Salt & Shadow

Aim for the Museum Place Garage on New Liberty St — elevator, central, covered — or the Salem Maritime NHS visitor lot on Derby St. Either puts you within a two-block walk of everything.

Start at the Regional Visitor Center on New Liberty St for orientation, then stroll down to Derby Wharf. Flat, paved, ocean breeze.

• Tour the Custom House (Hawthorne worked here).
• Walk the wharf as far as comfortable — no need to go all the way to the lighthouse.
• Peek at the Friendship of Salem tall ship from the dock.
• Free admission. Plan your visit.

A five-minute walk over on Liberty St. The memorial is small, contemplative, ground-level. The adjacent cemetery has uneven ground but is best viewed from the perimeter walkway anyway.

Two blocks from the memorial, in Derby Square: this is the building where the Halloween party scene from Hocus Pocus was filmed — the "I Put a Spell on You" sequence. Free, exterior view from the cobblestone square (pretty in any light), and a small museum inside if it's open. Nice quick stop on the way to lunch.

On the walk from Turner's to PEM, take Essex St and pass 318 Essex Street — the Ropes Mansion, used as the exterior of Allison's house in Hocus Pocus. Beautiful 18th-century Georgian colonial with a garden you can walk through (free). About 10 minutes total — exactly on the way, no extra walking.

Save this for the afternoon — fully modern, climate-controlled, elevators everywhere, plenty of benches. Don't try to do all of it.

Worth prioritizing:

• Yin Yu Tang — an actual 200-year-old Chinese merchant home reassembled inside the museum.
• Maritime galleries.
• Whatever rotating exhibition is up.

Plan ~2 hours. Free coat & bag check at the entrance — use it. Hours & tickets.

Pick whatever still appeals — keep one eye on the clock so you're back in Marblehead by 6:30 to freshen up before dinner.

Quick freshen-up at the Hawke House. Walking distance to dinner if anyone wants to stretch.