galena il ghost tour reviews

The Haunted Galena Tour Company

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The Haunted Galena Tour Company - All You Need to Know BEFORE You Go (2024)

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Amelia's Galena Ghost Tours, Inc.

129 South Main Street, Galena, IL 61036

Historic Sites

Hop onto a luxury shuttle bus with a theatrical flair exploring several locations in historically haunted Galena.

Haunted Shuttle Bus Tour: Tours depart daily at 6pm, 7:30pm and 9pm.Hear authentic, researched and documented ghost stories from experienced storytellers while visiting two haunted destinations. Experience real ghost hunting like the professionals with an EMF detector and ghost box on every tour. 

Haunted Walking Tour: The walking tour is guided throughout the streets of Galena - Main Street, Bench Street, and the side streets are covered in this tour. It lasts about one hour and ten minutes. Tour guide and ghost hunting equipment will be provided.

Amelia's Haunted Pub Crawls: Visit some of the most haunted pubs and taverns in Galena on this 2.5 hour walking tour. You'll enjoy spooky tales from our knowledgeable local guides as well as a taste of downtown Galena while partaking in some blood-curdling drink specials. On this tour you'll have the opportunity to learn about the history, legends, and lore from your knowledgeable local guides as you walk down Galena’s enchanted cobblestone streets and visit three Haunted Pubs, featuring two kinds of “spirits”.

Afternoon Vineyard/Distillery Shuttle: Are spooky tales and haunting spirits, not your thing? Experience the beauty of the Galena Country and its breathtaking views on this educational bus tour of two different vineyards and Galena's finest distillery. This 5-hour­ bus tour includes tastings at 2 wineries selected from Galena Cellars Vineyard and Winery and Rocky Waters Vineyard and Winery.

Night of Luminaria Bus Tours: Enjoy a romantic, Night of the Luminaria heated shuttle bus tour along Galena's Historic Main Street. Enter a land of enchantment on this magical night, when you see over 5,000 candle-lit luminaries on streets, steps and sidewalks. Shuttle Departs right behind the DeSoto House Hotel.

Tour Bus Capacity: 13 guests

Stop by Amelia's shop on Historic Main Street and take an Old Tyme Photo. Pick-up a book on Jo Daviess County ghost stories or your own ghost detecting equipment to try at home.

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Because life's too short to stay home …, ghosts of galena, this sweet town in northwest illinois is packed with history ... and mystery..

© Beth Gauper

In the northwest corner of Illinois, there's no more cheerful place than Galena.

Today, it's known for its shops and giggling bands of women on a girlfriend getaway. But in the 1850s, it was the busiest port between St. Louis and St. Paul, and rows of elegant homes were built with lead-mining fortunes.

Eventually, demand for lead waned, and the river connecting Galena to the Mississippi filled with silt. The town went into a deep sleep until the 1960s, by which point it had become a virtual museum.

Today, it's a vacation destination, with all kinds of tours on offer: trolley tours, vineyard tours, scooter tours . . . and ghost tours. Several, in fact.

"Galena is a very nice place," says historian Steve Repp, who was first to lead All About a Ghost tours downtown. "But there's a certain mystery to it."

Repp starts his tours by asking if people are "ready to cross over to the other side," but mostly, he talks about the past.

He points to the 1855 DeSoto House, where Abraham Lincoln spoke in 1856 from a balcony, still draped in red, white and blue bunting, and from which Ulysses S. Grant ran his successful 1868 presidential campaign.

He points to the 1856 building where Grant worked as a clerk in his brother's leather shop.

"Galena looks much as it did then," he said. "Put in some dirt and wooden boardwalks, and you're there."

The first published account of a ghost was in 1845, when two residents reported a very tall, ghostly figure beckoning on their wall and became convinced it was a veteran of the War of 1812. There were phantoms reported in mines, on a bridge, in boarding houses.

From Main Street, Repp leads his guests to the 1875 Turner Hall, used as a theater. In the balcony, set builders have reported seeing the ghostly figure of an older man with a goatee, rolled-up sleeves and laser-like eyes; a local pastor heard a garbled voice coming from the balcony.

The ghost is said to be Charles Scheerer, the hall's longtime business manager and Galena's mayor when he suddenly died in the hall in 1910.

In the 1867 Farmers' Guest House, once a hotel, guests have detected the aroma of pipe tobacco. At Vinny Vanucchi's restaurant, workers have felt taps on the shoulder, heard whispered names and seen a mist-like figure.

