48 Hours in Baton Rouge (spooky edition)

Maybe it was the castle, or the hearse exhibit at the museum, or the haunted house that set up shop by the dock every October. Whatever it was, Baton Rouge was always the port town I associated most with the Halloween season. In that spirit (no pun intended), below are two days' worth of spooktacular activities you can experience in and around the capital city, whether you visit on the darkest Halloween night or the brightest spring morning.

Day One

At the risk of sounding like a broken record, I think the best opening activity in any new place is either a city tour or a museum visit. And so, on that note, Day One begins at the LSU Rural Life Museum. Equal parts open air and enclosed, this museum chronicles how the 99% lived and worked in 19th-century Louisiana, with exhibits including a recreated village and a warehouse stuffed to the brim with antiques. What I love about the warehouse is that it focuses almost entirely on daily objects used by regular people, bringing us face-to-face with how our great-great-grandparents played, worked, homesteaded, and, yes, even mourned.

After lunch, make the 50-minute drive south to LaPlace, a town known for being the Andouille Capital of the World and for having a haunted swamp. (How's that for a combination?) Even without a century-old curse hanging over them, swamps can be beautifully eerie places with their dense, Spanish moss-draped forests and still, murky waters — not to mention the alligators. On a Cajun Pride boat tour, you'll learn both about the ecology and the mythology of the Manchac Swamp, where a once-thriving town was washed away by a hurricane. According to the locals, that hurricane had a little help from a vengeful voodoo priestess. While sprinkling their narration with humor, the captains are respectful of the swamp's residents — both animal and human, past and present — and may even bring some special guests along.

On the way back to downtown Baton Rouge, stop for dinner at Schlittz & Giggles, a local haunt known for its retro vibes and New York-style pizza. After that, if you're in the mood for one more fright before bed, stop by 13th Gate Escape. As you might have guessed from the name, it shares creators with the highly rated 13th Gate Haunted House. While not quite as scary as its Halloween-only counterpart, the escape room offers a wide range of spine-tingling scenarios to immerse yourself in, from disappearing flights to haunted hospitals.

Day Two

Visiting Louisiana without eating beignets would simply be too scary, so begin Day Two at The Vintage, a cozy-chic spot serving up traditional and "fancy" beignets.

From there, it's an easy quarter-mile walk to Louisiana's Old State Capitol, also known as the Castle on the River. Perched on a hill overlooking the Mississippi and complete with turrets and stained glass, it's easy to see the similarities between the former government seat and a Medieval fortress. And like any good castle, it's got its ghosts. One, Civil War diarist Sarah Morgan, serves as narrator of an immersive presentation about the building's history, aptly titled "The Ghost of the Castle." In addition to the presentation, the Old Capitol is also home to rotating and permanent exhibits about local history, politics, and one of the state's most controversial figures: Governor Huey Long. (Remember that name.)

For lunch, head to The Colonel's Club, a moody and atmospheric hangout housed in a former airplane hangar. Inspired by its namesake's penchant for travel, the menu is a culinary trip around the world, featuring everything from lobster rolls and smash burgers to crepes and Korean beef skewers.

After toasting The Colonel, make the 30-minute drive north to St. Francisville, a place so storied that its entire downtown is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. Don't let the picture-perfect, quiet streets fool you, though: St. Francisville is also home to one of the most haunted places in America. With its ornate, cast-iron verandas surrounded by ancient oaks with gnarled, finger-like limbs, the Myrtles just looks like a haunted house. And according to local lore, in this case, looks aren't deceiving: Over the course of its 229-year history, the Myrtles has been the site of as many as 10 slayings, and its legends are full of hangings, poisonings, epidemics, and at least one murder mystery that remains unsolved to this day. Take lots of pictures — even of the innocuous nooks and crannies — because many of the ghosts choose to make their presence known only to cameras.

Before wrapping up your time at the Myrtles, stop by Restaurant 1796, a farm-to-table concept where Southern-style dishes are cooked over an open hearth, just as they were in the home's early days. And then head back to Baton Rouge for a final nightcap, served, as always, with a side of history.

Remember Huey Long? During his governorship, he made the Heidelberg Hotel his office-away-from-office, going to and from via an underground tunnel in order to escape the press — and, if the rumors are true, to rendezvous with his mistress. Today, the Heidelberg is the Hilton. And the tunnel? It's a speakeasy. Now, as then, The Tunnel is a secretive place, only open on certain days of the week and requiring reservations, but if you are able to snag a spot, it can be the perfect place to salute your spooky Baton Rouge weekend.