Naperville Hauntings Ghost Walk Tour offers safe scares
With COVID-19 threatening to spoil Halloween parties and trick-or-treating, Ursula Bielski's Naperville Hauntings ghost walk tour is one of the few options for fright fans ages 8 or older to still enjoy safe, spooky fun.
The ghost walk tours takes place entirely outdoors on a stroll through Naperville's picturesque Historic District. Tour sizes are restricted to a maximum of 19 people under social distancing guidelines, and face masks are required along the two-hour tour. The EMF ghost meters that the tour traditionally hands out to ghost tour guests to use while on the walk will now only be demonstrated by the "ghost host" tour guide, Diane Ladley, out of COVID concerns. However, tour guests are encouraged to bring their own EMF meters and other paranormal investigative devices.
Ladley, a longtime Naperville resident locally known as "Naperville's Ghost Lady" and nationally known as "America's Ghost Storyteller" for her award-winning professional storytelling career, is the author of "Naperville's Haunted Memories" and "Haunted Aurora." She also has a podcast, "Hist-eerie," featuring history's eeriest, true ghost stories. She was the first to research and record Naperville's haunted history, and founded the Naperville ghost tours in 2004. She handed over the business in 2018 to her friend, Ursula Bielski, as part of her own Chicago Hauntings ghost tours, due to health issues.
Ursula Bielski's Chicago Hauntings ghost tours is now celebrating its 18th year, with COVID-19 safety measures in place. Bielski is a historian, author and parapsychology enthusiast who has written numerous books on haunted sites in the Chicago area, and is in high demand as a lecturer and worldwide media resource for her paranormal expertise. The Chicago Hauntings ghost tours feature their original 3-hour luxury bus tour, an outdoor paranormal investigation in Lincoln Park, the acclaimed Resurrection Mary/Archer Avenue Tour, and their newest offerings, the Ghosts of Old Chicago: River North District Ghost Walk Tour, and the Lake County Ghost Adventure.
The Naperville Hauntings ghost walk tours are offered on select dates through October, and dearly depart at 8 p.m. from outside Quigley's Irish Pub, 43 E. Jefferson Ave. in downtown Naperville. The Oct. 17 date is sold out. Remaining dates are Oct. 23-24 and Oct. 31.
Tickets are $19, $15 for children ages 8 to 12, or $15 for seniors or military with ID. For the full Chicago Hauntings schedule and to get tickets, visit ChicagoHauntings.com/Naperville-Hauntings-Ghost-Walks.