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Historic Overview of Salem Walking Tour

Badge of ExcellenceSalem, USA

1 hour 30 minutes
Offered in: English

Overview

Delve into Salem’s past beyond the notorious witch trials on a walking tour that ties four centuries of history into the context of this modern Massachusetts town. Stop at important landmarks in the historic center and learn about Salem's seaport origins, early colonial culture, and illustrious former residents from a guide who knows all the details.

Get oriented to Boston's most famous suburb on a Salem history tour
Learn about the city's early settlement and role in the American Revolution
Hear how the tragic 1692 witch trials shook the city's conscience
Great introduction for history buffs and first-time Salem visitors

What's Included

90 minute Historic Salem Walking Tour
Local and Professional Guide
Guide uses an amplifier so everyone can hear the Salem History
We visit locations that have compelling history unknown to many locals
Hear tales of Maritime and Revolutionary significance.

Gratuities
Hotel Pick-Up/Drop-Off
No food and drink offered, but snacks available for purchase

Meeting and Pickup

Meeting point

8 Central St, Salem, MA 01970, USA
We are part of the pedestrian walkway downtown at the corner of Essex and Central Streets. We are next to Emporium 32 and across from the New England Dog Biscuit Company. Look for our purple sign.

End point

Salem, MA, USA
Return Location: Returns to downtown Salem area. Tour Guide can help direct you to where you want to go.

What To Expect

Salem Historical Tours & Haunted Footsteps Ghost Tour

1 hour • Admission Ticket Free

The Custom House

10 minutes • Admission Ticket Free

Additional Info

Confirmation will be received at time of booking
Not wheelchair accessible
Stroller accessible
Service animals allowed
Most travelers can participate
Comfortable walking shoes are recommended
Parking available in garages on New Liberty, Bridge, and Congress Streets

Parking available in lots at Church Street, Front Street, and Klopp Alley. Metered parking near us. Use Passport Smart Phone App for meters. Bus parking available on New Derby Street and Hawthorne Boulevard.
Tour departs at 11:30am. Check in 15-20 minutes before your tour time at Salem Historical Tours office, located at 8 Central Street
The City of Salem has rescinded its face mask and proof of vaccination order. You no longer have to show proof of vaccination or wear a face mask to enter our office and gift shop. It is subject to change in the future.
Traffic and parking in October can be very difficult. Give yourself extra time to get here and park no matter what your GPS is telling you. Check Salem.org for details on where to park.
Our public walking tours can pose challenges for participants with mobility and accessibility concerns. Tours are 90 minutes long and about one mile in length. Each participant must be able to complete the one-mile tour within 90 minutes, providing for frequent stops to view sites and for information from the tour guide. As Salem is a historical city, there are narrow and uneven sidewalks, bricks, cobblestones, and stairs. During events and festivals (and particularly October), with crowds and street vendors, the streets can become difficult to navigate.
This tour/activity will have a maximum of 40 travelers

Cancellation Policy

You can cancel up to 24 hours in advance of the experience for a full refund.

For a full refund, you must cancel at least 24 hours before the experience’s start time.
If you cancel less than 24 hours before the experience’s start time, the amount you paid will not be refunded.

Any changes made less than 24 hours before the experience’s start time will not be accepted.
Cut-off times are based on the experience’s local time.

Traveler Photos

Reviews

4.5

37 reviews

Total review count and overall rating based on Viator and Tripadvisor reviews

Reviews by Viator travelers.

We perform checks on reviews

Showing 1-10 of 37 reviews

So glad I did this

Bianca_F, Jan 2024

So much history! Bob tied everything together so well with such enthusiasm 👏 The town is incredibly interesting

Response from Host, Feb 2024

Hello and Thank you for the amazing review! We're so pleased to hear you had a great time with us! Bob is on one of the best guides in town! Please be sure to come back and visit again soon!

