5 scary places to celebrate Halloween in Italy
5 scary places to celebrate Halloween in Italy Pexels

The scariest night of the year is upon us: Halloween 2023 is coming! According to tradition, October 31st is the pagan festival of Samhain, the day in which the barrier that divides the world of the living from the supernatural world thins, favoring encounters with spirits and ghosts of past eras.

You can believe it or not but the mysterious charm of Halloween is undeniable... if you are passionate about the paranormal, visiting some of the most haunted places in Italy could be the best way to spend a truly scary Halloween!

Here is a list of the 5 scariest places in Italy:

Mysterious Venice

The Palazzo Dario in Venice
Pixabay

Venice is an incredible and unique city, but not many people know that some of its most famous places are also the scene of many scary legends, first and foremost the Grand Canal.

They say, for instance, that sometimes near the Rialto bridge one can see the ghost of Fosco Loredan wandering around with the head of his wife, murdered out of jealousy.

Another legend concerns the palace of Ca' Dario, which also overlooks the Grand Canal and is considered one of the most haunted palaces in Italy. It seems, in fact, that within the walls of Ca' Dario one can hear the cries of the various tenants and owners who have lived in the house over the centuries, and that they have all always died violent deaths.

Finally, there is Poveglia: this island in the Venetian lagoon was used as a lazaret, and was therefore the place where plague victims were taken to die. Today, it hosts numerous sinister and disturbing presences.

The House of Souls, Genoa

The House of Souls in Genoa
Pixabay

In Voltri, near Genoa, there is the "Ca' delle Anime" (House of Souls), one of the thrilling places where you might not have the courage to spend the night.

The house, now uninhabited, is decidedly spooky: there have been ghost sightings and people swear they have heard moaning and sinister sounds coming from inside.

The legend arises from a sad and terrible truth: the House of Souls is in fact an ancient inn, whose owners murdered their guests by lowering a moving ceiling over them during the night, and then took possession of their belongings.

The hospital of Colorno, Parma

Scary art by Herbert Baglione
Pixabay

Psychiatric hospitals and abandoned asylums have always been the favourite set of horror film directors. This abandoned hospital in Colorno, not far from Parma, is no exception.

The old structure of this hospital is so dark and creepy that it inspired a street artist, Herbert Baglione, to create frightening paintings along its long corridors and dark rooms: a scary work of art that only the most daring will want to enjoy this Halloween 2023.

The ghost of Donna Olimpia, Rome

The Ponte Sisto in Rome
Pixabay

Even in Rome you can have a paranormal experience, thanks to one of its best-known ghosts. This is the ghost of Donna Olimpia (1592-1657), a social climber who fled Rome with two chests of gold coins upon the death of her brother-in-law, Pope Innocent
Her successor, Alexander VI, exiled her from the city and shortly afterward she died of the plague. There are those who swear they saw her in a carriage pulled by black horses, whizzing at full speed across the Sisto Bridge or in Piazza Navona, the site of her ancient residence.

The mysteries of Palermo

The Capuchin Catacombs in Palermo
Pixabay

Palermo is a splendid city, and when it comes to scary and haunted places it definitely has nothing to envy other Italian cities.
The bravest can start with a tour of the Capuchin Catacombs, full of the naturally mummified bodies of the city's inhabitants from the 17th to the 19th century. One of the most famous and best preserved mummies is that of little Rosalia Lombardo, who died of pneumonia at just 2 years old.

After the catacombs, you can take a tour of Caccamo Castle, one of the castles with the most ghost sightings in Italy.