Whether or not you celebrate Halloween for its origins in the Celtic Samhain, or if you simply like guzzling down candies and sweets and carving pumpkins, there are tons of reasons to mark the occasion somewhere new.

As it happens, maybe surprisingly, the UK is an absolute hotbed for Halloween fun and games, with trick-or-treating celebrated here and millions of homes decorating their doors and facades with cobwebs, inflatable ghosts, and more besides!

In fact, given that we’re now in mid-October, there’s still time for plenty of you out there to head to the UK (London, especially) for some creepy fun. Let’s break down some of the best reasons to jet to Heathrow before the end of the month, and explore what London’s biggest attractions and venues have in store.

Pick Yourself a Pumpkin!

You can’t really celebrate Halloween without a jack o’ lantern, and thankfully, the carving-and-candle-lighting fun is a big tradition in the UK, almost as much as it is in the US. Pumpkins are all over the place – from pumpkin spice lattes to shops selling artisanal carving kits, you can’t avoid the round orange veggies!

Pumpkin mania has grown to such an extent in the UK that there are more and more special farms popping up offering pumpkin picking experiences! While you can still pick a pumpkin or two from local shops and supermarkets, it’s much more fun when you go and pluck them straight from the source.

Pumpkin-picking spots that are hot to visit around London and its surrounding areas include Foxes Farm in Chelmsford, Rogate Pumpkin Patch in Petersfield, and Garsons Farm down in Surrey.

Grab a Ticket for HorrOctober!

A few weeks have passed already, but the famous Prince Charles Cinema in central London is showing a marathon of spooky movies and horror classics this October, building towards the big day on October 31st with its landmark Rocky Horror Picture Show sing-along.

Book flights and grab an eSIM for the UK ASAP, and you’ll still have time to catch the cinema’s season packed with the likes of a Final Destination marathon, classic Zombie mayhem in Night of the Living Dead, and even a secret horror movie line-up on Halloween itself.

It’s just one of many horror movie calendars that are unfolding around the city and surrounding areas across the month of October, with FrightFest opening up again at the Odeon Luxe in the West End. It’s usually packed full of indie horror treats, meaning you’ll need to have an iron stomach and really be into your frights to make the most of it.

Sample Real-Life Horrors with a Historic Twist

If you know anything about the history of inner London and its twisting streets, you’ll probably know that it has a reputation for the macabre! Of course, one of the most blood-curdling legends to have unfolded in the city is that of Jack the Ripper, the notorious serial killer whose identity is still unconfirmed even centuries on.

Thankfully, we live in more enlightened times (and serial killers are honestly pretty rare!) – but, what better way to get into the spooky spirit for Halloween than to go on a Jack the Ripper walking tour?

Walking tours are run by several different companies across the year, but regardless of who you take these mysterious, murky treks with, Halloween is easily one of the best times of year to really dig into London’s hidden horrors.

Go See the Creepshow at Kew Halloween

Kew Gardens has only recently started embracing event trails, and last year saw the debut of the attraction’s massively popular Halloween at Kew. This year, we’re promised all kinds of light shows, roaming actors, and a variety of installations inspired by all things creepy and ghoulish.

You’re going to have to visit to discover what’s on offer for yourself, but you can choose whether to witness the horrors in the daytime or after dark. Depending on how easily you get scared, we won’t blame you if you choose to take a tour in daylight hours!

This is a family-friendly horror event, so you won’t expect any of the grim goings-on at horror movie festivals or Ripper Walks – but that won’t make it any less fun!

Avoid the Real Horror when Visiting London…

What if you need to connect to the internet and can’t find a WiFi spot? What if you don’t have any access to mobile data? Why spoil your Halloween adventures with the stress of trying to stay connected to friends and family?

Spend less time getting tricked by unsecure public WiFI and more time treating yourself to affordable mobile data. With SIMOVO’s United Kingdom eSIM, you’re covered for between 1GB and 50GB (for a week to six months, respectively) of data paid upfront. As soon as you land in London, you’ll be connected to the best possible coverage from Three, with 5G speeds available, too.

And, if you know you’ll need more data per day and want better value coverage, be sure to check out our unlimited UK eSIMs, offering between 500MB and 2GB a day for up to two weeks. That means you can keep in touch with loved ones via WhatsApp, social media, and data calls without having to worry about paying through the nose for data charges when you come back home.

Halloween frights and festivities are lots of fun getting into no matter where you are in the world, but London and the rest of the UK really go to town on dressing up popular attractions and setting up spooky walks. 

There’s plenty of time to book flights and boats to the UK at the time of writing, but remember that you’ll need to grab an eSIM if you want to stay connected for less while you explore the spooky city and beyond. Plus, with Guy Fawkes Night only a few days after Halloween in the UK, why not stick around for a while and take in some fireworks?