Art by Stephany Torres for Remezcla
There’s just something about our communities. We love being scared. Or, at least, we love the scary stories. From horror movies to monsters and legends from every country, Latines have always gravitated towards the supernatural. And that means we’ve embraced a holiday like Halloween, less for the candy and more for the spookiness.
It might just be that we grew up hearing stories about so-and-so place that was haunted, with that place being just a town over or somewhere we passed by constantly. Because if there’s anything we can find in Latin America, it’s haunted locations, and the very interesting stories about why they’re haunted. So, if you want to visit some of the scariest places in our communities, or just want to prove yourself as someone who knows your lore, here are 6 haunted locations in Latin America you can visit. Or avoid. That’s on you.
The Iglesia de San Francisco is one of Lima’s oldest churches, but it is the catacombs that are reportedly haunted. Used until the beginning of the 19th century, when the public cemetery opened, there are reportedly 200,000 bodies inside. And though they’re open to the public now, no one has really explored the extent of the maze of tombs. And if we’re being honest, no one really wants to. Can you imagine all the ghosts that live in those catacombs?
If there’s a place in Latin America where you can feel the weight of what happened, it might just be the town of Pisagua, in Chile. An entire haunted town? Well, considering its history as a place that housed detention centers, most notably during the Pinochet dictatorship, perhaps that’s not surprising. Many say you can still feel and even see the prisoners who were tortured and executed roaming around. And the mass grave for those who died during the dictatorship in the cemetery doesn’t help.
The Petrópolis Museum reportedly only has one ghost, but it’s a scary one. Also known as the Imperial Museum of Brazil, the museum dates back to the 19th century and is considered one of the most haunted places in the country. Why? The place was built on the palace of Emperor Dom Pedro II, whose ghost is trapped in the museum and reportedly still haunts it. Some even say they’ve seen his ghost walking around the place at night. One plus of this one? It’s easy to visit.
The history of this hospital, or sanatorio, began when the daughter of Dr. Carlos Durán, former president of Costa Rica, contracted tuberculosis. After she was healed, Durán built a sanatorium to treat the disease. By the 1960s, the place wasn’t needed for its original purpose, so the buildings were also used as an orphanage and prison. But with the number of deaths recorded in the place, it’s no wonder it’s considered one of the most haunted places in Central America, with a number of ghosts roaming its halls, from a nun forever trying to help patients to a little girl playing in the hallways. Ghost Hunters once filmed an episode here, and Chris McKinnell, grandson of paranormal investigators Ed and Lorraine Warren, has visited the place several times.
First, a fortress built to combat pirates, then a prison, the San Fernando de Omoa fortress in Honduras still stands, and is one of the historical places of note in Honduras. But the locals continue telling spooky stories about the fort, including unexplained noises like cannon fire or footsteps, screams of agony from prisoners trapped there, or soldiers shouting orders. Plus, they say that if you’re close at night, you can see shadowy figures patrolling the perimeter. You know, if that’s your thing.
Once intended to be one of Mexico’s most luxurious hotels, the Posada del Sol Hotel in Mexico City was never finished. Abandoned halfway, the man behind the vision later died after financial troubles, and people say he has never quite left the hotel. But he’s not the only ghost in Posada del Sol. Many tell stories of the ghost of a girl, who reportedly died at the hotel too, and who also has never left. We’re kind of glad this one was never completed. Who would want to stay there?
