5 Haunted Houses You May Be Too Scared To Visit
I love a haunted pub, a crumbling castle, or a windswept ruin as much as the next ghoul… but haunted houses? They’re in a league of their own. They’re intimate. They’re personal. You’re stepping into someone’s home - their safe space, their private world. The walls have heard secrets. The floors have felt hurried footsteps and drunken dances. And in some of these places… the residents never moved out.
The five I’m about to tell you about are all real, all open to the public, and all have ghost stories that’ll make you rethink your weekend plans. And yes - in some of them, you can join me after dark with Paranormal Presence and see for yourself.
The Dolls House - Sheerness, Kent
The name sounds cute, right? “The Dolls House.” Like it should be pastel shutters and tea in the garden. But the first thing you notice walking up to this place is the stillness. Not peaceful stillness - that “something’s watching you” kind.
Initially, the home of a wealthy eccentric with a taste for oddities, the house is filled with objects that blur the line between charming and unnerving. Old dolls stare from display cabinets, their glassy eyes catching the light. Antique furniture creaks when no one’s sitting in it. Locals say a malevolent spirit foams the halls, a shadow that never quite takes full shape. Visitors have reported sudden icy gusts in sealed rooms, and that classic being watched from the doorway feeling. The weirdest? More than one person has said they felt as if they were being measured up - like the entity was deciding whether you belonged there… or not. One investigation team recorded faint laughter on an EVP recorder in an empty parlour - a short, sharp giggle that no one present had made. It still gives me chills just thinking about it.
If you’re coming here, don’t linger too long in the doll room. Those eyes have seen more than they’ll ever tell you.
Middleton Hall - Tamworth, Staffordshire
Middleton Hall is the kind of place that could make even the most cynical ghost hunter feel a shiver. It’s beautiful - all Tudor beams, Georgian wings, and sprawling gardens - but that beauty is the perfect camouflage.
The building’s history stretches back over 900 years, and it’s been home to knights, aristocrats, and industrialists. But its most famous resident now? The “Lady of the Hall”, a tall woman in Victorian dress, has been seen drifting silently through the upper floors.
She’s not shy about breaking the rules of physics either. She’s been spotted moving through locked rooms, vanishing through solid doors, and gliding down corridors that were empty seconds earlier. Some say she’s a former lady of the house who suffered a tragic loss; others say she’s tied to the servants’ quarters, eternally pacing as if waiting for someone who never came home.
During one public event, a guest swore they saw her standing at the far end of the long gallery - only for her to fade away as they approached. Cameras picked up a faint mist in the exact spot, even though the air was still.
If you ever visit, walk the grounds at dusk. The sound of rustling skirts on a windless evening is… something else.
Judges Lodgings - Presteigne, Powys
Judges’ Lodgings is the kind of building where the walls feel heavy, not in weight, but in memory. This was once both a courthouse and a jail, which means it’s seen its fair share of desperate pleas, broken lives, and final moments.
The judge’s chambers are infamous for phantom footsteps - slow, deliberate pacing, as if someone’s still mulling over a verdict. People have also heard the sudden creak of the judge’s chair, despite it sitting empty. The basement cells are another level of grim. Visitors have felt sudden cold spots, the sensation of fingers brushing their arms, and the low murmur of voices just out of earshot. On one investigation, an EVP recorder caught what sounded like a single word whispered in a deep make voice: “Guilty.”
It’s a claustrophobic place. Even in daylight, the narrow staircases and stone corridors make you feel penned in. Add the weight of its history and the possibility of sharing the space with a restless inmate… and you’ll understand why some people turn back at the door.
Wymering Manor - Portsmouth, Hampshire
Wymering Manor isn’t just old - it’s ancient. The land has had a residence there since the 11th century, and over the years it’s been a private home, a rectory, and even a youth hostel. And through it all, the ghosts have stayed.
The most famous is the “choir of whispering voices” - a sound that’s been reported for decades. Imagine walking into a room and hearing dozens of people speaking softly at once, but you can’t make out a single word. You look around, and there’s no one there. The whispers stop… and the silence is worse.
Guests have also spotted translucent figures on the staircase, felt sudden temperature drops, and seen lights flicker in rooms with no electricity. One paranormal team reported seeing two figures standing in an upstairs hallway - one male, one female - who vanished the moment they were approached. The air in that corridor was reportedly so cold that it misted their breath in the middle of summer.
Wymering is the kind of place that gets under your skin. You walk in as a curious visitor, but you leave feeling like you’ve been noticed.
Scolton Manor - Pembrokeshire, Wales
Scolton Manor is gorgeous on the outside - a picture-perfect Victorian country house set among 60 acres of parkland. But inside, it’s another story entirely.
Built in the 1840s for the Higgon family, the house still contains much of its original furniture and décor. And, apparently, some of its original occupants.
Visitors talk about doors opening of their own accord, the sound of booted footsteps following them down long corridors, and the unnerving feeling of being breathed on when no one’s near. Staff say the activity spikes during storms, as if the ghosts feed off the wild energy outside. On one particularly active night, a group claimed to hear the sound of heavy breathing directly in their ears - loud enough to send one person bolting for the exit. Another time, the smell of pipe smoke filled a drawing room that had been smoke-free for decades.
If you want the whole experience here, time your visit with bad weather. Just… be ready for whatever’s waiting in those halls.
So… Which One’s First?
These aren’t just tourist attractions. They’re real homes with real history - and (if the stories are true) real residents who’ve been here far longer than any of us.
The best part? You don’t have to just read about them. You can step inside. You can stand in the rooms, feel the atmosphere, and maybe even catch something on camera.
And if you’re brave enough, you can join me and Paranormal Presence for an after-dark investigation in some of these very places. Check out the Investigate With Me page to see where we’re going next… and decide if you’re coming with us.
Beth 🖤