Halloween in Durham

There are few better backdrops for Halloween than a medieval city on a wooded loop of river, with a Norman cathedral and castle rising over cobbled streets and misty riverbanks. From family-friendly tours to grown-up nights out, here is what tends to be on in and around Durham for spooky season. Dates change every year, so always check this year's programme with each venue and book ahead, as the popular events sell out.

Spooky family tours at the castle

Around Halloween, Durham Castle often opens its doors for family-friendly spooky tours, with guides leading visitors through the shadowy halls, spiral staircases and undercrofts of this thousand-year-old fortress on the World Heritage peninsula. Look out for Durham Castle Spooky Family Tours in late October, usually around the 29th, and check the age guidance and booking details before you go, as programming varies from year to year.

Kynren's Halloween spectacular

Just up the road at Bishop Auckland, the Kynren Pyromusical returns for another year as one more reason to head out before winter. It is billed as the North East's biggest pyromusical, a display of fireworks choreographed to music against the vast open-air arena. Read all the details, ticket prices and travel tips in our Kynren Pyromusical guide. It has sold out in previous years, so book ahead.

Grown-up Halloween in the city

Halloween is not just for the little ones. Around 31 October, city bars put on themed nights, and in past years The Curious Mr Fox has run a Halloween Cocktail Masterclass, an adults-only evening of shaking, stirring and suitably spooky concoctions. Check this year's programme and booking details directly with the venue, then make an evening of it among Durham's Market Place bars and riverside pubs.

Family Halloween nearby

For a full day out with younger children, Beamish Museum, a short drive from the city, runs its atmospheric Halloween Evenings in the last week of October, usually from around the 28th, with the living-history streets transformed after dark. Booking is essential and tickets go quickly. Beyond that, there are pumpkin patches, ghost walks and family spooktaculars right across the region: see the full round-up in Halloween across the region.

Know a Durham Halloween event we should add? Get in touch via our contact page.