Tag: plague

Why a Halloween trip to the Peak District is the ultimate dark-tourism break

A Halloween story.

It is based around an autumnal visit to the Peak District village of Eyam, otherwise known as ‘the plague village’.

But my visit on a sunny September day proved prescient not just for a spooky Halloween story  slot in Telegraph Travel, but also as a reminder of how history repeats itself.

Given the announcement of a new national lockdown in England this weekend, the story of Eyam feels more appropriate than ever — despite being over 350 years old.

Here’s a flavour of my feature:

The village of Eyam has been dramatically thrust back into the spotlight this year, however.

The history-repeating parallel between the heroic sacrifice of our 17th-century forefathers and the global response to the Coronavirus pandemic today has made it an unlikely haven for dark tourism fans.

While I find it busy with walkers sipping coffees around a flower-garnished village green on an autumnal day, it’s dark past hangs like mist over the peaks.

Read the full article in Telegraph Travel here.