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Most Haunted Places in Bern, Switzerland

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Old cities carry old ghost stories, and Bern in Switzerland is no exception. From the old buildings filled with history to the depth of the Aare river, here are some of the most haunted places in Bern.

In Switzerland’s capital, behind its postcard-perfect streets and golden sandstone facades, Bern hides a much darker side when the lights go out. Beneath the Gothic spires, along narrow alleyways, and on timeworn staircases, ghost stories have lingered for centuries and still linger underneath the modern city. Tales of restless monks, cursed people forced to live out eternity as monstrous spirits, weeping mothers, and endless funeral processions to the afterlife.

Read More: Check out all ghost stories from Switzerland

From the shadow of the mighty cathedral to the crooked passages of the Matte district, Bern is a city where history and legend intertwine, and where the past refuses to stay buried. Although far from a complete list, here you have some of the most haunted places in Bern and some of their haunted tales.

The Headless Ghost Woman of Bern at Junkerngasse 54

The Haunted Street: Junkerngasse street in the old part of Bern in Switzerland and was once a place were the rich lived. Today many of the old houses still remains, including the abandoned ones.//Photo by: Tony Badwy/wikimedia

Among the grand façades of Bern’s most historic street, Junkerngasse 54 stands out not for its elegance, but for the eerie silence that surrounds it. Abandoned for over a century, this seemingly ordinary building has long been the subject of chilling tales, most notably that of the Headless Ghost Woman that has become one of Bern’s most well known ghost stories. It is said that at the stroke of midnight, the spirit of a woman said to be headless appears at the window, haunting the quiet street below. Though the building likely served mundane purposes in its past, its shadowy interior now invites only speculation and spine-tingling legends, adding a dark twist to Bern’s beautifully preserved Old Town.

Read the whole story: The Headless Ghost Woman of Bern

The Sinful Monk Haunting the Former Monastery House on Junkerngasse

Before Junkerngasse became the street it is today, it used to house a lot of church buildings. The former monastery building, Frienisberghaus on Junkerngasse, once a residence for Cistercian monks from the Frienisberg Monastery, was long believed to be haunted by the ghost of a sinful monk. According to legend, the monk violated a nun during his time in the city, and after the Reformation turned the building to secular use, his restless spirit began to appear at midnight, silently climbing and descending stairs, sighing in torment. Even during the building’s demolition, tools dulled

Read the whole story: The Sinful Monk Haunting the Former Monastery House on Junkerngasse 

The Cursed Butcher Apprentice Haunting Rathausgasse in Bern

Rathausgasse: Die Berner Rathausgasse im Regen, 1992, Hotel Glocke. //Source: Christian Boss 1965/Wikimedia

In the heart of Bern’s Old Town, the legend of the ghostly butcher’s apprentice haunts the cobbled streets of Rathausgasse that was once known as Butcher’s Lane. Centuries ago, a cruel apprentice tormented and killed a calf for amusement, and as punishment, he was cursed to roam the area for eternity in the form of the very creature he tortured. People still claim to hear the eerie clatter of hooves echoing down the alleyways at night, though no horse or calf is ever seen. His restless spirit is also said to haunt the nearby Schlachthaus-Theater, formerly a slaughterhouse, where unexplained noises, spectral voices, and falling objects disturb the quiet. 

Read the whole story: The Cursed Butcher Apprentice Haunting Rathausgasse in Bern  

The Mattentreppen and the New Years Regretful Ghost

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The Mattentreppe, a steep staircase linking Bern’s majestic cathedral to the old Matte district by the Aare River, is said to be one of the city’s most haunted sites. As this list will show, most of Bern’s old stairs have a couple of ghost stories attached to it. 

Known for its ties to bathhouses, brothels, and even Casanova, the area holds lingering traces of sorrow and scandal. One ghost is a despairing nobleman who leapt to his death after a maid he’d seduced became pregnant; another is a crippled man who vanishes in laughter when offered help. But the most haunting figure is that of a woman in a wide-brimmed hat who appears each New Year’s Eve, silently ascending the steps from her grave, returning to the home where she once murdered her child. When the cathedral bells toll midnight, her ghost walks again before vanishing into the night mist.

Read the whole story: The Ghosts Haunting the Mattentreppe, Ringing the New Year In 

The Burgträppe-Balzli Haunting Nydeggburg Castle

Burgtreppe in Bern: Castle stairs from Mattenenge to Nydegghöfli. // Source

The Burgträppe-Balzli is a familiar name to the people of Bern interested in a ghost story. It is said to be a violent ghost said to haunt the staircase near the long-vanished Nydegg Castle, destroyed in 1268 to prevent rival claims after the fall of the Zähringen dynasty. Though the castle is gone, Balzli’s presence remains, targeting young men with phantom beatings on cold winter nights. Some say his fury is tied to the castle’s mysterious past. Another ghost story tied to the location of the former castle whispers of ghostly builders said to be cursed spirits of those who dismantled the fortress. They return in the fog to tear it down again and again.

Read the whole story: The Burgträppe-Balzli Haunting: The Ghost of Nydegg Castle

Nydegg Church and Kreuzgasse

Burgtreppe: Castle stairs at Nydegg Church // Source

As it happens, The Burgträppe-Balzli is not the only ghost said to linger in this area. Nydegg Church in Bern stands on the ruins of the old Nydeggburg Castle, once home to Duke Berchtold V of Zähringen, the city’s founder. Though the duke died in 1218 and his dynasty ended with him, legend says his spirit still haunts the area, particularly the narrow alley of Kreuzgasse. On misty nights, he is said to step down from the Zähringer Monument to roam the streets, displeased with what his city has become. Locals also report eerie noises beneath the church from ancient tunnels linked to the old castle and nearby monasteries. This area of Bern, steeped in history, remains haunted by its founder’s restless legacy.

Read the whole story: Duke Berchtold V of Zähringen Haunting the Old Town in Bern

Kindlifresserbrunnen Fountain and the Spirit of the Discarded Children

Ogre Fountain: The Kindlifressenbrunnen literally means the Child Devour Fountain. There are many legends surrounding it, one being that the area around it is haunted, // Source: Andrew Bossi /Wiki

The eerie Kindlifresserbrunnen (“Child Eater Fountain”) stands as a grotesque 16th-century sculpture of an ogre devouring children, shrouded in mystery and unsettling legend. While historians debate its meaning, ranging from mythological Kronos to a jealous brother of Bern’s founder, local folklore speaks of a darker truth. Beneath the fountain once lay tunnels where unwanted children were said to be abandoned. According to legend, their spirits rise at midnight, dancing in the mist for one hour before vanishing again. The fountain is not just a chilling sculpture, but a symbol of Bern’s haunted past, where ghostly children still wander beneath its stone gaze.

Read the whole story: Kindlifresserbrunnen and the Ghosts of the Discarded Children Beneath Bern 

The Restless Spirit of Mayor Hans Franz Nägeli: The Ghost of the Fricktreppe

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Beneath the historic charm of Bern’s Old Town lies the haunted Fricktreppe, a covered medieval staircase said to be stalked by the ghost of former mayor and military commander Hans Franz Nägeli. Though he died in 1579, Nägeli’s restless spirit is rumored to appear at midnight to those who dare stand at the base of the stairs and call his name three times. Locals, especially daring youths, attempt the ritual, but legend warns that Nägeli slaps those who mock him. Haunted by duty or pride, the stern mayor-turned-phantom is said to still patrol the steps he once governed, a spectral guardian of Bern’s storied past.

Read the whole story: The Restless Spirit of Hans Franz Nägeli: The Ghost of the Fricktreppe

More Ghosts Haunting the Fricktreppe

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The Frick Stairs in Bern are haunted by many ghosts. In addition to the military commander, legends also tell of a ghostly funeral procession of mutilated children and crippled dwarves, a headless woman carrying her severed head with bats swirling from her neck, and a pale noblewoman eternally reenacting the murder of her child. These chilling visions, tied to guilt, infanticide, and punishment, have earned the stairs a reputation as a place where Bern’s darkest sins replay themselves in endless, spectral loops.

