Excellent site to visit! Beautiful views! We had a great docent lead tour. Our guide shared lots…read moreof details and did a great job trying to answer our group's many questions! Learning about the different architectural phases of this property was very interesting. The Secret Staircase is special! Gift Shop was a fun stop! Friendly staff. They have their own parking lot with ample and FREE parking while you visit. Now that's a plus. Everywhere else in Salem is paid parking, including the Peabody Essex Museum (park and hike!) Highly recommend visiting The House of Seven Gables if you are in the area.

What a great experience!…read more We had the tour to ourselves. The snow turned everyone away. The house is super interesting and our guide was great! If you are in the area, highly recommend a tour. Side note: we used our library card and received 50% off of admission.

As a fan of Hocus Pocus (it's one of my favorite Halloween movies!), I was very much looking…read moreforward to visiting Allison's house. While I didn't enter the house, it was great to see the exterior and take photos from outside. The Ropes Mansion garden is free to enter, and is accessible through an arched pathway at the side of the mansion. The garden, while small, is beautiful and tranquil to walk through, complete with plenty of roses and a small pond. It's a great spot to take tourist photos as well. A must-visit for Hocus Pocus fans!

We almost didn't make it see the Ropes Mansion before heading back home last week, but we decided…read moreour trip wouldn't be complete if we didn't see it. Do you remember in the movie when Dani and Max are outside the mansion just staring up at it in awe? That was me. The infamous mansion where Allison lives is a sight that can't be missed! It is located in a residential neighborhood at the very end of the street, but it is worth the quick detour away from the hustle and bustle of the tourist area. We came later in the evening so were only able to get a couple of night time shots - we wanted to get one of us in front of it, but a tour group was coming through at the same time and we didn't want to be too distracting. I'm not sure if they ever do tours inside, I believe the Ropes Mansion is owned by the Essex Museum, but the outside was definitely enough for me. If you're a fan of Hocus Pocus, this is a must stop!

Great place to spend the day. Salem witch trials section now has a permanent home at PEM…read more Parking Off street and metered lot available Staff So nice and cheerful despite the busy season ending Cafe Cafe is great for lunch or snacks Bathroom So clean and organized Coat check So great to have and free of charge. Wheelchairs, walkers and strollers available if needed.

Wow! What an experience!! This is such a cool place!! I was so impressed! The museum goes on like a…read moresort of maze that flows effortlessly into each section, all tying together. You'll hardly ever need to turn around the layout is pretty impressive. It's immaculately clean and there's a bathroom around every corner it seems. If you have other reservations in Salem and need to cut your museum visit short, no worries because they give you a tag that gives you all day access to come back. This is an absolute must see when visiting Salem! Give yourself 1.5 hours minimum.

Lovely and welcoming staff at Historic New England. They keep the tour at a good pace and we…read moreexplored 3 floors of this mansion. It is well kept and easy to navigate. (It is focused on the last two generations of Phillips who lived here.) There is a lot of stuff to see and it has hepa filters along with a/c and one bathroom for use. Street parking is easily available, but look carefully at the posted signs as some is reserved for residents.

Well worth your coin. Amazing, and beautiful. Bob and Abby are angels on earth and couldn't be more…read moresweet. Excited to come back in the future!!

What a disappointment!! This used to be a wonderful museum Now it has a fraction of the…read moredisplays and a great deal of open space. Now worth going to

What a small treasure this place is. It is not very big. A lot of interesting things to look at…read more They have a nice collection of dolls. Check it out

Absolutely fantastic staff and performing arts theater!! The staff, who are all extremely friendly…read moreand talented, put on a fun and entertaining show. I visited The Witch's Cottage, also known as the Gallows Hill Museum & Theatre, for a show in October and enjoyed every minute of my experience. The staff knows exactly how to run its shows, with large crowds trembling over the cobblestone steps outside this charming Salem edifice. The show was just perfect in length, especially for kids, and gave its viewers interesting facts about Salem's history, including the witch trials. The Witch's Cottage is perfect not only because it has a great staff and a fun show, but also because it is nicely and conveniently located within walking distance of a lot of attractions in Salem. Following the show, my family and I purchased t-shirts in the Museum and headed out onto the old and classic streets of Salem. It made our venture to this Museum even more worthwhile as we were able to know exactly what occurred centuries before in the streets we padded down. If you are in for a good show--put on by an outstanding cast and staff--and want to learn about an interesting, old town in New England, then you definitely have to visit The Witch's Cottage!!

Through out the United States, there is only a handful of registered Satanic Temples. And the…read moreSatanic Temple/ Art gallery in Salem Massachusetts does not disappoint. It was easy to make reservations for the visit, the temple is well managed, staffed, and maintained. They offered an excellent selection of swag and merchandise for the believers and haters alike. The art presentations were beautifully done and well presented. The merchandise was priced fair and was plentiful. If it's your thing.. make the visit, learn a thing or two and schedule your Marriage, Un-Baptism, or your divorce at this location!

