If you were planning on heading to "Witch City" Salem, Massachusetts for Halloween this year, think again. Salem is, indeed, closed for business—at least according to the city's official website.
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"While we have seen around half the visitors to Salem this October than we’ve had in previous years, we still have had large numbers of people here throughout the month," said Mayor Kim Driscoll in an official release by the city. "Ordinarily, there is no better place to celebrate Halloween than Salem. Our first priority from the outset of this pandemic has been keeping residents, employees, and visitors healthy and safe. To help ensure we can meet that goal, we are taking action to limit the number of people who will be in Salem on Halloween and the day prior."
Although usually home to over 50,000 tourists during a regular Halloween weekend, the town's government has decided to order businesses to close early this year. Indoor haunted houses will be entirely closed, public transportation service will be limited and—between October 31 and November 1—folks charged with public intoxication, noise and parking violations will have to pay tripled fines. As for trick-or-treating, the city acknowledges that it's not a city event but does encourage families to keep face coverings on if participating in the festivities, to stay six feet away from others and to avoid congregating with other family groups. You can read through all the related rulings right here.
Needless to say, all these measures are meant to stop the spread of COVID-19 and keep residents and tourists safe.
Of course, nobody can actually stop you from heading to town but you should be aware that this particular Halloween weekend in Salem won't be as fun and "free" as others have been. May we suggest a slightly different Halloween trip this year instead? Perhaps, you could spend the weekend at one of the best campgrounds in the United States. Who doesn't like camping, after all?
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