The historic transatlantic luxury ocean liner ship Queen Mary will be converted for Dark Harbor, one of Southern California’s most haunted Halloween festivals. Its themed mazes, immersive attractions, live entertainment and carnival rides will be available from Sept. 19 to Nov. 2 in Long Beach, Calif.
The legacy of the Queen Mary can be traced back to the late 1920s, when the Cunard Line company faced intense competition from rival ocean liner companies. Its response to the shipbuilding race was the construction of Britain’s first ship in the 1,000-foot category — a revolutionary transatlantic liner weighing 81,237 tons and capable of carrying 2,038 passengers. After a two-year halt due to the Great Depression, the ship was finally launched and christened in 1934.
When World War II started in 1939, the Queen Mary transformed into a troopship and was responsible for transporting more than 15,000 soldiers at a time. The ship carried a record number of 16,683 people. and could reach speeds of up to 32.5 knots — faster than many German U-boat torpedoes. Because of the Queen Mary’s impressive speed and color, the ship earned the nickname “Grey Ghost.”
After the war, the Queen Mary resumed commercial voyages for 20 years, until its final departure in 1967 towards its forever home along the shore of Long Beach, Calif. The ship was then docked permanently and renovated into a hotel after an elaborate $31 million renovation. The line began to offer tours in 1971 and has hosted over 50 million visitors since its arrival in Long Beach, Calif.
Considering the Queen Mary’s long history of triumphs and tragedies, reports and stories of paranormal activities aboard the ship have been circulating for decades. In October 1942, the Queen Mary collided with the escort ship HMS Curacoa at full speed, slicing completely through the C-class light cruiser. The Curacoa was cut in half and sunk almost immediately after the collision, resulting in the death of nearly 340 crew members. Under orders not to stop for rescue in fear of U-boat attacks, the Queen Mary had to continue its voyage through the wreckage. Since then, visitors and staff have claimed to hear metal crushing and faint cries of lost men against the ship’s side.
However, the most infamously haunted location of the Queen Mary is stateroom B340. A strangely vague entry in the ship’s log recorded the death of a passenger in September of 1949: a passenger with the given name “Walter” was found dead in his cabin, which later became known as the notorious stateroom B340. Many believe Walter is a vengeful spirit still lingering in the room. Accounts of supernatural events surrounding Walter’s death and the mysterious stateroom B340 are reported to this day. Paranormal enthusiasts often book the room to gain first-hand ghost sighting experience — starting at a rate of $499.
The story of stateroom B340 was incorporated into Dark Harbor’s attraction “Breakout: Maximum Security” with a reimagined storyline featuring the spirit of “Samuel the Savage.” An inmate is held behind heavy iron doors and restrained with rusted iron shackles, while guests search for an exit through thick fog and the presence of a fleeting shadow in striped uniform.
Paranormal investigators have increasingly focused on the Queen Mary’s first-class pool. Many believe that the pool is a vortex — a whirlpool of energy that allows spirits to travel between different realms. Legends also claim that visitors would report sightings of a playful ghost, a little girl named “Jackie.” Although there are no entries regarding children drowning in the ship’s log, the potential presence of Jackie makes the first-class pool one of the most visited locations on the Queen Mary.
Jackie’s story is embedded into the attraction “Lullaby” at Dark Harbor, where the sinister ghost of a girl dressed in white guides guests towards a water abyss in the depths of the first-class swimming pool.
Besides the characters inspired by the ghost stories of the Queen Mary, Dark Harbor also includes original storylines revolving around the history of the ship to enhance the thrilling experience.
“Feast: The Final Cut” introduces the Chef, a butcher who aspired to become the head chef aboard the luxury cruise liner. He became disgruntled by ungrateful first-class passengers. “Infirmary” summons the spirits of a brutal surgeon and his accomplices to torment the living in their maniacal masquerade. “Big Top Terror” traps the guests in his deadly circus, luring them into a dark labyrinth to capture the souls of the innocent. Lastly, the newly added “Voodoo: The Queen’s Curse” centers around a ruthless priestess who has been preying over the Queen Mary for years.
With Halloween falling on a Friday this year, a weekend trip to Long Beach, Calif., becomes a convenient option — and the theatrical experience at Dark Harbor certainly adds to the spirit of the spooky season. Tickets for the event are purchased exclusively online.
Eva Jia is an Arts & Entertainment Intern for the fall 2025 quarter. She can be reached at jiae1@uci.edu.
Edited by June Min.
