HauntBound archive · catalog record
Reported phenomena — as catalogued
San Jose Ghosts: A Walking Tour Through Silicon Valley's Red-Light, Rail, and Winchester-Era History
154 Paseo de San Carlos, San Jose, CA 95112
Research updated August 2026
Age
All Ages
Cost
$$
San Jose Ghost Tour: The Scythe, Sacrifice, & Silhouette is $21 per person per the operator's site; an extended bonus tour to additional haunted locations is offered by request.
Access
Wheelchair OK
A roughly 1-mile outdoor walking tour of downtown San Jose, starting under the arch at Paseo de San Carlos.
Equipment
Photos OK
Downtown San Jose Historic District · Park Avenue Victorian District · San Jose's former red-light district
US Ghost Adventures runs city-branded ghost walks in dozens of U.S. cities under local names; in San Jose the program is marketed as San Jose Ghosts. The tour meets under the arch at 154 Paseo de San Carlos and covers about a mile of downtown San Jose on foot over roughly an hour, without entering privately owned buildings.
The route draws on San Jose's history as an early California capital and Gold Rush-era boomtown, touching on the city's former red-light district, its Victorian-era Park Avenue homes, and the Sainte Claire Hotel, a 1926 hotel built on the former site of Santa Clara County's first brewery. The operator's own site states its stories are drawn from historic reports, local folklore, and recorded sources.
Sources
The operator's preview material highlights 65 Post Street, marketed as the city's oldest commercial building and a former saloon and brothel tied to San Jose's Red-Light District era; Park Avenue, where the operator says at least two houses have drawn reports of hauntings from residents; and the Sainte Claire Hotel (now The Westin San Jose), built on the site of the city's first brewery and marketed around reports of a shadow figure and disturbances tied to a jilted bride's death.
All of this is the tour operator's own marketing and narrative material, not documented history independently verified for this listing; it is included here as a description of what the tour covers, not as an endorsement of any specific claim.
A 1-hour, 1-mile walking tour of downtown San Jose starting under the arch at 154 Paseo de San Carlos, covering the city's former red-light district, Victorian-era homes, and a historic hotel with reported hauntings. Tickets are $21 per person, all ages. Runs nightly. A bonus extended tour to additional haunted locations is available by request.
Some links on this page may earn HauntBound a small commission when you book, at no extra cost to you. Our editorial picks are independent. Full disclosure
Preview stop; the operator ties it to San Jose's former red-light district.
Preview stop; the operator describes reported hauntings at homes along this street.
Preview stop; the former Sainte Claire Hotel building, now operating as The Westin San Jose.
Every HauntBound history is researched from documented sources. We clearly separate verified historical fact from paranormal folklore.
Free Guide
10 verified stops, rated for families, mapped in order. Free.
One email to confirm, then the guide link. Unsubscribe anytime.
Charleston, SC
Nightly Spirits is a multi-city ghost-tour and haunted-pub-crawl operator running public and private programs in about 20 U.S. cities, including a Historic Downtown Charleston route with a kid-friendly pirate-themed option. The company has been recognized as a top-rated U.S. ghost tour by USA Today in multiple years.
New Orleans, LA
French Quarter Phantoms is a locally owned New Orleans walking-tour operator established in 2006, running six separately ticketed products across the French Quarter, Garden District, and Tremé.
Alexandria, VA
Nightly Spirits is a multi-city ghost-tour and haunted-pub-crawl operator running public and private programs in about 20 U.S. cities, including a Colonial-era Old Town Alexandria route since at least 2020. The company has been recognized as a top-rated U.S. ghost tour by USA Today in multiple years.