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Salem Witch Trials

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Travel to Salem

Salem is an inviting coastal town, just a 20 mile drive from Boston. The town center is small and you could walk to many charming shops, restaurants and sites of historical note. Nathanial Hawthorne, who wrote The Scarlet Letter and House of Seven Gables, was born in Salem on Independence Day in 1804. You won't have to travel much further to find where many great authors like Emily Dickinson, Louisa May Alcott and Ralph Waldo Emerson cut their literary teeth in Massachusetts.

Where to Stay

While often a day trip out of Boston or a resting point on the way to Cape Cod, Salem's wide range of attractions may find you begging for a longer stay. Hawthorne Hotel bills itself as Salem's only full-service hotel while the more intimate Salem Inn offers 39 guest rooms, all appointed with a collection of antiques. You can't go wrong with either location as they are both walking distance to the area's attractions.

What to See

There is more to Salem than just the popular Halloween events in October. While most of Salem's sights are within walking range, if you want to be light on your feet the Salem Trolley circles the area's various sites of note. Salem Common is a beautiful park with captivating green space in the center of town. Many shops and eateries await at Pickering Wharf. You can also stop by Hawthorne's house, enjoy the architectural beauty of Chestnut Street and take in the Peabody Essex Museum.

But Salem makes no bones about its witch trial history. The most intricate -- and most popular -- destination is the Salem Witch Museum. It's a highly recommended primer on the events that took place in Salem in 1692. The centerpiece of the museum is a dramatic presentation which goes into historic detail and poses various unbiased theories as to why the events took place. Exhibits and a small gift shop follow. But that's not all. You also have the Salem Witch Trials Memorial, Witch Dungeon Museum and the Witch History Museum to offer insight into the town's witchy significance. And, if you've had your fill of history and want to let your hair down and take in a few scares or two the town has a pair of haunted house walkthroughs as well with Dracula's Castle.

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