Is it me, or has Halloween turned into ‘Christmas 2’ in the last few years? Of the many activities on offer, if you want to embrace it but without the gimmicks, tackiness or the shameless sales promotions, then there’s one experience that will get you in the mood and humming Danse Macabre.
Kew Gardens has, once again, outdone itself with its imaginative design for a night-time walking trail. Famous for their excellent Christmas walks, they have given themselves a hard act to follow with this, the inaugural year of their Halloween Trail, with a class act that will put a chill down your spine, even if there isn’t one in the air.
The designers have made the most of the natural shadows drawn from trees which create moving shadows more spooky than any cinematic trickery. Themes involving an arch of spiders’ webs, tarantulas the size of armchairs, and a section with strobe lights and smoke that would outdo Ibiza’s finest make the most of the phenomenal backdrop.
En route, skeletons emerging from coffins, flame jets erupt, and large foreboding eyes leer from bushes, watching your every move. Giant pumpkins, masterfully crafted in groups, snarl back at you, and – in one of the most evocative set pieces of them all – ghouls perch with lanterns, like ominous scarecrows. There was a full moon beaming overhead when I visited and, as I made my way through, a badger and a fox crossed my path, as if on cue. So you’ll even have encounters not in the script.
There are timings through the evening, but it gets progressively spookier the later the time, as you can imagine. So, if you’re coming with very young scamps, perhaps keep it early. Five-year-olds will likely be terrified. I know I would have been. And I would have loved it.
And, when you’re done, there are of course, refreshments and a gift shop, if you want a souvenir of the night. As we progressively forego our cynicism (ahem) and become as fascinated with Halloween as they are across the pond, Kew Gardens provides an ideal backdrop with its haunting trees and wide-open spaces ideal for headless horseman and cemetery – a hint for next year, perhaps? Be warned.
The Halloween Trail at Kew Gardens runs until 3rd November. For more details, including timings and prices, and for bookings, please visit www.kew.org.
