10 Most Haunted Places to Visit in Canada
Discover the haunted side of Canada, for some spooky scary travel.
Although Canada is a young country, we have a turbulent history and many old buildings that remain haunted by their former inhabitants.
Widows still stare out of windows centuries later. Children scream from deep within haunted tunnels. The victims of the Titanic are restless in their foreign graves in Nova Scotia.
If you’re looking for a spooky adventure, consider visiting one of the 10 most haunted places in Canada.
But be warned: you might encounter the paranormal!
Keep reading to discover the scariest places in Canada, including some haunted hotels that you can still stay in.
- 10 Most Haunted Places to Visit in Canada
- 10 Most Haunted Places in Canada
- 1. Oak Island, Nova Scotia
- 2. Blue Ghost Tunnel, Ontario
- 3. Fairmont Banff Springs Hotel, Alberta
- 4. Five Fisherman Restaurant, Nova Scotia
- 5. HI-Ottawa Jail Hostel, Ontario
- 6. The Empress Hotel, British Columbia
- 7. St. Louis Ghost Train, Saskatchewan
- 8. Peggy's Cove Lighthouse, Nova Scotia
- 9. The Delta Bessborough, Saskatchewan
- 10. The Prince George Hotel, Ontario
- 13 Other Reportedly Haunted Locations in Canada:
- Why is Canada so Haunted?
- Visit the Scariest Haunted Places in Canada
- 10 Most Haunted Places in Canada
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10 Most Haunted Places in Canada
1. Oak Island, Nova Scotia
The Oak Island mystery has plagued treasure hunters for decades.
This small island off the coast of Lunenburg, Nova Scotia is allegedly the site of Canada’s biggest treasure.
Originally, no one really noticed Oak Island until a teenage boy found a circular depression in the ground in 1795. He and his friends dug until they reached a layer of logs. This area, the”Money Pit”, is where many hunters believe the secret treasure is buried.
No one is sure what the treasure is. Some say it belonged to Captain Kidd or Blackbeard. There’s speculation that it’s old manuscripts or Marie Antoinette’s jewels.
Whatever it is, people desperately want to find it. Over the last 200 years, 6 men have died searching for the hidden treasure on Oak Island.
The mystery of Oak Island caught the attention of Franklin D Roosevelt and lead to a documentary show following a treasure hunter searching for the hidden treasure.
Some say the island is haunted by the ghosts of the men who died. Others say it’s haunted by the greed of treasure hunters.
Either way, it’s one of the most haunted places in Canada.
2. Blue Ghost Tunnel, Ontario
The Blue Ghost Tunnel is an abandoned railway tunnel in Ontario. It’s one of the most popular destinations in Canada for ghost hunters and one of the most haunted places in Ontario.
The tunnel was built over 140 years ago to safely transport cargo from Lake Erie to Lake Ontario. Nearly 1000 Irish immigrants dug the tunnel by hand, cut stones, and constructed the tunnel.
During construction, the tunnel claimed the lives of 3 immigrant workers, including a 14-year-old boy.
After its completion, the bloodshed continued.
In 1903, two trains collided at full speed in the tunnel, killing the firemen for both trains. One was pinned against the boiler. When rescuers tried to save him, they gruesomely mangled his body. They could never recover his full body. The other fireman was flung into the boiler and suffered deadly burns.
Visitors now say they can hear children crying from within the tunnel, the shouts of angry workers, and distant train whistles.
Would you visit this scary site?
3. Fairmont Banff Springs Hotel, Alberta
The Fairmont Banff Spring Hotel is known for its spectacular views and its hauntings.
The stunning hotel has been home to celebrities for years, even though guests claim it’s difficult to sleep with the spirits in the hotel.
Spirits throughout the hotel make noise at night. Sam the Bellman, a man who adored his job, continues to assist guests with their luggage in the afterlife.
The haunted Canadian hotel’s most famous spectre is their most tragic.
A ghostly bride can be seen walking up and down the stairs where she died. Legend has it that she tripped on the hem of her wedding dress and fell down the stairs, dying before she could wed. Occasionally she drifts into the ballroom, the place where she would have had her first dance.
Book your scary room at the Banff Springs Hotel
4. Five Fisherman Restaurant, Nova Scotia
The Five Fisherman Restaurant is one of the best places to eat in Nova Scotia, and it’s one of the most haunted places in Canada.
What is now a restaurant was originally a morgue. It’s hard to believe with the opulence of the dining establishment, but any waiter is happy to recount exactly where the bodies were interred.
After the deadly disaster of the Titanic, the majority of the victims who have been lain to rest in Nova Scotia were interred at this very site.
Now, glasses routinely fly off shelves, place settings fall at random, taps turn on and off, and some people even hear their names being whispered.
The Five Fisherman Restaurant also has a view of St. Paul’s Church, where you can see the outline of a woman in the window. But there’s no woman there. When the Halifax Explosion hit, she was killed instantly.
They’ve replaced the window multiple times but the same dark outline always returns.
The ghost stories about at this haunted site!
5. HI-Ottawa Jail Hostel, Ontario
Looking for a haunted hotel to stay in during your visit to Ontario? Book a night at the HI-Ottawa Jail Hostel.
If you’re not into scary hotels, check out these other amazing places to stay in Ottawa.
Originally, the building houses the Carleton County Jail, a maximum-security prison. The prison was known for its horrible conditions, like tiny cells and no windows. Many inmates died due to these conditions while others were publicly executed on the ground.
These inmates still haunt the very cells you’ll sleep in.
Guests wake up in the night to ghostly spectres of men around their beds.