My daughter and I made our first trip to Salem this weekend, and a visit to TST was at the top of…read moreour list of things to do. It did not disappoint. We spent several hours looking at the art on display, viewing the exhibits, and spending time in the library watching the documentary while flipping through books in their extensive collection. We both enjoyed the documentary, and it gave us both a greater appreciation for the important work TST does. If you've seen their online store, you know what to expect in the gift shop. I've ordered things online several times and always received my items promptly. The staff onsite was equally helpful in assisting my daughter select some jewelry that she loves. If you don't know what the temple stands for, I encourage you to stream the documentary "Hail Satan?" or read the FAQ on their website. TST is probably not at all what you think it is and the work they do is more important now than ever before.

I found Hocus Pocus Tours while seeking things to do in Salem on Yelp and TripAdvisor. Fellow…read moreYelpers' rave reviews did not disappoint! In messaging Hocus Pocus Tours with a couple questions about the tour and travel to and from Salem, the owner Susan replied immediately and suggested that I call her. This led to a one hour phone conversation where Susan was so gracious with her time, knowledge, and suggestions, not just about how to make the most of the tour, but how to appreciate a day in Salem. I can see why those who had the opportunity to take the in-person tour with Susan really enjoyed it. Covid changed the business model and Hocus Pocus now offers a self-guided tour by purchasing one of two tour apps. I opted for the $19.99 grand tour and it was well worth it. It has 37 points of interest. The app is user friendly and well designed. It provides a map of all stops, tracks where you are, and guides you to the next stop that you select on the tour. When you get to your stop, you can confirm you're at the right spot by comparing a photo of the site with what you see. Then you click on a 2-3 minute audio recording that provides a great snapshot of the significance of the site. As Susan had pointed out to me, there is much more to Salem than the historic witchcraft trials. It includes author Nathaniel Hawthorne's The House of Seven Gables, America's oldest candy company, and other interesting sites. Of everything I visited, I experienced a very deep emotional connection with the 1692 Witchcraft Memorial with 20 stones dedicated to each of the victims of the witchcraft trial. The tour includes brief descriptions of some of the victims including those written about in Arthur Miller's The Crucible. If you plan to visit Salem, I highly recommend this tour. All sites can be visited on the outside and some on the inside at no charge. Some sites, such as The House of Seven Gables, charge separate admission fees. If you want to travel to Salem and don't have a car, the ferry from Boston offers a nice, scenic, and entertaining 50 minute ride. The commuter trains run more frequently and can come in handy if the ferry schedule coming or going doesn't meet your needs. There are plenty of good places to dine at to break up the tour. We had lunch at FINZ and really enjoyed it (I'll post separately about that).

This was legit SO much fun! The name Hocus Pocus kinda throws you off because you may be thinking…read moreabout the movie, but this tour really is amazing. Start off with the tour guides, extremely friendly and beyond knowledgeable. They really know their history for Salem. The tour itself was a few hours and you walk to all of the sites in Salem with historical significance. There is so much to learn from Salem. So much history and heartbreak. It really is eye opening to hear the stories oof the witch trials and how the witch trials began and who all was wrongly persecuted. The tour guides were so nice and explained everything with such great details. This tour was definitely the highlight of our trip in Salem. I highly highly recommend Hocus Pocus Tours, I learned so much regarding Salem, the witch trials, the history behind the two, and a little bit of Hocus Pocus and Bewitched. So much fun!

​If you've seen photos of Salem, you've seen this building. The massive, gothic, red-brick church…read moreexterior is easily the most iconic photo op in the city. Inside, however, the vibe is a bit of a time capsule. It feels like a mix between a theater and a history classroom--very "vintage 1970s" but in a way that feels like a Salem rite of passage. ​ ​The museum is divided into two parts: ​The Main Show: You sit in a large, darkened room while life-sized dioramas light up around the perimeter to a narrated soundtrack. It tells the story of the 1692 trials with a lot of drama. It's definitely "campy" and a bit dated, but it's a solid, digestible overview of the history. ​The Guided Exhibit: After the show, a staff member leads you through a second area that explains the evolving image of "the witch" through time. This part felt much more modern and actually touched on some interesting social themes like scapegoating. ​Duration: Plan for about 1 hour total. ​Booking: This is the most important tip--book your tickets online in advance! Especially in the shoulder seasons or October, they sell out hours (or days) ahead. Don't expect to just walk up to the door and get in. ​Price: At around $19, it's a bit pricier than the smaller museums, but it's the "big one" that most people feel they have to check off their list.

I thought this was great. We arrived just in time for the 12pm start so had a few minutes to use…read morethe restroom. Upon starting you're in a large room which has various mini displays that are highlighted as the story goes along. Sadly people were talking during the presentation so it kinda ruined part of the vibe. The history was easy to digest and informative. The second pet was a lady speaking about the various exhibits in the room. The timeline was interesting to see when different events occurred in relation to others. Took about 40 min for the entire thing and found a cool monopoly type game in the gift shop!

My kids (8 and 7) enjoyed going to this museum with my in laws. They spent a couple of hours there…read morebefore getting lunch in town. They took some fun photos (see attached) and even came home with little treasure chests from the gift shop. While I don't think this is necessarily a museum you'd visit multiple times, this had been on their wish list for some time and I'm really glad they got to do it. From what I heard, there were fun photo ops and interactive displays.

Visiting Salem we had done alliance he witch stuff and our last day wanted to see something…read moremaritime history. Not aware of the strong pirate history around the area, we were pleased to see so much interesting memorabilia and artifacts. Only takes an hour or so, but a good little museum with some good pirate history!!