5 of South Africa’s Spookiest Travel Spots.

There’s something about the South African landscape that makes it perfect for ghost stories: the old stone ruins under the big African sky and abandoned buildings covered in vines. And since it’s that spooky season again, we’re flipping the script here at KhakiBush. Usually, we’re all about hiking trails, heritage routes and conservation conversations… but this October, we’re going off-trail into the eerie corners of Mzansi that most don’t dare to explore.

So, fire up the torchlight and gather ‘round, KhakiKru. Here are five of South Africa’s most haunted and hair-raising travel destinations. Places where the past lingers, the unexplained breathes down your neck, and where travel stories turn into legends whispered under the stars. Goosebumps guaranteed. 

1. The Castle of Good Hope — Cape Town, Western Cape

You don’t get more haunted or historic than this.

The Castle of Good Hope stands proud in the middle of Cape Town like a sandstone sentinel. It is the oldest surviving colonial building in South Africa and one of the country’s most active paranormal hotspots.

Built in 1666 by the Dutch East India Company, this five-pointed star fortress was originally constructed to protect the Cape’s colonial interests. Over the centuries, it also witnessed military trials, public executions, whippings, imprisonment, torture, and enough ghostly gossip to make even the boldest explorer sweat.

The Spooky Legend:

The Bell That Rings Itself: A soldier reportedly hanged himself from the Castle’s bell tower. Though the tower was sealed long ago, the bell still rings on windless nights… Burt wait, there's more...

There have been reports of a jet-black phantom hound said to dart through the courtyard and disappear before your eyes. Harbinger? Guardian? You decide.

Governor Van Noodt's Curse: After sentencing men to death, the governor was allegedly cursed by one of them and mysteriously died later that day. Guards swear they still hear boots pacing and moans from his quarters (talk about an unwanted landlord!).

Shadowy Figures, Voices, Screams: From invisible footsteps to blood-curdling screams echoing through the dungeons, the Castle’s night guards have plenty of stories about the restless spirits that still roam the halls, terrorising the living. 

Many will tell you: don’t walk alone in the Castle after dark… unless you want to meet its permanent residents.

A National Treasure That Scares

Despite its spectral reputation, the Castle is also a proud national heritage site, maintained as a museum and cultural centre. It's home to centuries of stories,  not just spooky ones. It serves as a monument to South Africa’s colonial past, with exhibitions covering indigenous resistance, military history, and the role of the Castle in the birth of Cape Town.

2. Room Service from the Afterlife: The Ghosts of Lord Milner Hotel, Matjiesfontein

A Town Lost in Time

If you blink, you might miss Matjiesfontein,  a single street of old stone buildings, vintage lampposts, and windblown Karoo stillness. But if you listen closely, you’ll hear the soft shuffle of footsteps, the clink of ghostly cutlery, the sigh of a long-dead lady still pacing the hallways at the Lord Milner Hotel, a place so drenched in history, practically haunted by default. Except… It’s not just history that lingers here.

It’s people.

The Setting: Matjiesfontein — Frontier Fossilised

Matjiesfontein is a Victorian relic frozen in time, a full-blown national heritage site in the Western Cape, about 2.5 hours from Cape Town. The entire town was once a British military outpost during the Anglo-Boer War, and it shows: red-brick barracks, war museums, old locomotives parked like fossils, and a silent air that whispers “don’t dig too deep.”

The Ghosts that Check In — and Never Out

The Lord Milner Hotel isn’t coy about its haunted reputation; oh no, Sir, it's very much a part of who they are. Ask anyone in town and they’ll point you in the right direction, provided you're a fan of the Spooky.

Lady in White

Guests have spotted her drifting silently through the hallways, barefoot and in a white nightgown. Some say she died in Room 10; others claim she wanders searching for her lost lover,  a soldier who never came back from the war.

She’s been seen from balconies. Through mirrors. Standing just outside closed doors.

Kate the Card Player

Downstairs, the reading lounge has its own resident. Kate is said to have loved cards, cigars and company. At night, staff report the sound of shuffling decks, chairs pulled out, glasses clinking, even though no one’s there.

Hooves in the Hall

Others speak of phantom horse hooves echoing through the cobbled main road, soldiers returning from war? Or echoes of an old duel gone wrong? The Lord Milner doesn’t say. But the walls remember, and they come alive every once in a while to tell their sad tales. 

Stay if You Dare: The Experience

While some haunted spots are cold and crumbling, Lord Milner epitomises vintage elegance. It’s all polished wood, velvet chairs, winding staircases, and chandeliers that rattle at the wrong time.

You can book a stay in any of the 15 rooms, but the brave request the ones with the “extra guests”.

3. Ghosts in the Rafters: The Haunted Secrets of Mountain Park Hotel

Where the Mountain Whispers First

Some places are born haunted. Others absorb the energy over time, war, death, sadness, and love. And then there’s Mountain Park Hotel, nestled beneath the looming Amahaqwa Mountain in Bulwer, where the wind doesn’t blow… it moans.

This place doesn’t just have a ghost or two. It has an entire cast of spirits, a piano that plays by itself, and a century-old lodge that creaks like it’s sighing under the weight of things unsaid.

