Questions we get asked (a lot)

Send us a request through our reservation page, call the front desk at (978) 555-0148, or email stay@cranelantern.example. We'll confirm availability, usually within a few hours, and send you a link to secure the booking with a card.

Check-in is from 3 pm to 8 pm and check-out is by 11 am. If you're arriving later than 8, just let us know ahead of time and we'll leave your key in a lockbox with a note. We're happy to hold bags before check-in and after check-out.

On weekends we ask for two nights. In October, any stay that includes a Friday or Saturday has a three-night minimum. Midweek, one night is usually fine outside of October.

Cancel at least two weeks before you arrive and you'll get your money back in full. For October stays the window is a month. If you cancel later than that, we refund half. Full details are on our policies page.

It depends what you're after. For a view and a fireplace, the Captain's Quarters. For romance and the roof, the Widow's Walk Suite. For ghosts, the Nursery. For a good night's sleep on a budget, the Ledger Room or the Garrets. With a dog, the Carriage House Suite. If you can't decide, choose "let the innkeeper pick" on the booking form and Samuel will choose for you. He's rarely wrong.

Yes, one: The Apothecary, on the ground floor, with a roll-in shower and step-free access via the side ramp. The Lantern Room and The Ledger are reachable by ramp too. The upper floors are only by stairs (the house is from 1748, and we can't add an elevator without removing a staircase that a ghost is attached to). Please read our accessibility page, or call us to talk it through.

They really are, three flights up, and the last flight is steep and narrow. The Garret East and Garret West share a hall bathroom (renovated in 2021, and very nice). They're cozy, quiet and the best value in the house, but not for anyone who struggles with stairs or is over about six foot two.

Children ten and older are welcome in the main house. Younger children are welcome in the Carriage House Suite, which has its own entrance and a kitchenette.

Yes, in the Carriage House Suite only. Up to two dogs, $50 per night (total, not per dog). Dogs can't stay in the main house, but well-behaved ones are welcome on the garden terrace. Service animals are welcome everywhere.

No. The Crane & Lantern is entirely smoke free, inside and out, including the garden, porch and courts. That includes vaping. Old wooden houses and open flames have a long, unhappy history together.

Wi-Fi, yes, throughout the house (it's weakest in the Garrets, for reasons nobody has explained). TVs only in the Carriage House Suite. Most guests don't miss them.

Yes, from $50, by email or mailed in a card. They can be used for rooms, dinner at The Ledger, the bar and our activities. See gift cards.

For inn guests, always. It's served in the Lantern Room from 7:30 to 10 on weekdays and 8 to 10:30 on weekends. Order anything on the menu, including the johnnycakes.

Yes. The Lantern Room is open to the public Wednesday through Sunday, 7:30 to 11 am. We don't take reservations for breakfast. On weekends, and all of October, expect a wait; inn guests are seated first.

The Ledger serves lunch Wednesday to Sunday from 11:30 am to 3 pm and dinner Wednesday to Sunday from 5 pm until 9:30 (10:30 on Fridays and Saturdays). It's closed Mondays and Tuesdays, except in October, when we're open every day. See The Ledger for reservations.

We recommend one, especially on weekends and essential in October. Email table@cranelantern.example or call. The bar has a few tables for walk-ins.

Yes. Dee's kitchen cooks from scratch and can adapt most dishes for gluten-free, dairy-free, vegetarian and vegan diets. There's always a vegetarian main (the jollof risotto has a following). Please tell us about serious allergies when you book.

It is. The Undertaker's Parlor occupies what was the viewing parlor of Hollis & Vane from 1889 to 1946. We've improved the seating considerably. It opens at 4 pm every day and closes at 11 (midnight on Fridays and Saturdays).

Yes, in the Library for up to 14 or the Great Hall for up to 80 seated. See private dining.

Guests tell us it is. We have three long-standing stories: Abigail Crane, the "Lady in Gray," on the widow's walk and main stair; little Tom's marbles in the Nursery hall; and the smell of peppermint in the old Apothecary. We can't promise an appearance, and most guests sleep straight through. Read more on the ghosts.

No. The house was built in 1748, fifty-six years after 1692, and has no connection to the trials. We're glad to point you toward the city's memorials and museums, which tell that history with the seriousness it deserves.

The Nursery, on the third floor, by popular vote. Guests have been writing in the Nursery log since 1997. Some report marbles rolling in the hall at night. Others report an excellent night's sleep. Both are welcome in the log.

Of course. Tell us when you book. The Ledger Room and the Carriage House Suite have no stories attached at all, and the Carriage House is in a separate building. (The Carriage House dog guests have never reported anything, and dogs, we're told, would know.)

Quietly, in your own room, yes. Please don't set up in the halls or common rooms, and keep to quiet hours (10 pm to 7 am). We don't allow séances, Ouija boards or "investigations" in shared spaces. The Séance Supper in October is theater, not a séance.

Yes, from elopements on the widow's walk for up to six to tented garden weddings for up to 140. We have three packages starting at $3,800. Start at weddings or write to Wren Halloway at events@cranelantern.example.

For most dates, 12 to 18 months. October Saturdays usually go 18 to 24 months ahead and carry a premium. Fridays and Sundays are discounted and much easier to get.

Everyone asks, and yes. Our photographers know the spot and the light. We make no promises about who else turns up in the frame.

No, all food is by Dee's kitchen. You're welcome to bring a cake from an outside baker; there's a small cutting fee per guest. Our wedding FAQ covers the rest.

Showers, rehearsal dinners, retreats, birthdays and celebrations of life. Given the house's past, we're particularly good at the last one. See events.

Yes, and so are the paddles and balls. Non-guests can rent a court for $20 an hour. The courts are behind the carriage house and open from 8 in the morning until it gets dark. See pickleball for clinics and the Thursday Pickle & Pint.

Not in the jump-out-at-you sense. It's a 75-minute walk through the house and three nearby streets, history first and then the stories. Most curious eight-year-olds love it. It starts at 8 pm every night from April to November and costs $25 for inn guests, $35 otherwise, $15 for under-12s.

Madame Corvina is warm, thoughtful and good at what she does, but her readings are for reflection and enjoyment, not predictions or advice. Sundays 2 to 5 in the Library, $40 with tea and a scone.

Yes, we have six, free for guests, with locks and helmets. Ask at the front desk.

Most are: the ghost walk, Tarot & Tea, candle-making, the Thursday history talk and court rentals. The herb garden walk, bikes and lawn games are mainly for inn guests.

Everything. Salem is extremely busy all month. Rates are at their peak, there's a three-night minimum on weekends, the restaurant opens every day, parking is valet only and there are extra ghost walks at 9:30 pm. Please read our October guide before you plan.

We have ten free spaces for guests, first come, first served. In October, it's valet only, $25 a night. See getting here.

Easily. The train from Boston's North Station takes about half an hour, and we're a nine-minute walk from Salem station. From May to October there's also a ferry from Long Wharf in Boston. Once you're here, you can walk everywhere.

Logan is about 40 minutes by car, longer in traffic.

Yes, 10 pm to 7 am, throughout the house and grounds. That goes double in October.

Call or email the front desk. We keep lost property for 60 days and will post it back to you at cost. We've returned glasses, chargers, a wedding garter and, once, a full set of tarot cards that weren't Madame Corvina's.