Meet Craig McManus tomorrow night at our Cape May Bed and Breakfast.

Our weekends with Craig are always fascinating and fun. We never know who or what we’ll encounter. Sometimes those encounters are surprising, sometimes they’re moving, and sometimes they’re funny. We’ve had guests meet former residents of their room, and guests reconnect with departed loved ones (though Craig makes no guarantees that this will happen).

Join us this weekend. The package includes a Meet and Greet with Craig on Friday evening, a walking ghost tour on Saturday afternoon, and a séance on Saturday night. Give us a call or visit the reservations page of our Cape May Bed and Breakfast.

Learn more about Craig at his website, Craig McManus.

Let yourself be spooked in Cape May this October.

There is something inherently spooky about Victorian architecture. Certainly it’s beautiful, especially when preserved and in like company. Yet the towers and turrets invite speculation. Hidden rooms and secret passageways hint at intrigue. Drafts cause drapes to flutter, or was that a hand pulling the drape aside? Creaking floors break the still of the night, or was that a ghostly cry?

It’s fun to let yourself be spooked, especially with Halloween on the horizon. Perhaps no where lends itself more towards spooking than the Victorian Seaport of Cape May, home of our Cape May Bed and Breakfast.

It is no surprise, then, that Cape May embraces Halloween with vigor. There will be dozens of Halloween Happenings in town from October 14 to the 31st, 2011. Book a room in our Cape May Bed and Breakfast during that time, if you dare…

A sampling of spooky events in Cape May, NJ:

• Murder Mystery Luncheons and Dinners.
• Haunted Lighthouse Tours with psychic medium Craig McManus.
• Tales of Terror Trolley Rides.
• Historic Haunts House Tours. October 14, 21, 28.
• Cape May City Halloween Parade and Trick or Treating. October 23.
• Halloween Party at the Physick Estate. October 23.
• Annual Phantom Ball, theme Weird Science, at Congress Hall. October 28.
• First Annual Spooktacular Extravaganza at the Ocean Club and Sea Salt. October 29.

For a complete list of spooktacular events, please see Cape May Events.

Most of these traditions arose organically, as traditions are wont to do. For example, we met Craig McManus soon after purchasing this old Bed and Breakfast Cape May, when a tour came through the inn. We struck up a conversation with him, and now, years later, Craig regularly stays with us and leads seances for guests. He’ll be here this weekend.

When we first took over the inn, we celebrated Presidents’ Day Weekend with our guests (we love any excuse for a party, so we had one). Now, we look forward to seeing the Presidents’ Day Motley Crew each year. Some of the Motley Crew has spent Presidents’ Day Weekend at our Cape May Bed and Breakfast for fifteen years, but we always welcome Rookie Motleys, too.

Derby Day, Easter bunny cakes, and New Year’s Eve on the beach…. They’re simple traditions that we share with old and new friends, and they bring us joy.

Below are photos of the 2010 Presidents’ Day Weekend Motley Crew.

The 2010 Motley Crew.

Presidents' Day is always entertaining at our B&B.

Craig McManus at our Cape May B&B, February 4, 5, 2011.

Craig McManus lives in our world – the world of the living, that is – but he has strong connections to the dead. Craig feels ghostly spirits and they in turn communicate with him. It may be difficult for skeptics to believe, but once you’ve met Craig, doubts tend to vanish.

Craig is a sleuth at heart. He feels presences and does his best to figure out who and what they are. He is drawn to places with a good deal of paranormal activity, and thus he is drawn to the Victorian Seaside town of Cape May, New Jersey. He’s been coming here regularly for about twenty years.

Our Cape May Bed and Breakfast, the John F. Craig House, first caught Craig’s attention in the early 1990s; but it wasn’t until a few years later that he visited the house during a house tour. Once inside, his curiosity was truly piqued.

Over the ensuing years, Craig has stayed at the inn many times. He now regularly offers weekend events at John F. Craig. Guests have the opportunity to participate in a group séance and to meet with Craig one-on-one. We never know what we’ll get, but thanks to Craig’s warmth and humor, we always have a good time.

Upcoming Craig McManus weekends are February 4-5, 2011 and March 18-19, 2011. As of this writing, there are two rooms available for the February weekend.

For more information about the Craig McManus weekends at our Bed and Breakfast Cape May, please see our events page or call 877-544-0314. For some of Craig’s observations about our inn, please see his recent article in capemay.com.

You'll need lots of energy this weekend. Let us pamper you with sumptuous breakfasts.

Wouldn’t that be fun?

We can’t actually guarantee that Sherlock Holmes and Craig McManus will meet, but it is certain that Craig is coming to our Cape May bed and breakfast this weekend, during Sherlock Holmes Weekend in Cape May. We hope all our weekend guests are feeling energetic, because there is much to do November 5 – 7, 2010. Read on for a list of the weekend’s highlights:

See the East Lynne Theater production of Sherlock Holmes: Adventure of the Blue Carbuncle. This is no ordinary play, but a recreation of vintage radio play. Enjoy seeing what takes place on the other end of the wire, and find out how all those cool radio sound effects are made.

Help Holmes and Watson uncover the truth of The Demon in the Padded Room. Put on your Victorian garb and search gaslit streets for clues. You may win a $250 grand prize. Holmes will reveal the truth on Sunday at 12:30. For additional information or to order tickets, please call 609-884-5404 or 800-275-4278.

