Salem, Mass. makes a fun day trip from Boston for travelers with teen or tween girls. As a former resident of Boston, I made sure to include a day trip to Salem on our itinerary when I traveled to Beantown this summer with my 12 and 13 year old daughters.
This itinerary for a Salem, Mass. day trip includes a balance of historical, theatrical, and other-worldly experiences.
Count Orlok’s Nightmare Gallery
Count Orlok’s (285 Derby St.) depicts characters in the horror genre from present day back to the silent movies. Rated #1 Salem attraction by users of TripAdvisor, this museum offers primarily a visual experience with little explanatory material, no hands-on activities or computer simulations, and minimal sound effects. It takes less than a half-hour to see the entire collection of ghoulish monsters. The cost is $8 for “adult creatures” and $6 for “creature spawn ages 5 to 12″ and college students.
Witch Museum, Witch Dungeon Museum or Salem Museum
Including at least one of these museums with exhibits describing the real witch hysteria of 1692 in Salem, Mass. is de rigeur. Not only will it provide a founding in history, the experience is a lesson in tolerance of people different from ourselves. No one of these experiences is necessarily superior to the others, but more than one would probably seem duplicative. The Witch Museum (19 ½ Washington Square North/ adults $9, children $5.50) tells the story primarily with animatronics; Witch Dungeon Museum (16 Lynde St./$8 adults, $6 children) offers a live reenactment of a witch trial based on historical transcripts; Salem Museum, Old Town Hall (32 Derby Sq./suggested donation $3 to $5) has some historical exhibits inside, and outside plays host to Cry Innocent, the award-winning participatory witch trial re-enactment in which the audience serves as jurors.
Tarot or Palm Reading
Tarot and palm reading are intriguing for young girls, even cynical ones. The options are abundant in Salem. We looked for both a reasonable price and an enticing atmosphere. We settled on Omen (184 Essex St.) which offered half-sessions at half-price to anyone under age 18. For a total of $35 for two, each girl got a seven and a half minute tarot reading and emerged bubbling with enthusiasm about how the reader seemed to know so much about her. Should your teen or tween wish to bring home a crystal ball, pendulum, tarot cards, diving rod, love potion, or spell candles, this is the place to find them.
Statues
The must-see statues in Salem include one in Lappin Park honoring Elizabeth Montgomery, star of the 1960s television series Bewitched. Montgomery and the rest of the Bewitched cast actually spent time in Witch City filming.
On a more somber note, there’s a tribute to the victims of the witchcraft hysteria off Charter St.
Founding father Roger Conant at the Salem Commons is noteworthy for his puritan attire.
Drive-by Attractions
Seventeenth and eighteenth century architecture is abundant in Salem. It takes only about 15 minutes to drive through the city and take a look at the historic homes. The tour should include House of the Seven Gables (115 Derby St.), which inspired the story of the same name by native author Nathaniel Hawthorne.
Across the street from House of the Seven Gables, Ye Olde Pepper Candy Companie (122 Derby St.) purports to be the oldest candy store in the nation, in business since 1806. This is worth a quick stop for candy souvenirs, but parking is not easy to find here.
Another house worth a look is the Witch House. It was once the home of Judge Jonathan Corwin, one of the judges sitting at the 1692 Salem witch trials. It’s the only structure still in existence that’s associated with the witch trials.
Salem is compact enough that in a single day, you and your teen or tween girl companions can experience a little bit of everything the city has to offer.