23 Most Haunted Places of San Diego
Are you looking for the most haunted places in San Diego, CA?
San Diego is a beautiful city which has been voted numerous times as “America’s Finest City”. One visit alone will tell you why.
With miles upon miles of gorgeous beaches, delicious food, and a profound history, what more could any vacationer want? Well, if you’re on this page, you are obviously looking to add some of San Diego’s darker locations to your trip.
Things To Do In Haunted San Diego
1. Whaley House
It has a well-deserved reputation as being the nation’s most haunted house. The stunning mansion has a mysterious background filled with murder, suicide, and death.
The Whaley House, one of the more well-known tourist destinations in San Diego, receives thousands of visitors each year. Many of whom are unaware that its corridors are home to ghosts. It frequently experiences unexplained sounds, mists, shadows, and other strange occurrences.
Because of the museum’s historical significance—it was formerly the city’s courthouse, San Diego’s first commercial theater, a general store, and more—people travel from far and wide to view it. But it is a must-visit for people who are curious about poltergeist activity.
The renowned Whaley House is located just a few blocks from El Campo Santo Cemetery. The stunning two-story Greek Revival mansion soon became the scene of tragedy.
The very young 17-month-old, Thomas, passed away shortly after the family moved into the house. The young daughter of the Whaleys, Violet, shot herself in the chest with her father’s gun out of dejection and humiliation over an adulterous husband.
With such an intense history, it’s no wonder this is considered one of the most haunted places in San Diego.
➡️Check our their website for up to date information on tours!
2. Davis Horton House (Willian Heath Davis House)
This historic home was constructed in 1850 by William Heath Davis, making it the oldest building in what is now downtown San Diego.
Even when the house was not yet wired for electricity and merely used gas or coal oil lamps, lights have been observed to turn off and on again. Even when nobody is there, strange and unexplainable things nonetheless frequently happen. The inside lights are always turned out at night before the security alarm is activated, however on many mornings, a light in a back room is discovered to be turned back on.
Ironically, Davis was the only resident who lived in the house during its colorful past.
Alonzo Horton, who founded San Diego, and his wife Sarah, as well as a German spy and others who not only left their marks on the building’s reputation but are also thought to still be around, were among its tenants.
The building’s high level of paranormal activity may possibly be explained by the large number of fatalities that took place there during the ten years it was a hospital.
The spirit of an unidentified Victorian woman, who has often manifested herself in front of guests, is one of the house’s best-known ghosts.
A couple dressed historically, with the woman in a long white evening gown and the man in a suit, has also been seen at the top of the small stairway.
3. Villa Montezuma Museum
Built in 1887, this 19th-century Victorian mansion in Sherman Heights is rumored to be haunted by its first resident — Jesse Shepard, a pianist and spiritualist who sat at his piano bench channeling famous composers. It’s believed Shepard died on the bench of the Villa’s piano.
4. Berkeley Steam Ferry Boat
The ferry boat is now home to the San Diego Maritime Museum’s offices, library, and special events location.
The boat has a fascinating history and a long list of exciting events and passengers. Those who have worked on the ship have spoken of encounters with a ghostly figure that looks like a man with a fedora.
Some people think it’s the ghost of John O. Norbom, who died in a terrible explosion in 1911 and was also aboard when five other people were hurt. Others, though, believe it to be someone else, possibly a dearly departed passenger who keeps requesting to return to the boat.
5. Star of India
The Maritime Museum claims that the oldest operating sailing ship in the world completed 21 journeys before being decommissioned and being rebuilt in San Diego. Many people perished throughout the years aboard the commerce ship, including an Army captain who took his own life because he was so depressed about the loss of his platoon in the India War.
6. Old Point Loma Lighthouse
The Old Point Loma Lighthouse, which is still standing more than 200 years after it was built, is a moving representation of a bygone period. On November 15, 1855, the light keeper first ascended the steep, twisting staircase to the top in order to turn on the light that would direct ships approaching San Diego Bay.
It was used by the city for 36 years before a superior location was found that was not obscured by low-lying clouds and fog. Visitors may now tour the ancient lighthouse and discover more about its fascinating heritage. However, take caution because several visitors received far more than they anticipated.
There have been reports of heavy breathing, groaning, cold spots at the landing of the spiral staircase, heavy footfall coming from higher rooms, and that shiver-inducing feeling that someone is standing just behind you. Many people think that the famous Spanish explorer Juan Rodriguez Cabrillo’s spirit still resides here and is just waiting to pass across to the other side.
