Spread across four days and nights, the Púca Halloween Festival transforms Trim and Athboy into a hive of Halloween activity celebrating Samhain and the Celtic new year. This year’s attractions include live performances from Blindboy, The 2 Johnnies, The High Kings and Block Rockin Beats & Groove Armada DJ, a mischievous night with the Samhain Circus, and a comedy drag act by Davina Devine. The Harvest Market, Púca Procession and more will bring Irish mythology to life and round off what will be a packed festival.

Best for: Adults, with some family events. Mixture of free and ticketed events.

Various venues, Athboy and Trim, Co Meath. October 30 – November 2.

Ireland's reputation as the home of Halloween lies in Samhain, the ancient Celtic festival marking the end of the harvest and ushering in winter. This year, you can embrace the darkness with a bit of light at Samhain Fire and Shadows Processions taking place across the country over the October Bank Holiday weekend.

Start off in Limerick on October 25 and take in the county's dazzling parade of light as part of the wider Samhain: Limerick's Hallowe'en Festival. Celebrate Halloween night with the final procession at the Dead of Night Halloween Festival in Longford on October 31. Follow the colourful march of Morrígan, the Goddess of War as she rises from the underworld to avenge the death of her husband, culminating in a fiery finale in Market Square.

Best for: Adults and families. Free.

Limerick and Longford. October 25 – October 31.

On Halloween night, Cork city comes alive with creatures from the underworld for the Dragon of Shandon Samhain Parade. You can join the thousands of people who walk with the dragon (a massive construction made entirely of tape and guided by puppeteers) as she travels between worlds in a celebration of the living and the dead. This parade honours the creative partnership between the artists of Cork as much as it does Samhain and culminates on Coal Quay with a variety of lively performances. 

Best for: Adults and families. Free event.

Shandon, Cork. October 31.

This October Bank Holiday, Dublin city is celebrating its gothic roots with its annual Bram Stoker Festival. Learn about the life and legacy of Irish writer Bram Stoker, the wonderfully twisted mind behind the novel Dracula. At the Abbey Theatre on Sunday, take in the drama of the original text with a staged reading of Dracula's final chapters at Dracula: The Hunt. Across the weekend, bring the kids to St Patrick’s Park for the all-ages Stokerland, a funfair filled with rides, games and all sorts of characters in fancy dress.

The festival will also feature two events focused on Japanese-Irish legends. Accompanied by a new live score, the National Concert Hall will screen Masaki Kobayashi's Kwaidan, the 1965 film adaptation of Japanese ghost stories brought to the West by Irish-Greek writer Lafcadio Hearn. At St Ann's Church, female ensemble Schola Hyberniae will perform a tribute to Japanese-Irish vocal traditions honouring the dead with Songs of the Spirits: East Meets West.

Best for: Adults and families. Mixture of free and paid events.

Various venues, Dublin city. October 31 - November 3. 

Dubbed Ireland’s biggest indoor ‘scream park’, the Nightmare Realm is back for 2025 in Inchicore. Test your limits and explore The House of Little Red and The Meat Market, or speed through them as fast as you can and reward yourself with a stop at the food court and the 'Last Gas Station on the Left.' There’s plenty to see, and more than enough terror to tide you over until the realm returns next year.

Best for: Adults and teens. Tickets from €24.

Royal Liver Assurance Retail Park, Inchicore, Dublin 12. October 4 – November 2.

Farmaphobia is not for the fainthearted. Built around a two-hour, pitch-dark trek Causey Farm in County Meath, the haunting experience stretches over 100 acres and has six 'Terrifying Haunts' for you to sink your teeth into, each designed to terrify. Fight a demonic force in The Conjuring, try to escape The Slaughterhouse and test your bravery in the Zombie Morgue. Sessions are ticketed and advance booking is required. Bring your wellies, a coat and your best screaming voice.

Best for: Adults and teens with supervision. Tickets from €29.

Causey Farm, Fordstown, Co Meath. October 3 – November 1.

Secret Valley Wildlife Park might be full of fuzzy meerkats and family-friendly fun during the day, but at night this Halloween, the park transforms into a no-holds-barred scare-fest for The Cornmaze Massacre. Wander through ten terrifying zones of the cornmaze with live actors and intense scares. This isn't for the faint of heart, so book in if you dare.

Best for: Adults and teens over 12. Tickets from €25.

Secret Valley Wildlife Park, Clonroche, Co Wexford. October 17 – November 1.

If you were a fan of Cluedo as a kid, then check out A Traitorous Tale, an immersive murder mystery set on the historic grounds of Malahide Castle and Gardens. Wander the beautiful grounds and follow the clues as you embark on a mission to solve the murder and unearth some of the castle's hidden secrets. Discuss the case with your fellow detectives over delicious Halloween-themed drinks and nibbles. 

Best for: Adults. Tickets from €35.

Malahide Castle and Gardens, Co Dublin. October 25-27.

Experience one of Halloween's classic thrills with the Haunted House on the Hill in County Mayo. Creep around dark corners and keep your cool as you're surrounded by terrifying creatures, shrill screams and frightening jump scares. 

Best for: Adults. Tickets from €10.

Sean Duffy Community Centre, Co Mayo. October 27-30.

Get the fright of your life at one of Limerick’s most popular Halloween attractions, the Scare Factory. You’ll get a spooky sense of Limerick history in the Victorian redbrick where the ‘factory’ is housed, and where evil clowns, mutant creatures and zombies await.

Best for: Adults and teens with supervision. Tickets from €23.66.

Cleeves Factory, Limerick. October 16 – November 1.

This two-hour long tour of Dublin’s scariest sites on the Gravedigger Ghostbus carves a route through 600 years of spooky history, colourfully illustrated by the Gravedigger actors. Passing Dublin Castle, Christ Church Cathedral, Cork Hill and other Dublin landmarks with fascinating secrets and tales, the ghost bus will bring you to your final destination at the iconic Gravediggers Pub.

Best for: Adults and teens with supervision. Tickets from €35.

Dame Street, Dublin.

Photo credit: @hiddendublinwalksandtours

While you can tour Cork Harbour’s Spike Island during the day, the ‘After Dark’ Night Tours showcase the former prison’s darkest history. Learn about the horror of solitary confinement, the hidden mass graves that litter the island and more gruesome details about what was once the largest prison in the world.

Best for: Over 16s. Tickets from €39.90.

Spike Island, Cobh Harbour, Co Cork.

Known as Ireland's 'Gate to Hell,' the cave of Uaimh na gCat (Oweynagat) in County Roscommon has strong ties to the ancient festival of Samhain. Take a guided visit to the cave and down to the bowels of the Earth with the Rathcroghan Visitor Centre on their Origins of Samhain Cave Tour.

Best for: Adults and families. Tickets from €15.

Rathcroghan Visitor Centre, Co Roscommon. October 28 – November 7.