Self Guided Salem Witch Tour
Four stops, about two hours, free outside: the Memorial, Charter Street, the Witch House and the Witch Museum. Going inside the Witch House is $17; the museum show $19. You reach three of the five places of 1692 — Proctor’s Ledge and Salem Village need a guide or a car.
Self Guided Salem Witch Tour Route
A self guided salem witch tour takes about two hours and costs nothing if you stay outside. Start at the Salem Witch Trials Memorial on Liberty Street, open from dawn to dusk, where twenty granite benches carry the names of the people executed in 1692 — nineteen hanged and Giles Corey, pressed to death. The Memorial was dedicated by Elie Wiesel on 5 August 1992 and is wheelchair accessible. Please do not stand on the benches or light candles.
20 granite benches, one per name.
Next door, 135 m. Judge John Hathorne is buried here.
Judge Corwin’s home. Outside is free; inside is $17.
Not a tour — a seated presentation; allow up to an hour. Worth it on a rainy day.
Next door, 135 metres or about two minutes away, is the Charter Street burying point at 51 Charter Street, in use since before 1637 and the oldest European burial ground in Salem; Judge John Hathorne is buried here. In summer it opens daily 10:00–17:00, last entry 16:45, free. In October entry needs a free digital reservation in 15-minute slots, bookable from 18 September for the same day only. Do not climb on stones, leave coins or make rubbings.
Then walk up Essex Street to the Witch House at 310½ Essex Street, the home of Judge Jonathan Corwin, where the accused were brought for pretrial examinations. Outside is free; inside costs $17 for an adult, and children under four go free. Finish at the Salem Witch Museum by Salem Common — a seated presentation with an exhibit, $19 for an adult, where the museum asks you to allow up to an hour.
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Salem Witch Trials Self Guided Tours by App
There is one app-based option among salem witch trials self guided tours on GetYourGuide: the self-guided audio tour for $10. It plays on your phone in six languages — English, Spanish, Portuguese, Hindi, Chinese and Japanese — and stays active for seven days once you start. It is rated 3.48 from 12 reviews, the lowest rating on this site.
Read the reviews before you pay. One reviewer wrote that “only 5 audios is not a guide”; another that “nothing was marked so it was difficult to follow”. The listing is a ghost-story tour and does not name which of the 1692 places it covers. If you want the history, the free route above plus a guidebook does more; if you want a guide, the $25 1692 Witchcraft Trials Walk costs $15 more and has 364 reviews.
For $10 you get narration on your phone in six languages — it is a ghost-story tour and does not list which 1692 places it covers. It is rated below four — 3.48 from 12 reviews. If you want the story, the $35 guided walk is the better buy; if you want to save $25, this is the only paid option at your own pace.
When a Guide Is Worth It
The free route shows you the places; a guide tells you what happened at them and in which order. Two situations make the ticket worth it: a first visit, when the story of 1692 is new and nine stops in two hours give it shape, and a trip where you want the most trial sites in one walk.
Reviews
“No need for fancy costumes, just book this tour guide who has all the information you need.”
How They Compare
The audio tour and our guided pick differ by $25 and by almost a point of rating: 3.48 from 12 reviews against 4.45 from 208. The audio tour lets you start when you like and pause for coffee; the guided walk starts at a fixed time from 210 Essex Street and answers questions as you go.
Salem Witch Tourist Attractions Worth the Ticket
Of the salem witch tourist attractions on this route, only two charge: the Witch House ($17) and the Salem Witch Museum ($19). Both are worth it on a rainy day, when an outdoor route loses its pleasure. The Witch House is the only house in Salem with direct ties to the 1692 trials that is open to the public — in the museum’s own words, the only remaining structure with direct ties to the trials. It opens daily 10:00–17:00 from 15 April to 15 November, and Thursday to Sunday 12:00–16:00 in winter.
Two more tickets are not about 1692 but sit on the same afternoon. The House of the Seven Gables mansion tour takes about 45 minutes with stairs and costs $26, or $31 in October. Salem Maritime National Historical Park charges no entrance fee at all; its visitor centre opens 9:00–17:00, and only its film has a ticket, $6.
Proctor’s Ledge, where the executions took place, is free but off the route: it lies at Pope Street and Boston Street, about a mile from downtown, confirmed in January 2016 and marked with a memorial by Martha Lyon since 19 July 2017. There is no parking at the site; park at Gallows Hill Park and walk down.
Before You Book
One walk is marked “all ages” by the partner; one is 21+; under-fives can’t ride the Boston coach.
Full answer in FAQ →Self Guided Salem Witch Tour FAQ
Can you do a salem witch tour on your own?▾
Yes. Three of the five places of 1692 are free and within a short walk of each other: the Memorial, the Charter Street burying point next door and the Witch House from the street. Allow about two hours with the museum, or one hour outside only. Going inside the Witch House costs $17; the Salem Witch Museum $19.
Is the self-guided route wheelchair accessible?▾
The Memorial itself is wheelchair accessible, and the route uses city sidewalks, some of them brick. We have not verified step-free access inside the Witch House or the Salem Witch Museum, so check with each before you go. Of the guided walks, only the 1692 Witchcraft Trials Walk describes its route as wheelchair accessible.
Do I need to book anything for a self-guided visit?▾
Outside October, no. In October the Charter Street burying point needs a free digital reservation, bookable only for the same day, and Salem Witch Museum tickets are sold online only — tickets for the next day go on sale at 22:00. The Memorial never needs a ticket.
How long does the self-guided salem witch tour take?▾
About two hours at an easy pace with one paid stop, or around an hour if you stay outside. The Memorial and the burying point are two minutes apart on foot; the museum asks you to allow up to an hour for its presentation and exhibit.
Can I include Proctor’s Ledge in a self-guided tour?▾
Yes, but it adds time: the site is at Pope Street and Boston Street, about a mile from downtown, and there is no parking at it — park at Gallows Hill Park and walk down. It is free. None of the guided walks in Salem lists it; four day trips from Boston do.
Is the self-guided audio tour worth $10?▾
Only if you want a voice in your ear at your own pace. It is rated 3.48 from 12 reviews, reviewers complain that little is marked on the way, and the listing does not say which places of 1692 it covers. The free route on this page covers three of them, and a guided walk starts at $25.