Go Inside.They Stay Outside.

Yes. On a typical night the Ghost Bus Tour takes you inside four locations: the Villa Montezuma, the Horton Grand Hotel, the Davis-Horton House, and the El Campo Santo Cemetery. We get our guests inside more than 95% of the time.

These are real, working historic buildings, so on rare nights one may be closed for a private event or sudden construction. We still pay the venues for our access either way, so we cannot discount or refund for a single closed location.

Spooky, not scary. There are no clowns, no monsters, and no jump scares. It is a dark history tour with a haunted twist: real locations, real stories, and genuine atmosphere.

Some reviewers have called it scary anyway. That is the environment doing the work, not us leaping out at you. We also bring heavy tongue-in-cheek humor, puns, and cheesy one-liners inspired by 80s and 90s horror. Bring your sense of humor or this is not your tour.

We cannot produce ghosts and we will never claim we can. Things do happen, they are rare, and we do not know when. A chair rocking with nobody near it. A deep sound lasting thirty seconds with no locatable source, like surround sound coming from everywhere.

Both of those happened to our own web designer across five tours. When he asked the host if they did it, the answer was "no, this is what happens."

The tour is geared to an adult audience and rated roughly PG-13. It contains mildly racy content and some disturbing stories, including the brothels and vice of the old Stingaree, handled lightly rather than graphically.

• Under 10 is discouraged
• Under 6 is not permitted on the bus, because there are no child restraint seats
• Under 18 must be accompanied by an adult, no exceptions

Kids who handle scary movies fine sometimes struggle here, because standing in the actual building is heavier than watching a screen. If you have doubts, call or text 619.255.6170 and we will talk it through. For a tour genuinely built for children, ask us about the Kids Ghost Investigation.

Roughly 33% of the bus tour is on the bus, 10 to 15% is walking, and the rest is standing. The most you will walk is about four city blocks, not counting the walk from your parking spot.

• You need to manage the 4 steep steps onto the bus
• Two locations involve about 16 steps up and down
• Expect to stand roughly 20 minutes per stop
• A walker fits. A wheelchair does not.

If you have ambulatory concerns, call 619.255.6170 before booking and we will give you a straight answer for your situation.

Your card is not charged until 8 guests are confirmed on the departure. When you reserve you get an email confirming the spot is held. Once the tour hits 8, you get a second email confirming the tour is on and your card runs then. If the tour already has 8, both happen immediately.

Eight is the size where the group relaxes, guests talk to each other, and the host can actually perform instead of shout. It is also what keeps a small local tour viable.

If a tour looks unlikely to run, we personally call or text you 3 to 5 hours before departure. Please give us a working phone number you will have on you. You are not charged if the tour does not go.

Yes, and you should. Seats are limited and tours regularly sell out as the day progresses. A tour that looks wide open at noon is often gone by 4pm. About 90% of the time a tour fills the same day.

If you prefer to pay cash, your only option is to show up at the Old Town Corral Plaza at least 30 minutes before departure and hope a seat is open. There is no waitlist.

Old Town Corral Plaza, 2415 San Diego Ave, San Diego, CA 92110. Be there 20 minutes before departure, and arrive in Old Town at least 35 minutes early during busy season, because parking is competitive.

There is paid parking beneath the meeting location and free street parking nearby, though you may have to walk a few blocks. Rideshare removes the problem entirely.

No ticket or phone app is needed. Find the host in Victorian attire beside the purple shuttle bus, give the ticket buyer's name, and you are on.

• If we cancel: you are fully and promptly refunded. If you booked through a third party, we contact them immediately to start it.
• You cancel 24+ hours out: full refund, no hard feelings.
• Under 24 hours or no-show: all sales are final, the same as a concert or a theater seat.

We are still human. If you have an emergency inside the 24 hour window, call or text 619.255.6170 right away. If we can resell your spot before departure we will happily refund you. The sooner you reach us, the better your odds.

Our blend of dark history, theater and grim jokes is not for everyone. If your experience fell short, we refund up to 3 guests in your group under three conditions:

• Contact us directly before posting a public review, so we get a real chance to fix it
• Give specific, constructive feedback. "It was boring" does not tell us anything.
• Reach out within 72 hours of the tour

Once a negative review is posted publicly, refund eligibility ends and we consider the matter closed.

Three reasons, and all of them cost us money.

• Safety. Anyone telling stories while driving is distracted. They skip stories, or worse.
• Performance. Your host stands at the front of the bus performing the entire ride. There is no storytelling break while you travel.
• Your belongings. The driver stays with the bus while you are inside a location.

Competitors combine the two jobs to cut costs, and do not pass the savings to you.

Use code KARMA when you book direct. If you do not see a code live on the site, call or text 619.255.6170 and we will usually set something up for you. Discounts are not available in September or October.

Groups over 12 should call the reservation line for group pricing.

On price honestly: we cap the bus at 14 to keep it intimate, we pay venues for indoor access, and we staff both a host and a driver. That is why we cost more than a walking tour that takes everyone who shows up and never opens a door. If budget is the deciding factor, take our Gaslamp or Old Town walking tour instead. Both are excellent and both are ours.

If you enjoyed the performance, yes. Your host is a trained professional and tips are a real part of how they make their living. If you tip the driver, remember the host is tipped separately, so do not skip them.