Despite living in Savannah for the majority of my life, I had never actually been on a ghost tour until recently. The Hostess City is considered one of the most haunted cities in America. Even in the daytime, the oak-lined streets here hold so much history that it’s not hard at all to believe that spirits could linger here.

The Smithsonian is a national treasure, and its eponymous Smithsonian Institute is a modern-day American castle. Located near the center of the National Mall in Washington D.C., this red, Norman-style castle stands out in a sea of grey presidential monuments and monoliths. It was made from red sandstone in 1855 and originally served as the home and office of Joseph Henry, the first Secretary of the Smithsonian.

Fonthill Castle is a charming chateau in Pennsylvania that was once home to Henry Chapman Mercer, an archeologist, artifact collector, and tile maker. He built this castle in Doylestown, Pennsylvania, from 1908 to 1912. Reflecting Medieval, Gothic, and Byzantine architectural styles, Fonthill Castle looks like something from an idyllic European countryside.

In Washington, Thornewood Castle (known as "the house that love built") sits on the shores of American Lake in Washington, and it is absolutely stunning. Thornewood's tale begins with Mr. Chester Thorne, one of the founders of the Port of Tacoma. Chester bought the 400-year-old Elizabethan manor in England and had it dismantled and shipped, brick by brick, to Lakewood

Deep in the heart of Texas, there's a place that defies every Lone Star State stereotype... except, of course, the saying that "everything's bigger in Texas." Falkenstein Castle was built in 1996 by a couple inspired by a recent trip to Germany. Billed as "A Texas-Sized Fairy Tale in the Hill Country," the castle is a place of pure fantasy; a 14,000-square-foot palace with myriad balconies wherein guests can gaze upon the Texas Hill Country.