Salem - where to stay

[Sunbeds]

Hi
I am going to Salem at the start of October this year and wondering if anyone has any tips to share.
I have read that it’s going to be busy and parking is an issue so I thought I’d ask around for accommodation ideas….well, ALL ideas!
We are going as an adult couple (no kids this time) and want to see the best of Salem, especially the witchy bits.

We stayed in Salem - many years ago now! And we stayed here:

The Salem Inn

From memory it was pretty central, and a really great, atmospheric place to stay.

Personally I’d stay in Boston and go for the day. We found it rather disappointing

I second doing a day trip from Boston. Salem is tacky. The Salem “witches” are famous for NOT being in any way supernatural, they were not witches. So why Salem is now Woo central is a mystery. The Peabody museum is very good, however, and they run a fact based walking tour of the town.

Agree with everyone, stay in Boston but don't miss the Peabody Essex museum.

I agree with pp- stay in Boston, visit Salem by ferry.

What are the “witchy bits”? You do realise the executed people (overwhelmingly women) were just persecuted people in an atmosphere of fear, paranoia and suspicion. Unless you are interested in Wicca and all that; I understand there’s some modern day stuff going on there now.
In my experience in the recent past travelling in the US especially in more liberal states they are extremely careful to be respectful and atone for past injustices and attitudes so you could find anything about the witch trials focuses more on that. Because the “witchcraft” was really just tales told by children.

@abricotine I’m so sorry. I didn’t mean to ignore the truly barbaric treatment of those women. Honestly I didn’t.
This is going to sound flippant now but it was more to investigate the Wiccan aspect and the hocus pocus house 🙈
Apologies again.

Thank you everyone. Boston is our end point before we fly home so I was thinking about spending two days in Salem. Is it not worthwhile? Can you suggest other places?
Trying to tie up a once in a lifetime trip that incorporates Emily Dickenson, Edward Hopper, the Wiccan of Salem.
Where would you suggest I shouldn’t miss?
I may never come back and it’s taken a lot of saving up.

We really liked Salem. There’s lots of history there, and it’s not all tacky. The history of the witch trials was really interesting.

Not at all, sorry if my post sounded harsh. I hope you find what you are looking for there!

agree there wouldn't be enough to do in Salem for a couple of days. A few cute shops, a nice walk through the town and a visit to the museum. I'd just spend longer in Boston.

As in, have a day in Salem, but so much around Boston to see and do for that extra day

We got the train in from Boston and spent a day there. We booked a history walking tour and visited the House of Seven Gables which was interesting. A few shops and stalls but was slightly underwhelming even during early October.

Try and go during the week, it will be completely heaving at weekends

Salem Waterfront Hotel and Suites is v central and there is a fairly new Hampton Inn

just make sure you are booking in Salem MA and not Salem NH!

the Peabody Essex museum is fantastic, also look at the House of Seven Gables.

you can hopefully book a harbor ride on the schooner Fame and visit the Friendship

book everything in advance..see my earlier point about it being heaving.

there are lots of Witch etcexperiences, i have no recommendations on any of them

also look at the Haunted Happenings web site which is a great resource for everything Salem in October.

Two days is ok if you take in surrounding areas. Salem proper is half day at most.

Louisa May Alcott’s home ( very much as described in “Little Women”) is nearby and a must-do. Walden Pond. Whale viewing boat trip.

If you like macabre, you can go to Fall River south of Boston and stay in the house where Lizzie Borden took an axe. It is quite near Newport, where the Gilded Age mansions are.

We liked Salem, but focused on the history of the town, the trials, not the tacky bit.

But it was a good 3/4 day, nothing more.

We went from Boston by train, cheaper than the ferry (and I have two people who get sea sick).

@TheHerboriste The Lizzie Borden House is great (in a macabre way), we saw it when we went from Boston to Newport. DD covered a play about her in drama GCSE.

Louisa May Alcott’s house in Concord is well worth a visit, there is also a nice museum there as well as sites from the revolutionary war. It’s a very pretty little town.

I would take the train to both Salem and Concord, although they are on different lines out of Boston North Station iirc. It’s also worth visiting Rockport on the train, it’s a lovely seaside town.

We went in October. It was a bit touristy, but pleasant enough. I think half a day max would cover it. I’d stay somewhere else.

Wow! Thank you so much! You have given me a huge amount to go away and look at.

@Mondology the hotel looks amazing but is it in Salem Massachusetts?

Looks like it is in Salem New Hampshire!

Could be worse, it might have been Salem, Oregon.

We went on a day trip from Boston and also went to a pretty town called Cape Anne ( I think). Would definitely stay in Boston and do the day trip.