Britain has a special relationship with its ghosts. Almost every castle has its grey lady, every old pub its invisible regular, every historic town its night walks through alleys and graveyards. This eight-day itinerary is a journey through the dark and fascinating side of the island, between history and legend: the beheaded queens of the Tower of London, the Roman legionaries marching through a York cellar, the ruined abbey where Bram Stoker imagined the arrival of Dracula, the hill of the Pendle witches, the buried streets beneath Edinburgh's Royal Mile and, to finish, the dark waters of Loch Ness.
You don't need to believe in ghosts to enjoy it: behind every legend lies a piece of real history, often more surprising than the tale. It is an itinerary for teenagers, friends and couples, and it is at its best in autumn, when the days draw in and the mist rises from the moors.
- London: the Tower and Highgate Cemetery
- York: the city of ghosts
- Whitby: Dracula's abbey
- Pendle Hill: the witches' hill
- Lancaster: the castle of the trial
- Edinburgh: the buried streets and Greyfriars
- Loch Ness: the monster and Urquhart Castle
Day 1: London, the Tower and Highgate
The Tower of London is the capital's most haunted place, at least according to tradition. On Tower Green three queens of England were executed, among them Anne Boleyn in 1536, who legend says still walks in the Chapel of St Peter ad Vincula, where she is buried. The tours led by the Yeoman Warders, the guards in Tudor uniform, tell tales of prisoners, torture and executions with plenty of British humour. The Crown Jewels are kept here too, as are the Tower ravens: it is said that if they ever left, the kingdom would fall.
In the afternoon head up to Highgate Cemetery, the most romantic of London's great Victorian cemeteries, with ivy-covered tombs, catacombs and the Egyptian Avenue. In the 1970s the newspapers ran the story of the "Highgate Vampire", which drew vampire hunters from all over the country. Karl Marx's tomb is in the East Cemetery. The West Cemetery can only be visited on a guided tour. In the evening, many companies run ghost walks in central London among old pubs and the alleys of the City.
Where to stay: in London. See where to stay in London.
Day 2: York, city of ghosts
By train from King's Cross, York is under two hours away. With its medieval walls, lanes like the Shambles and two thousand years of history, York presents itself as one of the most haunted cities in Europe, and its evening ghost walks are an institution. The most famous story is that of the Treasurer's House, behind the Minster: in 1953 a young plumber working in the cellar said he saw a group of weary Roman soldiers pass by, visible only from the knees up, because they were walking on the level of the old Roman road, below the floor. The house, owned by the National Trust, runs cellar tours.
In the afternoon visit the great Minster, the National Railway Museum or the York Dungeon, a theatrical show in which actors bring the darkest sides of the city's history to life, from Guy Fawkes, born in York, to the highwayman Dick Turpin, hanged here in 1739. In the evening, join one of the ghost walks that start from the Minster or the Shambles.
Where to stay: in York.
Day 3: Whitby and Dracula
Pick up a car and drive to Whitby (about an hour and a half) across the North York Moors. In 1890 the Irish writer Bram Stoker spent a holiday here: in the town library he found the name of a Wallachian prince, Dracula, and the stories of shipwrecks and the clifftop suggested the Count's arrival in England. In the novel, the schooner Demeter crashes into the harbour during a storm and a great black dog leaps ashore and runs up the steps to the churchyard.
Climb the 199 steps to St Mary's Church, with its graveyard of wind-worn headstones on the cliff, where in the novel Lucy is attacked by the vampire. Higher up, visit the ruins of Whitby Abbey, the perfect Gothic backdrop, with a small museum that also tells of the link with Stoker. On the seafront, a bench in Stoker's memory looks towards the abbey. Twice a year, in spring and autumn, the town hosts the Whitby Goth Weekend, when thousands of people in Victorian and Gothic dress fill the streets.
Where to stay: in Whitby. For dinner, Whitby fish and chips is reckoned among the best in England.
Day 4: the moors and on to Pendle
In the morning walk on the beach or along the coast to Robin Hood's Bay, a smugglers' village with houses clinging to the cliff and secret passages. Then cross England westwards, through the valleys of the Yorkshire Dales, to the Pendle area of Lancashire (about two and a half hours).
Where to stay: in Clitheroe or a village at the foot of Pendle Hill.
Day 5: the Pendle witches and Lancaster
In 1612 a group of people from this area, almost all women from two poor families, was tried for witchcraft, and ten of the accused were hanged, nearly all at Lancaster: it is the most famous witch trial in English history, described in detail by the court clerk in a book published the following year. Today the Pendle Witch Trail links the places of the story along a waymarked route. At Newchurch-in-Pendle, St Mary's Church has an "Eye of God" carved on its tower to ward off evil, and tradition points to a grave in the churchyard as that of one of the witches. In Roughlee, a statue commemorates Alice Nutter, the only well-off defendant, who never confessed. Walkers can climb to the top of Pendle Hill (about an hour and a half there and back), with a vast view over Lancashire: here in 1652 George Fox had the vision from which the Quakers were born.