Some claim that Captain Robert Decatur Israel, the last keeper of the lighthouse, came back after his death to guard his beloved structure and keep an eye on anyone who entered.
7. USS Midway
The retired USS Midway, a US Navy aircraft carrier, is one of the most well-known haunted places in San Diego for paranormal activity and one of our favorites! Crew men would whisper to each other about the resident spirits on board the ship even though it was still in service. Many claimed they occasionally detected the stale, copper scent of blood. And something is said to have made the ship’s cold storage its home.
However, paranormal specialists have quickly clarified that the spirits who stalk the USS Midway are nothing to be afraid of. The crew members of the Midway aren’t individuals who died on board and wander the ship like lost souls; rather, they returned to work on it after leaving the mortal world.
🎟️➡️Avoid the hassle and purchase your pass ahead of time!
8. Robinson Rose House
The visitor information center is currently located in the Robinson-Rose home. However, before it was entirely destroyed, the structure was home to Judge James W. Robinson in 1853.
It also served as a newspaper and railroad’s office. It was recreated in 1987 using old photographs and archives in an effort to preserve history.
The mansion not only accepts guests, but it also plays host to a variety of eerie paranormal activities. People have reported hearing footsteps when no one else was around, seeing apparitions, cloudy mists, the elevator working by itself, and lights randomly turning on and off.
Some female visitors have also reported feeling their hair pulled by someone or something, or feeling as though someone was trying to touch or grope them. Many passersby claim to have noticed a weird figure in one of the windows.
9. Del Mar Racetrack
A hidden gem even amongst ghost hunting experts! The Del Mar Racetrack is rumored to be haunted, yet many San Diegans who attend the County Fair and Del Mar Races each year are unaware of this.
Since the 1930s, there has been a racetrack there. As a result, many of the most frequent paranormal phenomena have been observed here, including lights that flicker and voices, cold spots, and shadowy figures in images.
The majority of hauntings and strange occurrences are thought to occur on the fifth level. According to legend, the fifth floor elevator will occasionally refuse to stop and the hallways will occasionally grow chilly.
People will occasionally see the spectral remains of people from all walks of life who have visited the racetrack, including members of the Hollywood elite, kids, and even some of the abused or mistreated horses themselves. It makes sense that there would be a wide variety of voices heard here at night.
Things To Do For Free In Haunted San Diego?
10. El Campo Santo Cemetery
El Campo Santo Cemetery, established in 1849, formerly served as a final resting place for 477 individuals. As San Diego grew, by 1889, some of the cemetery’s land was abruptly paved over to make room for a streetcar track. Many of you know, one should never disturb someone’s final resting place.
The cemetery has its fair share of alleged sightings of paranormal activity. Pockets of chilly air, which is a telltale indicator of a ghostly presence, are frequently accompanied with brilliant orbs and flashes of light, specters of floating torsos, and a woman dressed in white Victorian attire has been seen close to the cemetery’s south wall. Apparently car alarms have also been set off by upset spirits.
After visiting the cemetery, stroll along San Diego Avenue and keep an eye out for little brass “Grave Site” plaques on the sidewalk and even in the road. Buried beneath your feet is the paved over part of the cemetery.
Most ghost hunters know a cemetery is a great place to look for ghost sightings. When such a place is disturbed, one can understand why El Campo Santo Cemetery is considered one of the most haunted places in San Diego.
11. Julian Pioneer Cemetery
Hundreds of ore miners flocked to the newly founded town of Julian during the San Diego Gold Rush of 1870 in quest of their fortunes. Unfortunately, sickness, violence, alcoholism, avarice, hunger, and hazardous working conditions also arrived with the
rush of pioneers, many of whom were unprepared to handle the primitive living conditions. These factors made it necessary to create a cemetery to bury the dead.
Two adolescent boys were buried for the first time in late 1875. The cemetery quickly became the ultimate resting place for many people, from wealthy families who bought expansive plots to the poor who could only have a coarse stone as their final memorial. Visitors to the cemetery describe seeing ghostly apparitions that move through the tombs with many of these apparitions most likely belonging to miners. One of the founders of Julian, Drury Bailey, may be among these apparitions as well.
