Must see attractions, etc in Salem in October (Gloucester, Ipswich: coupons, houses)

[phillips27]

My husband and I will be traveling with our son(7yrs.old) during October. We will be arriving on the 20th and will leave on the 27th. The last four days we will be visiting the Salem area. I have been through pretty much all of the web sites looking at the things to do. I have always been told to trust the locals on what is a must see and what not to waste our time on. My son does not scare easily and loves Halloween and cant wait for the Happy Hauntings. We are from Texas (not much to do here but suffer the heat!!!) so we can not wait to visit somewhere new!!!! Any suggestions will be greatly appreciated

[sue629]

The big night there will be on the 31st and you will miss the main event unfortunately. On the Friday you will be there, there should be some action but it will not be like Halloween night. Regardless you should have fun. Do one of the night haunted tours and make sure you go into some of the haunted houses. They are scattered around and there should be maps showing where they are. The city of Salem has come out with a passbook that has coupons in it for reduced entry fees to some events and restaurant deals, call them and ask about it or call the chamber of commerce. Things that tourists do are very different then what the locals do but I can tell you most tourists do the Witch Museum, the Witch House, the pirate museum,visit Laurie Cabots shop in Pickering Wharf, she is a real witch and you may get to see her. There is an old tall ship docked at Pickering Wharf that you may be able to get on. There is now a service in Salem where a bicyclist will take you around to see the sights. They have a cab in the back of the bike that can fit 3 people.It looks like fun. If the weather is good, make sure to grab one of the whale watches. I think they go out of Salem but for certain they go out of Gloucester, a fishing town about 25 minutes away.

[raggybluemuffin]

There is so much to see in Salem, especially if this is your first time. It's so much fun for kids. There are plenty of haunted houses to visit, the the Witch Museum, the Witch Dungeon, Terror on the Wharf, Dracula's Castle, the Magic Shop...and a bunch of other places. Don't worry, you can't miss anything. There's plenty of information everywhere, and people are very friendly. I've been going since I was 10 years old, and I'm 24 now. Can't wait for next year...can't go this year bc I'm in law school.

[ChunkyMonkey]

I would suggest going to one of the local farms they usually have wonderful family events with hot cider and live music, along with petting zoos, hayrides and cider pressings, not to mention great apple picking and pumpkin patches.

One of my favorites is Russell Orchards in Ipswich, not too far from Salem.
Russell Orchards - Ipswich, MA

Good luck and have fun.