Read the whole story: The Haunting of the Frick Stairs: Bern’s Processions of Death and Ghosts of Murderesses 

The Ghost of Könizwald, Bern: The Ghost of General Robert Scipio von Lentulus

The Former Manor in the Woods: The former Campagne Mon Repos estate, once home to General Robert Scipio von Lentulus, now a haunting memory in the woods of Könizwald.

The legend of General Robert Scipio von Lentulus haunts the former estate of Campagne Mon Repos near the Könizwald forest in Bern. A celebrated military figure from the 18th century, Lentulus is said to rest uneasily in a shuttered garden pavilion, rising only when Switzerland is in peril. According to local lore, those who gather at midnight and call his name three times may witness his ghostly form appear to offer a grim omen as well as reassurance. Though the estate was demolished in 1955 and the area is now a wooded green area in the city, the legend endures, portraying Lentulus as a spectral guardian of the nation, summoned only when its fate hangs in the balance.

Read the whole story: The Ghost of Könizwald, Bern: The Ghost of General Robert Scipio von Lentulus 

The Haunted Halls of the Bern City Hall (Rathaus)

The Bern Town Hall (Rathaus), a 600-year-old Gothic landmark in the heart of the Old City, is not only a center of politics but also a hotspot for eerie hauntings. Among its ghostly residents are a mourning treasurer who weeps for lost gold, a spectral protector who appears in a golden carriage during times of crisis, and a council of black-clad skeletal officials who argue endlessly at midnight. The corridors echo with the presence of a headless execution victim and the furious cries of a caretaker’s ghostly wife scolding invisible children behind a stove. Together, these restless spirits create an atmosphere of haunting mystery within Bern’s historic seat of power.

Read the whole story: The Haunted Halls of the Bern City Hall (Rathaus)

Bern Christmas Special Ghost Stories

During the Christmas season in Bern, ghostly tales come alive with chilling beauty. Locals speak of the Dancing Beguines, spirits of young women once confined to the Klösterlistutz monastery, who rise as flickering lights above the Aare River to dance briefly before vanishing at midnight. Another phantom, a silent old gentleman in 18th-century attire, takes his ritual walk toward the Studerstein, bringing eerie storms and crashes in his wake. And within a quiet house in the Old Town, a homesick ghost of a young woman in traditional dress returns each year to revisit her childhood home. 

Read the whole story: Ghosts of the Holy Season: The Christmas Hauntings of Bern

The Haunting of the Antoniterkirche: Where the Monks Never Left

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The Antoniterkirche in Bern, once home to the Antonite monks who cared for the sick and dying, became a place of unrest after the Swiss Reformation of 1528 forced the brothers from the city. Known for treating “holy fire” (ergotism) and for their distinctive blue Tau cross, the Antonites also carried a reputation for superstition, greed, and moral decline, a resentment that exploded into violence when the city turned Protestant. Their Gothic church was desecrated, its sacred objects destroyed, and the monks cast out, but legends claim some never left. Over the centuries, as the building served as a granary, fire station, and now a Lutheran and Orthodox worship space, reports of ghostly chanting, cold drafts, and apparitions of black-robed monks have persisted. One woodcutter famously claimed to have seen the sorrowful prior himself, silently watching. 

Read the whole story: The Haunting of the Antoniterkirche: Where the Monks Never Left

The Calf Haunting of the Käfigturm: Bern’s Grotesque Ghost of Guilt

The Käfigturm, once Bern’s medieval city gate and later its notorious prison, carries with it a chilling legend of cruelty and punishment that outlived its walls. Said to be haunted by the Käfitier, a grotesque calf ghost, the tower’s curse stems from a jailer infamous for denying prisoners clean water, offering only filth to the thirsty. Condemned by his own cruelty, he is believed to have returned after death in the form of this monstrous beast, forever running between the tower and the Anna Seiler Fountain, drinking desperately yet never quenching his thirst. Witnesses claim to hear heavy thuds and see the ghastly calf rise from the cobblestones, howling into the night. Echoing the tale of the cursed butcher’s apprentice who haunts Rathausgasse as a calf, this story underscores a haunting Bernese motif: cruelty transforms the guilty into the very beasts they once abused. Today, though Käfigturm serves as a center for civic debate and political discourse, its stones still whisper of suffering, judgment, and the ghostly reminder that merciless deeds may earn merciless fates.

Read the whole story: The Calf Haunting of the Käfigturm: Bern’s Grotesque Prison Tower

The Haunted Story of Bern

Looking closer at the ghost stories told through time, it paints a picture of the history that helped mold the Swiss city to today, but it also shows us what people feared and dreamed about. As mentioned, these are just a few of the many haunted places that make up Bern.

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Most Haunted Places in Basel, Switzerland and its Ghostly Legends

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From poltergeists, ghostly monks, nuns and knights as well as a procession of skeletons, some of the most haunted places in Basel, Switzerland are said to be centuries old. Let’s have a closer look at some of them.

Beneath Basel’s charming medieval streets, vibrant culture, and picturesque riverbanks lies a darker, more unsettling layer of history—one whispered about in hushed tones and kept alive through ghost stories passed down for generations. As one of Switzerland’s oldest cities, Basel is steeped in centuries of war, plague, and religious upheaval, leaving behind more than just ruins and gravestones. From restless spirits in ancient cloisters to poltergeists in quiet apartments, this city is home to eerie legends that refuse to fade and some of the most haunted places in Basel.

The Restless Spirits of Kleines Klingental: Basel’s Haunted Nunnery

Museum Klingental Basel: The old nunnery is said to be haunted by the sinful nuns that used to live there, centuries ago and one of the most haunted places in Basel. // Source: Mikatu/Wikimedia

The former Dominican cloister of Kleines Klingental in Basel, once a house of piety, became a notorious retreat for wealthy, noble-born nuns whose lives allegedly strayed far from monastic vows. Rumors of secret lovers, drowned infants, and defiance of church authority plagued its reputation. 

After the Reformation, the cloister was turned into military barracks, where soldiers reported chilling hauntings: ghostly nuns praying, wailing, and wandering the halls in sorrow, still seeking forgiveness for their sins. Today, the site houses the Kleines Klingental Museum, but tales persist of phantom nuns, flickering lights, and shadowy figures that suggest the past has yet to release its grip on this once-sacred ground.

Read the whole story: The Restless Spirits of Kleines Klingental: Basel’s Haunted Nunnery

The Headless Heretic of Basel: The Haunting of the Spießhof Building

Source: Wikimedia

In the heart of Basel’s Old Town, the Spießhof Building harbors the chilling legacy of David Joris, a 16th-century Dutch Anabaptist preacher who fled persecution only to meet a gruesome fate after death. Living under a false name, Joris built a secret life in Basel before his heretical beliefs were posthumously revealed. In a dramatic act of vengeance, his corpse was exhumed, beheaded, and burned—an attempt to erase him from salvation. Since then, his headless ghost, often seen with two eerie black dogs, is said to haunt his former home. Mediums and witnesses claim he won’t rest until his name is cleared, cementing his place as one of Basel’s most enduring and unsettling phantoms.

Read the whole story: The Headless Heretic of Basel: The Haunting of the Spießhof Building

The Restless Gatekeeper of the Rhine Gate in Basel

In 17th-century Basel, a troubled gatekeeper at the Rhine Gate lost his beloved young daughter when she drowned in the river, a tragedy he witnessed but was too drunk to prevent. Consumed by grief and guilt, he later died—likely by suicide—and was denied burial in consecrated ground beside her at St. Martin’s Church. Instead, he was interred among outcasts at Klingental. 

Yet his spirit found no rest; legend holds that his ghost still haunts the churchyard, silently keeping vigil by his daughter’s grave, a spectral figure glimpsed beneath the moonlight, forever bound by sorrow and denied peace.

Read the whole story: The Restless Gatekeeper of the Rhine Gate in Basel 

The Ghostly Monk of Spittelsprung (Münsterberg) in Basel

Back at a time when the hills of Münsterberg were called Spittelsprung in the old parts of Basel, Switzerland, a haunting tale emerged about a spectral monk. This ghostly figure would glide silently through the streets, frightening children while immersed in silent prayers, oblivious to the living around him.

