Your ultimate Halloween events guide: ancient vampires, prowling dragons and a giant newt called Alf
From city parades to haunted houses, pumpkin patches to spooky trails, use our interactive map to discover Halloween events happening across Ireland this Halloween
From school discos and spooky trails to full-on festivals and spectacular parades, every town and village across Ireland has something planned to mark this most thrilling and terrifying time of the year.
Find events in your area with our interactive map
To find out what’s happening in your county over the coming days, simply click on our interactive map above.
Major city celebrations
A previous Dragon of Shandon parade in Cork. Photo: Jim Rocks
As part of Samhain Festival in Limerick, the Lumen Street Theatre’s Fire and Shadows Parade will wind its way through the city’s medieval quarter on Saturday, October 26, while in Galway, Macnas are calling on locals to come help them welcome a new character, Alf the Giant Newt, to the City of the Tribes. Alf will make his way to Eyre Square on Saturday, October 27, before travelling on to this new home in The Claddagh on Sunday evening.
In Waterford, another Samhain Festival will take place under the watchful eye of An Dearg Dua, a 2,000-year-old female vampire with blinding Déise connections. One of the highlights of the festival will be tonight’s ‘Fire and Shadows’ procession by Spraoi – who will present another procession on Monday, October 28, as part of Longford’s Dead of Night Festival.
In Cork, thousands are expected to line the parade route on October 31 as the Dragon of Shandon appears to prowl the streets with a legion of loyal ghouls, beasts, misfits and demons to celebrate the ancient tradition of Samhain.
Haunted attractions and landmarks
The terrifying Farmaphobia returns in Meath.
The ever-terrifying Farmaphobia returns in Meath with the warning to “be afraid, be very afraid”, while the popular, family-friendly Halloween spook-tacular is back at Rathwood in Carlow.
Well-known landmarks are also getting in on the act: there are lantern-led tours of Hook Lighthouse in Wexford, a Gates of Hell tour at Wicklow Gaol, spooky celebrations at Dublin Zoo, After Dark at Emerald Park in Meath and a paranormal investigation at the Mansion House in Dublin.
Bunratty Castle in Clare is about to be overrun by ‘Monsters, Misfits and Mayhem’ and there’s a haunted train on the lose at Beyond the Trees in Wicklow, while the Ballyvoyle Tunnel on the popular Waterford Greenway is about to get a macabre makeover.
Even the hallowed halls of Atlantic Technological University Sligo aren’t safe, with zombies and creatures of the night taking over for the ATU Haunting.
Historic houses and haunted trails
Ghosts of the Manor at Rockfield House in Kells, Co Meath is one of several Halloween festivities which will be on offer this bank holiday weekend across the Royal County.
The historic grounds of many ‘big houses’ will provide the suitably spooky backdrop for a number of events. Belvedere House in Westmeath will host a Halloween treasure trail, while a ‘Tall Dark Tree Trail’ is happening at Emo Court and Parklands in Laois. There’s a haunted trail to follow at Palmerstown House in Kildare, spooky stories and a candlelit walk at Russborough in Wicklow, and The Haunting of Rossmore Park in Monaghan.
The Ghosts of the Manor are rattling around Rockfield House in Meath, while there is a Halloween haunting at the King House in Roscommon and spooky Halloween tales at Parkes Castle in Leitrim.
Halloween festivals nationwide
Dublin’s Bram Stoker Festival is back later this month
The Bram Stoker Festival returns, bringing four days and nights of deadly adventures to Dublin, while in Monaghan, the brand new Festival of Dracula is set to take place. In Kilkenny, two separate festivals turn the focus on witches and witchcraft: the Toil and Trouble Festival and the Alice Kyteler Festival.
Countless other festivals will take place across the country this weekend, including Halloween Fest in Donegal, Spleodar Halloween Arts Festival in Tipperary, the Liberties Haunt Halloween Festival in Dublin, Púca Spooka in Offaly and the Kenmare Halloween Howl in Kerry.
Family-friendly activities and light shows
Lú Festival of Light takes place in Drogheda, Co Louth, at Halloween.
For those who like their celebrations more magical than monstrous, both the Lú Festival of Light and Adventure Lights at Skypark begin this weekend in Louth.
Spending a fun-filled few hours picking out the perfect pumpkin has never been easier thanks to the popularity of pumpkin patches and the growing number of experiences on offer. ‘Boo! on the Farm’ at Leahy’s farm in Cork, Hughes Farming Pumpkin Festival in Kilkenny, the Currachase Pumpkin Patch in Limerick, Illies Pumpkin Patch in Donegal and Tonagh Pumpkin Hollow in Cavan are just a handful of what’s available.
Funtasia in Drogheda will host a pumpkin patch festival or why not avail of the donkey tour at Clissmann Horse Caravans in Wicklow and have your four-legged friend help you find the ideal squash?
There are lots of pumpkin patches and pumpkin experiences taking place in 2024. Photo: Getty Images.
From Limerick’s Scare Factory to Nightmare on Church Street in Mayo, and from murder mystery orienteering in Galway to Waterford’s Spooky Express, the creative minds of Ireland have pulled out all the stops to ensure a bewitching bank holiday weekend for all ages.
What else would you expect from the home of Halloween?
