Due in part to social media and the ever-present specter of internet clout that comes with it, Salem, Massachusetts has become something of a hotspot.
Well, a hotspot for tourists, but a complete nightmare for the residents of this small New England town.
It turns out, Salem – despite what you might think of it and its connection to the history of witchcraft in the United States – is not a Halloween Disney World, and while there are always people making the trek out there to get a dose of history and take a few pictures, this year has been especially terrible. So much so that actual Salem residents are unable to even get out of their homes to run simple errands.
In 2021, Salem saw a total of 1.9 million visitors, and through the middle of October this year, that number was already up to 1.6 million visitors, so it stands to ultimately crush last year’s total. And while that can be great for some businesses, allowing them to thrive especially after a few tough COVID years, other businesses are having a hard time keeping up with the foot traffic. Or in some cases, they are being completely blocked out by tourists, with everyday residents unable to get there.
With something like 80,000 extra people a day filing into the town, Salem is asking people to not even drive in because there is simply no available parking. Salem was not equipped to accommodate so many tourists (how many towns really are?) and there’s just nowhere to go; if you’re trying to get there, be ready to go so far as to just abandon your car on the side of the road.
Now you see why Salem residents would rather just stay inside for the entire month of October.
What’s Driving All of These Tourists to Salem?
It’s a bit unexplainable considering Salem has already been a tourist attraction for decades now. The most conceivable reason, at least for 2022, is the coinciding release of Hocus Pocus 2, which takes place in Salem, though none of the movie was actually filmed there.
But could that really be the main culprit? Is perhaps the rise of a social media platform like TikTok to blame, with tourists rushing to get some video they can use on their profiles? Maybe, but it’s not like social media or the internet is some new phenomenon that should produce an October unlike anything Salem residents have ever seen.
It’s all very strange. Spooky, even.