He was often seen illuminated faintly by candlelight, engrossed in his breviary, and indifferent to the fear he instilled in children watching from the shadows. Only when confronted by an adult would he vanish, leaving behind the scent of candle wax.

The reasons for the monk’s haunting remain a mystery—was he a victim of the plagues, seeking penance for sins, or perhaps a witness to grim events? The story of another haunting monk from the 1626 poorhouse adds to the intrigue, where travelers would watch in terror as he glided through their rooms.

Read the whole story: The Ghostly Monk of Spittelsprung (Münsterberg) in Basel

Knightly Ghosts Haunting St. Johanns-Vorstadt by the Rhine River

In Basel’s St. Johann district—once home to the medieval Commandery of the Knights of St. John—ghostly legends linger beneath the modern apartments now standing there. Once filled with crusader knights and sod wells, the area was long haunted by the phantom of an armored rider galloping through the Ritterhaus courtyard, ghostly apparitions of a pale-faced man, a cloaked lady, and even a spectral white dog. Most chilling were the cries of a child said to echo from the depths of an old well. 

Though the original knightly buildings were demolished by 1929 and archives lost, eerie sightings and stories continue to haunt the district, keeping its haunted past alive and still considered one of the most haunted places in Basel.

Read the whole story: Knightly Ghosts Haunting St. Johanns-Vorstadt by the Rhine River 

The Knocking Ghost of Utengasse 47: Basel’s Poltergeist Case

Utengasse 47: Considered to be one of the most haunted places in Basel

In 1929, a small apartment at Utengasse 47 in Basel’s Kleinbasel district became the center of one of Switzerland’s most infamous poltergeist cases. What began as unexplained knocking sounds soon escalated into terrifying disturbances that seemed to center around a ten-year-old boy named Marcel. 

Despite multiple investigations by police, doctors, and even spiritualists, no source for the strange rapping and chilling atmosphere could be found. Marcel’s intense reactions and the persistence of the disturbances, even under observation, only deepened the mystery. As public anxiety mounted, the Basel authorities took the unusual step of ordering the apartment vacated—an extraordinary measure during a housing shortage. Though the building still stands today, no further incidents were reported, and the haunting remains an unsolved and eerie chapter in the city’s folklore.

Read the whole story: The Knocking Ghost of Utengasse 47: Basel’s Poltergeist Case

The Restless Dead Buried Inside of Basel’s Double Cloister

The Double Cloister of Basel Minster, a serene courtyard by day, is said to transform into a haunting ground by night, echoing with the restless spirits of those entombed within its ancient walls and said to be one of the most haunted places in Basel. Among them are two infamous specters: Emanuel Büchel, a respected artist and baker believed to have been buried alive, whose ghost moans and wheezes beneath the stone floors; and Master Tailor Schnyyder Hagenbach, a cruel man in life whose malevolent spirit is said to slap unsuspecting passersby without warning. 

Once a sacred site filled with altars and later a cemetery for the city’s elite, the cloister has long been steeped in death and memory. Though modern life carries on just beyond its arches, many locals still avoid the cloisters after dark, wary of the unseen hands and the whispered echoes of Basel’s darker past.

Read the whole story: The Restless Dead Buried Inside of Basel’s Double Cloister 

The Ghost Procession of Basel and the Dance Macabre

Predigerkirche: © Roland Fischer, Zürich (Switzerland) – Mail notification to: roland_zh(at)hispeed(dot)ch / Wikimedia Commons / CC-BY-SA-3.0 Unported

Mirroring the famous Dance Macabre mural that used to hang near the Predigerkirche in Basel, legend claims that plague victims buried in the nearby grass will rise in a ghostly procession to warn the living of impending disasters.

In Basel’s old town, a haunting memory of the plague remains, as thousands perished indiscriminately during the Black Death. The city’s dark history is marked by the rapid deaths caused by the disease and the need for mass graves, particularly around the Predigerkirche.

The Dance of Death mural, painted in the 15th century, depicted skeletal figures leading both the rich and poor alike in a dance, emphasizing that death spares no one. Though the mural was dismantled in 1805, it became a legend, claiming that the dead rise in times of danger.

Local lore states that the plague victims buried near the Predigerkirche do not rest peacefully. When Basel faces calamity, they are said to rise and march in a spectral procession through the streets, symbolizing death’s universal reach, uniting all in decay regardless of their former status.

Read the whole story: The Ghost Procession of Basel and the Dance of Death

The Dream of the Basel Rhine Bridge about the Buried Treasure

The Emmental: is a valley in west-central Switzerland, forming part of the canton of Bern, mostly made up by farmers and known for its cheese and pottery. Rafrüti is mostly known for being the place where the first and second latest meteorite was found in Switzerland.

The tale of “The Dream of the Basel Rhine Bridge” tells of a poor farmer from the Emmental who dreams of finding gold at the Mittlere Brücke in Basel were the bridge is considered one of the most haunted places in Basel. After several nights of the same dream, he decides to make the journey to Basel, where he searches for the treasure on the bridge without success. A policeman, noticing his distress, shares a dream about treasure in Rafrüti, prompting the farmer to return home. He digs in his kitchen and uncovers a pot of gold with the help of a mysterious black figure, appearing like a ghost to him. 

The figure offers him three piles of gold to choose from but warns him to decide wisely. Instead of choosing, the farmer combines the piles and vows to share the wealth as he sees fit. The figure then disappears, and the farmer’s family lives in comfort thereafter, proving that the bridge indeed brought him fortune.

Read the whole story: The Dream of the Basel Rhine Bridge about the Buried Treasure

The Gray Ghost of Claraplatz: Kleinbasel’s Neighborhood Spirit

The Gray One, a haunting spirit, is said to linger around houses in Kleinbasel, Switzerland, especially in the now-demolished Abbess’ Court. The ghost was not confided into a single home, and was one of the more famous ghosts in the city and Abbess’ Court one of the most haunted places in Basel. This eerie ghost, dressed in traditional Franconian garb, particularly troubled the Schetty family in the 19th century, appearing in their daughters’ bedroom and causing unsettling disturbances throughout the house.

The ghost would often retreat to the attic, creating loud noises that disturbed the family. To keep the ghost away, locals painted a pentagram at the house’s threshold, but it’s unclear if this truly worked. After the death of Joseph Schetty, the family patriarch, his ghost was also reportedly seen in the house. Despite the Abbess’ Court being demolished in 1951, legends of haunting phenomena persisted in the area, with reports of phantom footsteps and sightings of a gray figure near the old foundations.

Read the whole story: The Gray Ghost of Claraplatz: Kleinbasel’s Neighborhood Spirit

The Evil Eye of Rebgasse: Curses, Shadows, and an Exorcism in Basel

Haus Zur Alten Trotte: The haunted house on Rebgasse 38 in Basel, was said to have had an exorcism twice and considered to be one of the most haunted places in Basel. // Source: Laloom/Wikimedia

The Kleinbasel neighborhood in Basel, Switzerland, is known for its haunted history, particularly at Rebgasse 38. This house, also known as the Haus zur alten Trotte, was home to many ghostly encounters, including spirits associated with a former couple who lived there from 1888 to 1907. Two main ghosts were reported: Grethi Beck, a former maid who was believed to have the Evil Eye, and the deceased wife of Pastor Johann Jakob Übelin, who returned as a ghost after his infidelity.

Despite attempts by local clergy to suppress belief in hauntings, the presence of these spirits persisted, prompting the famous exorcist Johann Jakob von Brunn to be called upon. He successfully banished Grethi Beck’s spirit, though sightings of her continued, and the haunting by Übelin’s wife also lingered until she was expelled.

Although the hauntings ceased, the house retained its ghostly reputation, and the location of Rebgasse 38 is now a kindergarten. The tales of the hauntings continue to live on through local folklore and ghost tours, suggesting that the shadows of Kleinbasel’s past may never fully fade.

Read the whole story: The Evil Eye of Rebgasse: Curses, Shadows, and an Exorcism in Basel  

Ghosts of the New Moon: The White Death and the Restless Shadows of Basel

Markgräflerhof Palace: An engraving of the Markgräflerhof Palace from 1845 were the White Death was said to roam and being one of the most haunted places in Basel.