12. San Pasqual Battlefield State Historic Park
During the U.S.-Mexican War, one of the bloodiest and most divisive battles, occurred in the San Pasqual Valley in 1846. As many of us know, such areas of violence leave an impact on not only the living, but the dead as well. Even psychics have identified the area being full of paranormal activity.
Some people have reported seeing ghostly images of mounted troops passing along the land. Could these spirits be residual, reliving their past? Or do they still believe they are on patrol?
If you want to check the battlefield park out, its open exclusively on the weekends.
13. Crime Victims Memorial Oak Garden
Home to a grisly murder, the Crime Victim Memorial Oak Garden serves as a reminder that those who love us will fight for justice and carry on our memory.
On December 27, 1986, CHP Officer Craig Peyer, pulled over Cara Knott, a 20-year-old SDSU student. After assaulting and strangling the poor girl, he tossed her body off a disused bridge. He was thankfully found guilty of her murder and given a 25–life prison term.
After nearly ten years of advocacy on the part of Cara Knott’s father, Sam Knott, the spot where her body was discovered was named the Cara Knott Memorial Garden in 1996. Three years later, Sam Knott renamed the location the San Diego Crime Victims Memorial Oak Garden after he had planted several dozen oak trees there that his family had grown. Sam Knott tragically passed away from a heart attack in 2000, while caring for his daughter’s grave and only a few feet from where her body was discovered. The garden
now has a gazebo and a table, as well as several memorials, painted stones, little figurines, and other reminders of San Diego’s victims of violent death. It has also evolved into a place of solace and healing for the loved ones of those who are remembered there.
Visitors describe intense emotions of sorrow and anguish, cold spots, voices yelling or sobbing, and even a sense of dread. One can only imagine how those who lose their lives so unexpectedly can not find rest.
14. Pioneer Park
This park was once a cemetery, just like El Campo Santo Cemetery. In 1870, thousands of souls found their final resting place in Pioneer Park which was formerly known as Calvary Cemetery. It started to deteriorate with time, and in 1968 the area was donated to the city.
And while they constructed a playground for the kids and planted new trees, it appears the city overlooked something crucial. Many of the headstones were removed, recycled, or simply transported to another cemetery; a small number of them were set in a park corner as a memorial, almost as if the dead had never existed.
When visiting Pioneer Park after dark, visitors have experienced the apparition of a woman who wanders the park while appearing lost and confused. Many have commented on its chilly atmosphere and unsettling sense of being watched.
15. Morena Lake
The San Diego Union-Tribune published a story in 1983 about startling occurrences that were happening near Morena Lake. Accoridng to the article, a park volunteer saw many specters hanging above the lake.
One of these visions showed a tall, spectral man standing uncomfortably close to Stucker’s RV. The volunteer left his place at the park, obviously disturbed by the sightings. Stucker talked about his encounters with ghostly entities wandering around the lake when he gave the park ranger his final warning.
The ranger acknowledged that he had also encountered comparable phenomena and wasn’t at all surprised by Stucker’s words. The ranger stated he also heard unusual sounds, the sound of footsteps, and even noticed missing objects. Then there has been the strange sighting of creatures dressed in flowing gowns floating above the lake, according to other park volunteers and locals.
🚎➡️Need help getting around? This hop on and off trolley stops at many of the places listed here!
🚗➡️Prefer to drive yourself? Rent a car here!
Haunted Places in San Diego, CA: FAQs
Are There Haunted Restaurants In San Diego?
16. Hunter Steakhouse
“Dedicated to the memories of those who were buried in Buena Vista Cemetery”
This appears on a plaque close to the restaurant. From the cemetery’s founding in 1888 until it was abandoned in 1906 when a bigger, larger cemetery was built nearby. We know all to well what happens when a cemetery is disturbed.
It is estimated that at least forty early inhabitants of the Oceanside region were buried there. It fell into decay over time, and while some of the souls interred there were transferred to other graveyards, a sizable portion remained.
Prior to the construction of a commercial project, another poor attempt was made to transfer the remaining victims. However, eyewitness testimonies of the early construction phase showed that some remains were uncovered and carelessly discarded into or close to the Buena Vista Lagoon.
All of this naturally creates the ideal environment for the abused and abandoned spirits to haunt the Hunter Steakhouse, one of Oceanside’s most eerie places. Customers of the restaurant claim to have seen the floating ghostly figure of a woman near the bar stairs, and staff members claim to have experienced chilly areas, voices calling their names in the dark, sporadic power surges, and unexplained flashing lights.
