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October is one of the BEST months. The air is getting crisp, the scarves and fall sweaters are coming out of storage, and DUH… Halloween!
Halloween is a holiday that we celebrate with carved pumpkins, fun (and sometimes scary) costumes, and trick or treating. But did you know, the holiday originated WAYYYY back (like 2,000 years back), with a Celtic celebration called Samhain. The Celts (who lived in what is now Ireland, the UK, and northern France) would light bonfires and dress up in scary costumes to ward away ghosts. So, basically, the Irish invented Halloween.
There are many things you can do for Halloween in Ireland! If you don’t mind getting a scare, there are definitely plenty of things for you. But, if you are like me, and Hocus Pocus is the scariest movie you can handle, there are also some great things going on for you too!
Try a Scary Bus Tour
If spooky ghost stories don’t scare you, and you don’t mind a little blood and gore, try out one of the Halloween bus tours. Both of these companies are similar, but their itineraries are a little bit different.
The Ghostbus has turned a Dublin Bus into an old Victorian theater where their actors (or are they?) talk about the dark history of Dublin and then take you to a hidden cemetery under Dublin Castle.
The Gravedigger bus tour is another fan favorite. It’s a post-apocalyptic tour of Dublin, with a few historic stops, and the last one being the famous Gravedigger Pub for a free drink! They’ve also recently launched a Zombie bus, complete with VR headsets.
Go Pumpkin Picking
Pumpkin picking is one of my favorite Halloween activities no matter what country I’m in! While Ireland doesn’t have nearly as many pumpkin patches as the USA, Ireland does have a few peppered around where you can go and experience all the fall things!
Ballycross Apple Orchard is located about a 2 hour drive from Dublin. During the month of October, you can pop in and buy all the apple things (like cider or bundles of apples), but you can also pick out your Halloween carving pumpkin!
Alright Pumpkin is another really great option if you need to find a pumpkin! They base their patch on patches they visited in the USA and actually grow all the pumpkins right there in their pumpkin patch. They are located less than an hour from Dublin and their pumpkins start at 5 EUR.
Bram Stoker Festival
Bram Stoker is best known as the author of the 1897 novel, Dracula. The Bram Stoker Festival honoring him in Dublin is one of the biggest (non-music) festivals in Ireland! During the weekend before Halloween, the Dublin City Council and Failte Ireland coordinates events all weekend celebrating the dark, gothic, and super-natural. From Seances to scary story telling to outdoor horror film showings, there are so many spooky things to do!
Macnas Parade
The Macnas Parade is one is one of my favorite events that happens for Halloween in Ireland. Macnas is a production company that puts on large-scale, interactive performances all over the world. Every year, they perform a BEAUTIFUL parade through the streets of Galway. Think of Cirque du Soleil mixed with the Macy’s Thanksgiving Parade all in a dark, Halloween theme. It’s an event not to be missed!
