A place with a ghastly historic castle overlooking idyllic ocean with the sound of water gushing the shore amidst pin drop silence and isolation, surrounded by deciduous trees that look haunting, every time you look at them, is what comes to my mind when I think of a Halloween night. And if that place had a name, I couldn’t think of a better fit than Ireland. Which makes sense since its home of Halloween and its traditions of Jack O Lanterns, Foretelling Fortune, Halloween masks and costumes. Halloween in Ireland is more about discovering the origins of its Celtic past than anything else!
Now doesn’t that sound like a Halloween experience you would like to have?
Not convinced yet?
Read on…
Puca festival, a must on Halloween in Ireland!
Yes, Ireland has a three day Halloween festival! Three days of music, film, story telling, light installation and much more! Puca festival is inspired from Irish folklore, the historic locations, delicious food and its amazing line up of events.
Festival starts from 6:00PM each day, this year it is in Drogedha. You can find more information on it here.
Walk to the Hellfire Club at night!
Montpelier Hill also known as Hellfire Club boasts one of the most epic views of Dublin. Speaker Conolly, one of the wealthiest man of Ireland, blew up the cairn on top of the hill to build a lodge. The scary tales started after the roof of the lodge was blown away by a storm. The locals were sure that spirits were seeking revenge for destroying the cairn.
You can go inside and catch the sunset from the house on Halloween and sit gazing at the sparkling Dublin lights from here, if you get out of the house safe 😉
Night tours of Wicklow Gaol
Wicklow Gaol is a former prison and now a museum. It is a reflection of how prisoners were tortured to starvation, death and much more. There are now walking night tours here which I believe is a great way to bring in Halloween. You can choose from its paranormal tour or night tour!
Whichever you think would scare you more!
Haunted walk in Kilkenny
Kilkenny in my opinion tops all the places in terms of being uncanny. The vibe of the town screams of a mysterious adventure. The castles and its ghostly stories, the streets, the cemetery by the church and much more!
Head to River Nore, where 16 poor souls drowned here after a bridge they were crossing on, collapsed. Apparently, you can still hear their moans coming from under the water at night!
Sounds good enough?
Not yet?
There’s more…
Drive to Doonagore Castle
The beautiful Doonagore Castle shines bright during the day, under the reflection of the sun and scenic ocean in the backdrop. As wonderful as it sounds, the night is equally scary!
I was alone when I drove here for the first time and felt absolutely amazed by the quirkiness of it. The steep drive to the castle, the sharp curve, narrow road with no soul around would definitely make it to my top 10 list of the most scariest drives in Ireland, thus making it a must for a Halloween in Ireland.
Loftus Hall, if you can dare!
It is supposedly the most haunted house of Ireland! This place was blessed by the devil himself on a stormy night on a game of cards. And people only noticed him when his blood soaked hooves were spotted following another player’s dropped card.
You can check their openings for Halloween tours. Their offerings are too tempting to miss to have a real Halloween experience.
What do you think of that now?
A drive to Castle Freke Castle!
This would make 1st on my list of the most scary drives of Ireland. On my way to the Castle which as per GPS was only 10 minutes away, I found myself driving on an unkempt marsh road, getting stuck with no point of return, freaking out of my mind and it wasn’t even Halloween!
The Castle Freke Castle located in the remotest part of West Cork is definitely a must for a Halloween in Ireland. The castle is not open to public as its now undergoing restoration, which makes it a perfect stop to share your Halloween stories!
I hope now I have successfully convinced you to pick Ireland for your next Halloween. You would probably leave with an immersive experience and end up doing something more than just getting drunk and partying hard, which is not a bad option if in any of the ghostly pub/club of Ireland 😉
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