Hallowe’en. All Hallows’ Eve. October 31. Whatever you call it or spell it, it’s the one day of the year when fright is fun and everybody’s up for the thrill of the haunt. And given London’s centuries-long history of ghostly intrigue and mystery, is there a better place on earth to find the scares that suit you?

In fact, so generous is the city’s endowment of supernatural weirdness that it can offer a whole range of Halloween entertainment options, from family-friendly to wild to truly macabre. Most are even within easy reach of some of the best affordable luxury hotels in London – the perfect places to recover from even the most otherworldly experience.

So, don your ghastliest get-up and head to your Halloween haunting grounds…

1 Hex and the City

London’s pagan heart is laid bare in this 1.5-hour walk around some of the city’s darkest sites. The tour starts at Farringdon tube station and ends at St Paul’s Cathedral, taking in everything in between from the site of an occult temple to stories of notorious witches, mediums and devil-worshippers. Nightly from 25-30 October. Fancy dress is a must!

2 Leadenhall Market: burials, bombs and fantastic beasts

If witchcraft, murder and death at every turn is your thing, take a step back in time and explore the ghoulish history of the 2000 year old market, on a tour sure to make your toes curl.

3 Wunderbar Halloween

Pergola Paddington’s Bavarian Beer Hall will be transformed into a musty Transylvanian Castle for three nights of ‘debauched Halloween revelry’ from 29-31 October. Best of all, recovery is just a short jaunt away, with oases such as Tower Suites by Blue Orchid offering not only luxury lodgings, but a Fang-tastic Halloween afternoon tea with a ghostly selection of delicacies and treats to die for.

4 Ghost Raiders: Solve a ghostly mystery at the Tower of London

Frightening immersive fun for all the family - spirits have escaped their other-worldly realm and invaded the Tower. Can you stop them? 23-31 October.

5 Ghost Newington

Walk through the forgotten backstreets, dim Victorian passages and Elizabethan graveyards of Stoke Newington, one London’s most alluringly odd neighbourhoods. Jump scares and eerily true-ish tales abound on this guided tour, whose route coincidentally intersects with some of the area’s finest pubs. Tours begin 6.30pm nightly from 15-31 October.

6 Halloween Boogie Shoes Silent Disco Walking Party 2021

It’s Halloween flash mob-style on 30 October as the energetic beats and wry commentary of Ruth the Wicked lead a spontaneous party through the streets of London. There’s a choice of timeslots available, with the fun starting at Covent Garden tube station.

7 Zombie Pirate Ship Halloween Boat Party

Head to the river and Westminster Pier to revel at ‘the biggest boat party in London on Halloween night’ – just minutes away from The Rochester and The Wellington by Blue Orchid and other 4 star hotels in Central London. There’s two decks of music, entertainment and fully stocked bars in store – plus a post-midnight after-party for those with supernatural constitutions. Starts at 7.30pm, 30 October.

8 The Jack the Ripper Tour

What could be more London than an up-close-and-bloody look at the handiwork of Jack the Ripper? Guided by expert Ripperologists and aided by exclusive ‘Ripper-Vision’ handheld projectors, the tour takes you through a time-warp to the Whitechapel of 1888, offering the actual murder sites, methods, victims and suspects in gloriously gory detail.

9 La Nonne Sanglante (The Bloody Nun)

Presented to UK audiences for the first time, this tale from 1854 has it all: ghosts, feuding families, mistaken identity, and plenty of scares to go along with the laughs. Gothic Opera brings the production to the evocative Hoxton Hall, one of the few authentic Victorian music halls extant in London. Runs daily at 7.30pm from 29 October to 3 November.

10 Zombie Fun Run ‘5K on the RA’

Get the festivities started early by joining the undead horde on 30 October for a charity run around the Royal Arsenal in Woolwich. The much-storied site offers architecture dating as far back as the 16^th century – as well as plenty of modern dining and drinking options. Registration begins at 4.30pm sharp at the Dial Arch square.