The Dark Chapters

Grisly Tales, Ghosts and Vampires

I decided that I MUST MUST MUST go on this tour. Ghost stories and spooky myths at night in the Buda district, wander the labyrinth of the historical castle and palace that was built in the 1200s? How could I possibly miss this? I couldn’t, so I did it.

Learning about the dark chapters in Budapest’s long history and seeing some of its best-known landmarks under cover of darkness.  As we explored our guide regaled us with ghost stories, tales of unexplained happenings, and gruesome unsolved murders.

A new side of Budapest was uncovered when you explore the city after dark.

Immersive Storytelling Experience

Mysterium Tours

Letting the darkness lead us, and of course our period costume attired guide on this 2 hour tour of the city by night was SO much fun.

Mysterium Tours is an international company that operates Ghost & Vampire Night-Time Guided Walking Tours coming in the form of immersive storytelling experiences.

These tours are best after-dark for the haunted walks, filled with the eeriest legends of the city guided by a fantastic storyteller revealing mysteries and curiosities, telling ghost stories and hauntings, medieval legends, and dark tales about Ghosts, Vampires, Serial-Killers, Alchemists, Witches, and mythological creatures…

Away from the crowds of the downtown side of Pest, this tour takes you to some of the charming, magical places of the city where Hungarian rulers once toiled deep into the night at the Buda Castle. Stories of cruelty and the despicable actions of Elizabeth Bathory, the bloody countess. Learning how the Romanian prince, Vlad Dracula ended up in the prison of Buda Castle.

The history of Old Hungary where, according to legend, “vampires” were born and roamed the streets during this dark period of European history come to life in the dark.

How do you stay young and beautiful?

The macabre methods of Countess Báthory

Who was she? She was a Hungarian noblewoman and alleged serial killer from the family of Báthory, who owned land in the Kingdom of Hungary. It was alleged that she tortured and murdered hundreds of young women in the 16th and 17th centuries.

Although never tried, Báthory was confined to her chambers at Castle Čachtice. She remained there until she died.

But wasn’t Vlad Transylvanian?

Vlad the Impaler

How did Vlad, considered one of the most important rulers in Wallachian history and a national hero of modern day Romania become one of the most important figures in the Hungarian Empire? Well, he was imprisoned in Hungary. Vlad was imprisoned in Hungary for 12 years.

The stories about Vlad made him the best-known medieval ruler of the Romanian lands in Europe. Thanks to the writings of Stoker, he became known as Dracula. There are many many versions and speculations about Stoker and his writings and no one can know for sure the truth about the basis of Stoker’s tales of Dracula, no one except for Stoker of course. But some say he based his ‘fact’s on the German stories depicting him as a wicked wicked man. And so became Vlad III, also known as Vlad the Impaler also know as Dracula.