Halloween Stays at Historic Homes
It’s not too early to think about Halloween in the UK. The Royal Oak Foundation, the U.S. affiliate to the National Trust, has scouted out scary happenings at medieval castles and venerable estates, and suggested nearby overnights at National Trust properties. Royal Oak members receive access to more than 300 historic houses without paying an admission fee.
- Anglesey Abbey, Gardens and Lodge Mill in Cambridgeshire is celebrating Freaky Friday: Wild About Cooking 2 p.m. Oct. 29, Kids can join the chef making spooky treats. Reservations required; £5/$8 per child. You can book Coach House Loft, a converted apartment over the coach house at the historic Peckover house. Coach House sleeps five and guests get a key to the Peckover house gardens.
- Arlington Court and the National Trust’s Carriage Collection in Devon is sponsoring a pumpkin-carving competition 2 p.m. Oct. 29. You can overnight at Woolley Lodge, a former gardener’s cottage on the edge of the Arlington estate. The lodge sleeps three.
- Belton House in Lincolnshire is staking out the “Hubble Bubble, Toad’s in Trouble” family fun trail, a pumpkin trail for little ghosts and goblins. The events are 11 a.m.-4 p.m. Oct. 23-24, with a costume contest, face painting, spooky stories and Halloween treats at the restaurant. £1.50/$2.50 per trail, and £3/$5 for face painting. The Old Rectory, a late 18th-century Regency rectory is near the tiny church of Bratoft village. The expansive house sleeps 11 and is a good base for visiting Gunby Hall, Tattershall Castle and Belton House.
- Bodiam Castle in East Sussex invites little ones to take up the Spooky Challenge, tracking down the resident ghost and other creepy characters lurking around the castle. Halloween Happening is 10:30 a.m.-3:30 p.m. Oct. 23-31, with a charge of £2/$3. Up to five can sleep in the Keeper’s Cottage in Woolbending, Sussex, a former gamekeeper’s house built in the 1600s.
- Chartwell in Kent will light up the Halloween Twilight Trails 4 p.m.-6 p.m. Oct. 27-29–keep an eye out for ghosts and ghouls. The brave will make it back to the restaurant for pumpkin soup and hotdogs. £10/$16. Laundry Cottage is part of a converted 15th-century stableblock within the grounds of Igtham Mote, a 14th-century moted manor house. The cottage sleeps four and has a private garden.
- Lanhydrock in Cornwall will celebrate Pumpkins and Ghouls 5:30 p.m.-7:30 p.m. Oct. 30-31, with pumpkin carving and a ghostly tour through the haunted great wood. £6/$10 per adult and £4/$7 per child; booking is essential. Cutmadoc, sleeping six, is a cottage hidden in a secluded garden on the Lanhydrock’s estate.
