In this episode, we explore historic Deadwood and some of the peeps who have lived and died — and lived on — in this Wild West town. Made famous during the Gold Rush, this settlement became a city that “played by its own rules,” which means no rules. An entire city block was occupied by nothing but brothels, and prostitution was legal until the 198…

Welcome to the Bermuda Triangle and to allergy season! Jen and Kristin debate what the best flavor cold and flu medication is, whether colors are flavors, and how we survived to adulthood as children of the late 80s and early 90s. There are some things it seems we have inherent knowledge of: Quicksand, who the villain in Scooby-Doo would be, and th…

Jen and Kristin hang a hard right and head up to Michigan’s Mackinac Island, home of turtles, a thriving fudge business, and GHOSTS. Like everywhere else in the Americas, it was home to Native Americans long before white people came and messed everything up. In fact, it is said to be home to the great spirit, Gitche Manitou, and the first land that…

Hey everybody! Kristin normally does the show notes but alas I am adrift without her, so here's my shot: In this episode, we're heading to Hoia Forest, a haunted forest in Romania with a gnarly clearing and a portal to the OTHER SIDE. Please also enjoy tangents about math and (of course) Outlander. Sources: Frights and sights in Transylvania: explo…

Join Jen and Kristin as they go to the Crescent Hotel in Eureka Springs, Arkansas — America’s Most Haunted Hotel. Kristin is super psyched about the weird medical stuff and wacky con men, and Jen is psyched because she actually went there — without wacky medical stuff or con men, sadly. We talk about the history (of course, it was once a young woma…

In this bonus episode, Jen and Kristin were thrilled to spend some time with Chris Semtner, the curator at the Edgar Allen Poe Museum in Virginia. We talk about the museum's exhibits, Poe's work, and the lasting effects of his legacy on us today. Check out the museum here: http://www.poemuseum.org/ And Chris Semtner's amazing work here: https://chr…

On this episode of Macabre Traveler, the travel, history, and dark humor podcast for the places that love to scare you, Jen and Kristin are visiting one of the most famous haunted places in the US: the Myrtles Plantation. Maybe it’s the legends that surround the Myrtles. Maybe it’s the plain fact that so much human suffering occurred there. Maybe i…

The spookiest thing about this episode is how weirdly bad our audio is. OUR BAD. It was Kristin’s birthday so we had to shimmy shimmy our recording situation. Join us as we travel to the Winchester Mystery House in San Jose, home to a super cool and wacky house. A mystery house, if you will. This house is chock full of windows, doors, staircases, H…

Leap Castle might be the most haunted castle in the world, or at least in Ireland. It was built on an ancient Druid ceremonial site and fought over for centuries. Families fought within families to get control over this thing, including brothers killing brothers during CHURCH. Jeez, bros. The castle is a Zillow ghost hunter’s dream, containing an o…

In the latest episode, Jen and Kristin head across the pond to jolly old England, pip pip, Cheerios, old chaps, to check out the Tower of London and all the fun and murder that happened in and around it. We talk about the menagerie that used to be kept at the Tower; the many, many, too many people killed there; Guy Fawkes’ Gun Powder plot and how J…

Join Kristin and Jen as we crack open a road soda and visit New Orleans for a second time. This time we head to the Bourbon New Orleans Hotel, right down the street from Madame LaLaurie’s house. The Bourbon New Orleans Hotel offers beautiful rooms, a cool bar, and a saltwater pool, which Jen will never swim in. We talk about the construction of the…

In this episode of the Macabre Traveler, Jen and Kristin cover the infamous LaLaurie Mansion and the notorious Madame Delphine LaLaurie (as well as her numerous, confusingly named children — for real, don’t name your children the same names. It’s weird). Suspicious deaths. Enslaved people locked away and possibly… experimented upon? Crab people? A …

Join Jen and Kristin for our special VALENTINE’S DAY episode! Since Valentine’s Day is GROSS, we’re celebrating in true macabre fashion… with MURDER. We talk about the St. Valentine’s Day Massacre, how to dress like a snorky mobster, and why you should always run a little bit late. Sources History.com, St. Valentine’s Day Massacre https://www.histo…

In January's bonus episode, Jen and Kristin talk to three listeners who describe their experiences with haunted houses and hotels. Do you have a haunting, scary, or macabre experience? Get in touch with us on social media or write to us at themacabretraveler@gmail.com! Many thanks to our interviewees! --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.sp…

The Borden murders are one of the most famous unsolved murders in America, over 100 years later. Today, Jen and Kristin head to the Lizzie Borden house, which, if you haven’t heard much of the case itself, you’re definitely aware of the DOPE nursery rhyme the case inspired: Lizzie Borden took an axe And gave her mother forty whacks. When she saw wh…

In this episode, Kristin and Jen head to one of the darkest places and times in the world’s history: the Killing Fields in Cambodia. We’re starting the show notes and the episode with a trigger warning: We discuss extreme violence, including genocide and torture, including against women and children. Please listen at your own discretion. Just a gen…

For the holidays, Jen and Kristin couldn’t go somewhere or do something normal… Obviously. Normal is not macabre! Normal doesn’t scare us… actually… wait… Normal totally scares us. But not in a fun way. *shudders* So we checked out the legend of Krampus, the bad cop of Christmas. Local to Central Europe, Krampus punishes the bad children on Decembe…

In episode 4, we visit tiny hamlet Lily Dale in New York. Lily Dale is home to less than 300 people year round—and over FIFTY are registered mediums. Is there such a thing as a town occupation? Every summer, over 20 THOUSAND people visit Lily Dale for spiritualism-related workshops, events, readings, and more. Jen and Kristin discuss the foundation…

In this episode, we interview Adam Selzer and Leyla Royale of Effing Chicago Tours and MANY other awesome creative endeavors. For real, check out their Tweeters and webs below. We chat with Leyla and Adam about their favorite tour moments, what goes into creating a great tour experience — and why it's important to do tours like these —, and how bus…

In this episode, Jen and Kristin drag along our friend and patron of the podcast Lauren Ocello to the Paris Catacombs. Did you know how and why the catacombs were first created? Because the bodies were PILING up in the streets of Paris so much the wine was turning bad. Solution? Create the biggest Poltergeist nightmare EVER by moving between six to…

In our last episode, we covered some of Salem’s dark past. In this episode, we talk about visiting Salem in present-day, including October’s Haunted Happenings, the annual Halloween Ball, and places we’ve visited and loved. Sources https://www.salem.org/ http://travelchannel.com https://salemwitchmuseum.com/locations/witch-trials-memorial/ https://…

Welcome to our BONUS episode! In this episode, we interview writer, editor, coach, and generally amazing human being Jordan Rosenfeld about her article on Mental Floss The Science Behind Why We Love to Be Scared. We talk about famous (infamous?) in real-life haunted house McKamey Manor, how fear works in our bodies and brains, and why we love to ac…

Welcome to Macabre Traveler, y'all! In episode 2, part 1, Jen and Kristin bring listeners to perhaps the most famous macabre travel destination in the United States: Salem, Massachusetts. In part 1, we give listeners a broad overview (because there is just so, so much that deserves to be said and a one hour podcast isn't enough) of the history of t…

Welcome to Macabre Traveler, y'all! In episode 1, Jen and Kristin introduce listeners to the podcast and website, the concepts of macabre travel, hedonic reversal, and benign masochism, our philosophy regarding travel vs. tourism, and how macabre travel connects us across time and places. Please like us, subscribe where you listen to podcasts, and …

COMING SOON: The Macabre Traveler, a podcast for people who love the places that love to scare you. --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/macabretraveler/support