In the afternoon drive to Lancaster (about an hour) to visit the castle, where the trial took place and the accused were held in lightless dungeons. The castle was a prison until 2011, and guided tours show the cells, the courtroom still in use and the place from which the condemned went out to the gallows.
Where to stay: in Lancaster or already heading north.
Day 6: underground Edinburgh
From Lancaster to Edinburgh is about three hours. The Old Town, built upwards along a ridge, hides beneath its buildings a world of forgotten alleys and cellars. At The Real Mary King's Close you go down below the Royal Mile into a 17th-century street that was buried under a building: costumed guides tell of the plague of 1645 and the stories of its inhabitants, among them Annie, a ghost girl for whom visitors leave dolls and toys. The South Bridge Vaults, dark cellars beneath an 18th-century bridge, can be visited on evening tours.
In the evening go to Greyfriars Kirkyard, famous for the statue of the faithful dog Greyfriars Bobby, but also for the Mackenzie Poltergeist, linked to the mausoleum of the judge who persecuted the Covenanters: night tours enter the old Covenanters' Prison, normally closed. Edinburgh is also the city of Burke and Hare, the two murderers who in 1828 sold bodies to the anatomy school, and of Deacon Brodie, respectable by day and a burglar by night, who inspired Robert Louis Stevenson's Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde.
Where to stay: in Edinburgh.
Day 7: to Loch Ness
Head into the Highlands (about three and a half hours to Drumnadrochit), via Pitlochry and the Drumochter Pass. Loch Ness is 37 kilometres long and up to 230 metres deep, and holds more water than all the lakes of England and Wales combined. The first monster story dates back to the 6th century, when St Columba is said to have driven a beast from the River Ness, but Nessie's modern fame began in 1933, with the new road along the shore. The famous "surgeon's photograph" of 1934 was revealed as a hoax only sixty years later. At Drumnadrochit the Loch Ness Centre tells the story of all the searches, sonar sweeps and scientific expeditions, and cruises on the loch leave from the little harbour, some with echo sounders on board.
In the afternoon visit the ruins of Urquhart Castle, the spot from which more sightings are said to have been made than anywhere else.
Where to stay: in Drumnadrochit or Inverness.
Day 8: Culloden and home
On the last morning visit the battlefield of Culloden, where the Jacobite cause ended in 1746: it is said that every year, on 16 April, the sounds of battle can still be heard. Then fly home from Inverness Airport, or take the overnight train to London.
- 565St Columba confronts a beast in the River Ness
- 1536Anne Boleyn is executed at the Tower of London
- 1612The Pendle witch trial at Lancaster
- 1645Plague strikes Mary King's Close in Edinburgh
- 1828The Burke and Hare murders in Edinburgh
- 1890Bram Stoker on holiday in Whitby
- 1897Dracula is published
- 1934The "surgeon's photograph" makes the Loch Ness monster famous
- 1953The Roman legionaries appear in York's Treasurer's House
How much it costs
| Item | Indicative cost per person |
|---|---|
| Accommodation, 7 nights sharing a double room (B&B or mid-range hotel) | £450-650 |
| Transport (London-York train, hire car for 6 days shared by two, fuel) | £220-320 |
| Admissions and tours (Tower of London, Highgate, Treasurer's House, York Dungeon, Whitby Abbey, Lancaster Castle, Mary King's Close, night tours, Loch Ness cruise, Urquhart) | £170-240 |
| Meals | £350-450 |
| Total | about £1,190-1,660 |
To save money: the graveyards, lanes, Whitby's 199 steps and the Pendle Witch Trail are free; many ghost walks work on a pay-what-you-like basis. Whitby Abbey belongs to English Heritage, Urquhart to Historic Environment Scotland.
Practical information
- Evening tours: the York and Edinburgh ghost tours run every night; those into the vaults and the Greyfriars prison are booked online and are not suitable for young children.
- Halloween: at the end of October every stop holds special events, but accommodation and tours must be booked well ahead.
- Whitby Goth Weekend: usually held in April and at the end of October or early November; check the dates.
- Walking: for Pendle Hill and the Whitby coast you need walking boots; the weather changes fast.
- Documents: passport and ETA, see documents and ETA.
Variations
- Glamis Castle: in Scotland, the house with the secret room and the "grey lady"; see the Scottish castles itinerary.
- Wales: the legends of Merlin and the dragons; see the King Arthur itinerary.
- Glastonbury: the magical hill of Avalon, capital of esoteric Britain.
What to read before you go
The essential book is Bram Stoker's Dracula, to read in Whitby; for Edinburgh, Stevenson's Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde; for Pendle, Robert Neill's novel Mist over Pendle, a fictionalised version of the trial. For English ghost stories, the tales of M.R. James are a classic.
Final tips
- Pace: the evenings are the best part of this trip; don't overfill the mornings.
- Respect: graveyards and churches are still places of worship and burial; move about discreetly.
- A tip: in Whitby, climb the 199 steps at sunset, when the abbey becomes a black silhouette against the sky: it is exactly the scene Bram Stoker saw.
See also our other UK itineraries.