Creepy castles, spooky stately homes and eerie ruins, the UK has hordes of haunted buildings that are steeped in ghostly myths and chilling legends. There are also a raft of hair-raising Halloween festivals and spine-tingling special events happening around the country that promise plenty of thrills for young and old. Here's our pick of the best…

2022 marks the 125th anniversary of Bram Stoker’s horror classic, Dracula, and there can be no better place to celebrate than at Whitby Abbey, the novel’s inspirational Gothic backdrop. English Heritage will be illuminating the Abbey ruins to eerie effect from 21-31 October. There will be live performances of the story of Dracula, costumed characters prowling the grounds, and market stalls peddling hot drinks and spooky souvenirs. The Whitby Goth Weekend also takes place on 28-30 October.

Prepare to be terrified. Bolsover Castle's ghost tours (running from 27-31 October) will take you back in time to explore the murky recesses of this English Heritage property and its grounds. Storytellers will regale you with tales of supernatural sightings and horrors from the history books. Remember to bring your own torch, because the ghost tours only happen after dark, outside of the castle’s usual opening hours. By day, Dennis, Gnasher and comic heroes from The Beano host kids at the spooky and silly Halloween Half Term event, from 22-30 October.

Scare yourself silly by visiting Henry VIII’s notoriously haunted palace at the spookiest time of the year. Hampton Court Palace's chilling Halloween tours bring the spirit world to life with atmospheric projections and creepy sound effects, from 22-30 October. See the portraits come to life in the Gallery of the Damned and take part in a spine-tingling séance in the old Council Chambers. It’s family-friendly, spooky fun, but if you want to be scared witless, join the terrifying after-dark experience on 28 and 29 October.

Stand on the wind-whipped shingle beach of Dunwich and you can hear the old church bells of a lost city chiming. Or so it's said. Dunwich was once a thriving Anglo-Saxon town that was claimed by the sea as a series of storms and cliff erosion hit the town in the 13th and 14th centuries. Learn about the city's tragic demise at the fascinating Dunwich Museum and be sure to visit the atmospheric ruins of Greyfriars Monastery too.

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Giant inflatable ghoulish figures will invade Manchester as some of its most iconic buildings glow a ghastly green and monsters descend from the rooftops during the city's Halloween festivities on 25-30 October. There will also be spooky DJs, live performances and a storytelling stage, plus fancy dress challenges, a monster parade and fairground fun at the Carnival of Monsters.

For more brilliant things to do in Manchester, check out our guide here

Follow in the footsteps of the notorious Pendle Witches on this figure-of-eight walking trail that explores their harrowing story. The trail starts in the village of Barley and takes in the brooding Pendle Hill, long associated with supernatural occurrences. You could also visit Lancaster Castle, where the 12 women and girls were trialled and sent to the gallows as part of the shocking 17th-century witch hunt.

Prepare for a night of horrors as you follow in the footsteps of notorious Victorian serial killer, Jack the Ripper, through the lanes and alleys of London's East End. Travelling by both foot and coach, you'll also hear hair-raising stories from Theatre Royal Drury Lane and of Fleet Street's notorious blood-thirsty barber. As you head east to Jack's stomping ground, Whitechapel, you'll have a chance to form your own theories of who he could have been, with discussion over a well-deserved fish and chip supper at the end of the tour.

The Halloween Masked Ball in Cornwall is one of the largest Halloween parties in Europe, taking place at Flambards Theme Park near Helston in south Cornwall. You’ll need to dress appropriately to fit in at this all-night adult party where flamboyant costumes and stamina are de rigueur. Expect DJs, dancing, rides and live shows throughout the night. This year it takes place on 5 November at 'Los Flambardos' from 6pm until 6am with overnight camping available.

The one-time medieval fortress and Elizabethan palace is hosting ghost tours in celebration of All Hallows' Eve. A spooky storyteller will lead daring visitors on a journey filled with tales of ghostly apparitions and gruesome goings-on, suitable only for those aged 16+. These are outdoor evening tours around the property’s Elizabethan Garden, and they last around 45 minutes, so remember to wear suitable clothes and shoes and to bring a torch.

Alton Towers’ annual Halloween event, Scarefest, celebrates its 15th anniversary this year from 14 to 31 October, so get ready to scream extra loud. Their three multi-award-winning scare mazes return, along with a ‘new for 2022’ attraction, The Invitation. Lakeside Cemetery’s funeral director leads you into the burial chambers for a grave experience, where some coffins are already filled… and some await new guests. The park will be open until 9pm each day so you can also go on rollercoasters and experiences after dark, including the already-scary Wicker Man, and the Alton Towers Dungeon.

