Top 5 Haunted Houses in Tampa Bay
BOO! Spooky season has once again fallen on Tampa Bay and the streets are filled with ghosts and ghouls and goblins and gremlins and grandparents. Sure, you’ve heard of frightening attractions like Howl-O-Scream at Busch Gardens and Halloween Horror Nights at Universal Studios and Friday Evenings at Rick Scott’s House, but there are plenty of independent haunted houses around the Bay Area. Here are five of them, in no particular order (NOTE: They’re all in Tampa because I live in Tampa. I have no idea what kind of ghost action is going on over in St. Pete. Sorry)…
Golden Corral, Hillsborough Avenue
This place closed for COVID and never opened back up. Unfulfilled purposes is the number one way to end up haunted. You might see a haunted grill for cooking ghost steaks, a haunted chocolate fountain to dip poltergeist marshmallows or a haunted salad bar with ghastly coleslaw. Or they might have packed all that stuff and moved it out and it’s empty. There’s no mortal way to tell!
Thee Love Shack, Osborne Avenue
Walk through this dark, creepy labyrinth and have unspeakable things thrust toward you while the sounds of ethereal moaning surrounds you. That’s what I’ve heard, anyway. Personally I’ve never been in there. No, I have not! Shut up.
FunLan Drive-In, Hillsborough Avenue
Everybody knows Tampa Theatre is the most haunted place in town. But this is also an old movie theater (now closed) and I guarantee more people were murdered here, or at least severely beaten. It’s a big vacant lot now so it’s real easy to look around at everything.
Pokeys, Madison Street
At one time, this was home to one of the area’s busiest comedy open mics and people used to die here every week. Depending on where you look on-line, it’s listed as closed or open. That’s right, it occupies two realms simultaneously! Go to the light, Pokeys! It’s now a different business known as “The Exchange” which is probably the most generic, unimaginative, pedestrian thing you could ever name a bar/restaurant. Jesus Christ. The Exchange. Whatever spirit this place had at one time surely died when it was re-branded. Jesus Christ.
Old Man Jeter’s Place, Davis Islands
Yep, this place is super haunted, no doubt. Old Man Jeter lived here, lost his mind and tried to run the Miami Marlins. Tom Brady moved in and his marriage went down the tubes. Now they’re planning to tear the place down, probably because Gozer the Gozerian or whatever ancient evil spirit resides there doesn’t like the crown molding or something.
