It’s a Scream: Scotland & Halloween 2023

As autumn arrives, thoughts turn to walks wrapped up in cosy jumpers, crunchy leaves, eating warm pumpkin soup & drinking hot chocolate, and spooky stories.

Scotland has its own selection of spooky tales - from the ‘ghosts’ of city graveyards, to tales of witchcraft and body-snatching; one of the best ways to find out about them is in a city walking tour.

Movies like Halloween (1978) might have popularised pumpkin-carving globally; Scotland has some top pumpkin-picking spots, as well as a couple for the traditional Scottish turnip too.

Wicked city walking tours

Gothic Glasgow Join sinister host, Vincent ‘The Man in the Hat’ for a must-do walking tour, Gothic Glasgow, revealing the ghostly, strange and creepy history of the city. ‘Meet’ the ghosts of Glasgow and enter the macabre world of body-snatching with these spine-chilling tales. Tour begins @8pm, Wed-Sun, April-Dec 2023 outside Kings Theatre, Bath Street, Glasgow City Centre (10 mins from Buchanan Galleries) and ends on Queen Street (close to George Square). Price: £12 per person (£10 each for groups of 20 or more). Tours run daily at 8pm, except for Monday and Tuesday evenings, and last for 1 hour 45mins. Book online: www.gothicglasgow.com

Free Ghost Tour with City Explorers, Edinburgh Edinburgh is known as one of the most haunted cities in Europe, with a past of murders, witchcraft and plague. Its wynds and closes have witnessed the two sides of the city: beauty and horror. Edinburgh’s dark side also included body snatching, public executions, gruesome jails and tortures. Come to the FREE 1.5 hour Ghost Tour and hear ghostly tales and sinister stories that will transport visitors back to the terrifying past of old Edinburgh, walking through spooky shadows and haunted alleyways. Highlights include the most haunted graveyard in Scotland as well as stories of the Edinburgh witch trials. Price: Free (groups of 14 or more can book a private tour); Tours daily at 7pm, meeting at 154 High Street, Edinburgh; booking online recommended: https://freeghosttour.com/

Aberdeen Dark History Audio Tour From body-snatching and beheadings to witchcraft and whippings, learn the real-life stories of crime and punishment in Aberdeen from the last 500 years. This audio tour takes chill-seekers on a 3 km walk around the city centre of Aberdeen, taking in many of the oldest surviving parts of the city. It takes 45 minutes without stopping but can be paused when required (the audio plays automatically at exactly the right time and place using your smart phone’s GPS and the VoiceMap mobile app, which also works offline). Along the way see major Aberdeen landmarks, from Marischal College to the Mercat Cross, and learn how they were witness to some of the most shocking moments in the city’s past. Visitors will hear tales from the darkest chapters in Aberdeen’s history, shedding a light on the baffling and often unjust laws of the last five centuries – and revealing that past is not as far away as we think. Price: £5.60 (available on iTunes and Google Play via the VoiceMap app, also available on the Voicemap website) For more information: http://scotfreetours.com/aberdeen-dark-history

History and Horror Tour of Perth Discover stories of Perth’s dark, often gruesome and sometimes spooky past on this walking tour of the ‘Fair City’. Join the team as they walk the dark streets and closes of the historic city of Perth, telling terrible tales heading to the final spooky destination - a haunted graveyard. Price: £11.55 per person. Friday at 8pm; meet at Horsecross Plaza (outside Perth Concert Hall), Perth. Book online at www.historyandhorrortours.com/fundraiser

Stirling GhostWalk Stirling’s Old Town was once described as ‘the most densely populated supernatural square mile in all of Scotland’. The Stirling GhostWalk has been a popular tourist attraction in the Royal Burgh’s Old Town area for twenty five years, offering a distinctive mix of comedy, drama and storytelling to visitors to Stirling. Featuring Hangman’s Close, Auld Kirkyard and Beheading Stone on Gowan Hill, the GhostWalk is a way of giving the lesser known characters and attractions in the city a moment in the spotlight. Price: Adult £8, child £6; Meet at the gates of the Old Town Jail, St John Street and depart from there. Book online: www.stirlingghostwalk.com The tour takes around 75 minutes to complete - a little longer or shorter, depending on the size of the audience.

For more city walking tour ideas, check out the VisitScotland website.

Scotland’s special Halloween events

Waking The Witch, Dumfries Friday, 27 October 2023 The dark days of the witch trials left a powerful mark on the town of Dumfries. At the height of the persecutions, at least 78 people were accused of witchcraft, with many more affected in the wider region. Join award-winning storytellers, Mostly Ghostly, at this special event as they reawaken a collection of historical, thought-provoking accounts, through layers of rich narrative and first-hand dramatisations, exploring cases of alleged witchcraft and their devastating human consequences. This features a visit to Dumfries Museum and the Old Bridge House Museum, where guests will have the opportunity to view intriguing artefacts connected to the witch-hunting era, and consider the impact of key historical events that occurred in view of the Old Bridge, including a haunting account of five women transferred to Kirkcudbright to await trial, where they would be imprisoned in the ‘dark dungeon’ of Kirkcudbright Tolbooth. Price: £14 adult, £12 (under 16; Age Guide: 12 years and above) Booking essential: facebook.com/mostlyghostlytours; Enquiries: 07791 047835.

