Explore Charleston through a collection of family-friendly small-group walking experiences that combine researched local history, engaging storytelling, folklore, architecture, and reported hauntings. Choose the experience that best matches your interests while discovering Charleston beyond its most familiar legends.
Choose from three unique experiences:
• Southern Spirit Stroll – A haunted history walking tour exploring Charleston through reported hauntings, hidden history, folklore, architecture, and the fascinating people behind the stories.
• Shadows, Sailors, & Smugglers – Journey through Charleston's colonial and maritime past (approximately 1680–1740), discovering pirates, sailors, merchants, privateers, smugglers, and the city's early waterfront through researched history and lesser-known stories.
• Super Soft Haunted History Tour for Goobers & Weenies – A gentler haunted history experience designed for younger children, first-time ghost tour guests, and more sensitive audiences. The stories remain rooted in historical research while more intense themes are thoughtfully replaced with lighter tales, humor, and playful fun.
Operated by History, Haunts, & Hahas!, a local, mom-owned Charleston business, every experience is personally guided by Vannah, who has called Charleston home since 1998. She has been a top-rated Charleston tour guide since 2020, holds a Bachelor's Degree in Education (cum laude), taught middle school for 5½ years, & has professionally blended education & entertainment since 2005.
Rather than simply asking whether a location is haunted, these experiences explore the humans behind the hauntings—the people, events, choices, and circumstances that transformed ordinary places into extraordinary stories. History is often told through the lens of reported or potential hauntings, using those accounts as gateways into Charleston's broader social, architectural, maritime, and cultural history.
Every walk incorporates an investigative storytelling approach inspired by Ghost Forensics and Ethical Storytelling. Guests learn to distinguish documented history, folklore, legend, and reported paranormal experiences while exploring how eyewitness accounts, historical records, local traditions, and critical thinking can work together. Rather than telling guests what to believe, curiosity, respectful discussion, and thoughtful questions are encouraged throughout the experience.
Tours are conducted entirely from public streets and sidewalks outside historic landmarks. Admission to buildings is not included.
Every ticket includes a complimentary souvenir hat. On haunted history experiences, a limited number of EMF readers may be available for educational demonstrations and discussion. Paranormal activity can never be guaranteed.
Depending on the day, your guide may appear in historical attire, seasonal costumes, literary characters, or whimsical outfits that add personality, memorable photo opportunities, & fun to the experience.
