HauntBound archive · catalog record
Reported phenomena — as catalogued
Virginia's Oldest Ghost Tour, Running Candlelight Walking Tours Through Colonial Williamsburg Since 1989
345 W Duke of Gloucester Street (Merchants Square, in front of lululemon), Williamsburg, VA 23185
Research updated August 2026
Age
All Ages for the Candlelight Walking Tour; 21+ implied for the Murder Tour and Pub Crawl and the Boos and Booz Haunted Pub Crawl
Cost
$
The Original Ghost of Williamsburg Candlelight Walking Tour from $20 per person; The Murder Tour and Pub Crawl from $48 per person; Boos and Booz Haunted Pub Crawl $48 per person, October only. Pricing per the operator's own site.
Access
Wheelchair OK
An outdoor candlelight walking tour through Merchants Square and Colonial Williamsburg's historic district.
Equipment
Photos OK
Merchants Square, Williamsburg (1930s commercial district adjoining Colonial Williamsburg) · Colonial Williamsburg Historic Area
The Original Ghost Tour of Williamsburg (operating at theghosttour.com) markets itself as 'the oldest and most renowned ghost tour company in the United States and Virginia,' citing a 1989 founding and more than 30 years of continuous operation. The company's flagship product, the Original Ghost of Williamsburg Candlelight Walking Tour, is framed as drawing on the ghost-lore research of L.B. Taylor Jr., a Virginia author whose multi-volume 'Ghosts of Virginia' series documented regional folklore including material on Colonial Williamsburg. The tour meets in Merchants Square, the 1930s-era shopping district adjoining the restored Colonial Williamsburg historic area and the College of William & Mary campus.
The company also runs two adults-oriented pub-crawl products, The Murder Tour and Pub Crawl and the October-only Boos and Booz Haunted Pub Crawl, both centered on downtown Williamsburg bars rather than the candlelit historic-district route. The operator's site explicitly warns visitors 'don't be fooled by imitators,' reflecting a crowded Williamsburg ghost-tour market that includes several other operators using similar branding.
Sources
The operator's site describes the Candlelight Walking Tour as covering 'chilling tales of colonial spirits and mysterious occurrences' presented in a 'true storytelling format,' and states that paranormal entities on the route 'often produce light phenomena in photographs,' with guests reportedly capturing light orbs and shapes resembling human figures. The Murder Tour and Pub Crawl and Boos and Booz Haunted Pub Crawl extend this true-crime and haunted-history framing into a bar-crawl format.
All of this is the tour operator's own marketing material, not documented history independently verified for this listing; it is included here as a description of what the tours cover, not as an endorsement of any specific claim.
A 90-minute candlelight walking tour billed by the operator as Virginia's oldest ghost tour, running since 1989 and based on the work of Virginia ghost-lore author L.B. Taylor Jr. Meets in front of lululemon in Merchants Square. Tickets from $20 per person, all ages.
A seasonal evening walking tour and pub crawl covering Williamsburg true-crime history, paired with stops at local bars. Meets outside Precarious Beer Hall on S. Henry Street. Tickets from $48 per person.
An October-only haunted pub crawl through Williamsburg. Tickets $48 per person.
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Meeting point for The Murder Tour and Pub Crawl, per the operator's own site (110 S. Henry Street).
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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.
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.
Denver, CO
Nightly Spirits is a multi-city ghost-tour and haunted-pub-crawl operator running a Denver program centered on LoDo, meeting at Celtic on Market and covering Denver Union Station and the Oxford Hotel; a second South Broadway route is currently private-booking-only.