Spend time with Craig McManus at our Cape May bed and breakfast. He’ll be here, ready to communicate with the living and the dead. We anticipate a lively weekend with Craig. No pun intended. Really.

Spend a weekend here with paranormal expert Craig McManus.

According to Craig, the John F. Craig house is one of the most paranormally active homes in Cape May. No one knows exactly why some spots draw more ghosts and spirits than others, not even Craig. It is true that our Cape May bed and breakfast is located on Columbia Avenue – formerly the town’s Beach Avenue, close to the dunes and the sea. Most of the homes on this street were built just after the Civil War.

Craig has felt a number of presences here. At times he has felt Emma Craig, second wife of John F. Craig, while other times he’s met ghosts that have wandered in and have no known connection to the actual place. Craig says that “ghosts are transient”; and really, why wouldn’t they be?

Of course, many of the guests who participate in Craig McManus weekends hope to have news from a departed loved one. Craig cannot guarantee any particular experience of course, but past events have at times drawn many such spirits.

No matter what your hopes or expectations, we think you’ll find a weekend with Craig McManus at our Cape May inn fascinating. We know that we always do. For more information, please contact us. The weekend of November 5 – 6, 2010 is full, but we would love to invite Craig to return in the future.

Expect the unexpected when Craig McManus come to Cape May.

The John F. Craig House is one of three Cape May Inns participating in this fascinating weekend with Craig. Friday evening, April 9, enjoy a meet and greet with Craig at our Cape May bed and breakfast. Saturday afternoon there will be a tour of all three participating bed and breakfasts Cape May. Then have dinner with Craig at the Mad Batter Saturday evening, followed by a channeling session.

Craig has often facilitated encounters between the living and their loved ones here in Cape May. He can’t make guarantees, of course, but he has successfully brought people into contact with each other more than once.

If you are curious about ghosts, spiritual energy, and reconnecting with lost loved ones, come to Cape May April 9 and 10, 2010.

Join us for a weekend with Craig McManus

You’ll be invited to partake in spirits at the nearby Virginia Hotel on Friday evening, before an evening of spirits at Cold Spring Village. Craig will chat with guests over a tasty breakfast Saturday morning, and be available at tea time later in the day as well. He is open to communicating with your departed relatives, although he cannot make guarantees.

Should the weather cooperate, Craig will lead a tour of Cape May Saturday afternoon; he’ll point out some of his favorite haunts and provide a bit of interesting paranormal background.

The real fun will begin Saturday at 9 pm, with a seance in the parlor of our b&b Cape May. Expect the unexpected.

We never know what Craig will experience when he is here, or what he will uncover for our guests. But we do know that a weekend with Craig McManus is always fascinating and fun.

When the sun goes down, the ghouls come out in Cape May on Halloween

You haven’t really experienced Halloween unless you’ve experienced it here, in Cape May NJ. Though the day of the dead is still several weeks away, the town is already becoming ghoulishly decked out. Even while the Victorian Festival is in full swing, as it is now, we are gearing up for parades, enjoying each others’ creativity, and generally having a frightfully good time here at our Cape May bed and breakfast.

So, how can you join in the fun? Halloween Happenings will be in full swing October 16 through the 31st. There is so much to do during this time that you can’t help but have fun and get into a spooky mood. There are several opportunities to learn about – or experience – the ghosts of the 1879 Emlen Physick Estate, said to be Cape May’s original haunted house. Psychic Medium Craig McManus will reveal some of the mansion’s secrets during evening talks. Other events at the estate will include interesting facts about Victorian spiritualism.

Not even trolley rides are safe at this time of year. Craig Mcmanus will ride through the gas-lit streets of our town while revealing some of the secrets and spirits of Cape May during A Ride with the Ghostwriter. The Tales of Terror Trolley Ride will send chills up your spine and cause the hair on your neck to prickle. Also fun is the Light on the Ghosts of the Lighthouse Trolley Tour, full of good ghost tales.

If you enjoy suspense and intrigue, check out the Murder Mystery Dinners. You’ll enjoy a delicious four-course meal during this interactive experience with the “Not Quite Ready for Victorian Times” Players. That is, if you can eat in the company of such suspicious folk!

While it is true that many fun events take place during weekends, there is still plenty of frightfully good fun to be had during the week in Cape May. Check out our Midweek special if your schedule allows.

Come have a chat in the parlor of our Cape May B&B.

Ghosts. Do they exist or don’t they? We invite you to come to our Historic Cape May inn, sit in the parlor, sip on a beverage and chat for a while about that topic. A good time to have that chat is some time August 28 – 30. Craig McManus, longtime guest and friend to us here at the inn, will be here while in town for a book signing party of his latest book, 400 Years of the Ghosts of Cape May.

Craig is a fascinating man and a professional channel. We have had many discussions with him over the years about Cape May in general and the John F. Craig House in particular. He has many commitments while in town, including an event at the Emlen Physick Mansion on the 28th, but he always finds time to chat with us and our guests about what he does.

Cape May is celebrating its 400th anniversary this year. Its 400 years as a seaport resort have left many an interesting tale to tell, and Craig tells those tales very well; indeed, he considers Cape May to be the most haunted seaport town in the country. His first books, The Ghosts of Cape May, Book 1, 2 and 3, are great reads, and they also mentioned our Historic Cape May Inn more than once. Why is that? You’ll have to read the books or stay at the inn to find out. We hope you do both.