At the restaurant One Eleven Main, once a mortuary, employees have reported a piano moving on its own and a woman in a white dress.

Repp brings his tours into the restaurant to see a photo, taken by a chef, that shows three swooping, wraith-like figures. He says ghost sightings seem to follow remodeling projects.

"When people go into these old buildings and start to disrupt things, I've noticed certain unusual things occur," he said. "It makes you wonder."

At the end of the tour I was on, Repp gathered the group and asked if any of us had had experience with ghosts.

"I've been doing this for five years and I've heard a thousand stories," he said. "If you say three-quarters of them were made up to dupe me, that still leaves a quarter."

One woman had smelled cigar smoke from her recently deceased grandfather.

Another told of a little girl ghost who once tugged on her skirt and, she believes, placed a piece of lost jewelry on a counter for her after she'd cleaned the entire house searching for it.

"I think this little ghost had been around for a while; I could kind of see her out of the corner of my eye," she said. "I don't necessarily believe in ghosts, but it happened."

Repp says that sometimes only a couple of people on the tour tell of encounters with ghosts, and sometimes nearly everyone does. He's never had an encounter himself.

"The other day, 15 people told stories of things that had happened, if not to them, to their mothers or sisters or brothers; it was unbelievable," he said. "It makes you wonder."

Trip Tips: Ghost tours in Galena, Illinois

The Haunted Galena Tour Company offers Haunted Galena Ghost Walks and Spirits & Spirits Tours from mid-April to October.

Amelia's Galena Ghost Tours offers ghost-hunting tours by shuttle bus, with paranormal detecting equipment.

Matthew's Haunted Pub Crawl visits several haunted pubs.

In October, there are other frightful things to do in Galena , including a Halloween parade.

For more, see Galena getaway .

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The Haunted Galena Ghost Walk Is Over for the 2023 Season New 2024 Dates Coming Soon!!

Galena's #1 Haunted Tour

Experience genuine street theater featuring ghost storytelling

and dark history as you stroll haunted Galena by candlelight.

Performed in a true story telling format with costumed guides, our Ghost Walk is spooky fun for all. The 90 minute walking tour begins at the Dowling House and ends at the DeSoto House Hotel. 

Come ready to hear all about Galena's dark histories, local folklore, and infamous hauntings.

$23.50 per person, age 7+.

About our Haunted Galena Ghost Walk

The 2023 Season has ended, See you in 2024. New dates available soon!!

Our staff is fully vaccinated to protect against COVID-19

Tours begin promptly at their start time

There are no restrooms at the tour starting point, please use the facilities before you arrive

This tour is for ages 7+. Be advised we discuss murder, death, and dark history so use your discretion in bringing children

Due to insurance and facility restrictions, No pets allowed on tours, service animals only 

Dress for the weather, but know that we do not operate in dangerous or threatening weather

Be ready to walk, bring an umbrella if needed

Bug spray provided in season

We are a story telling based ghost tour, not a ghost hunting ghost tour. You may bring your own ghost hunting equipment on the tour as long as it is non disruptive to the performance

Photo taking is encouraged, video recording is not allowed

Please silence your phones for the tour

All sales are final for the Ghost Walks. No refunds, exchange credits only, unless severe weather causes cancellation

"AN AMAZING EXPERIENCE!

The tour was just the perfect blend of ghost stories and history. a stroll through galena's haunted history was a beautiful after dinner treat.".

"BEST TRUE GHOST STORIES! These are the stories that you want to hear about Galena's darker side. I've been on many ghost tours in major cities and this one tops them all."

"GREAT STORY TELLING! Very fun tour through Galena with ghost stories told from the past along with modern day sightings."

Ghost walk begins at the dowling house, ghost walk ends at the desoto house hotel.

220 Diagonal St Galena, IL 61036

230 S. Main St Galena, IL 61036

Matthew's Haunted Pub Crawl - Ghost Tours

Review Highlights

“ We had a lot of fun meeting new people, playing with ghost equipment and hearing about the spooky history of Galena all while doing a pub crawl. ” in 2 reviews

“ I was able to connect with my own family members when he showed me how to use the dowsing rods, which helped provide me closure. ” in 2 reviews

“ You will be provided a ghost energy meter and also have the option to speak with a spirit . ” in 3 reviews

Location & Hours

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108 S Main St

Galena, IL 61036

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This was such a fun and great experience. Whether you're a believer or not this tour will keep you entertained! Matt, Mark, Mike whatever his real name may be, lol, is HILARIOUS. His energy is positive, friendly, empathetic and knows his history about Galena. The tour lasts about 2.5 hours and this is a walking-ish tour. You walk from pub to pub and then stay at each spot for about 45 mins. You stop at 2 different places where you will be served with drinks (additional purchase) and lots of history and ghost stories. You will be provided a ghost energy meter and also have the option to speak with a spirit. It's a very cool experience and a lot of fun!

