Over the last few hundred years, Kingston’s streets and alleyways have seen some incredible, breathtaking and bizarre things… and even some kinda scary ones! There are plenty of places in the city crawling with history, gruesome stories and alleged ghost sightings. Kingston is home to hidden burial grounds, haunted hotels, a prison that held some of Canada’s most notorious criminals, a famous Fort from the War of 1812 and a boarded-up asylum. After 350 years, it goes without saying that an historical city like Kingston would have some skeletons in its closet.
With so many spooky activities in one place, Kingston makes a great area to check out over the Halloween weekend. We’ve rounded up some of Kingston’s infamously haunted places and family friendly experiences worth checking out if you are in the area below:
Pumpkinferno
Not everything Halloween has to be scary! Pumpkinferno comes to Fort Henry for the first time from September 20 to October 31, 2022. This award-winning fall event is an extravagant outdoor luminary experience, featuring thousands of handcrafted, glowing pumpkins and other artistic displays. This fan-favourite is suitable for all ages — it’s just the thing to brighten a dark October evening. Purchase Tickets
Haunted Walks of Kingston
Kingston’s historic limestone buildings and alleyways hold many tales. This October, visitors can brave the night and take a spooky tour of Kingston. The Haunted Walk of Kingston is a classic local experience: visitors can follow the light of their guide’s lantern as they move through mysterious alleyways visiting sites of haunted hotels, hidden burial grounds, grave robbings, hangings at the old courthouse and Kingston’s famous haunted courtyard.
Ghosts of Fort Henry
For those visitors who want to ramp up the fright factor a little, take the Ghosts of Fort Henry tour. Visitors can brave the dark corridors of this 19th-century fortress and hear about the many supernatural encounters found there. Guests will learn the secrets of Deadman Bay, home to a number of shipwrecks as well as a ghost or two.
Ghost & Mystery Trolley Tour
Visitors can peer into Kingston’s creepy past from the safety of their seat on a Ghost & Mystery Trolley Tour. They will learn about the dark history of the Kingston Penitentiary and the Rockwood Asylum and hear about the ghosts frequenting historic homes and nearby islands. This 90-minute tour takes visitors off the beaten path, giving them lots of shivers along the way.
Kingston Penitentiary Tours
For visitors who want to get a closer look inside the forbidding walls at Kingston Pen, they can with Kingston Pen Tours. The facility housed some of Canada’s worst criminals over its 178 years. Tourists can explore the former maximum-security prison (Canada’s oldest, dating back to the 1830s) with a knowledgeable tour guide and hear the tales of daring prison breaks, notorious inmates, and more.
Improbable Escapes
For visitors looking for a fun and challenging group activity, Improbable Escapes has a few seasonally appropriate experiences. Opened in 2015, Improbable Escapes is an award-winning escape room company. “The Cure for the Common Zombie” is a family-friendly escape room (available online as well as in person) that matches their wits against a zombie army. The clock is ticking: find the cure and save humanity! Or visitors can take to the streets in the outdoor adventure “Kingston Conspiracy.” Hunt down the clues and solve the puzzles to help prove the existence of aliens in Kingston!
McBurney Park aka Skeleton Park
These days, Kingston’s downtown McBurney Park is a vibrant place, home to music and arts festivals and kid-friendly play areas. But it has a spooky past that has been embraced as part of Kingston’s culture. The park was a burial ground from 1819 until 1864, providing a final resting place for British and French soldiers as well as cholera victims. As the city grew, the bodies were disinterred and moved to other cemeteries. But not all of them were found then. An unknown number of graves still lie beneath the grass and sod of what is now known affectionately as “Skeleton Park.” Visitors can learn more of the park’s history on either a walking tour or a trolley tour.