In Basel, the ghost known as Weisse Tod, or The White Death, haunts the area around the historic Markgräflerhof building. This terror manifests during the new moon when the veil between the worlds is said to thin, prompting the city’s restless spirits to rise. Locals believed that every new moon, The White Death would emerge from a nearby hole, peering into homes with its dark eye sockets, and those who met its gaze would soon fall ill, as if marked for death.

The Markgräflerhof, built in the early 1700s, was once tied to various rumors, including the suggestion that its haunting is linked to the building’s past as a hospital or an asylum. Compounding the legend, tuberculosis was often referred to as The White Death, possibly intertwining fears of disease with ghostly lore.

Additionally, another ghost appears at an old urban fountain near the Rhine, a man in dark garments whose presence evokes mystery and sorrow, believed to be a soul lost to the river. Each new moon, the church bells toll extra hours to ward off restless spirits, but even as modernity transforms the city, the supernatural aura persists, suggesting the new moon still belongs to the dead in Basel.

Read the whole story: Ghosts of the New Moon: The White Death and the Restless Shadows of Basel 

The Basilisk of Basel: The Beast Beneath Gerberberglein

Beneath the quiet street of Gerberberglein in central Basel, legend tells of a deadly basilisk—a mythical creature part serpent, part rooster, with a gaze so lethal it could kill. Said to have lived in a cave beneath the city, the beast terrified locals until a brave apprentice used a mirror to turn the creature’s power against itself. Though the cave was sealed long ago, the basilisk lives on in Basel’s identity, with its fearsome image adorning fountains and railings throughout the city. 

Read the whole story: The Basilisk of Basel: The Beast Beneath Gerberberglein

Exploring the most Haunted Places in Basel

From spectral knights riding through vanished courtyards to sorrowful moans echoing in cathedral cloisters, Basel’s haunted places are more than just eerie tales—they are echoes of a city that remembers its dead. Whether rooted in history, folklore, or something stranger still, these stories remind us that even the most beautiful places can hide unsettling secrets. So if you ever find yourself wandering Basel’s narrow alleys at dusk or standing alone on the Mittlere Brücke under a full moon, don’t be surprised if the past comes whispering. After all, in Basel, the line between the living and the dead is thinner than you think.

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10 Most Haunted Places in Paris

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A list of the ten most haunted places in Paris, from haunted houses on cobbled streets, catacombs, and marbled and golden palaces.

Haunted places in Paris are said to be, well, very French. The ghost stories we find in this city are tales of jilted lovers in romantic date sites, fleeting shadows under the canopy trees in picturesque parks to royal ghosts inside of the historic buildings close to the whole world have heard of.

But just like the pitch dark of the underground necropolis of the catacombs under the rose colored city above, the ghost stories found in this city are just as dark. This is by no way a complete list of what tales you can find in Paris, and for a more extensive list, head over to the archives of France. But for now, let’s have a look at some of the most haunted places in Paris.

No. 1 on Avenue Frochot | Quartier Saint-Georges | Paris — The cursed haunted house behind the iron fences

Most Haunted Places in Paris: Avenue Frochot, from number 1 to number 7, picture taken between 1915 and 1925.

Avenue Frochot in Paris harbors the infamous Haunted House, shrouded in mystery and dark secrets that have intrigued locals and visitors alike for centuries. This historic avenue, once home to Paris’ elite, including renowned figures like Alexandre Dumas and Victor Hugo, hides a chilling tale within its iron-fenced properties.

At the heart of this enigma is the Haunted House, where a chambermaid met a tragic end at the hands of an unknown assailant in the early 1900s. Despite her killer evading capture, her spirit is said to linger within the mansion’s walls, perpetually haunting the premises.

Eerie tales abound of ghostly footsteps echoing through the empty corridors and shadowy figures glimpsed through the windows, even in the dead of night. The house, steeped in a sinister aura, carries a curse that has plagued its occupants over the years. Theater critic Mathieu Galey met his demise within its confines, mirroring the fate of composer Victor Massé a century prior. Even renowned singer Sylvie Vartan, who acquired the property in the 1970s, hastily departed mere days after moving in, purportedly due to the spectral presence haunting the house.

Read the whole story: The Mystery of the Haunted House on Avenue Frochot

Jardin Tuileries | L’Homme Rouge | Paris — The red man haunting the garden as an omen

Most Haunted Places in Paris: Said to house the red man, the ghost of a former servant has now become a national symbol and an omen.

The Tuileries Palace, once a grand royal residence adjacent to the Louvre Palace in Paris, holds within its storied history a chilling tale of revenge from beyond the grave and is perhaps one of the most haunted places in Paris. Constructed in the 16th century by Queen Catherine de Medici, this opulent palace was tragically destroyed by fire in 1871 during the tumultuous period of the Paris Commune. However, amidst the ruins lies a lingering specter, known as The Red Man, whose vengeful spirit haunts the nearby Tuileries Gardens to this day.

Legend has it that The Red Man is the restless soul of Jean l’Ecorcheur, a loyal servant turned assassin in service to Queen Catherine. Jean, also known as Jean the Skinner, earned his grisly nickname through his dual roles as a butcher and a clandestine operative for the queen. However, his intimate knowledge of the royal family’s secrets proved to be his undoing. Fearful that he would betray her, Queen Catherine ordered his demise, resulting in a brutal murder within the confines of the Tuileries Gardens.

In death, Jean’s spirit is said to have risen from the grave, cursing all those who dwelled within the palace walls. The Red Man became a harbinger of doom, appearing before significant events that befell the French royals. From the assassination of King Henry IV to the execution of Louis XVI during the French Revolution, sightings of The Red Man preceded these tragic events like a sinister omen.

Read the whole story: The Red Man haunting the Jardin Tuileries in Paris

Notre Dame Cathedral | Île de la Cité — The haunted cathedral made by the help of the devil

Most Haunted Places in Paris: Perhaps one of the most well known buildings in Paris are also one of the most haunted?

The Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris stands as an iconic symbol of Gothic architecture and spiritual significance, drawing visitors from around the globe to marvel at its breathtaking beauty and delve into its rich history. However, alongside its awe-inspiring features, the cathedral is also steeped in tales of mystery and the supernatural.

Dating back to its construction in 1163, Notre Dame has amassed a wealth of stories, some of which hint at ghostly encounters within its hallowed halls. Among these legends is the chilling tale of an ironworker named Biscornet, who purportedly struck a deal with the devil to complete the cathedral’s metalwork in time for its inauguration. Despite his successful craftsmanship, the doors he fashioned remained mysteriously sealed shut until holy water was applied, revealing a note hinting at his demonic pact.

But tales of spectral encounters don’t end there. Legends speak of two ghostly women haunting the cathedral’s roof, their ethereal figures glimpsed among the stone gargoyles and gothic sculptures. Witnesses claim to have seen these apparitions walking the roof before inexplicably vanishing into thin air or plunging to their demise.

Read the whole story: The Haunted Halls of Paris’ Notre Dame Cathedral 

Père Lachaise Cemetery | Boulevard de Ménilmontant — The haunted cemetery of bloody revolutions and celebrities

Most Haunted Places in Paris: Looking almost like a city itself, this graveyard houses any celebrities as their final resting place. Although, some are said to haunt the place.

The Père Lachaise Cemetery in Paris, France, renowned for its historic significance and famous inhabitants like Jim Morrison and Marcel Proust, has long been shrouded in mystery and ghostly tales and thought to be one of the most haunted places in Paris as well. Established in 1804 by Emperor Napoleon, this sprawling necropolis covers over 110 acres and attracts visitors from around the globe.

Despite its solemn purpose, the cemetery has witnessed its share of turmoil, including the execution of Communards during the Bloody Week of 1871. Reports of ghostly encounters abound, with visitors and cemetery workers alike recounting eerie experiences among the graves and mausoleums. Additionally, tales of restless spirits, like those of fallen soldiers from past battles, contribute to its haunted reputation.

The cemetery’s most peculiar legend revolves around Baroness Elisabeth Stroganova, whose mausoleum is rumored to hold dark secrets. According to lore, Stroganova offered a substantial inheritance to anyone who could endure spending a full year inside her tomb. Despite several attempts, no one has successfully completed the challenge, leading to speculation about the baroness’s motives and the eerie atmosphere surrounding her grave.