We attended on 11/11/2023. We got to visit 2 places and found the tour to be fun and very informative. Matthew is very charismatic and funny. He tells stories of the ghosts and also you get a ton of history in his event. I wouldn't really call it a a "pub crawl." If you're hoping for a typical bar crawl with many stops and drinks at each stop, this isn't it. We did get the opportunity for a drink at each of our two stops, and those came out quickly, but it was more about the storytelling. Overall, excellent tour, great information, interesting history. He also picked a volunteer to use the dowsing rods which was really cool. I would highly recommend this tour to anyone visiting Galena, first timer or somebody who's been there many times before!

I would highly recommend Matthew's Haunted Pub Crawl. Matthew is a great story teller and is very entertaining. I like that it is interactive and love learning the history behind the haunted locations. My husband and I have done this tour twice and I would highly recommend it.

My husband and I had such a fun time! Matthew is incredibly funny, charismatic, and great at story telling! You will learn so much about the city of Galena and all of the fascinating stories it holds. We took several photos on the tour, and did find some questionable figures in some photos! Matthew's shop is also full of some great items!

Matthew is the BEST! This past weekend I went on my THIRD tour with him. I took a group of my girlfriends on a girl's weekend and this was our number one activity for the weekend. Every time I have been on this tour, I learn new things and have new scares. Matthew's is so knowledgeable about Galena and about all the spooky things happening there. My fiancé and I have been on the tour two other times together. Each bar and spot in the pub crawl is always so welcoming and accommodating. This time I had the pleasure of meeting Miss Kitty who owns two restaurants in Galena. We have done the tour in winter, summer, and now fall. Each time is better than the last. I can't wait to bring more people to this tour. I am going to be having a Bachlorette party in the area in the next few months and we will be hiring Matthew for a private ghost tour bar crawl. I am so excited! If you are ever in Galena and are looking for something to do-this should be first on your list. I can't wait to continue to go back. I'm sad I won't be in the area next week for Halloween. I'm sure he is already booked, because that is how great the tour is. Try to book ahead as much as you can to ensure you get a spot. You will not regret it! We love you Matthew!!!!

Me and Matthew at a stop on the tour!

This ghost tour was Amazing!!! Such a fun thing to do while visiting Galena. Matthew was an amazing tour guide and new everything and anything about Galena's haunted past. This is something you need to put on your bucket list when visiting! Thank you again!!!

The BEST tour I've ever done. I learned so much about Galena's history and heard of many ghost stories. Connecting with a spirit was such a great experience. Mathew did an excellent job and I can't wait to come back!

Connecting with spirits

Was excited to go on a pub crawl, and was under the understanding it would be a walking tour. Spent over and hour and 15 minutes at the first place being lectured and really only able to get one drink. Also think this was because he was waiting for a bachelorette party that was extremely late, so the tour was extended without notice. People coordinated rides and shuttles with their hotels and inns, so we were some who got up and left mid-lecture to ensure we didn't miss it. Then the second place we walked through the pub to a dank storage room of the bar with old lawn chairs and furniture to sit in next to the bar's food storage and proceeded to get more of a lecture and look at pictures other people took. The bartender was overwhelmed with how big our group was and barely could get our drinks in any sort of fashion. We left before the tour was over (went over designated time), but only went to 2 places and barely got 2 drinks the whole night. Also time of the tour caused us to miss the whole Halloween parade, would've been more fun being at a pub enjoying it with the tour and actually walk Main Street to get the full tour and vibe of the haunted Galena legends.

To say I was a bit skeptical would be an understatement. First and foremost, Matthew is extremely entertaining, knowledgeable of Galena history and incredibly interesting. He ties ghost and Galena history together so eloquently. My beautiful girlfriend and I were riveted listening to the tales. When random tour members contacted their "spirit guides" it gave us both chills. One lady, a definite naysayer, contacted her Grandfather, she was overwhelmed by it. Matthew' provides the audience with meters to register electric impulses. Let me tell you that everytime, Matthew talked about certain ghosts or we looked at certain photos, those meters lit up. Truthfully Matthew is on some type of unintentional calling by connecting people with their loved ones in the backdrop of an fun and entertaining ghost tour. We will be back to try a different night and other locations. Thanks Matthew (or whatever your name is) have to take the tour to find out.