Dunfermline Interactive Ghost Walk Scotland Saturday, 28 October 2023 Once Scotland’s ancient capital Dunfermline - close to the north shore of the Firth of Forth - occupies an especially important place in the nation’s history. As the last resting place of over 20 of Scotland’s Kings and Queens, the Abbey at Dunfermline houses the tomb of one of the greatest heroes in Scottish history, King Robert the Bruce. Dunfermline Abbey was built on what was once a Benedictine Monastery built in 1128. The grounds and surrounding streets are known to be a very haunted location where many have seen a procession of monks walking together between St Catherine’s Wynd and Monastery Street late at night. On this special tour (which is sold out for dates in September) find out about the darker side of the city’s history. Price: £10; book online: https://hauntingnightsghostwalks.co.uk/event/dunfermline-interactive-ghost-walk/

Dark Side Walking Tour, Inverness SPECIAL HALLOWEEN EVENT - limited tickets available 28-31 October 2023 Back for the second year after a sell-out in 2022, visitors can walk in the footsteps of murderers, executioners, and malicious fairies on this after-dark Halloween tour of Inverness. The 1.5-hour special event will bring the dark past to life: from horrific executions at the High Church to eerie apparitions in Eden Court and of course, bloody castle sieges. Price: £15 per person; book online: www.walkingtoursin.com/invernessdarkside

Ghosts of Glamis, Glamis Castle, Angus 26-31 October 2023 Said to be one of the most haunted places in Scotland, Glamis Castle has a brand-new tour for 2023 offering visitors the chance to hear the spooky tales of its many majestic rooms. After that, spooks fans can head outside to explore a light trail into the vast and very dark gardens and grounds surrounding the castle. Suitable for both adults and children, tours will run in the evenings from 6pm-9pm. Price: Adult, £17; child (age 5-16), £12. Book online: https://www.glamis-castle.co.uk/event/ghosts-of-glamis-2023-2/

Samhain Celebrations @ The Trimontium Museum, Melrose, Scottish Borders Saturday, 28 & Sunday, 29 October 2023 Join in some Halloween fun at the Trimontium Museum. Learn about Samhain traditions and how they influence modern day Halloween customs. Storyteller Nicola Agricola will be in attendance on Saturday, 28 October to share stories of the ancient Samhain traditions in Scotland, especially the grisly and gruesome ones! Suitable for the whole family, there will also be craft activities, costumed characters, turnips, storytelling and Celtic face painting. Activities free with entry to the museum. See www.trimontium.co.uk for more information.

Find out more Halloween events in Scotland in 2023 at www.visitscotland.com/things-to-do/events/halloween/annual-events

Pick of the pumpkins (and some turnips too)

PumpkinFest, Broadslap Farm, Perthshire 7 to 29 October 2023 Patch-goers can choose from a selection of shapes and sizes and simply pay for their picks followed by a cosy cuppa or bite to eat in Broadslap’s café or a run around in the play barn for the kids. Free bookings can be made for arrivals every 10 minutes. There is plenty of free parking and pups are welcome too as the patch at Broadslap is dog friendly. Price: Free to visit; book online at https://broadslapfruitfarm.co.uk/broadslap-pumpkinfest

Pumpkin Picking at Clackmae Farm, Scottish Borders 13-16, 18, 20-29 October 2023 Situated between the towns of Lauder, Melrose and Earlston in the Scottish Borders, visitors can ‘pick their own’ pumpkins as well as take advantage of the additional carving workshops. There is also a maize maze, ‘paint your pumpkin’ sessions and dressing up is encouraged, so dig out a witches’ hat and get the whole family along for a day of fun. Price: £11.26 per car to visit; book online here.

Westerton Farmers, Aberdeenshire Westerton Farmers is a family run farm in the North East of Scotland, only 35 minutes south of Aberdeen. In October, along with their pumpkin picking event, Westerton Farmers also hold a harvest market, which involves local businesses selling their produce and activities for the kids. Visitors can also head to the spud hut, which sells potatoes, carrots, turnips, and other vegetables. As well as locally sourced beef, fresh bread and jams, marmalades and chutneys. For more information about visiting, go to:https://westertonfarmers.co.uk/events/#pyo

Balgone Estate, North Berwick, East Lothian Various dates in October 2023 Possibly Scotland’s largest pumpkin patch, Balgone’s pumpkin-picking is back in 2023 with over 50,000 pumpkins & squashes in 27 distinct varieties across 10 acres. What’s more, there is a Haunted Trail which will take visitors on a 2km adventure around the beautiful lake. Guests can also check out the Crooked Cauldron and indulge in treats including toasted marshmallows on offer by the lakeside. Price: £10 per car for access to pumpkin patch, haunted trail, catering; book online: https://balgoneestate.co.uk/bookings

For other options for pumpkin picking and other ‘Pick your own’ options in 2023, go to: www.goruralscotland.com For more details on things to do this Halloween, go to: https://www.visitscotland.com/things-to-do/events/halloween