The most common apparition is a man clutching a bible. He is believed to be Patrick James Whelan, who was jailed for assassinating a politician.
Book your haunted jail cell here.
6. The Empress Hotel, British Columbia
The Fairmont Empress or the Empress Hotel is one of the most beautiful hotels in Canada. It’s just as famous for its ghosts as its high tea.
It is said that the architect, Francis Rattenbury, haunts the very halls he designed. Although he was brutally murdered by his wife’s lover in England, he returned to his greatest work to seek the recognition he so craved.
My favourite ghost at the Empress Hotel is the old woman in her PJs. She knocks on guests’ doors and leads them to the elevator, then disappears. This one feels less spooky and more like a paranormal ding-dong ditch, which I definitely aspire to when I become a ghost.
But back to the scary.
In 1909, a chambermaid named Lizzie McGrath perished when she stepped onto a fire escape, only to find it had been removed for construction. The young woman plummeted to her death and now remains in the hotel as a ghastly ghost.
Book your high tea and haunted room at the Empress here.
7. St. Louis Ghost Train, Saskatchewan
In St. Louis, Saskatchewan, an abandoned railroad track is the source of paranormal stories.
The railroad track has long been abandoned, but people still report seeing a single light travelling the tracks late at night. It changes colour and intensity as it travels closer and closer.
Ghost hunters aren’t sure if it’s the light of the ghost train still following the abandoned tracks or if it’s the lantern of the beheaded engineer looking for his head.
Don’t miss one of the most haunted places in Canada if you’re visiting Saskatchewan!
8. Peggy’s Cove Lighthouse, Nova Scotia
Peggy’s Cove Lighthouse is one of the most photographed lighthouses in Canada. Perched on the shore of Nova Scotia, the attraction draws tourists from around the world.
But most don’t know its darker story.
In the 1800s, a woman named Peggy was shipwrecked on the shore. Her children died in the wreck, leaving her to pace the shore grieving their loss.
Her husband tried to cheer her by dancing on the rocks, but he slipped and fatally crushed his skull.
All alone, Peggy leaped into the sea and took her own life.
Visitors have seen her ghost standing on the rocks getting ready to jump.
9. The Delta Bessborough, Saskatchewan
The Delta Bessborough is a famously haunted hotel in Saskatchewan.
When you visit the hotel you may notice a large crack in the marble floor of the ballroom. At this spot, guests have seen a friendly man in a suit and a fedora late at night.
All seems normal, until you learn that he was an employee who was pushed from the balcony by rowdy guests and fell 7 stories to his death. His impact on the marble cracked it. Now, he can never leave it.
The Bess is home to a less polite ghost. A small woman with messy hair and torn clothes is said to appear on the third floor. If you ignore her, she leaves you alone. But if you try to speak to her or are too loud, she runs up and screams at you before vanishing.
If you take the stairs, you may hear the laughter of a group of children. But no matter how far you climb, you won’t find them. They died playing in the stairwell. Their laughter still haunts the hotel.
Listen for children laughing near the marble floor cracks.
10. The Prince George Hotel, Ontario
Originally, this former hotel was home to the Herchmer family in the 1800s.
The daughter, Lily, was allegedly having an affair with a rum smuggler. They had a secret code where she would light a lantern in the window to call for him.
One night the lantern caused a fire that burnt the building to the ground. Lily died in the fire.
You can still see her staring out the third-floor window, waiting for her lover to come to her.
Before the building was converted into a bar, hotel employees reported radios turning on, whispers, and other haunting encounters.
Stop in for a pint at one of the most haunted places in Canada.
13 Other Reportedly Haunted Locations in Canada:
- Keg Mansion in Toronto, Ontario
- The Old Spaghetti Factory in Vancouver, BC
- Hockey Hall of Fame in Toronto, Ontario
- Craigdarroch Castle in Victoria, BC
- Plains of Abraham in Quebec City, Quebec
- Maritime Museum in Victoria, BC
- West Point Lighthouse in O’Leary, PEI
- Beacon Hill Park in Victoria, BC
- St. Ann’s Academy in Victoria, BC
- Hatley Castle in Victoria, BC
- St. Francis Xavier University in Antigonish, Nova Scotia
- Bytown Museum in Ottawa, Ontario
- McGill University in Montreal, Quebec
Why is Canada so Haunted?
Canada is a land of mystery and intrigue, with a long history full of strange stories and unexplained phenomena.
From ghostly apparitions in abandoned buildings to mysterious lights in the night sky, Canadians have reported many supernatural experiences over the years.
But why is Canada so haunted?
Perhaps it’s because this vast country has seen more than its fair share of tragedy throughout history – from wars and plagues to devastating natural disasters. As home to the majority of the graves of Titanic victims, Canada is also very full of cemeteries.
Or maybe it’s simply that Canadians are open-minded people who are willing to consider every possibility, no matter how far-fetched or unlikely.
Whatever the reason, one thing is certain: Canada has plenty of tales about ghosts and hauntings that will keep you up at night!
Visit the Scariest Haunted Places in Canada
Add a Halloween theme to your travels and plan to visit one of the most haunted places in Canada.
Road trip to your nearest paranormal hotspot to see if you are visited by the ghostly bride or if a Titanic victim whispers your name.
Turn up the creep factor by staying in an actual haunted jail during your travels. Prepare for some tight quarters and a potential guest in the middle of the night.
Or if you’re like me, maybe the stories alone are enough to have the hair on the back of your neck standing up and you chanting to your dog “I don’t believe in ghosts.” If so, there are still so many bucket list places you can visit in Canada.
With the world being so scary, you might not need any more fear in your life.
Do you think you’re brave enough to visit one of the most haunted places in Canada?
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