October 1 – 31, 2023
Boo! And we’re not kidding!
Explore the spirits of historic Cape May during specially-themed tours and events that tell the many ghost tales of this seaside town, including Ghost Walk with Craig McManus, Historic Haunts Tours, Séance at the Physick Estate, Voices from Beyond Tours, Ghosts of the Lighthouse Trolley Tours, Graveyard, Ghosts & Mansion Combo Tour, and more. Stroll the beautiful grounds of the Physick Estate and visit Scarecrow Alley, with funny and spooky scarecrows along the walkways, and vote for your favorite!
MURDER MYSTERY DINNERS
The Plot Thickens
Enjoy a three-course dinner and watch as the mystery and drama unfold around you during “The Plot Thickens,” an original mystery by Jacky Fazio. Tensions rise when a celebration for an esteemed murder mystery author turns into a crime scene right out of one of her own books. Once the guest of honor is pronounced dead, how will her dedicated staff and adoring fans cope?
PHANTOMS OF THE PHYSICK ESTATE
“THE DEARLY DEPARTED”
You have received an invitation to a dinner party from a dear friend, but there’s one problem. The address on the invitation is a house that is known to be vacant. And haunted. Will you take the chance and attend, or will you always be curious about what might have happened?
VOICES FROM BEYOND HOUSE TOUR
Experience an unusual tour in Cape May MAC’s 1879 Emlen Physick House. In the Voices from Beyond Tour, you will hear actual spirit voices captured by Cape May MAC staff over the past 10 years. View historical photos of the Physick family and their staff alongside photos of apparitions seen inside the house. Learn about the equipment and tools used throughout history in paranormal research. Who could these voices belong to and what is keeping them connected to the Physick House Museum? Draw your own conclusions on this new and exciting paranormal tour.
GHOSTS OF CAPE MAY
TROLLEY TOUR
What was that shadow? Was it the undead of Cape May’s past wandering their beloved haunts? You might scoff, you might shudder, but rest assured: on board a trolley with an experienced guide you will begin to wonder what’s beyond when you hear the tales of hauntings unearthed in Cape May by renowned psychic medium and author Craig McManus. Begins and ends at the Ocean Street trolley stop.
GRAVEYARD, GHOSTS & MANSION
COMBO TOUR
Hear the stories and experiences of ghost activity in the 1879 Physick House Museum from the Cape May MAC tour guides who know them intimately. It starts with a trolley ride to the historic Cold Spring Presbyterian Cemetery to see the graves of Dr. Emlen Physick and his family. At the graveyard you’ll hear EVPs (electronic voice phenomena) recorded by tour guides and staff at the estate. On your return trip to the Physick Estate hear about some unusual Victorian funereal customs. Then, inside the Physick House you will visit several rooms and hear several more EVPs while learning more about the activity observed there. Take the opportunity to talk to staff about their experiences, and a moment to wonder at what it all means. Tour begins and ends at the Physick Estate.
SPIRITS & ODDITIES
TROLLEY TOUR
Cats in ghostly form purr from the beyond. Beloved family members in photographs without their heads. Graves equipped with a torpedo to put off intruders. Victorians of the late 19th century had wild notions about the passage from life to death. Belief in ghosts and spirits was common and superstition abounded. Hear several Cape May ghost stories and more strange stories from Victorian Cape May history that are macabre, mysterious or just plain weird! Begins and ends at the Ocean Street trolley stop.
SPIRITS, ODDITIES & OBSESSIONS
COMBO TOUR
Victorians of the late 19th century had wild notions about the passage from life to death, and were fascinated by mystery and illusion. Hear Cape May ghost stories as you travel Cape May by trolley, along with strange stories from Victorian Cape May that are just plain weird. Then visit select rooms in the 1879 Physick House Museum and learn about famous Victorian illusionists and magicians. Begins & ends at the Washington Street Mall Trolley Stop. Must be purchased together.
HISTORIC HAUNTS HOUSE TOUR
Tour select rooms with your guide and learn about Victorian Spiritualism in Cape May’s only Victorian house museum, the Physick House Museum, widely reputed to be haunted. Guides will explore the concepts of spiritualism and the occult, both of which were wildly popular topics in the Victorian Era.