Salem historic walking tour

Robyn_M, Nov 2023

Had an amazing tour of Salem and such an enjoyable experience in the town our guide was helpful and informative to that experience.

Response from Host, Nov 2023

Hello and Thank you for the amazing review! We're so pleased to hear you had a great time with us! Please be sure to come back and visit again soon!

Great tour

Victoria_B, Oct 2023

Unfortunatly the day of our tour it rained in buckets. But our tour guide was so fun and knowledgeable about Salem’s history, it made the experience so much better. We got a great overview of the town and learned some great history about Salem.

Response from Host, Nov 2023

Hello and Thank you for the amazing review! We're so pleased to hear you had a great time with us! Please be sure to come back and visit again soon!

Must do history tour of Salem!!!

Joe_F, Oct 2023

Amber was great presenter of Salem and we really enjoyed the story of Corwin and the family history. Her knowledge of the history can answer all of questions.

Response from Host, Nov 2023

Hello and Thank you for the amazing review! We're so pleased to hear you had a great time with us! Amber is on one of the best guides in town! Please be sure to come back and visit again soon!

A good guide makes the difference

Judy_G, Oct 2023

Bob had some unique stories and makes places come alive with the telling of tales. We all learned some new things about the area.

Response from Host, Oct 2023

Hello and Thank you for the amazing review! We're so pleased to hear you had a great time with us! Bob is on one of the best guides in town! Please be sure to come back and visit again soon!

A closer look at Salem

Debra_G, Jul 2023

Our tour guide was fun and informative and the sites prompted a nice mix of historical facts, narratives, and lore.

Response from Host, Jul 2023

Hello Debra, Thank you for the amazing review! We're so pleased to hear you had a great time with us! Please be sure to come back again soon!

Awesome historical.

Gayle_C, Jul 2023

Great tour. Stosha was very friendly and knowledgeable. Would recommend him to everyone. Great exercise with the walk

Response from Host, Jul 2023

Hello Gayle, Thank you for the amazing review! We're so pleased to hear you had a great time with Stash! He is one of the best guides in town. Please be sure to come back again soon!

Great time!

Susan_S, Jun 2023

Beth was great! Informed and fun to listen to…..had answers for every question. Took us to places no other tour went. .

Response from Host, Jun 2023

Hello and Thank you for the fantastic review! Please be sure to come back and visit us and Salem again soon!

Amazing historical tour

Debi_S, Nov 2022

This was a wonderful tour. The guide was informative and knowledgeable. This guide had so many great stories about the history of Salem. This tour was an hour and a half, but I could have listened to our guide for another hour. He had so many stories. This is not a witch trial orientated tour, but focused on other history that happened in Salem.

Response from Host, Nov 2022

Hello Debi, Thank you for the fantastic review! There is so much other history in Salem other than the short period of the Witch Trials. We're so pleased to hear you had a great time with us! Please be sure to come back again soon!

Great overview.

Wendy_F, Nov 2022

This had a little bit of history through the generations of Salem. It was interesting to hear of things from the 1630's up until almost present day! I feel like this tour deserves more than a hour.

Response from Host, Nov 2022

Hello Wendy, Thank you for the amazing review! We're thrilled to hear you had a great time with us! We as well would like this tour to be a bit longer. Stay tuned for a new look at this tour next season! Something is in the works!

Interesting Salem History Tour

scollins, Oct 2022

The tour we took focused more on some the key business figures & founding fathers of Salem and not very much on the witch trials. For history buffs (who don’t want to hear more about the witch trials), this is a good tour.

Response from Host, Oct 2022

Hello and Thank you for the amazing review! We're so pleased to hear you had a great time with us! Please be sure to come back again soon!

Salem history tour 👍

Rebecca_P, Oct 2022

We enjoyed the tour, especially the bits about the inaccurate location of the current witches dungeon and everything about the Salem Jail. I bought a book about the history of the jail after the tour! Not much info at each stop, but the tour guide was working with a ton of traffic and people.