17. The Old Spaghetti Factory
The chilling tale of the Old Spaghetti Factory is something people have been talking about in the area for years. It is said to be haunted by a number of ghosts that prowl the area around the antiquated eatery day and night. The first appearance is a tram driver from the “Number 53” vintage trolley car, which customers mistake for decor. Some claim the conductor was killed in a crash
underground beneath the restaurant, while others assert that his ghost showed up when the tram was put inside the establishment. After the restaurant closes, employees have seen the ghost in full uniform inside the tram.
Another ghost is known as the “little red man” with fiery auburn hair who enjoys getting into trouble. According to rumors, he moves about the kitchen calling out staff members by name and whispering to them.
According to a waitress working the closing shift also noticed a small boy running about the restaurant. Cutlery has also been spotted being bent by the same spirit, however when staff members brought this to the manager’s notice, the previously bent cutlery was miraculously reverted to normal.
A young girl with a balloon has also been spotted sitting at a table close to the restaurant’s entrance. The ghost allegedly had a lengthy talk with a friend of the general manager, but when another person came to the table, the spirit vanished.
It goes without saying this restaurant is one of the most unique haunted places in San Diego.
18. Madam Bonnie’s
The new restaurant and bar, which occupies two adjacent spaces on Market Street, is located in a 121-year-old structure that was previously a hotel constructed to host visitors to San Diego during the 1915 Panama-California Exposition. Bertha “Bonnie” White eventually acquired what was then known as the Hotel Lester and ran a successful brothel out of its rooms, allegedly installing a mechanism under the stairs to alert visitors to police raids, until her operation was shut down ten years later.
The location, which is frequently visited by local ghost tours, is supposed to be haunted by the ghost of White.
Are There Haunted Hotels In San Diego?
19. Cosmopolitan Hotel and Restaurant
Old Town San Diego, which is regarded as the cradle of California, is where you’ll find the Cosmopolitan Hotel. The original building was constructed in 1827.
Given its age, it’s only fitting that the hotel is supposed to be haunted by numerous ghosts, including the Lady in Red, an enigmatic woman who is allegedly waiting for a certain gentleman in rooms 4 and 5.
The ghost of Ysidora Bandini, the founder’s mother, is another haunting.
Some claim that the property is also haunted by the ghost of a cat.
🏨➡️Book your room at the Cosmopolitan Hotel here and be sure to ask for Room 11, their most haunted room!
20. Horton Grand Hotel
Our favorite hotel in San Diego!
Known for its exquisite meals, careful service, and impeccable décor that includes antique-era artifacts, this iconic haunted place in San Diego has a colorful past rife with mystery and glitz. The Horton Grand Hotel, which was originally two buildings, underwent reconstruction in the 1970s when the city was on the verge of demolishing it.
When historians successfully battled to preserve the hotel, the two buildings were torn down brick by brick and then rebuilt as one magnificent hotel.
Some people have experienced the bed shaking while they were asleep, prompting them to awaken in a panic only to discover there was nothing there to explain it. The armoire door frequently opens and closes in the middle of the night, the lights flicker on and off, and objects in the bathroom appear to be moving.
Roger is still thought to hang around and frequently makes his presence known, according to staff and hotel management. Make sure you’re prepared to deal with the ghost of this notorious gambler if you decide to stay in Room 309.
On the same property as the renovated Horton Grand Hotel, Ida Bailey conducted a brothel. She allegedly assumes various guises, including the appearance of a mist that appears to be floating, a chill, and even the friendly, warm aura of a happier ghost.
🏨➡️Book your room at the Horton Grand Hotel here and be sure to ask for Room 309!
What Are The Best Ghost Tours in San Diego, CA?
👻➡️Check out our list of essential ghost hunting equipment to make your night even more memorable!
21. Ghost and Gravestones Tour
➡️Climb aboard a trolley to see some of the most haunted places in San Diego!
22. Haunted San Diego
➡️Book this small group tour ahead of time and avoid the hassle!
23. Ghost City Tours
➡️Ghost City’s has two unique offers. Their Ghosts of San Diego tour is considered safe for the whole family, while their Specters and Sinners tour is catered for adults!
Conclusion: 23 Most Haunted Places in San Diego
With so much to see and do in San Diego, you’ll undoubtedly return frequently—and not only for the chance to spot a ghost! There is so much to do in this bayfront city, whether you want to explore the beaches, sample the local cuisine, or learn more about its history.