Read the whole story: Paris’ Haunted Père Lachaise Cemetery

Parc Montsouris | Arrondissement de l’Observatoire — The headless ghost in the park

Most Haunted Places in Paris: A good place for a picnic as well as a place to see ghosts. source

Parc Montsouris, nestled in the 14th arrondissement of Paris, stands as a lush oasis steeped in both beauty and mystery. Its verdant landscapes and serene lake belie a history fraught with tales of the supernatural, where strange occurrences and hauntings have left an indelible mark on its tranquil ambiance.

One chilling legend recounts an incident during the park’s official opening, where a tragic mistake led to the accidental draining of the artificial lake, purportedly driving the park engineer to take his own life. Although historical records confirm the lake’s sudden drainage in 1878, there is scant evidence of the alleged suicide.

Parc Montsouris also bears witness to darker chapters in history, notably serving as a testing ground for the guillotine during the French Revolution. Echoes of this gruesome past linger, with some visitors reporting eerie sensations reminiscent of the blade’s swift descent.

Among the park’s most infamous legends is the tale of Isaure de Montsouris, whose grisly murder by bandits allegedly left his restless spirit to roam the grounds.

Read the whole story: The Headless Hauntings of Parc Montsouris

Eiffel Tower | le septième — The haunted and deadly romance at the top of the most romantic place on earth

Most Haunted Places in Paris: Perhaps one of the worlds most romantic coded places in the world. Also the most haunted?

The Eiffel Tower, affectionately known as La dame de fer (the Iron Lady), stands as an iconic symbol of romance and modernity in Paris. Constructed for the 1889 World’s Fair, this architectural marvel has since become a magnet for urban legends, mysterious events, and ghostly sightings.

Despite initial criticism for its design, the tower captivated audiences with its grandeur and size, remaining the world’s tallest structure for over four decades. Today, it continues to draw millions of visitors, contributing to Paris’ reputation as a city of romance and intrigue.

Amidst marriage proposals and picturesque views, the Eiffel Tower harbors darker tales, including stories of jilted lovers and tragic endings. One legend tells of a heartbroken couple meeting at the tower in the 1920s, where a rejected proposal led to a fatal fall. Some claim to have encountered the spirit of the jilted lover or his scorned partner, perpetuating the tower’s haunted reputation and of being one of the most haunted places in Paris.

Read the whole story: Exploring the Ghost Stories on top of Paris’ Eiffel Tower

Château de Versailles | Yvelines — The time travelling ghost in the royal palace

Most Haunted Places in Paris: The Apollo Fontain outside in the gardens of Château de Versailles

Constructed under the reign of King Louis XIV, Château de Versailles began as a modest hunting lodge in 1623 before blossoming into the lavish palace known today. With its dark history and tales of ghostly apparitions, the palace has become a focal point for paranormal enthusiasts and curious visitors alike.

Among the spectral residents said to roam the palace is the ghost of Louis XIV himself, the Sun King whose undying affection for Versailles lingers beyond the grave. Witnesses claim to have glimpsed his regal figure traversing his favored chambers and garden pathways, accompanied by the phantom echoes of midnight horse gallops, evoking his funeral procession.

Marie Antoinette, the ill-fated queen of France, is another prominent specter said to wander the palace grounds, her ghostly visage often sighted near the Grand Trianon or within the palace walls. Some recount hearing her mournful sobs echoing through empty corridors, while others claim to have seen her clad in her iconic white gown, clutching a white rose as she roams the estate.

Even in the quiet of the night, whispers of unseen spirits pervade the dimly lit hallways and gardens of Château de Versailles. Visitors have reported eerie noises and chilling sensations, with some claiming to have glimpsed shadowy figures lurking in the shadows, adding to the palace’s mystique and allure as a haunted destination.

Read the whole story: The Time Travelling Ghost Haunting Château de Versailles

The Catacombs | Place Denfert-Rochereau | Paris — The mysterious underground necropolis

Most Haunted Places in Paris

Beneath the bustling streets of Paris lies a realm shrouded in darkness and mystery: the Catacombs. Originally an ancient quarry, this network of tunnels now houses the bones of millions of Parisians, relocated from overcrowded cemeteries in the late 1700s.

One infamous story revolves around Philibert Aspairt, a hospital worker who vanished in the catacombs during the French Revolution. Despite efforts to find him, his fate remained unknown until his body was discovered years later. Legend has it that his ghost still roams the labyrinthine corridors, a haunting reminder of the catacombs’ dark past.

But the mysteries of the catacombs extend beyond mere ghost stories. Legends speak of hidden chambers and strange creatures lurking in the shadows, making it perhaps one of the most haunted places in Paris.

Read the whole story: Scary Tales of The Catacombs of Paris

Opéra Garnier| Le Fantôme de l’Opéra | Opéra — The home and haunting of the Phantom of the Opera

Most Haunted Places in Paris

Opéra Garnier Paris, a pinnacle of French culture and architectural marvel, is steeped in a history rich with mysterious tales and eerie legends, with perhaps none more infamous than the story of the Phantom of the Opera.

Built during the Second Empire of France under the visionary architect Charles Garnier, Opéra Garnier’s labyrinthine design and grandeur have long captivated visitors. Yet, beneath its ornate façade lies a realm of secrets, from hidden passages to unexplored depths, where whispers of the supernatural echo through its hallowed halls.

Central to the opera house’s mystique is the legend of the Phantom, an enigmatic figure said to haunt its auditorium, grand staircase, and darkened corridors.

Some attribute the Phantom’s existence to the tragic tale of Ernest, a piano prodigy scarred by a fire at the Le Peletier Opera House in 1873. Seeking refuge within Opéra Garnier’s labyrinthine confines, Ernest is said to have dwelled in the underground lake beneath the building, consumed by grief and rage.

The opera’s eerie reputation is further enhanced by a series of inexplicable deaths and accidents, including the infamous incident of a falling crystal chandelier during a performance of Faust. Linked to seat number 13, this tragedy, immortalized in Gaston Leroux’s novel, adds to the aura of mystery surrounding Opéra Garnier.

Read the whole story: The Legend of the Phantom of Opéra Garnier

Rue Des Chantres | Paris — The lost children haunting the streets of Paris

Most Haunted Places in Paris

Rue des Chantres, near the Seine in Paris, is shrouded in eerie tales of forgotten tragedies and spectral encounters. This small street, close to Notre Dame, holds whispered accounts of agony, death, and haunted houses, painting a sinister picture of its history and is maybe one of the most haunted places in Paris?.

Île de la Cité, one of Paris’s oldest areas, is steeped in legends of paranormal phenomena. Once home to a convent, castle, and numerous haunted houses, this district is rumored to be inhabited by ghosts of the past. Famed figures like Heloise, from the tragic tale of Heloise and Abelard, once resided in this enigmatic locale.

The chilling legend of the Lost Children on Rue des Chantres stems from a devastating event in 1910. During a severe flood, children from a hospital, housed in the Hotel-Dieu, were trapped and drowned in their rooms. Despite efforts to conceal their bodies, many believe these souls still haunt the street, forever denied peace in death.

Since the tragic flood, witnesses have reported hearing children’s screams and laughter echoing from Rue des Chantres. Strange lights and shadowy figures have also been sighted, attributed to the Lost Children who roam the street, leaving an indelible mark on those who dare to venture into their realm.

Read the whole story: The Story of the Lost Children on Rue Des Chantres

Most Haunted Places in Paris

As mentioned, this list is only a small list of the most haunted places in Paris, but far from everyone. Head over to the France archives for more ghost stories from there.

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10 Most Haunted Places in Hong Kong

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Most Haunted Places in Hong Kong goes from dark metro stations, historic buildings as well as victims of war crimes, murders and stuff og legends.

In the cityscape of Hong Kong lies a realm of ghostly tales and supernatural encounters that stretch back for generations. Many of these stories came from actual cases that today are the stuff of urban legends and whispered ghost stories.

For a more complete list of haunted places, head over to the China archives on Moonmausoleum. For this article, let’s have a look at some of the most haunted places in Hong Kong.

