Hostels and Haunting: Have a Happy Halloween!

Some Halloween party in the world reviewed by Hostelsclub.com

Okay, well, that is one “H” too many. Still, you have to agree that haunted happenings in hostels on Halloween are not harebrained hallucinations! You have to consider that with the hordes of backpackers regularly coming in and out of hostels, one or two of them are bound to either be the haunted ghosts horrifying humans, or the horrified humans haunted by ghosts.

And since Halloween is upon us again, it is an honorable thing to raise the roof of haunted hostels and raise the hairs on your neck! Here is to screaming like a girl. Hotel California, Or Something Like It

Have you ever had the feeling that the hostel you stumbled on in the middle of nowhere reminds you of that song by the Eagles, the title of which escaped you, about a hotel either being heaven or hell? Have you ever wanted to scare yourself silly that haunted hostels are the next best thing to actually staying in the haunted White House? (Maybe that is why George W. Bush looks somewhat spooked in his photographs.)

If your answer to either question is a resounding “yes”, then you either probably stayed or should consider visiting in these cities hosting haunted hostels. Just keep your screams down a little; you would not want to wake the other guests and ghosts, do you?

• New Orleans, famous for its voodoo rites and Mardi Gras, is a city that refers only to itself. Proof: Ghosts, spirits, voodoo magic, and paranormal activity are as commonplace as praline. And a'haunting you will go when in New Orleans for it is not a matter of “if”, but of “when” in the Big Easy. Also, the Voodoo Music Festival is one event you dare not miss!

• San Diego, with its claim as the most haunted city in the United States, is a city you can get a good (or bad, depending on your perspective) scare from. Try walking along the El Campo Santo Cemetery in broad daylight to set the ghoulish mood for the evening’s Halloween festivities.

• London, with its history of beheadings and murder, is one bloody city if the haunted hostels are good gauges. Now, if only the Tower of London with its many rooms can be converted into a hostel, you probably will see the ghosts of unfortunate royals every night of your stay! Well, better late royals than never, right?

Of course, there is always Transylvania, Poland, France, and Scotland to meet new ghosts. Just remember, these hostels are not the Hogwarts School of Harry Potter fame with its friendly ghosts!

And before checking into the haunted hostel, be sure that you can actually get out upon checking out. Shiver me timbers, but the very idea of being trapped in a time warp with ghosts is way beyond creepy!

Party for the Dead

Well, Halloween parties are parties for the dead! Indeed, we find ways to party, even at the expense of the dead and the damned. And damn good parties these are, too!

• If the Big Easy has its voodoo festivals, then the ultra-cosmopolitan Big Apple has its Village Halloween Parade. With fifty thousand participants and millions of spectators watching a mile-long parade of jaw-dropping costumes and pageant-sized puppets, you will be in the midst of the craziest party that even jaded New Yorkers love to be a part of.

• Mexico’s Day of the Dead is just what it is – the day of the dead. However, don’t expect to see the dead turned into zombies, or the living transformed into the living dead. Instead, prepare yourself for a festive and colorful holiday marked by good food and good company. You can treat it as another fiesta in a year filled with fiestas, only a little bit more ghoulish.

• The Banks of the Foyle Hallowe’en Carnival in Londonderry, Ireland is reputedly the largest street party in that part of the world, with 40,000 ghoulishly costumed revelers partying to live music like there is no tomorrow. Truly, the Irish loves to party!

• Thailand, the Land of Smiles, is all smiles on Halloween. For the queen in Thai Halloween street parties, you should proceed to Silom Soi 4 where the entire gay population of Bangkok raid their closets (or come out of the closet, for that matter) to party in behalf of their dearly departed.

Or better yet, why not start your own Halloween party in whatever haunted hostel you find yourself in? If you can’t beat the ghosts, then join 'em. Now, that would be one hell of a party with ghosts who must be floating in their own ghoulish hell!

For your own Halloween parties in haunted hostels, don’t just tell spooky stories, eat foods shaped to look like ghoulish creatures, and drink red wine, while pretending to be classy vampires disdaining of drinking from unwashed necks. Instead, go on an exploration trip of the haunted corners of the hostel with the aim of experiencing the ghost first-hand; perform rituals to summon the dead like the Ouija board and spirit of the glass (Boo-yah!); and just generally scare yourself silly. Ultimately, you would have learned valuable lessons such as screaming like a girl is not as embarrassing as you thought it would be, especially when the macho man beside you screams like a pig led to slaughter. Not too bad an epiphany for just one night, right?