Púca Festival
Celebrate the origins of Halloween
As the light wanes, the ancient pagan festival of Samhain comes upon us. This is the Celtic New Year – a time of change and uncertainty when our ancestors extinguished the old year’s flames and welcomed in the new season with a ceremonial fire. This is when the veil between the worlds of the living and the dead fades...
Each Samhain, the Púca Festival celebrates this ancient season and welcomes the strange and mischievous creatures of Samhain with events in some of Ireland's most historic places. The Hill of Ward, where those ancient fires were first lit; Drogheda, one of the oldest towns on the island; the pretty village of Slane, with its famous castle and the heritage town of Trim, dominated by a towering Norman fortress.
Púca Festival
Scenes from the Púca Festival in counties Meath and Louth
Unearth 5,000 years of tradition
Each place has its own distinct character. Athboy celebrates the real Celtic tradition of Samhain with guided tours and experimental archaeology workshops. Slane hosts an array of light and sound installations in the grounds of Slane Castle. Meanwhile, Trim creates a festival atmosphere of illuminations and merriment while Drogheda is all about music and storytelling.
Venture outside of these festival hubs, and you'll discover an Ireland that is steeped in over 5,000 years of history. Explore the megalithic monuments at Brú na Boínne, climb the Hill of Tara – once home to Ireland's high kings, travel back to Ireland's early Christian period on a tour of the high crosses and round tower at Mellifont Abbey. There's no better place to explore the past than in Ireland's Ancient East!
The name Púca comes from a character in Celtic folklore that appears around Samhain, and changes the fortunes of all those who meet it…
Lonely Planet
Trim Castle, Púca Festival
