HauntBound archive · catalog record
Reported phenomena — as catalogued
Nightly downtown walking tour of Bar Harbor's ghost stories and Wabanaki spirit tales
Downtown Bar Harbor (meeting point varies), Bar Harbor, ME 04609
Research updated August 2026
Age
All Ages
Cost
$$
Standard tickets run roughly $25 adult / $18 youth, with VIP tiers priced higher; check the operator's calendar for current rates.
Access
Wheelchair OK
Roughly one-half to one mile of downtown sidewalks at a leisurely pace
Equipment
Photos OK
Locally operated by the authors of Haunted Bar Harbor · Combines local ghost stories with Wabanaki spirit tales · Covers downtown Mount Desert Island dark-tourism sites
Bar Harbor sits on Mount Desert Island next to Acadia National Park and was a Gilded Age resort town before much of its grand cottage district burned in the Fire of 1947. That layered history of wealth, fire, and rebuilding is the backdrop for the walking tour.
The Original Bar Harbor Ghost Tour is a locally owned operation led by the authors of Haunted Bar Harbor. The route runs roughly half a mile to a mile through the downtown core, lasts about 60 to 90 minutes, and departs nightly in season at 8:00 PM. Guides combine researched local ghost stories with Wabanaki spirit tales, reflecting the area's Indigenous history.
Among the buildings the tour discusses is the 1932 Criterion Theatre on Cottage Street, an Art Deco venue with its own reputation for activity; guides try to bring groups inside when the theatre's schedule allows. Other operators, including US Ghost Adventures and American Ghost Walks, have also run Bar Harbor ghost tours, indicating sustained dark-tourism demand on the island.
Sources
The walking tour is the legend, in a sense: it collects the stories that have attached to Bar Harbor's downtown buildings and tells them on site. Guides describe reported activity at landmarks like the 1932 Criterion Theatre and recount area legends, including the Ghost of Catherine Hill associated with a road outside town.
The operators distinguish their program by including Wabanaki spirit stories alongside the settler-era hauntings, presenting them as part of the island's longer history rather than as set dressing. Because the route changes with what is open and what guides choose to feature, the specific stops vary night to night.
For visitors, the value is less any single verified apparition than the curated walk through a resort town shaped by fire and reinvention, with the Criterion interior as the highlight when the theatre's calendar permits access.
Notable Entities
Media Appearances
A 60 to 90 minute evening walk through downtown Bar Harbor, covering roughly half a mile to a mile. The tour is run by the authors of the book Haunted Bar Harbor and pairs local ghost stories with Wabanaki spirit tales. Guides try to access the interior of the 1932 Criterion Theatre when scheduling allows. Multiple ticket tiers are sold; tours run nightly at 8:00 PM in season.
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Cleveland, OH
Strange & Spooky Cleveland Tours is described as Cleveland's only locally owned and operated ghost walk, led by paranormal author and investigative historian William G. Krejci.
Galveston, TX
The Strand Historic District in Galveston was established as the city's commercial core beginning in the 1840s and became one of the most important commercial centers in Texas by the 1870s. The surviving 1877-era iron-front commercial buildings along the Strand survived the September 8, 1900 hurricane that killed between 6,000 and 12,000 people in Galveston and destroyed most residential structures on the island. During the recovery period, the Strand district buildings served as mass morgues, triage stations, and temporary housing for survivors, a role documented in local newspaper accounts from September and October 1900.
Chicago, IL
Chicago Hauntings Ghost Tours, now operated under the American Ghost Walks brand, runs evening walking and bus tours through Chicago's Loop, Lincoln Park, and southwest suburbs. The company's flagship Original Chicago Hauntings Tour departs Saturday evenings from the Congress Plaza Hotel.