Do you long for a trip that’s a little other-worldly? Spend some time visiting some of the spookiest spots in Australia.
If you’re easily spooked, perhaps rethink giving this a read. From old homesteads to popular Sydney highways, these are Australia’s most terrifying spots.
1. Monte Cristo Homestead, Junee, NSW
Considered Australia’s most haunted house, the Monte Cristo Homestead, built in 1884, has had its fair share of weird happenings throughout the years. It is believed at least 10 ghosts haunt the homestead, with reported sightings of a woman in a period dress walking along the veranda leading to bloodstained steps, which is where a former maid of the household once died.
2. Beechworth Asylum, Beechworth, VIC
Several years ago, a 10-year old boy on a ghost tour at Beechworth Asylum was seen talking to himself. When his parents asked who he was talking to, he said he was talking to a boy called James. After some research, it turns out there was a child by the same name who died at the asylum. In fact, it’s estimated that over 9000 patients died at Beechworth through its 128 years of operation, and you can still hear children’s laughter in its corridors.
Brave enough? The Beechworth Asylum has frequent ghost tours.
3. Jenolan Caves, Blue Mountains, NSW
You can argue that all caves are spooky, but not all caves have their own ghost. A guide who works in the caves recalls an old man in a suit telling him once an unknown fact about a button in the reflective pools – when he tried to find the man afterwards; there was no sign of him. It is thought the man could be James Wiburd, a caretaker of the caves who loved them so much that he requested his ashes be scattered there.
4. National Film and Sound Archive, Canberra, ACT
Before it was the National Film and Sound Archive, Canberra’s famed building was the Australian Institute of Anatomy where it housed hundreds of human skeletons and body parts and animal specimens, including Phar Lap’s heart, Ned Kelly’s skull and a mummy from Papua New Guinea. Staff in recent years have witnessed objects moving by themselves and weird noises coming from recording booths, which once served as dissection labs.
Brave enough? Discover the strange, the ghostly and the disturbing stories lurking in the NFSA basement and under the stairs – if you dare.
5. Redbank Tunnel, Picton, NSW
Despite its small-town charm, Picton has been dubbed Australia’s most haunted town. In 1916 a young woman by the name of Emily Bollard was walking through the town’s Redbank Tunnel when she was hit and killed by a train. Residents and tourists have since reported seeing a white flowing figure of a woman who has no face within the tunnel. In case that isn’t spooky enough, there have also been reports of lights floating above people’s heads, sudden drops in temperature, and ghostly children appearing out of the darkness.
Brave enough? You can visit the tunnel, but it can only be viewed from the outside to ensure visitors’ safety.
6. Fremantle Arts Centre, Fremantle, WA
With doors opening and closing by themselves, the sound of laughter and crying when there’s no one around and misty figures appearing in photographs, there’s more to this arts centre than meets the eye. Formerly an asylum for the criminally insane, visitors have been told of being mysteriously locked in old cells, plus a paranormal investigator once claimed he could smell burning flesh in an area that was used to administer electric shock treatment to patients.
Brave enough? There are no designated ghost tours, but you can suss it out for yourself while checking out the latest art exhibition.
7. Sydney’s Quarantine Station, NSW
For over 150 years, the North Head Quarantine Station was used to isolate people who had been exposed to diseases like the bubonic plague, Spanish influenza and smallpox. Countless people died from disease and neglect, living in squalid conditions and their spirits are said to haunt the now defunct buildings.
Brave enough? Q Station hosts frequent ghost tours of the grounds after dark. If you want more, every third Friday of the month you can stay the night.
8. Old Melbourne Gaol, VIC
No surprise here – the Old Melbourne Gaol is haunted. The gaol once housed criminals, thieves and is where Ned Kelly and around 133 others were hanged between 1842 and 1929. Visitors to the gaol have since had creepy experiences, hearing strange noises and experiencing sudden drops in temperature.
Brave enough? Ghost tours of the gaol are held on weeknights.
9. Port Arthur, TAS
Called ‘hell on earth’ by its convict prisoners, Port Arthur is believed to be one of the southern hemisphere’s most active haunted places. During its 47 years as a convict settlement, over 1000 people perished within its boundaries, and it’s said their souls still linger. In the last two decades, more than 2000 paranormal incidents have been recorded. The museum even has an ‘unusual occurrence form’ on hand for anyone wanting to report an otherworldly incident.
Brave enough? As the sun sets, 90-minute lantern-lit ghost tours of the dark grounds at Port Arthur take place.
10. Devil’s Pool, QLD
“He came for a visit and stayed forever” is written on a plaque near the swimming spot. Since 1959, 17 have died at the popular swimming spot, the most recent being in November 2008 – and it might go a little deeper than bad luck. Aboriginal folklore says a woman drowned at the pool and is now believed to now haunt the pool, luring men in to join her in death. To top it off, people have reported strange apparitions and the sound of someone crying.
Brave enough? You can still visit the pool, but perhaps rethink taking a dip.
11. Princess Theatre, VIC
Like most great performance venues, Melbourne’s famous Princess Theatre plays host to its own resident ghost. In 1888, actor Frederick Federici was performing in a production of Faust on its opening night. As the play finished, Federici suffered a heart attack and died as the curtain went down.
Brave enough? To this day, seat B28 in the dress circle is always left vacant on opening night for the theatre’s ghost. You can’t book it, but you can sit next to it.
12. Wakehurst Parkway, NSW
Aside from connecting the suburbs of Seaforth and Narrabeen, Sydney’s notorious highway has been infamously used as a dumping ground for murder victims, and garnered quite a few haunted stories, including that of a ghost named ‘Kelly’. Legend has it that if you drive at night, Kelly will appear in the back seat and unless you tell her to get out, she will take control of the car and steer you off the road to your doom.
Brave enough? As the story goes, the spooky occurrence take place in the black of night, so perhaps avoid (or not) driving down the Wakehurst Parkway by yourself if you’re easily frightened.
This article originally appeared in Escape and has been reproduced with permission