Unusual Halloween Destinations: Los Alamos, California

Nestled in the heart of Santa Barbara County, the small town of Los Alamos is home to antique shops, art studios, wine tasting rooms, and restaurants.

The front gate is sagging off its hinges and festooned with cobwebs. The front door is boarded up. The staircase creaks. The old Victorian mansion groans all night as it settles on its foundation.

Homes all over North America try to give themselves a spooky Halloween makeover this time of year, but a few glow-in-the-dark skeletons and a bucket of dry ice do not a haunted house make.

Without making much of an effort, the Victorian Mansion in Los Alamos feels like the real deal.

An old stage stop not far off Highway 101 between San Luis Obispo and Santa Barbara, Los Alamos is a good setting for a haunted mansion.

Local historians say the hills around town were the hideout in the 1840s for a bandit named Solomon Pico, who terrorized gringos and is said to have worn a necklace made of his victims' ears. Pico may have been the inspiration for "Zorro." Skulls with bullet holes have supposedly been found in local caves, and treasure hunters still scour the hills in search of Pico's buried swag.

The 143-year-old Victorian Mansion, located on the main street (the back door is the main entrance) a couple of doors down from the Union Hotel, which is owned and managed by the same woman. It doesn't market itself as haunted. Its big selling point is that each of its six rooms is done up in a theme: Egyptian, pirate, 1950s, etc. It's a cross between the Madonna Inn and the Addams Family house.

The 1880 Union Hotel offers fourteen unique rooms decorated to depict the Victorian era in which the hotel was built.

For a small and somnolent town, Los Alamos has a lot going for it. It's not far from the Santa Barbara County wine country popularized by "Sideways," and the Bedford Thompson Winery and Vineyard has its tasting room here.

Looking for that uniquely different vacation destination. Call Rawhide Travel and Tours today 602-843-5100 or visit our website rawhidetravel.com. We can help!

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