Halloween is around the corner and if you’re into all things spooky, read on. There's plenty of haunts in South Africa to feed your Halloween craze.
Here are four places to check out:
Nottingham Road Hotel, KwaZulu-Natal
The story of Charlotte dates back to the Second Anglo-Boer War. The owner, Clive Foss, told IOL Travel that Charlotte was associated with the hotel either as a guest or employee and jumped from the second-storey building in 1902.
Charlotte met and fell in love with a soldier who later died in a battle. Soon after, Charlotte apparently jumped from the balcony of Room 10 where she died of complications to her broken leg.
“Charlotte has been roaming the hallways of the hotel and showing her presence in small ways since her death,” Foss said.
While Charlotte is by no means evil or sinister, she often entertains guests. She once moved a guest’s facecloth from the bathroom to the bed and unpacked a guest’s suitcase. Located on the R103, Nottingham Road.
Opera House, Port Elizabeth
Known as one of the longest-running theatres in Africa, Port Elizabeth Opera House has been creating some of the biggest shows since 1892.
In between all the sold-out shows, there are two ghosts, who appeared at any given time and performance walk on the stage.
A security guard, Bennie Els, told IOL Travel in 2018 that many theatregoers had heard the footsteps, but none had seen the ghosts. Perhaps your next visit could summon them to make an appearance. Located on John Kani Road in Central Port Elizabeth.
Ghost Mountain Inn, KwaZulu-Natal
Legend has it that Ghost Mountain Inn in KwaZulu-Natal got its name from early western explorers, who saw strange lights flicker and heard sounds of wailing from the mountaintop. Rider Haggard said of the mountain in his book Nada the Lily: “It is a great and strange mountain. It is haunted and named the Ghost Mountain, and on top of it is a grey peak shaped like the head of an old woman.” In the early days, it was customary to bury the bodies of chiefs on Ghost Mountain.
“Although the chiefs lived in Mozambique, they were carried back to the Ghost Mountain when they died. Their bodies, mummified and wrapped in black bull skins, had to be transported by night and hidden in the day to avoid detection by the Zulus.” Located at Fish Eagle Road in Mkuze.
Cape Point, Western Cape
If you find yourself visiting Cape Point, see if you can spot the notorious Flying Dutchman ghost ship. The ship was reported missing at sea in 1641 on its way back from a trading mission to Indonesia. Legend has it that a Dutchman named Hendrik van der Decken captained the ship. They were headed home from Batavia (now Jakarta) to Holland.
One of the versions of the legend is that an angel appeared on the deck and the captain drew his pistol and shot her. He and his crew were doomed to sail these waters ever since. There have been many sightings.