The Best Midwest Haunted Road Trips

Itching for a weekend getaway and want to get into the Halloween spirit? Hop in the car and drive to nearby scary destinations.

Shaker’s Cigar Bar in Milwaukee, Wisconsin

⏰ 1 hour and 35 minutes

🚗 90 miles north of the Loop

Once a graveyard, the Capone brothers owned the building as a speakeasy and brothel. Later, serial killer Jeffrey Dahmer frequented the spot. Today, patrons can tour the haunted bar and stay overnight above the bar. City Cast Chicago lead producer Simone Alicea is making a pit stop …

Downtown Public Library in Peoria, Illinois

⏰ 2 hours and 30 minutes

🚗 167 miles southwest of the Loop

Believed to be built on cursed ground, the Central Illinois library’s first three directors died unusually. Ghosts are thought to haunt the library to this day.

Oakland Cemetery in Iowa City, Iowa

⏰ 3 hours and 30 minutes

🚗 221 miles west of the Loop

Legend has it that the Black Angel statue has been struck by lightning and that virgins will die if they touch the 9-foot sculpture.

‘America’s Most Haunted Small Town’ in Alton, Illinois

⏰ 4 hours and 30 minutes

🚗 287 miles southwest of the Loop

McPike Mansion is supposedly home to ghosts of former residents and servants. Unitarian Church and Mineral Springs are also popular haunted sites in the town. Hop on a ghost tour if you don’t want to explore alone.

The Renaissance Hotel in Cleveland, Ohio

⏰ 5 hours and 15 minutes

🚗 345 miles east of the Loop

Stay on the fourth floor of the historic hotel, where guests have seen toilets mysteriously flush and employees have heard doors shut in empty rooms.