Tours are starting up again to check out some Okotoks haunts.
Offered jointly by the Okotoks Museum and Archives and the Okotoks & District Historical Society, the popular Ghost Tours are returning for Oct. 28-29, with tickets going on sale Sept. 6.
“It’s a fun night to learn a bit of history of the town with a few ghost stories thrown in,” said museum and archives specialist Kathy Coutts, who pointed out the program has evolved over the years.
“If you’ve been on our earlier ghost tours, chances are it’s not the same as the tours we do now, because we’re constantly learning about new ghost stories, and so we have some new stories.
“And then we’ve got some of our favourites, like the ghost at the train station or the janitor up at Okotoks Junior High — we don’t have time to walk up but we point out the school and tell the story.
“Oftentimes people on the tour, particularly students or even teachers, share their own experiences.”
The tour can be entertaining for all ages, depending on the person.
“We recommend ages 13 and up, but parents know their kids best,” Coutts said. “We’ve had older teenagers who didn’t handle the ghost tour well, however we’ve had kids as young as eight and think they’re too cool to be scared.”
The tour is entirely outdoors and on foot, and while there haven’t been any snowstorms on past tours, it is recommended to check the forecast and dress accordingly.
The price has also never been raised throughout the history of the tours, remaining at $5 per person, although with the recent adoption of ShowPass, a small fee is added on top of the ticket price.
“We try to make it as affordable as possible,” Coutts said. “And all money raised goes back into historic projects, either for the museum or the historical society.”
Tickets often sell fast, she added, so it is recommend to purchase well in advance.
There will be six tours offered over the two days, and tickets can be found at OkotoksCulture.ca.