Anne Boleyn's childhood home will be overrun with little witches, warlocks and ghouls this October for its Halloween Half Term Fun celebrations. Kids are encouraged to dress up in spooky costumes and then head out on an outdoor Halloween treasure hunt, outwitting witches, bats and skeletons to win a prize. Rumour has it that Hagrid’s spider pal, Aragog, has even set up a lair in the castle’s gorgeous grounds.

Check out brilliant and free family days out in Britain for this autumn

Situated at the foot of the North Downs in Kent, Pluckley has a population of just over a thousand living souls — plus 15 ghosts. Yes, despite its chocolate-box appeal by day, Pluckley was included in the 1989 Guinness World Records as ‘The Most Haunted Village in England.’ Investigate the hauntings for yourself this Halloween by searching for the spectral highwayman at Fright Corner, the hanged headmaster of Screaming Woods (AKA Dering Wood), and the infamous White Lady in the graveyard at St Nicholas Church. If you lose your nerve, you can always nip for a pint in the Black Horse… allegedly Kent's most haunted pub.

It's not surprising that this wild, remote and eerily beautiful landscape in the Highlands is steeped in tales of strange and spooky sightings. With its peat bogs, lochs and heather hillocks, it's long been associated with stories of bewitching fairies and ghost dogs that lurk in the shadows. Take a Halloween hike here if you dare.

Countless terrifying tales and spooky shadows lurk down the cobbled alleys, gloomy lanes and in the old pubs of this ancient walled city. York embraces its reputation as one of Europe's most haunted cities with scores of ghost walk tours and heaps of Halloween happenings. There's the Great York Ghost Hunt that takes place each night at 7.30pm from The Shambles, while York Dungeon is conducting a Séance Halloween Show from 26 September to 6 November.

Reportedly the most haunted National Trust property in Wales, Newton House will be hosting ghostly activities for people of all ages. Dress up and join after-dark torchlight tours to hear the tragic tale of Lady Eleanor, who was strangled in the children's nursery, and sniff out the ghost of Walter, the 7th Baron Dynevor, who apparently smokes his pipe on a Sunday. If you stand beside his portrait, you can reportedly smell the tobacco… but only on a Sunday.

You may feel as if you're being followed as you hike around Claife Heights at dusk (if you believe the local legend that is). The story goes that the ferrymen at Ferry Nab would hear strange calls for the boat to come across the water on stormy nights. Most were too afraid to go. But one night a young ferryman rowed across only to return so terrified that he couldn't speak and died the next day. A monk was sent to exorcise the ghost – he confined the so-called Crier of Claife to the quarry and woods where it apparently remains today.

Take a walk around this little Derbyshire village to discover its fascinating and pitiful history after the bubonic plague struck in 1665. Eyam was devastated by the so-called Black Death after a flea-infested cloth was delivered from London to a local tailor. Within the week, the tailor's assistant had died and many others swiftly succumbed. In an attempt to stop the spread, the local clergyman quarantined the villagers for 14 months. You can still see the Boundary Stone that was set in place.

Inside this stately pile in Norfolk lurks a hidden secret, specifically within its gloomy Gothic-style library. It's said that the ghost of William Windham III, who inherited the Hall in 1749, haunts the room. A great bookworm, William died after risking his life to save books at a friend's library in London and sustaining serious injuries. The ancient Great Wood within the estate is also said to be haunted. Spectres aside, they're also a riot of autumnal colours at this time of year.

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Bodmin Jail’s Halloween ’Go Darker’ Heritage Tour (17-31 October) will take guests on a grisly journey from the gallows to the grave, and from the anatomy table to the gibbet cage. Discover why the condemned were once executed at the crossroads, when the last prisoner was displayed in chains, and where the bodies of the condemned are still buried. On the 31 October itself, from 7pm to midnight, Bodmin Jail will host an intimate, authentic Victorian séance, including dinner, scrying, an Ouija board and the first séance to be conducted in the original women’s wing of the prison for over 150 years.

Built by the Normans within a Neolithic henge monument, Knowlton Church near Wimborne is an unusual place. It's no great surprise then that all manner of spirits are said to lurk about the creepy church ruins and prehistoric landscape. There have been reported sightings of a phantom horse and rider, a weeping nun and a tall cloaked figure dressed in black. Whether you spot them or not, it's a strangely moving place with its pagan and Christian significance.

