Hollywood: Haunted Walking Tour with True Crime Stories

4.83

(291 reviews)

What’s the experience like?

The first thing I noticed was the weird hush that settles over the Hollywood Walk of Fame once the crowds thin out — just this low hum from neon signs and a breeze that smelled like popcorn and something older, maybe dust from the old theaters. Our guide, Jamie, started us off right in front of the TCL Chinese Theatre. She grinned when she told us to fit our hands in those famous cement prints — I tried Humphrey Bogart’s but my fingers barely lined up. It was kind of funny seeing everyone crouched down, giggling in the half-light.

We moved on, following Jamie past the Capitol Records Building (she had a story about a jazz singer who supposedly still haunts the place — her words, not mine). The main keyword here is haunted Hollywood walking tour but honestly it felt more like a night out with someone who really knows all the city’s secrets. At one point we stopped at an old hotel where Marilyn Monroe is said to appear in mirrors. I caught my own reflection and got goosebumps — probably just nerves, or maybe it was colder than I thought.

There were real crime stories too. The Dolby Theatre looked so different at night; Jamie told us about some infamous murders nearby and didn’t sugarcoat anything. She asked if we wanted details or just “the PG version” (everyone wanted details). There was this moment outside the Pantages Theatre where she paused and just let us listen — sirens far off, someone playing saxophone somewhere up the street, all mixed together with her voice as she talked about Howard Hughes’ ghost supposedly lurking backstage. I’m not sure if I believe any of it but it made me see Hollywood differently. Even now I sometimes picture those empty sidewalks lit by flickering marquees.