THE OLD traditions of Samhain with some fun modern twists will be celebrated this Halloween at Bunratty Castle and Folk Park.
Time travelling twists, creepy crypts and pagan roots are all part of Bunratty’s plans during a special Halloween festival to mark the traditional Irish Samhain.
This Halloween midterm, Bunratty Castle & Folk Park is inviting visitors to come and experience Samhain from October 29 to November 2.
Bunratty Castle and Folk Park Events Manager Marie Brennan outlined a flavour of what to expect during the mid-term festivities.
“Halloween is always an exciting time for us here at Bunratty Castle and Folk Park, with lots of activities for all the family to enjoy, from the Creepy Crypt, and “Head Will Roll and Thriller” mini disco to the Halloween Spook Train ride, and our Fearsome Fairy Village where unpleasant creatures abide.”
In fact the team has been busy getting ready for some weeks and has enlisted the help of local school children to make the castle and folk park extra spooky.
“In the weeks leading up to Halloween, primary schools from the local area have been busy creating life-sized scarecrows which we will have on display in the park over midterm for our Scarecrow Competition,” said Marie.
“We will be asking visitors to rate their favourite scarecrow based on design, originality & of course “scary-ness”. The school with the winning scarecrow will receive a special prize.
“We are also asking out visitors to get creative and dress in costume, to join the village characters who will be dressed in traditional Halloween attire.”
Visitors are advised to be on the lookout for the weird and wacky creepy characters who could just appear out of nowhere, among them the Frankenstein, The Minister of Death, an escaped convict and terrifying witches on the prowl.
Visitors to the park, will hear from the Bean an Tígh, who will explain the types of food that typically would have been eaten in Samhain of old, including homemade Apple Pies, Brambrack, a slice of which must be left outside before you go to bed so that any passing Faeries or Spirits may feast as well as bestow good luck upon your household.
Some of the fairies of Bunratty Folk Park have got into the Halloween spirit and have transformed their magical fairy village into a frighting forest for all to enjoy. Beware of creepy creatures lurking and hanging behind trees, gruesome gravestones and petrifying pumpkins at every turn, it is sure to keep the littlest of monsters entertained.
The Samhain activities at Bunratty Castle and Folk Park run from Saturday October 29 to Wednesday November 2. Tickets are now on sale on www.bunrattycastle.ie/halloween.