Esther Fest

01/06/2026

I was so sorry to read of Darryl's passing earlier today. Darryl was the curator of the Cumberland County Museum in Amherst and a big supporter of Esther Fest. He made it possible for us to hold our Psychic Fair at the museum for the past three years and was always open to us conducting ghost investigations in the building. He was always generous, helpful, and supportive. On a personal note he even arranged for me to connect with some relatives from Florida who were visiting Amherst after I discovered our family connection through DNA. He will be greatly missed by so many in the community. Sending lots of love to his family and friends at this difficult time. - Charlie

Darryl Wayne MacKenzie – 63, Portapique. We are heartbroken to announce the death of Darryl Wayne MacKenzie (born Darryl Wayne Pickett) on Friday, January 2, 2026 at his ...

01/01/2026

Happy New Year!

As we begin a new year we want to take a moment to thank all of you for your support of Esther Fest in 2025!

Last year's Esther Fest was our biggest yet. We had more events than ever before and for the first time we saw a lot of people making Amherst their Halloween destination. We had visitors coming from Halifax, Pictou, the Miramichi, Truro and more to spend the weekend in Amherst.

We want to send a huge thank you to our board members, volunteers, psychic readers, event organizers, local businesses who supported us, and all of you who came to our events! Esther Fest wouldn't be possible without you.

We have even bigger plans for 2026 and hope we can count on your continued support! Can't wait to get spooky with you again this Fall!

10/31/2025

Happy Halloween from Esther Fest!

Today is the last official day of Esther Fest. You can still take in the Haunted Hockey Game, go on a Scarecrow Stroll, or dance with Signal Hill at the Amherst Legion and then we're over for another year. (Click below for details.)

One of the things I loved most about the Festival this year was seeing that people of all ages were taking part. I saw these young people at the Great Amherst Street Party and thought they looked so cool I asked if I could take their picture on behalf of the Festival.

If you attended an Esther Fest event this year and have a picture or two you'd like to share we'd love to see them. Maybe you even have one from the 360 Photo Booth! If so, please put them in the comments below!

Happy Halloween! 👻
Charlie

https://greatamherstmystery.com/

10/31/2025

Esther Fest is just about over but if you need more paranormal in your life and you live near Halifax, you might want to check this out! 👻

Only 2 days left until the 2025 Halifax Paranormal Symposium! We have no shortage of gifts and prizes for you this year! Thank you to all of our generous sponsors and volunteers! See you Saturday! 👻👽

10/29/2025

Esther Fest is winding down. Tomorrow we have a Ghost Walk and Oracle Reading Workshop. We still have a couple spaces for both events. Then Halloween night there is the Haunted Hockey Game and a Costume Dance with Signal Hill at the Amherst Legion. You can find all the details on our website.

Thanks for all your support of Esther Fest so far. It's been a wonderfully spooky season! 👻

Welcome to Esther Fest   Celebrating Canada’s Greatest Ghost Story Darkness falls across the land. The witching hour is close at hand! And that means…it’s time for Esther Fest 2025! We are so excited to share our plans for Esther Fest 2025. We are once again offering our most popular events, ...

10/28/2025

Spooky Amherst! 👻

10/28/2025

The Great Amherst Ghost Walk is sold out for tonight and tomorrow, but we have just added another walk for Thursday to make up for last night's cancellation. There are currently seven spots available Thursday night if you're interested. Click the link below for more info. Looking forward to getting spooky with you! 👻

Host Charlie Rhindress shares the story of Esther Cox and The Great Amherst Mystery as well as other spooky Amherst stories.

10/28/2025

Things are getting spooky at the Amherst Stadium! 👻

10/28/2025

Elementary school students will be walking all around Amherst Wednesday, October 29, to explore seasonal displays along the Scarecrow Stroll route.

𝗪𝗮𝘁𝗰𝗵 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗺; 𝗴𝗶𝘃𝗲 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗺 𝗮 𝘄𝗮𝘃𝗲; 𝗮𝗻𝗱, 𝗮𝗹𝘄𝗮𝘆𝘀 𝘂𝘀𝗲 𝗲𝘅𝘁𝗿𝗮 𝗰𝗮𝘂𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝘄𝗵𝗶𝗹𝗲 𝗱𝗿𝗶𝘃𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗻𝗲𝗮𝗿 𝗴𝗿𝗼𝘂𝗽𝘀 𝗼𝗳 𝗰𝗵𝗶𝗹𝗱𝗿𝗲𝗻.

Let’s enjoy all the sights, sounds, and sweets as we approach Halloween!

https://www.amherst.ca/scarecrow-stroll.html

10/27/2025

TONIGHT'S GHOST WALK POSTPONED

Due to the heavy rainfall warning we will be postponing tonight's Ghost Walk. It will take place Thursday, Oct. 30 at the same time and place. We will reach out to anyone with tickets to reschedule or offer a refund. Sorry for the inconvenience.

Amherst Community Living and Recreation Department

10/25/2025

Please note the updated start time for tonight's Haunted Maze. It will be around 7 p.m. (when it gets dark)! Have fun getting scared! 👻

10/24/2025

TODAY AT ESTHER FEST!

We apologize if you don't already have tickets, but the theme for today's events is "sold out." Thank you so much to everyone who has supported Esther Fest so far this year. We've noticed a big jump in awareness of and interest in the Festival this year. We've sold out many of our events and we've heard from a number of people who traveled to Amherst to take part! We can't thank you enough for your support!

Here's what's on at Esther Fest today:

The new play, Happily Ever Afterlife - SOLD OUT
PPRI's ghost hunt at the Cumberland County Museum - SOLD OUT
Psychic Medium Laura Warren live - SOLD OUT

But you can still take in the Haunted Maze, which starts tonight, or the Scarecrow Stroll which continues until Oct. 31.

Looking forward:

We still have tickets available for tomorrow's 2 p.m. and 7 p.m. performances of "Happily Ever Afterlife."

There are currently six tickets available for the ghost walk on Monday night, but Tuesday and Wednesday are sold out. We also have three spots available for our Oracle reading Workshop on Oct. 30.

To find out all the details about Esther Fest please click the link here:

https://greatamherstmystery.com/

Amherst Community Living and Recreation Department