Explore Canada‘s haunted history with spooky ghost walks across the country

As evening falls on Toronto’s streets and the commuter crowd thins away, the ghost walk tour guide Shirley Lum gathers her group for a night of exploring spooky places.

Tourists and locals alike turn out for haunted tours across the country and as Lum can attest, they may experience a shudder or two due to paranormal activity.

“I started in the year 2000 and we had a lot of experiences…specifically in 2003,” says Lum about her ghost walk career. “From 2000 to 2003 I had a tremendous attendance by mediums, a lot of wiccan, witches and warlocks. A lot of them were coming from the Hamilton area, which is very haunted.”

Lum, who runs A Taste of the World: Neighbourhood Bicycle Tours and Walks Inc., leads walks that span the city and she’s had many members of her tour groups confide in her about their own ghostly experiences.

“We don’t force people to share right at the tour because sometimes that’s too much pressure,” she says. “I’ve sometimes had people email me later because they said ‘I didn’t want to talk about it.’”

Lum recalls one group very distinctly.

“I’d had a young bunch of police officers at the Ghosts, Greasepaint, and Gallows Tour. A whole bunch of these police officers [were] out of uniform with their girlfriends. Usually the tour starts out with a party mood, but I always suspect that the guy who really wanted to do it came because he had a question and he needed answers.”

At the end of the tour, says Lum, an officer piped up and said one of his colleagues had experienced a sighting. The officer in question was doing some paperwork in his cruiser late at night in the Casa Loma parking lot when all of a sudden he hears a tap on the window. When he looks up he sees an old man peering in at him. The man’s presence alone startled the officer, but when the man disappeared entirely the officer was completely unnerved.

“What would be your reaction? He thought maybe the old man had a heart attack, maybe he dropped dead. Of course your natural reaction as a police officer is to investigate,” says Lum about the officer’s story. “He rolled down the window, didn’t see anything, so he got out to see if the old man had rolled under his car and he found nothing.”

Lum believes the officer had a run-in with the spirit of Sir Henry Pellatt who used to call Casa Loma home.

“In the hay day when he [Pellatt] had a lot of money he’d always size up his potential business partners by inviting them over for dinner,” says Lum. “Remember this was in the roaring 20s, so when you showed up for dinner you’d be all dressed up in top and tails. What Pellatt would do was be dressed up as a gardener working in the garden, so he’d be the first person greeting you. Back then there was no Internet, no Instagram, no Facebook, so you wouldn’t even know what a person would look like. He was trying to size up that person to see how well they’d speak to someone if they were of a lower station. He’d be dressed in a raggy sweater and a newspaper boy hat unlike his usual formal look with the tails. So I said to the officer ‘I suspect your buddy met Sir Henry Pellatt who was just checking up on him because he was on his property.’”

Lum says it’s not her job to turn people into believers, but that ghost walks are a great way to learn about local history. In her experience, children are more likely than adults to experience paranormal sightings and that sightings seem to intensify around the fall and spring equinox, or when there’s a full moon.

To experience your own ghostly encounter, try taking one of these ghost tours, available in cities across Canada:

Kingston, Ont.

The Haunted Walk of Kingston has received certificates of excellence from TripAdvisor two years in a row. With a tour that features haunted hotels, an infamous courtyard, and hidden burial grounds, it’s sure to thrill: http://hauntedwalk.com/kingston-tours/.

Ottawa, Ont.

The Haunted Walk of Ottawa includes a stop at one of North America’s most haunted buildings. The old Carleton County Jail features prominently in the tour and the brave can book a cell for the night as the jail is now maintained as a hostel. Exploring the nation’s capital through a haunted walk is a great way to learn not only local history, but Canadian history as a whole: http://hauntedwalk.com/ottawa-tours/.

Toronto, Ont.

A Taste of the World: Neighbourhood Bicycle Tours and Walks Inc. features four ghost walks that span the city and take you to some of Toronto’s creepiest places. Learn about the spirits that haunt the University of Toronto campus and which building now occupies the former Hospital for Sick Children: http://www.torontowalksbikes.com/descriptions.html#GHOST.

Niagara-on-the-Lake, Ont.

Ghost Walks and Dark History Tours takes you around one of the most historically rich towns in the country. Visit haunted hotels and theatres, and learn about the ghosts that linger on the shores of Lake Ontario: http://www.ghostwalks.com/niagaraonthelake.htm.

Hamilton, Ont.

Ghost Walks and Dark History Tours in Hamilton are lead by locals proud of their town and its haunting history. Recommended by TripAdvisor and fellow ghost walk tour veterans, this is a walk you won’t forget: http://www.ghostwalks.com/downtownhamilton.htm

Halifax, N.S.

The Halifax Ghost Walk is the oldest haunted tour in North America and is recommended by Lonely Planet and Fodors. Hear stories about pirates and buried treasure as you stroll the streets of old Halifax under the cover of darkness: http://www.thehalifaxghostwalk.com/home.html.

Victoria, B.C.

Victoria’s Ghostly Walks was developed by John Adams, a local historian. Learn about the city’s rich history and haunted past through stories of deadly accidents and crime. Recommended by TripAdvisor, it’s a tour that’s sure to thrill and chill: http://discoverthepast.com/ghostly-walks/.

Quebec City, Que.

Ghost Tours of Quebec covers 400 years of spooky history. Visitors will explore cobblestone streets as they’re led by costumed guides. This tour received a 2015 Certificate of Excellence from TripAdvisor and according to their website, goosebumps are guaranteed: http://www.ghosttoursofquebec.com/.

Edmonton, Alta.

Edmonton Ghost Tours covers the cities most haunted places with tours that stop at the University of Alberta and the Rutherford Historic Mansion. Private tours are also available for groups looking to be frightened with their best friends: http://www.edmontonghosttours.com/.

St. John’s, Nfld.

St. John’s Haunted Hike is sure to send shivers down the spine of even the bravest of ghost hunters. Boasting a long history as North America’s oldest city, St. John’s is full of ghostly tales of murder, public hangings, and unmarked graves: http://www.hauntedhike.com/.