Walpurgisnacht

Germany is a country that does not traditionally celebrate Halloween. Instead, it has Walpurgisnacht, the Witches’ Night, which takes place every year on April 30.

One of the largest Walpurgisnacht celebrations in Germany takes place at the Hexentanzplatz, the Witches’ Dance Floor, a mountain plateau looming over the sleepy town of Thale. Locals light an enormous bonfire and run wild dressed as witches, demons, and all forms of nightmarish ghouls. Statues of witches and demons from regional folklore line a square where local vendors sell all sorts of Harz specialties from sausages to schnapps.