HISTORIC HAUNTS COMBO TOUR
Take an evening trolley ride through the Historic District and hear stories of haunted Cape May. Step off the trolley at the Physick House Museum with your guide and see Cape May’s only Victorian house museum, reputed to be haunted, as you learn about Victorian Spiritualism. This tour combines a Ghosts of Cape May trolley tour with a visit to the Physick House. In the museum, guides will compare the methods of spirit contact used by the Victorians with those of today’s paranormal investigators. Selected rooms on both floors are included in the tour. Begins and ends at the Ocean Street trolley stop.
CHANNELING DINNER
Enjoy a three-course prix fixe dinner at the Inn of Cape May followed by a two-hour channeling session with Medium Craig McManus. McManus will read the energies in the room and channel messages from the spirits of departed family and friends. While he does not read everyone present and cannot control where messages come through, he will bring through as many messages from spirits as possible during the two-hour channeling. Inn of Cape May, 7 Ocean St.
This event is not recommended for people under the age of 16. No refunds within 14 days of the event.
Sold out!
STRANGE VICTORIAN OBSESSIONS
Victorians were fascinated with mystery and illusion and this tour through first floor rooms in the 1879 Physick House Museum shares that fascination. Learn about the famous Harry Houdini who captivated Victorian audiences with his intricate escapes, the Goddess of Mystery, Ionia, a Belgian beauty who Victorians worshipped for her spectacles of magic, The Great Lafayette, who became known as the world’s greatest magician, and Pepper’s Ghost, an illusion still used today, with Sherlock Holmes, Jack the Ripper and more.
ANNUAL SCARECROW ALLEY
Daily October 1 – 31. 2023
The grounds of Cape May’s original haunted house, the Emlen Physick Estate, 1048 Washington St., have been transformed for the spooky season. Scarecrow Alley is a highlight of the Estate’s Halloween decorations. Walk the grounds and vote for your favorite ghoulishly gruesome or foolishly funny scarecrow.
TRICK OR TREAT
Tuesday, Oct. 31: 5pm-7pm
Emlen Physick Estate
Bring the little ghosts and goblins to the Physick Estate, home of Cape May’s original haunted house, for some treats…and maybe a few tricks, too. Spooky music, Scarecrow Alley, and maybe a few strange spirits hanging around the grounds!
DEPARTMENT 56 HALLOWEEN EXHIBIT
Daily through October 31: 10am – 4pm
Emlen Physick Estate
If you love our Dept. 56 Dickens Village at Christmas, come and see what we have for Halloween! It’s a witch’s brew of spooky houses, bizarre characters and bats, cats and pumpkins galore, all done in the exquisite miniature fashion which has made Dept. 56 so popular with collectors. Nearly 100 pieces and accessories will be on exhibit on the Physick House’s enclosed entrance porch.
FREE ADMISSION
LIGHTHOUSE FULL MOON CLIMB
Saturday, October 28, 2023: 7-9PM
Follow the light of the full moon on this rare nighttime climb up the 199 cast iron spiral staircase steps to the top of the Cape May Lighthouse. Enjoy a nighttime view nearly 156 feet above the Delaware Bay and Atlantic Ocean. Interpretive panels along the climb tell stories of Lighthouse Keepers, the surrounding area, and how the lighthouse functioned historically, and are located at landings along the way. The 1859 Cape May Lighthouse is a state historic site and the third beacon on this site. Still an active aid to navigation, it was restored and is maintained by Cape May MAC (Museums+Arts+Culture). Since it opened to the public in 1988, more than 2.5 million visitors have climbed to the top, but far fewer have climbed at nighttime.
Purchase tickets from the Lighthouse Keeper the evening of the event.
HALLOWEEN CRAFT & COLLECTIBLES SHOW
Saturday, October 28, 2022: 10am – 3pm
Emlen Physick Estate
Visit the Emlen Physick Estate for this open-air show featuring wares of local vendors and crafters. Explore our 12th annual Scarecrow Alley which decorates the grounds. Feel free to come in costume to celebrate this festive holiday!