MTR’s Island Line | 港鐵 | Hong Kong — The haunted metro stations throughout the city

Most Haunted Places in Hong Kong: Photo by Kaique Rocha on Pexels.com

The metro system in Hong Kong harbors more than just commuters within its tunnels if we are to believe the stories. Amidst the modernity and hustle of daily life, eerie tales of supernatural encounters lurk in the shadows, weaving a tapestry of mystery and intrigue.

Rumsey Station is said to be haunted by the construction workers that died while building it, as well as being haunted by a woman that is reportedly leaping off the platform.

There have also been claims that construction workers hear the screams inside of the Whitty Station tunnels. When they investigated the claims, they allegedly found a woman dressed in white on the platform that leapt onto the tracks when they approached her. 

At Choi Hung Station, the legend of a vanished train, rumored to have traversed a track leading straight to hell, sends shivers down the spine.

Meanwhile, the ghostly apparition at Yau Ma Tei Station defies rational explanation, leaving witnesses questioning reality itself. A mass haunting a couple of decades ago seen and heard by many left people to think that someone had jumped that day, but no one was found, leading people to believe it had to be a ghost reliving her final moments over and over again.

Read the whole story here: The Haunted Metro Stations on Hong Kong MTR’s Island Line

Nam Koo Terrace | 南固臺 | Wan Chai — The ghosts of headless comfort women

Most Haunted Places in Hong Kong: Source

Back in the day under the Japanese Occupation of Hong Kong the Japanese soldiers used Nam Koo Terrace on Ship Street, also today known as Wan Chai Haunted House, as a military brothel as well as a place of torture during the Second World War. When you know the story that went on behind these walls, there is no wonder why it is considered one of the most haunted places in Hong Kong

Comfort women or comfort girls were women and girls forced into sexual slavery by the Imperial Japanese Army in occupied countries and territories before and during World War II. Estimates vary as to how many women were involved, with most historians settling somewhere in the range of 50,000–200,000.

It is said it is the ghosts of the women that had to stay in this place, so called Comfort Women haunt the building, roaming headless in the night. Some even go as far as claiming insanity after staying in the house and once, papers like the Oriental Daily covered one of these cases.

Read the whole story here: Nam Koo Terrace — The Wan Chai Haunted House

The Hello Kitty Murder Case | Kowloon — The ghost from the harrowing murder case

Most Haunted Places in Hong Kong

The gruesome discovery of a woman’s skull concealed within the innocent facade of a Hello Kitty doll sent shockwaves rippling through the community, revealing the depths of human depravity in 1999. A young woman named Ah Fong, had fallen victim to a brutal and sadistic torture session orchestrated by a group of individuals involved in the criminal underworld.

Ah Fong had been held imprisoned in the apartment, tortured in the most barbaric and vicious ways as well as raped over and over for over a month before she died. But as the perpetrators faced justice for their heinous crime, whispers began to circulate of a darker force at play.

Many unusual events have occurred that are regarded as supernatural by the public. And rumors about something paranormal and strange going on started already during trial with the light flickering when the culprits tried to defend themselves.

The building where the murder happened had strange things going on as well and has made the list of more than one list of Most Haunted Places in Hong Kong. A woman rented a unit on the fourth floor without knowing about the murder. Her friend often heard women crying at night, and at that time, there were no people living downstairs. There have also been reports about seeing the ghost of a young woman wandering in the building.

In the end the building itself was torn down. No one wanted anything to do with it as it was tainted and haunted in their eyes. But even when a new building was built there, a memorial was put in place just in case it could help stop with the haunting.

Read the whole story here: The Ghost of the Hello Kitty Murder

The Braided Girl on the Train Tracks | Chinese University of Hong Kong | New Territories — The ghost of a disfigured girl approaching male students

Most Haunted Places in Hong Kong

The story of The Braided Girl is set around the train station close to Chinese University of Hong Kong and where the old train tracks used to run. In the 1960’s, or according to some, even before that, a girl was trying to smuggle herself into Hong Kong from mainland China to elope and be with her lover. Back then there were a number of people from mainland China who tried to hide in the trains carrying cattles and jumped off the train when reaching the destination. 

The Braided Girl was wearing two plaited braids and had no ticket for the train she was on. She was caught when the conductor asked for her ticket and she knew she had to get away. 

To escape she jumped from the train, but one of her long braids was caught in the train door or even the tracks as she hit the ground and she tore the braids from her scalp and destroyed her face and died a horrible death. 

People have seen the braided girl weeping with her backs to them around the path where the story allegedly happened where the tracks used to run. The place is now known as Braid Road (辮子路 or 一條辮路).

When the students, mostly male students, are looking closer she turns toward them and shows her torn face. 

Read the whole story here: The Braided Girl on the Train Tracks

Jumbo Kingdom | 珍寶王國 | Aberdeen Harbour — The mysterious rowing women in the water

Most Haunted Places in Hong Kong: Jumbo Kingdom Floating Restaurant from it was still in operation.

In 2022, the whole floating restaurant capsized after years of misfortune. It closed down during the pandemic, and never got to reopen after. But before it closed down, it had a haunted rumor about it attracting ghosts from the bay area and was in addition to a tourist attraction one of the most haunted places in Hong Kong.

There are legends about a mysterious woman rowing a small boat at night by the restaurant that people are saying is a ghost. This alludes to the practice prostitutes used in Hong Kong back in the day when they rowed out to ship waiting in the bay to earn money from the sailors waiting in their ships in the harbor. People think that the floating life full of life and lights in the bay reminded the spirits of the prostitute ghost at sea about their life and attracts them. 

The question is, was it only to this particular restaurant the ghosts were attracted to, or is it something in the Hong Kong harbor that has the same allure to the people from the afterlife?

The Ghost of Jumbo Kingdom, the Floating Restaurant

The Takeout Ordering Ghost |鬼叫餐 | Leighton Road — An urban legend that is still haunting the streets

Most Haunted Places in Hong Kong

In the bustling streets of Hong Kong, whispers of a ghostly phenomenon have long haunted the city’s residents. The tale of the Takeout Ordering Ghost, a spectral entity that summons food deliveries from beyond the grave, has become a chilling legend passed down through generations. Some believe that the origins of this eerie story can be traced back to a real incident, shrouded in mystery and superstition.

The story goes that after a restaurant receives an order by phone, the delivery boy heads to a nearby condo on Leighton Road, where he encounters a hand emerging from the door gap to pay him. Upon returning to the restaurant, however, he discovers that the money has transformed into ghostly joss paper, unsettling the owner and casting suspicion on the employee.

As the eerie incidents repeat themselves, with the money consistently morphing into ghost currency, the restaurant owner grows increasingly alarmed. Determined to uncover the truth, he decides to personally deliver the next order to the condo. What he discovers inside shocks him to the core: four decomposing bodies seated around a Mahjong table, with remnants of the restaurant’s food containers nearby.

Police investigations reveal that the deceased succumbed to carbon monoxide poisoning, indicating that they had been dead for some time, although the neighbors had all heard them playing and partying.

Read the whole story here: The Takeout Ordering Ghost in Hong Kong

Bela Vista Villa | 東堤小築 | Cheung Chau island — The haunted vacation home on the beach

Most Haunted Places in Hong Kong

It is said that the building is the place for over 20 murders and suicide cases over the last 30 years and the Bela Vista Villa has been dubbed The Resort of Charcoal Suicide. People have come to this place from the rest of Hong Kong to end their life there for all sorts of reasons. What happened over the years was that it started to be rumored to be one of the most haunted places in Hong Kong.

The people that have stayed in the vacation home claim to have heard wailing screams in the night coming from the ghosts of the victims and seeing ghost apparitions of them, and it is said that the haunted ghost stories all started with a singular case.

It is said that it all started the summer of 1989 when a woman together with her son vacated in one of the units. According to the stories, the woman was said to be the estranged wife of a Hong Kong pharmaceutical tycoon. He was cheating on her and the infidelity drove her mad.

She killed her son before herself. The mother dressed up in an all red outfit before hanging herself. After this incident, it is said that the residents on the island have seen the mother and son wandering around. There have even been those who claim that they have been possessed by their ghosts as well.

