Two spooky attractions in Northern Kentucky were added to a passport program that highlights some of the best haunted travel stops in the Commonwealth.
Kentucky After Dark was launched in 2023 to promote the spookiest sights in the Commonwealth — from haunted houses and ghost tours to UFO sighting spots and a paranormal museum. The program comes with a helpful passport booklet to provide information about each stop, plus you can get it stamped at each spot as proof you faced your fears. According to meetNKY, the program has become a massive hit in its short time in operation, and it’s the only statewide program that taps into the haunted travel industry, which could be worth over $1 billion overall.
Now in its second year, Kentucky After Dark added two Northern Kentucky stops to its program this year. Visitors can now get their passports stamped at Newport’s famous Halloween attraction, USS Nightmare, as well as when you take the Ghosts of Covington Haunted History Tour. These are the only stops in the program located in Northern Kentucky so far.
USS Nightmare’s Capt. William S. Mitchell and his ghastly crew have been scaring passengers since the attraction first opened in 1998. The haunted steamboat offers visitors immersive sets, chilling soundscapes and visual effects that promise an experience that will linger in your nightmares, the crew says. Passengers can also opt for the “intense” RIP Experience, which is a more interactive and extended tour of the ship with access to other areas of the boat.
Tickets for USS Nightmare are available Thursday-Sunday, Oct. 24-27 and Thursday-Saturday, Oct. 31-Nov. 2. On Friday-Saturday, Nov. 8-9, the ship will offer general admission along with its “most intense” experience, the “Captain’s Extreme Tour,” where passengers will be subjected to adult situations and language, more extreme special effects, touching by the cast and crew, being separated from their group, more intense darkness and horror and the possibility of becoming dirty and wet. Learn more about USS Nightmare here.
The Ghosts of Covington Haunted History Tour takes guests on a two-hour tour of some of the creepiest sights in the Northern Kentucky city. Your tour guide will share stories of chilling hauntings by people who escaped slavery, ship captains and Civil War soldiers, as well as grisly true crime tales of murder and suicide. This is a walking tour, but you can arrange for a driving tour ahead of time by calling River City Tours when you book. Learn more about the tour here.
See what else is on the Kentucky After Dark trail at kentuckyafterdark.com.
This article appears in Oct 16-29, 2024.
