Real Pirates Salem Museum: Authentic Pirate Treasure Display
4.9
231 Ratings
Salem

Immerse yourself in the real-life stories of real pirates at the Real Pirates Salem Museum. Discover authentic pirate treasure, witness live archaeology, and become a pirate yourself through our interactive experiences.

Duration: 1 hour, 30 minutes
Cancellation: 24 hours
Highlights
  • Real Pirates Salem - Visitors tour an interactive exhibit featuring the story of real-life pirate “Black Sam” Bellamy and his fabled beloved Maria Hallett. Visitors will be able to see and touch real pirate treasure from the wreck of Bellamy’s ship, the Whydah Gally. The Whydah was a slave ship-turned pirate ship which wrecked off of the Cape Cod…
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What's Included
  • Digital Photo
  • Audio Track
  • Real Pirates - Interactive Historical Exhibit Ticket
Additional Information

Delve into the vivid tales of actual pirates, highlighted by the exploits of Black Sam Bellamy, one of the youngest and most successful sea bandits ever, and Maria Hallett, his beloved and the infamous ‘Witch of Wellfleet’. Get to know Sam’s adventurous squad, track their exploits across the vast oceans, watch their triumphant victories, and finally…

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Location
Real Pirates Salem
Derby Street
Cancellation Policy

For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours before the scheduled departure time.

Customer Ratings
4.9
(231 Ratings)
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Richard_n
Aug 3, 2025
Interesting exhibits, nice staff - The exhibit begins with a 5-minute film that provides basic information about Sam Bellamy, a young man who turned to piracy when his initial attempt at salvage failed, his ship the Whydah, and the discovery of the wreck in the 1980s. Then you enter the exhibits. The authentic artifacts recovered from the Whydah’s wreck are plentiful and the explanations educational. What is perhaps most interesting is how the museum makes the pirates sympathetic without romanticizing them. The way they ran their ships was surprisingly democratic and egalitarian, many of the cliches we’re used to seeing in pirate films turn out to be myths, and in an age during which legitimate ships flying under national flags and their crews made their living from the slave trade and plundering indigenous civilizations, a group of men (and the occasional woman) who didn’t care about a person’s race, religion, or ethnicity, shared their profits (almost) equally, and gave every man a vote seems comparatively admirable. I mean, sure, they were pirates and piracy is theft. But “How dare you plunder what we’ve plundered!” and “You can’t steal our profits from human trafficking and then offer positions in the crew to the men we planned to sell into slavery!” are rather hollow complaints. The docents are friendly. There is no pressure — you can spend as long as you like. My two kids, who are nine and six, thoroughly enjoyed the 90 or so minutes we spent there. My expectations were not incredibly high. Salem has a lot of kitschy stuff in it. But this was an excellent experience. I recommend it to anyone who is interested in Colonial Era or Maritime history.
Review provided by Viator
Deborah
Jul 23, 2025
Educational and interesting - The staff could not have been more friendly and helpful. They helped us with our wheelchair and the museum facility was accommodating. Their displays were well done, and they had very authentic items. The slave ship education and exhibit were eye-opening. It's definitely a must-see and one of our favorite places we visited.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
S7749zqcatherinem
Jul 20, 2025
Great Informative Attraction - We had a great time at Real Pirates Salem Museum. Our interest was held through the whole thing. It was very informative and presented beautifully. We learned a lot of interesting maritime history. It's not overwhelming. We were able to comfortable go through at our own pace. We didn't feel like we were spending the whole day there and the layout was simple so we didn't feel like we were missing anything. There are some interactive displays which really helped keep attention on things. The introductory presentation was interesting and informative. They even included souvenir photos you can download in the price of admission. Overall a great family attraction.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Camper30879433582
Jul 16, 2025
Top notch and authentic - Authentic relics from a local shipwreck from the Golden Age of Pirates. Quality display and show, top notch history and legend
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Kellysi537vh
Jun 24, 2025
Awesome pirate history! - We really enjoyed this tour! My 8 year old is not the “spooky” loving kid so when we stopped in Salem briefly this was the perfect fit. The staff were so friendly that even he felt comfortable asking questions, and getting to touch treasure is so cool! The small museum is interesting and informative and we both learned cool facts!
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Sjriggs
Jun 13, 2025
A must for pirate or treasure hunting enthusiasts. - If you have any interest in pirates or The Wyda, it is a must see. They have real pirate treasure that you can touch. The history lesson is good. You also see how they located the Wyda.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Corinnel687
Jun 6, 2025
Actual Real Pirates! - Such an interesting museum! I'm from the area but had never heard of the Whydah. The artifacts on display are from the actual excavation including the pirate loot. Really fun, highly recommend for history & science nerds.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
305tonik
Jun 3, 2025
Join the Crew at the Real Pirates Salem Museum! - My family went and had such a great time. The narrative told throughout the museum was fascinating and well-told, with a splendid mix of artifacts and reproductions. All the staff, from the ticket desk to the costumed interpreter to the gift store worker, were wicked friendly. Plus we're fans of Gregory Manchess, so seeing his work featured was an unexpected bonus. (Lucky for us, it was a lightly-attended day so we had the place nearly to ourselves, but it would have been a delight regardless.) Take the first opportunity to sign the ship's articles and join the crew!
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Danielle
May 11, 2025
Pirates and treasure are real! - First time here and I don't regret spending the money. This is a great experience and you can actually look at real treasures and things that were recovered from the Whydem wreck! The people who work at the museum are great and I will definitely becoming back again!!! Thank you guys!
Review provided by Tripadvisor
900chaimk
Apr 21, 2025
Entertaining and informative - Very entertaining and informative! We had a great time seeing the first-hand pirate artifacts and the details of the life of the specific pirate, and the staff was extremely friendly and helpful.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
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Cancellation: Free cancellation up to 24 hours before the start of your experience (local time).
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