Read the whole story here: The Haunted Bela Vista Villa

Murray House | 美利樓 | Stanley/Chek Chue — The house that went through two exorcisms

Most Haunted Places in Hong Kong: Source

During the Japanese Occupation, the Japanese forces took the Murray House and used it as a command center by the Japanese military police. It was also a place of execution during the war. More than 4000 citizens of Hong Kong were tortured until they were murdered inside of these walls. These are the unfortunate souls said to haunt the Murray House, making it one of the most haunted places in Hong Kong. 

After the war the Murray House became a hot spot for paranormal activity, and the haunting of the place got so bad that the Hong Kong government ordered not only one exorcism, but two. One time in 1963 and the last one being in 1974. 

The first time it was apparently an unsuccessful one as workers kept complaining about being harassed and plagued by ghosts. They found their work vandalized and blueprints they put out smeared and modified. Another employer claimed to have encountered a ghost in the bathroom that tugged on his sleeve, but when he turned there was nothing there.  

In the 1974 exorcism, 70 Buddhists monks wandered the Murray House for two hours while chanting and burning offerings and the event was televised with a huge crowd gathered to see it all.

The building was actually dismantled and put in storage for a long time. Today the Murray House is a wonderful retail shopping place with a restaurant where people can marvel at the sea view from the historic building on south Hong Kong Island. 

Read the whole story here: The Exorcisms at the Haunted Murray House

Ping Shan Tat Tak School | 達德學校 | New Territories — The ghost in red haunting the former school

Most Haunted Places in Hong Kong: The School Gate in 2023: Source

In the New Territories in Hong Kong there is a haunted school called Ping Shan Tat Tak School (達德學校) that was established in 1931 in the centuries old Yu Kiu ancestral hall in Ping Shan, Yuen Long. Today it is abandoned and seen as one of the most haunted places in Hong Kong.

A legend goes that one of the schoolmistresses or the principal committed suicide and hang herself in the school toilets, wearing a red dress. She is now said to haunt the school. A woman haunting the bathroom in schools are widely told across Asia, and also the fact that she is wearing red.

On September 10th in 2011, 12 students from a middle school visited Ping Shan Tat Tak School and came back with haunted tales. They claimed to have heard footsteps in the abandoned building as well as hearing an ominous scraping noise from the walls. 

Three of the girls kept fainting and one completely lost control of himself, pinching his own neck and biting so he needed the friends to help stop him and they called the police for help. 

Read the whole story here: The Ghost in Red at Ping Shan Tat Tak School

Lui Seng Chun Building | 雷生春 | Mong Kok — The building that didn’t want to be demolished

Most Haunted Places in Hong Kong: Source

No list of the most haunted places in Hong Kong is complete without the Lui Seng Chun building. In the 1980s, construction workers were planning to remodel the historical building. One by one the construction workers, as well as the cleaning staff, fell mysteriously ill. 

Things were disappearing from the construction site without a trace and fatal accidents happened that people thought something paranormal were behind. The legend goes that it was believed that the ancestors of the Lei Liang, the original owner of Lui Seng Chun, were angry at the demolition plans and instead kept it as it had always been and preserved it.

When people would start reporting ghostly sightings inside and around Lui Seng Chun it was about ghostly children. They reportedly saw children playing something that looked like football and at first it looked innocent and normal. But when they looked closer, they saw the ball they were playing with was actually a decapitated head. 

There were also people that claimed that the lights in the upper floors kept turning on in the middle of the night in the abandoned building and that numerous shadows were seen as they passed by the windows. 

Read the whole story here: The Haunted Lui Seng Chun Building

Most Haunted Places in Hong Kong

This was a list of some of the most haunted places in Hong Kong, but it is far from the whole list. For more like this, head over to the China archive, for more ghost stories, urban legends and haunted places.

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10 Most Haunted Places in Beijing

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The ghost of executed prisoners, concubines in old palaces and poltergeists in modern buildings, let’s have a look at some of the Most Haunted Places in Beijing.

The capital of China, Beijing is today a city of contrasts with some of the oldest and historic buildings right next to the newest and most modern one. The bustling streets and ancient alleyways of Beijing holds tales of ghostly encounters and spectral sightings from mysterious things lurking in the old palaces and horror stories from the modern apartment buildings.

For a more extensive list of haunted ghost stories from Beijing and China as a whole, head over to the archive filled with them here. But in this article, let’s have a closer look of some of the most haunted places in Beijing.

Chaonei No. 81 |  朝内81号 | Beijing — The horror house in the former church

Most Haunted Places in Beijing

Amidst the bustling streets and ancient alleyways of Beijing, looms Chaonei No. 81, a place whispered in hushed tones as the “Beijing Horror House.” Within its walls, shadowy figures are said to dance behind curtained windows, their ghostly forms flickering in and out of view like phantoms in the night.

According to the most commonly told legend, it is to a woman that once resided in Chaonei No. 81. The woman is said to have been a wife or maybe a lover of an officer of the Kuomintang (KMT, or the nationalist party of China) that fought against the communist party during the Chinese civil war in the 1940s. The nationalist lost, and fled to Taiwan as the communists came into power. The woman was allegedly left behind by her officer man who fled with the army to Taiwan, and she is said to have hung herself from the rafters of the house. 

Even on the hottest summer days, an icy chill hangs heavy in the air, sending shivers down the spines of all who dare to approach one of the most haunted places in Beijing.

Read the whole story here: Chaonei No. 81 — Beijing Horror House

The Beijing Subway | 北京地铁 | — Perhaps the Most Haunted Places in Beijing throughout the city?

Most Haunted Places in Beijing

Beneath the bustling streets of Beijing lies a shadowy realm steeped in mystery and dread: the haunted subway. From spirits to ghosts, tales of strange encounters abound in this underground labyrinth – with many passengers claiming to have experienced something extraordinary while riding along Metro Line No. 1. According to legends, people have disappeared into the tunnels and simply vanished into thin air, never to be seen again, and some people claimed that something sinister had pushed passengers onto the rails.

But what bones exactly were disturbed during the construction as has been told according to the legends? There is more than one story about what graves they encountered when building the metro line, perhaps making it one of the most haunted places in Beijing. On Line 1 there is a subway station called Gongzhufen Station, or The Princess Tombs that have several local legends connected to the place. line one was made right through their tomb, a ghost story centered around this subway station started, when the passengers and staff started seeing a female ghost on the station platform, wearing a traditional Qing dress and sometimes being carried in a sedan chair. 

From phantom footsteps echoing through deserted corridors to ghostly apparitions glimpsed in the flickering lights, the subway’s spectral inhabitants cast a chilling pall over the underground labyrinth.

Read the whole story here: Take the Haunted Subway in Beijing

Prince Gong’s Mansion | 恭王府 | Beijing — The ghost of a grieving mother in white

Most Haunted Places in Beijing

The mansion is considered one of the most exquisite Chinese imperial mansions, representing the elegant lifestyle of Qing Dynasty royalty as well as being one of the most haunted places in Beijing. 

One of the most haunting phenomena reported is the apparition of a woman cloaked in white, her ethereal presence lingering in the corridors and shadowy corners of the mansion. Legend has it that she is the ghost of a grieving mother, Feng Jiwen , forever trapped in a state of sorrow and anguish after the untimely loss of her beloved son when he died in a battle fighting rebels.

It is said she died of a broken heart soon after. She and several former escorts have been seen around the palace, and the guards working there have claimed to have seen a woman in white walking the premises. Her mournful wails are said to echo through the halls, sending shivers down the spines of all who dare to venture within.

Read the whole story here: The Haunted History of Prince Gong’s Mansion in Beijing

The Bell Tower Goddess of Beijing | 鐘樓 |  Di’anmen Outer Street, Dongcheng District —

Most Haunted Places in Beijing

Perched majestically at the heart of Beijing stands the Bell Tower, a silent sentinel guarding ancient secrets and spectral tales. Among its whispered legends is that of the Bell Tower Goddess, a spectral figure said to inhabit the tower’s hallowed halls. According to legend it was a man named Deng, an official with the mission to create this new bronze bell. They tried so hard for over a year to get the perfect bell that sounded as clear and loud as they needed for the emperor.