End of a great evening, thanks Matthew!

Super fun and interesting. Loved it. Spooky, informative, educational, and intense and times!

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Ghost Tour - Galena Trolley Tours

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This tour is one hour through Galena. The tour guide/driver was well versed in his Galena History... read more

This was a great addition to our trip. The price was right & the time of the tour was perfect. The... read more

We rode on an evening ghost tour. The driver shared haunted stories about several places around Galena. The tour was advertised as 90 minutes, but ran closer to two hours. It was a fun tour, but the trolley was a little stuffy because the vinyl windows had to be closed due to rain. Once the rain stopped, and the driver opened the windows, it was a beautiful night with a nice breeze. Overall it was a fun tour, even though it ran a little long. If we have a chance to visit again, we will surely go on another tour, as we heard lots of good reviews from other passengers on the other tour offerings.

The tour guide was an excellent storyteller and the kids enjoyed the tour because it was not overly scary.

We live about an hour from Galena and my parents were in town and we decided to head to Galena for the day. We decided to do the 2.5 hour tour so that we could combined the trolley tour with the tours of 3 homes in town. YOU DO NOT GET A TROLLEY TOUR WITH THE 2.5 HOUR TOUR. All that happens with the 2.5 hour tour is that you get delivered to the three homes. We did not get a tour of town and what little we did get was terrible. Our tour guide didn't know that the flood gates had been closed in the last couple of years. She was carrying around a post it note with things to say and that was not much. It was so far out of my frame of reference that I didn't even consider that this tour could possibly ONLY drive you to these homes which are all within walking distance of the public parking lot if you are in the least bit of shape. To top it off the trolley didn't really even delivery us close to the first house and this poor old guy on oxygen had to walk about a block including a hill. The tour charges you twice as much as you would pay to do the three home tours individually. It was NOT worth it. $135 for 3 people. TOTAL RIP OFF!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I did ask to be able to fill out a comment card with my concern to the owner regarding my recommendation to make the advertising more clear and they don't have comment cards. I also left my email and phone number for the owner to please contact me so that I could provide my opinion to make the website more clear and it has been 10 days and I have had no contact. This was such a disappointing experience with such a poor response from the staff and owner that I don't think that I will ever be able to bring myself to do the one hour tour so that I could actually learn something about the town.

2.1/2 Hour Tour of Homes........is a shuttle service to the largest mansion and jewel of Galena ( The Belvedere Mansion & Gardens), the oldest house and oldest stone structure in the state of IL ( The Dowling House & Noreen's Old Tyme Photos & Gift Shop) and our 18th President's Home and Estate( General Grant Home). These are 3 of the major attractions in Galena and a must see. The shuttle can be by Trolley or air-conditioned executive coach. By far our most popular tour is our one hour Non-stop Tour of Galena, this tour gives you packed information about the history of Galena taking you to the historic areas pointing out the architecture of homes, information on the 9 generals and much much more. At night we do a entertaining Haunted Ghost Tour. Fun for all ages except all kids go on all Tours free as long as each has an adult with them. We have been doing tours for 25 years and give you the best deal for your dollar as the more tours you take with us the more you save. We can't be under sold by competitors or can they match our expertise and quality. My staff is the best in the business. See you soon! Noreen Brill CEO of Galena Trolley Tours & Depoe Theater

We took the one hour tour as soon as we rolled into town. Bill, the guide/driver/historian was full of knowledge about the town. I never knew so much history was packed into this small town. Knowing all that actually made our stay more enjoyable. Taking the tour gave us an orientation of how to get around and how much time was needed at and betwwen all the stops. The clean, comfy air-conditioned bus sure helped out through the heatwave! The cost is 16 dollars each with parking on the street. I would recommend this to anyone who hasnt been to Galena and to those who have, too. Thanks, Bill.

There is so much history, fun way for all ages to see what there is to see in Galena!

The trolley tour was a lot of fun. Even though we were there during Boy Scout weekend which is usually packed, we bought our tickets early and had a very relaxing ride with a great tour guide. Anyone interested in history will love this tour during the day. We also took the ghost tour in the evening and got to listen to ghost stories and legends.

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