Response from Host, Oct 2022

Hello Rebecca, Thank you for the great review! We're pleased to hear you had a fun time with us! Please be sure to come back again soon!

A walk back in time

Stephanie_F, Sep 2022

Our guide Stephanie was great! Very knowledgeable and personable. It was a great experience of the timelines!

Response from Host, Sep 2022

Hello and Thank You for the awesome review! We're pleased to hear you had a great time with us! Please be sure to come back again soon!

Disappointing Tour

Sandy_S, Jul 2022

I always feel bad when I have to give a bad review, but we were very disappointed with the quality of our tour. We did the 1 hour historical walking tour of Salem, MA and our tour guide was Stephanie. The issue we had with the tour was she only spoke to us when we were in front of a building that she wanted to discuss with us so more than half the tour was just walking in silence with no facts or history of Salem being give . On other tours that I’ve taken, the tour guide has given facts about the area even when we are walking throughout the area, as opposed to watching our tour guide look at her phone as we walk, or texting ad we are on our tour. She shouldn’t even have her phone in her hand when she’s doing a tour as it’s not necessary and she’s supposed to be working. She also kept mentioning the movie, Hocus Pocus and facts about Harry Houdini, and spoke very little about the early history of Salem, which is what she should be discussing on a historical walking tour. We really didn’t feel like we learned much about the city of Salem in general, except for a few facts. I would say that more than half of our tour was spent in silence when we were walking and we would walk right by historical buildings and just keep going, without her saying a word about the landmark. Overall, we were extremely disappointed with this tour and I would never recommend it to anyone. Perhaps that’s why there were only 5 of us on the tour and other people were either on the trolley tour or with another tour group. I would do the trolley tour instead next time.

Response from Host, Jul 2022

Hello Sandy, We're sorry to hear you didn't have the best time with us. Hocus Pocus and Harry Houdini have relevance in Salem but that isn't the only focus of the tour. We talk about presidents who have been here, inventors who lived here, Hawthorne, maritime and the American Revolution, etc... The guide looks at her phone so she can pace the tour and finish relatively on time. Nevertheless, we would love to make it up to your group and invite your group back for another tour with us! Please email me at thesalemhistoricaltours@gmail.com to set up any details.

Bad tour

rennae_w, Jul 2022

Bob doesn't know history of Salem and even skipped the 1700s. My wife and I are on a 90 day road trip and have enjoyed over 15 other tours. Bob told bad jokes, made historic mistakes and talked.mosyly about witches. I have a degree in American and European history. Bob just wings his tour with no continuity because he doesn't know history. H is not an educated tour guide. In short it was a very very bad tour.

Response from Host, Jul 2022

Hello Rennae, We're sorry to hear you didn't have the best time with us. I would like to invite you back on a tour with us in the future. Please email me at thesalemhistoricaltours@gmail.com and we can set it up for whenever works best for you.

An informative tour of Salem

Tim_B, Jul 2022

We had a small group and Bob was our tour guide. He spoke clearly and was very knowledgeable about many facets of Salem's history.

Response from Host, Jul 2022

Hello Tim, Thank you for the wonderful review! Bob is a great story teller and tour guide through Salem's interesting history. Please be sure to come back again soon!

Factual and fun

Dmitry_S, Oct 2021

The guide was very knowledgeable and fun.. he made the whole experience worth while. I would recommend this tour to anyone.

Accommodating

Amanda_R, Oct 2021

Very pleased on how the staff accommodated us when we where running a little later and put us with our Tour.

Very good tour Our tour guide was very informative and personable. I would highly recommend.

Jay_T, Sep 2021

Very Good tour . Our guide was informative and personable. I would highly recommend this tour . We took it when we first arrived in Salem and we got a good knowledge of the history there .

Thorough overview of Salem history

Nancy_H, Jul 2021

The tale of the Corwin house and the story of the witch spoon and Salem’s owning its past. Toura’s sense of humor. Very thorough and informative.