With the date coming up they grew more and more desperate. The whole family felt it, especially Deng’s daughter as she was afraid it would bring shame on her family, her father in particular. In a desperate last attempt, the daughter flung herself into the fire, sacrificing herself to get the heat needed to make the bell. The father tried to stop her and reached out to save her. The only thing he managed to get a hold of, was one of her embroidered slippers, the only thing left of her after being consumed in the furnace. 

On particularly stormy nights the bell doesn’t chime as clear as it usually does, but emits a sound, sounding distinctly as the words ‘xie’, meaning shoes in Chinese. The haunted spirit of the girl who sacrificed herself still echoes through the bell. And the mothers that lived were the bell was heard would tuck their children in, telling them ‘Go to sleep, the Bell Tower is ringing, the Goddess wants her slipper back’.

Read the whole story here: The Bell Tower Goddess of Beijing

The Great Wall of China | 萬里長城/万里长城 | Northern China — Sounds of ghostly battle cries seeping through the mist

Most Haunted Places in Beijing

Shrouded in mist and mystery, the Great Wall of China reveals its darker secrets to those who dare to listen. The Great Wall of China is the longest man-made structure in the world and stretches for 8,850 km and it is said that it is also a haunted place, perhaps one of the most haunted places in Beijing area even?

Tourists and visitors claim to have seen soldiers patrolling the wall as well as hearing the sound of marching footsteps belonging to no one. The worst stories are those claiming to be overcome with a sudden nausea and dizziness that must have been something else than the steep steps of the wall. Many who traverse its ancient pathways speak of spectral apparitions, phantom warriors condemned to eternal vigilance along the rugged terrain.

Read the whole story here: Hidden Haunted Wonders of the Great Wall of China 

Caishikou Execution Grounds | 菜市口法场 | Chaoyang District — Haunted by the ghosts of executed prisoners

Most Haunted Places in Beijing

The legends of Caishikou Execution Grounds, shrouded in a veil of darkness and dread with execution methods like Death by a Thousand Cuts. The exact location of the execution grounds in modern day urban Beijing has been a matter of debate for some time as it was definitely not the only place in Beijing they held executions. While most people agree that it is located in what is now the Chaoyang District of Beijing, there is disagreement about exactly which area it was located in and its size. What is definitely said though is that the area is one of the most haunted places in Beijing.

This macabre site bears witness to a chilling chapter in history, where countless souls met their untimely demise. Because of its dark history and the blood that was shed on the spot, many claim that this is one of the more haunted places in the city and there have been many reports about people seeing the ghost of the executed convicts in the old vegetable market. 

The most talked about ghosts haunting this site must be The Six Gentlemen of the Hundred Days Reform (戊戌六君子) or the Six Gentlemen of Wuxu who were executed by the Empress Dowager Cixi in 1898 by beheading. These executed men are said to be haunting the place as well as Chinese history and the what if of what would have happened to the course of the country if the reforms had been successful. 

Read the whole story here: The Dark History of the Caishikou Execution Grounds

The Forbidden City | 紫禁城 | Beijing — Ghost of Concubines and curses at one of the most haunted places in Beijing

Most Haunted Places in Beijing

Built in the early 1400s, Beijing’s Forbidden City, or Zijin Cheng in Chinese (紫禁城), literally means the purple forbidden city and is a complex of majestic buildings and grounds that bears witness to the rise and fall of China’s powerful emperors and countless of people that lived and worked inside of the imperial walls. It is also perhaps one of the most haunted places in Beijing.

Legends speak of curses woven into the very fabric of these Imperial Palaces, warning those who dare to tread where mortals are forbidden. It is not just a singular haunted spot, but a plethora of them? There were also said to be a well outside Jinghe Gate where a group of female ghosts live. Fortunately there was an iron plate on Jinghe Gate to suppress them, otherwise they would come out every day. In the middle of Sanhai On the Jin’ao Jade Bridge it was said that every three years a person walking over it would be pulled down by a ghost under the bridge.”

One story that keeps being repeated is that of the crying women, and in the Forbidden City, there were plenty of them throughout the years. Many speculate it is the ghost of one or more concubines as the crying woman is often seen in or around the quarter for the imperial concubines. 

Read the whole story here: The Secrets of Beijing’s Haunted Forbidden City

The Haunted Apartment Building | 劲松街道 | Jinsong — A mass haunting making people flee their homes

Most Haunted Places in Beijing – Illustration Photo by 尾 賀

In 1984, a wave of terror gripped the residents of a residential building around Jinsong in Beijing, as rumors of haunting spread like wildfire. In the dark when they came home from work or peeked outside in the corridors, the people living there could hear miserable crying as soon as you stepped inside the building. There were also ghostly shadows that roamed around on the walls as the lights flickered on and off. 

People didn’t want to live in this haunted building in Jinsong, even though the building itself was brand new. And after a while of experiencing all the paranormal stuff going on, the residents moved out, one by one and the building was left empty. Or was it?

One chilling encounter involved an old lady who encountered a mysterious figure standing outside her door, a harrowing sight that left her trembling and traumatized. As news of the haunting spread, even making it to the newspapers, scientists and authorities were called in to investigate, but the truth behind the supernatural occurrences remained elusive. While some attributed the disturbances to teenage mischief, others speculated darker forces at play, leaving the mystery of Jinsong’s haunting unsolved and shrouded in uncertainty.

Read the whole story here: The Ghost House in Jinsong Terrorizing the Residents

Last Bus to Fragrant Hill | Beijing — The cities most haunting urban legend

Most Haunted Places in Beijing

As dusk descends upon the bustling streets of Beijing, an eerie tale whispers through the city’s alleys and avenues, shrouded in mystery and dread. There are many public transportation systems with haunted lore attached to them like, the Haunted Subway in Beijing or The Haunted Metro Stations on Hong Kong MTR’s Island Line that could have made the list of Most Haunted Places in Beijing. But the most told ghost story though, comes from the buses.

The legend of the Last Bus to Fragrant Hill, also known as Bus 330, haunts the minds of those who dare to venture into the realm of urban folklore. On a fateful November night in 1995, passengers board the No. 330 (many different numbers in different variations of the legend) bus departing from Yuanmingyuan main station bound for Fragrant Hill in Beijing. Among them are a young couple, an old woman, and the bus driver and conductor.

As the bus traverses the darkened streets, it encounters two peculiar passengers dressed in Qing Dynasty attire, accompanied by a seemingly unconscious man. Despite the oddity of their appearance, the passengers pay little attention, assuming them to be part of a film crew. However, the atmosphere takes a sinister twist when the old woman accuses one of the Qing Dynasty-clad men of theft, claiming he stole her wallet.

Sensing danger, the old woman persuades another passenger to get off with her, revealing that the strange men are legless ghosts from the Qing Dynasty. The bus mysteriously vanishes without a trace. Days later, the bus is discovered submerged in Miyun Reservoir, its interior bearing signs of a grisly demise: three bloodied corpses in advanced stages of decomposition.

Read the whole story here: The Disappearance of the Last Bus to Fragrant Hill in Beijing

The Tomb of General Yuan | 袁崇煥 | Chongwen District — The ever watching guardian in one of Most Haunted Places in Beijing

Most Haunted Places in Beijing

The Tomb of General Yuan, is found amidst the bustling streets of Beijing and holds an old tale of heroism, betrayal, and lingering unrest. General Yuan Chonghuan, a revered military leader of the Ming Dynasty, met a tragic fate at the hands of his own court, accused unjustly of treason and sentenced to a gruesome death by lingchi, the infamous “death by a thousand cuts.”

Despite his valiant efforts in defending China’s borders and repelling invading forces, General Yuan’s reputation was tarnished, and his demise marked by indignity and cruelty. Legend has it that his spirit, bound by duty and unfulfilled justice, haunts his final resting place, guarded faithfully by the She family for generations.

The tomb, hidden amidst modernity, has since gotten a haunted reputation and it is said that General Yuan is still guarding his post, even in his afterlife.

Read the whole story here: The Haunted Tomb of General Yuan

Most Haunted Places in Beijing

So these were some of the Most Haunted Places in Beijing, but far from everyone. For more ghost stories from Chine, head over to the archive with more haunted places, urban legends and ghosts from China.

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