If the Lord Milner Hotel was your ghostly debutante ball, Mountain Park is your gothic fever dream.

A Manor with a Memory

Built in the early 1940s, Mountain Park Hotel looks like a Tudor-style lodge from a Bram Stoker novel. It has blackwood beams, winding staircases, and polished timber floors that hold onto your footsteps a little too long.

It’s been a family home. A sanatorium. A getaway for war veterans. And now? A hotel with seven ghosts and no intention of clearing them out.

Ruth — The Governess in the Guestrooms

She’s the one guests hear late at night, pacing past their doors, keys jangling, checking rooms that haven’t been occupied in years. She’s polite. Quiet. But insistent.

They say she once worked in the manor as a caretaker to children during the war. And now she just… keeps caring.

Matilda — The Singing Child

This one’s rough. A little girl’s giggle echoes from the third floor, singing nursery rhymes. Leaving tiny footprints near the piano room. Some say she died of fever. Others whisper about a fall from the stairwell. Whatever happened, she hasn’t gone far.

Staying the Night: Dare or Delight?

Unlike haunted places that milk the legend, Mountain Park is the real deal and good. Great food, stunning mountain views, fireplaces everywhere, and enough ghost stories to keep you wide-eyed all night.

Each room is uniquely decorated, with vintage furniture and… personality. Ask for the haunted wing, or request to sleep near the piano (if you feel brave).

There’s even a pub on-site. But don’t be surprised if your drink is nudged off the table. Some spirits don’t like to share.

4. Nottingham Road Hotel — KwaZulu-Natal Midlands

Charlotte Never Checked Out

Among green hills in the lush Midlands of KZN, sits one of South Africa’s oldest and possibly most charmingly haunted hotels.

Built in the mid-1800s, the Nottingham Road Hotel is known for creaky floorboards, roaring fireplaces, and an unexpected long-term guest named Charlotte.

Who Was Charlotte?

The story changes, depending on who you ask. Some say she was a barmaid, others a lady of the night, and a few even whisper she was a spy during the Boer War.

What do they agree on? Charlotte died tragically,  and she definitely still haunts Room 10.

Guests have reported:

• Neatly folded clothes… they didn’t fold

• Flower arrangements changed overnight.

• Doors opening and closing without reason.

• A feminine presence in the mirror, just out of frame

Staff say she’s not malevolent, more like a tidy, nosy house guest who never leaves. Many regulars even request “Charlotte’s room” to try to meet her. I don't know about you, Khaki Kru, but a visitor who can help with the laundry can visit me anytime! (supernatural or otherwise). 

5. Polished Silver, Cold Shadows: Hauntings at The Kimberley Club

Where Elegance and the Afterlife Collide

Kimberley is a city born from desire and blood. It is the site of South Africa’s great diamond rush, where fortunes were made, empires built, and entire lives buried beneath the sparkle of stones.

It’s a place where history sits thick in the dust, whispers curl in the heat, and the echoes of a gilded age haven’t quite faded, especially not in the Kimberley Club, a hotel so drenched in old ghost stories that it still wears top hats and monocles.

The Club That Time Refused to Empty

The Kimberley Club Boutique Hotel is a living museum. Established in 1881, it was once the playground of men like Cecil John Rhodes, Barney Barnato, and the De Beers dynasty. The place oozes Boardwalk Empire, leather armchairs, hunting portraits, dark-panelled smoking lounges, and that strange weight you feel in buildings that have seen too much.

Its halls were once filled with political deals, whispered betrayals, and drunken laughter from generals and gentlemen. Now? It’s quieter. But not empty.

The Gentleman's Ghost Gallery

The Kimberley Club’s hauntings are refined, restrained, and terrifying in their subtlety, like a dinner guest who won't leave but insists on tidying your tie before you go.

The Victorian Woman on the Staircase

The most well-known spirit is a woman in a high-collared dress, seen descending the main staircase, only to vanish mid-step. Some say she was a lady of high society. Others whisper she died by suicide after a scandalous affair with a member. She never makes a sound.

The Waiter Who Isn’t There

In the formal dining room, guests have reported being served by someone who disappears before they can thank him (saving you on gratuity). Staff have dismissed the accounts… until a guest described a man in uniform from the 1930s with remarkable accuracy.

Sleep Among the Spirits

Each room in the Kimberley Club is named after a notable figure from the city’s history: Rhodes, Barnato, Beit. You can book a night in a room where the walls still hum with the quiet politics of empire.

The luxury is top-tier; this is 5-star heritage, but there’s always that flicker of chill, slightly too-long shadow, and one photo on the wall that looks like it’s not quite still.

Even the staff have stories, but most will only speak once they know you're staying more than one night.

Pro tip: Ask to tour the upstairs library. That’s where most of the "activity" is reported.

South Africa has more to explore than just the beautiful outdoors, and we love showing you the dives, the gems, and the spooky scenes…if that's your cup of scary juice. Don’t forget to tag KhakiBush Magazine with all of your scary celebrations… Enjoy!