Explore notorious, historic sites such as Traitors' Gate, the Scaffold Site and the Bloody Tower this Halloween and you just might come face-to-face with the Tower’s most infamous inmates. Watched over by the beady eyes of the Tower’s famous ravens, you can experience family-friendly, spooky projections and eerie sound effects that will bring the undead back to life between 22-31 October. Listen carefully and you might hear the whisperings of Sir Walter Raleigh brewing deadly elixirs or spot the spirit of Anne Boleyn, stuck in the moment that changed her life forever.

From Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde to Harry Potter, the ancient streets and historic buildings of Edinburgh have inspired many mysterious stories. Take a walk on the city's wicked side to discover real-life tales of gruesome goings-on during a late-night guided tour through its creepiest corners. The Real Mary King’s Close is running two new tours for the Halloween season. Nestled underneath Edinburgh’s Royal Mile, visitors will be immersed in some of Edinburgh’s darkest history with the True Crime and Lantern Led tours.

The granddaddy of the UK’s Halloween haunts, Shocktober Fest returns in 2022 to celebrate 26 years of screams. Running each night from 20 September to 5 November, Tulleys Farm transforms into a horrifying land of dazzling special effects, immersive scenery, live actors and a hell of an atmosphere. With nine terrifying haunts (including two new for this year) filled with witches, demons, dangerous inmates, possessed souls and chainsaw-wielding rednecks, there’s plenty to keep your pulse racing. Then, of course, there’s the legendary Haunted Hayride, blood-curdling burlesque shows, street theatre, fireworks, fairground rides, live music…

Over the course of 15 terrifying nights in October, Screamfest brings five hair-raising attractions filled with over 130 live actors ready to shock your socks off. Expect hillbilly zombies, killer clowns, nightmarish mazes, fairground rides, street-food stalls, live music, stilt walkers, fire breathers and freakshow acts. Screamfest is aimed at grown-ups looking for extreme scares, so that means licensed bars, and kids under the age of 16 will not be admitted without a responsible adult.

Do you want to play a game? Well, you’re in luck because a brand new, multi-room escape experience comes to the capital this October until December, with the kind of production values you’d expect when working in partnership with Lionsgate and Twisted Pictures. In teams of six, strong-stomached visitors can test their mettle and morals against the evil killer, Jigsaw. There are two paths to redemption to choose from, each demanding you take on heart-stopping tasks in 90-minute challenges. The Jigsaw A route is wheelchair accessible.

At 1.2 miles (2km) in length, and taking over the abandoned Camelot theme park on selected dates between 30 September and 31 October, Scare City Experience claims to be the world's longest walkthrough outdoor horror attraction. With 12 terrifying zones to explore, this two-hour, fully immersive experience will be haunted by live actors hell-bent on terrorising you, and lurking in the likes of Scare Village, Knightmare Alley, the Forest of Fears and the Medieval Murder Zone.

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Set in an 85-acre woodland park Norfolk, PrimEVIL boasts of being the biggest scare attraction in the east of England, with five terrifying haunts luring visitors into realms of terror. Hell’s Hollow is a psychological blindfold experience, the Mayhem Manor Hotel disorientates with mazes-within-mazes and endless corridors, while entering The Crypt is dead certain to awake centuries-old corpses. There are also unusual extra thrills in the forms of ‘zombie archery’ and axe-throwing. The event runs from 14-31 October and is only suitable for over 12s. Under 16s must be accompanied by an adult.

Celebrating its 21st anniversary, Thorpe Park’s terrifying Fright Nights are back until 31 October. Not only can you ride the Saw rollercoaster after dark, but – taking over the Island within the theme park – there will be three scare mazes, scare zones and live shows. Along with two fan-favourite mazes from previous years, 2022 sees the launch of the blood-curdling Survival Games: an intense, indoor, multi-route scare maze, and The Terminal, an immersive attraction that transports visitors into deep space.

Think Halloween is an American invention? Head to County Meath in Ireland from 28-31 October to learn about the real origins of the spooky season: Samhain. The old Irish word for 'summer’s end', Samhain marks the end of the harvest season, when shape-shifting spirit, Púca, roams the night, changing the fortunes of those that cross her path. Vibrant and contemporary, but still strongly rooted in tradition, Púca Festival takes place in the towns of Trim and Athboy for three days of music, myth, food and merriment against castle walls and historic backdrops. Expect traditional ceremonies and celebrations alongside high-profile live musicians and comedy acts.

Kit the kids out in their best witch, wizard or pumpkin costumes and head along to Horniman Museum & Gardens in southeast London for their excellent annual Halloween Fair on 29 October this year. Join in on the fun with face painting, then march in the fancy dress parade, before enjoying close-up magic, inflatable slides and rides, a Halloween craft workshop, Halloween treasure hunt and a science spectacular that features witches cauldrons, fire bubbles and vomiting jack o’ lanterns.

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