A South Carolina tour ranks among the best in the nation — but it’s not for the faint of heart.
Instead, it made it onto a list of the most “spine-chilling experiences” in the United States.
The experience — called The Haunted Evening Horse and Carriage Tour of Charleston — earned a No. 4 spot in the rankings after Tripadvisor said it studied ratings that people left on its travel website.
“This list was determined based on experience products that are highly-rated by travelers on Tripadvisor in a category deemed ‘spooky’ by Tripadvisor’s editors (including ghost tours, vampire tours, murder mystery tours, witch tours, and more),” the company told McClatchy News in an email.
The Haunted Evening Horse and Carriage Tour of Charleston received a nod after people flocked to the travel website to praise the activity, which some said helped them learn about Charleston’s past from an old-school mode of transportation.
“Part ghost tour and part history tour, this evening outing does double duty as it takes you to top Charleston sights,” including churches and graveyards, according to Tripadvisor and the tour company’s website.
The Old South Carriage Company runs the 40-minute tour, calling it “Charleston’s only haunted carriage ride.” Many Tripadvisor users said hearing ghost stories gave them the chills, while others were fans of soaking up history from their tour guides.
The tour — which garnered more than four out of five stars on Tripadvisor — costs $50 for adults and $40 for kids ages 4 and older. Though the national rankings focused on destinations that are trendiest in October, the haunted rides run on Charleston’s streets throughout the year.
The results come after other South Carolina attractions missed out on receiving acclaim this fall. No apple orchards or pumpkin patches in the state ranked among the nation’s favorite destinations for seasonal activities on recent lists from the review website Yelp.
On the latest Tripadvisor list, the top-ranking tour was in Salem, Massachusetts, home to the witch trials of the 1600s. Rounding out the top five were tours in New Orleans, Savannah and Washington, D.C.
