a hallowed ground since 1821, where many victims of yellow fever were laid to rest. The cemetery is estimated to hold 436 bodies, a number capped in 1884 when it reached capacity, and ghost sightings are reported at all times of the day and night. Be on the lookout for the cemetery’s most famous ghost: the spirit of Judge John B Stickney, a beloved St Augustine denizen who died of yellow fever in 1882.
In operation as a jail from 1829 through 1971, the Eastern State Penitentiary in Philadelphia now operates as one of the region’s most renowned haunted-house experiences. Tours of the building highlight the many famed criminals who once were confined within its thick walls, including Al Capone and Willie Sutton (who almost escaped via a tunnel). Halloween Nights are among the most popular times of year to visit, though the presence of prisoners past is reported year-round.
In 1881, a widowed Sarah Winchester became heir to the Winchester Rifle fortune after her husband, William Wirt Winchester, died of tuberculosis. Sarah had lost her young daughter a few years earlier; reportedly, the grief-stricken Sarah then consulted a medium, who instructed her to move out west and create a home for herself and the souls of those killed by Winchester rifles – lest they haunt her forever.
Construction on the now-famous mansion in San Jose, California began in 1884 and continued over 38 years, resulting in a 24,000-sq-ft Queen Anne–style house that today remains at once an architectural marvel and conundrum, with 160 rooms, 47 stairways and fireplaces, six kitchens and 13 bathrooms (though only one was functional, supposedly to confuse the spirits).
The structure was not built according to a plan, and the resulting house has a number of strange features, including stairs to nowhere, interior windows and more. Organised tours will take you through the majority of the mansion's rooms and even down into two basements – the areas of the house most associated with paranormal activity.
Dubbed the City of the Dead, St Louis Cemetery No 1 is the oldest active cemetery in New Orleans . Opened in 1789, the cemetery is home to thousands of “residents, ” housed in more than 700 above-ground tombs. Those laid to rest there include the famous voodoo priestess Marie Laveau, along with several other notable figures from Crescent City’s history.
Wander the maze-like pathways of the burial ground, taking in the elaborate mausoleums, the worn lists of names and, of course, the site’s extensive history. You might even get to meet one of St Louis’ residents. The cemetery is no longer open to the public due to the Archdiocese's concerns about repeated vandalism but you can book a private tour to see these elaborate tombs up close.
When it opened in 1910, Waverly Hills Sanatorium was a state-of-the-art tuberculosis hospital designed to keep patients in isolation from the rest of the general population. The building was originally designed to hold 50 to 60 patients, but when the need became greater, its capacity expanded to more than 400.
The sanatorium was so insular that it had its own zip code and post office, even growing its own food and raising its own livestock. This was because once doctors and patients alike arrived at Waverly, they became “permanent residents” there. Once the cure for tuberculosis was found in 1961, the hospital was decontaminated and converted into a geriatric-care facility until its closure in 1981. Today, the sanatorium is regarded as a very haunted location, with spirits of patients wandering the halls and occasionally making themselves known.
Book your United States trip with Lonely Planet Journeys
See United States how it's meant to be seen
Accommodations, activities and ground transportation all taken care of, so you can focus on the fun part. Tell us what your dream trip to United States looks like, and our local experts will build it from scratch. Or start with one of our itineraries and make it your own.
Please enter a valid email address.
© 2026 Lonely Planet, a Red Ventures company. All rights reserved. No part of this site may be reproduced without our written permission.
Loading comments…