Travel Channel's 'Ghost Adventures' Scares Up Ghoulishly Great Ratings For October

By: Nov. 03, 2017
Enter Your Email to Unlock This Article

Plus, get the best of BroadwayWorld delivered to your inbox, and unlimited access to our editorial content across the globe.




Existing user? Just click login.

Travel Channel's hit paranormal investigative series, "Ghost Adventures," hosted by Zak Bagans and his team featuring Aaron Goodwin, Jay Wasley and Billy Tolley, scared up electrifying success for the network. Back-to-back special Halloween episodes, at 9 p.m. and 10 p.m. ET/PT on Saturday, October 28, helped propel the network to top 10 positions among P25-54 and W25-54 for the night. It was Travel Channel's highest rated Saturday night in two years. Combined with the early October airings of the four-part "Hauntings of Vicksburg" episodes, the "Ghost Adventures" premiere episodes for the month attracted more than 4.1 million viewers.

"October was an exciting adventure for us," said Bagans. "From taking over the entire town of Vicksburg and immersing ourselves within its civil war history and ghost stories, to investigating inside my Haunted Museum in Las Vegas, this is a very real passion that we have. We crave the raw adventure that each new location and story brings. My crew and I have grown tremendously as investigators, and the series has evolved with new and innovative investigations that excite our loyal viewers to keep tuning in."

"Ghost Adventures" also was a top performing show on TravelChannel.com throughout October, generating 75 percent year-over-year growth in its show content page views. Social media fans really loved the ghosts too. Facebook videos pegged to the "Ghost Adventures" Halloween specials attracted nearly 1 million video views with 9,300 shares; Zak Bagans' October 26 Facebook Live event produced 287,300 views and 66,700 total reactions. An official "Ghost Adventures" Instagram account was launched in October with 7,500 followers to date.

"We're blown away with the success 'Ghost Adventures' saw this month," said Courtney White, senior vice president, programming, Travel Channel, Food Network and Cooking Channel. "Zak and his team bring all of the thrills and spooky adventures fans especially look for this time of year, and in a big way. They continue to top themselves year after year, and audiences can't get enough."

"Ghost Adventures" follows Bagans and his team of paranormal investigators as they explore haunted destinations around the world. In the "Hauntings of Vicksburg" episodes, the team investigated the haunting impact the Civil War's Siege of Vicksburg has had on the city. The Halloween specials - "Museum of Madness" and "Annabelle's Curse" - centered around Bagans' newly opened Las Vegas Haunted Museum, housing his personal collection of haunted objects including the famously haunted doll, Annabelle.

A new season of "Ghost Adventures" begins Saturday, November 4 at 9 p.m. ET/PT.

ABOUT TRAVEL CHANNEL: For virtual and active travelers who want to go on a thrilling quest; taste other cultures; enjoy the mystery of the unexplored; get a dose of epic adventure or a splash of wacky fun; there is no better daily escape than Travel Channel. Reaching more than 83 million U.S. cable homes, Travel Channel is the world's leading travel media brand. Fans also can visit Travel Channel for more information or interact with other fans through Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest and Instagram. Headquartered in Knoxville, Tennessee, Travel Channel is owned by Scripps Networks Interactive, Inc., which also owns and operates HGTV, DIY Network, Food Network, Cooking Channel and Great American Country.



Videos