Witchy Dreams Come True in Salem
Having a witchy bachelorette party in Salem, MA was like, a childhood dream come true. I have always been drawn to spooky movies, and aesthetics – since childhood. I am very lucky because I have quite a few type A friends who made a fantastically detailed itinerary for our witchy Salem bachelorette party weekend. I will include it below! Not only did we visit Salem, we saw quite a few beautiful places in the surrounding area that are absolutely must sees! We didn’t stay in Salem itself for the bachelorette weekend, but we visited the infamous town, and avoided the Halloween season traffic in the process. We stayed in the neighboring town of Newburyport – which has scenic seaside views and some of the best lobster I’ve ever had (but more on that later).
Witchy Bridesmaid Inspiration : What We Wore
When I was imagining our girl’s bachelorette weekend in Salem, I KNEW we had to do a witchy photoshoot. I wanted us to look elevated and chic while still keeping things spooky. I selected black and dark midnight blue bridesmaid dresses and told the gals to style themselves with minimal makeup and a dark crimson lip. I am including some links below to some of my favorite black and dark blue bridesmaid gowns so you can recreate your own witchy bachelorette shoot – or give your bridal party a moody aesthetic. For the photoshoot, we played some moody witchy music, and brought some tapered white candles for an added effect. We took turns shooting eachother on the camera. It was important to me to showcase a lot of movement, so I had the girls stagger their closeness to the camera, run around and twirl. I wanted the photoshoot to look like a lyrical A24 style movie. Lining up and holding hands, holding our tapered candles in a circle also lent themselves to great poses ( I mean, it’s not really witchy unless you have a spell-binding moment, am I right?) I was so excited to see everyone really getting into their parts, by the end a few girls stayed to have their own individual shots taken. This was honestly the biggest highlight of the trip for me and I love these photos so much, I will definitely frame and cherish them for many years to come. Click on any of the dresses below to shop them!
Our Itinerary : What We Did in Massachusetts
Like I said before, I was so lucky to have type A friends on this trip to Salem. They made a full itinerary and even gave suggestions on what to wear each day. It was great having a gameplan everyday even if we veered off track. Bachelorette party pro tip : if traveling in a group have at least two cars! We definitely had a group who was more into being out and about and another group that was more into relaxing. Also, prior to the trip, my bridesmaids took surveys from the guests asking them TONS of questions – who their preferred bunkmate was, how much they wanted to spend per day, and how much they wanted to party. This made the entire trip run a lot more smoothly. PS. the “surprise location” was a trip to Orchard House (where author Louisa May Alcott lived and where scenes in Little Women take place). Orchard House was so moving to those of us who visited, we definitely shed a few tears.
Best Meal of the Trip
By and large, the best meal we had was at Bob Lobster in Newburyport. This feels like a side of the road secret, but it’s definitely popular among residents and for good reason. The lobster is freshly caught in the morning and served later that afternoon. We had lobster poutine, lobster roll and fried lobster. The fries were great, and the staff was BEYOND friendly. Be ready to use the restroom out back, but enjoy the bay breeze on your way there. This was a unanimous favorite among the group. The staff was very friendly with my wheat allergy – everything is battered and fried in cornmeal! This is the type of place you could take your Dad or Grandpa to while traveling and you’d be the family favorite for the rest of the trip.
Where We Stayed : Our Beautiful Air BNB in Newburyport
I won’t post photos of the property here – but you can click here to check out our Airbnb . The hosts were so kind and the property was beautiful. We were definitely about 45 minutes to an hour outside of Salem, but the beautiful beachy views and tourist free surroundings made this airbnb perfect. There were so many amenities, but we loved the porches and the big comfy media room where we took in a few scary movies! If you stay here, tell ’em Rosey sent you!
Salem, MA – What to See and other Tips
Despite all the vibey isolated shots of Salem looking spooky in October – it’s very crowded!! Make sure you arrive in town EARLY to snag a parking spot. We definitely searched for parking for almost 45 minutes. Wear some comfy comfy comfy shoes (these are my personal favorites) and get ready to get some steps in! There are so many shops and exhibits, you will definitely need to pace yourself. I loved seeing the filming locations from Hocus Pocus and enjoyed some local art at a witchy art fair in the middle of town. Make sure you wear something cute and comfy – there are photo opps around every corner. Also, as someone who came home with some unexpected souvenirs – bring a backpack, but don’t be surprised if you have to check it at a museum! HausWitch was by far our favorite shop that we visited.
all in all, it was a great trip!
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