Six of the spookiest sites in the north east of Scotland

Scotland has plenty of scary sites to visit at the spookiest time of the year, especially in the North East.

Here’s our pick of six creepy places to send shivers down your spine this Halloween.

Ma Cameron’s

Ma Cameron’s

The bar at the front of this city-centre pub dates back 300 years, making it the oldest in Aberdeen. Full of nooks and crannies, it’s no surprise that this cosy venue is home to ghosts. Bar staff have seen the beer tap being turned on by an invisible hand and one night when a painter and decorator was called in to do some work, he heard three knocks on the ceiling from the room above, which he knew was empty and locked. He tapped the ceiling with the handle of his brush and was answered with three more knocks causing him to run out of the pub in terror!

Balmoral Castle

Balmoral Castle

As one of the royal family’s offi cial residences, the castle was purchased by Queen Victoria, who had the old castle demolished and rebuilt into the current structure. The ghost of John Brown, a servant and close friend of the queen, is said to be attached to the castle. Even Her Royal Highness Queen Elizabeth II has reported feeling the presence of the kilted wanderer, and has supposedly seen him herself. Whatever the truth may be of the ghost, Balmoral Castle certainly holds more than a few secrets.

Fyvie Castle

Fyvie Castle

Two ghosts known as the Grey and Green Ladies are said to walk the hallways of Fyvie Castle. The Grey Lady is Lady Meldrum, who was buried within the very walls of the castle when she died in the 13th century. The Green Lady is thought to be Dame Lilias Drummond. After failing to produce a son, her husband Sir Alexander Seton decided to sleep with Lilias’s cousin. Dame Lilias died alone and heartbroken soon after, and supposedly haunted her husband by scratching her name into the stone outside his bedroom window. The scratches can still be seen today.

MacDonald Norwood Hall Hotel

MacDonald Norwood Hall Hotel

This 19th century hotel is said to be haunted by three ghostly apparitions. James Ogstion, a former owner of the hotel, and his wife and mistress. Though the husband and mistress only tend to appear in the dining room and on the main stairs respectively, his wife has been witnessed floating through almost all rooms of the building in an effort to catch the pair of them together. The husband and mistress do not seem so hostile to visitors of the hotel, but it wouldn’t be advisable to get in the way of James’s enraged other half.

Kinnaird Head Castle

Kinnaird Head Castle

Kinnaird Head Castle is home to a tragic story of a father killing his daughter’s secret lover. Sir Alexander Fraser murdered the girl’s lover by chaining him to a rock in a nearby cave and waiting for a storm to raise the water level. When he had drowned, Alexander’s daughter jumped from the wine tower to her death. Whenever a storm gathers, a ghostly silhouette can be seen running between the castle and tower. Her appearance is treated as an indication that rain will soon come.

Aberdeen Central Library

Aberdeen Central Library

Aberdeen Central Library is considered a haunted location by many, with unexplained events often occurring in the background of normal goings-on. Rumour has it a former librarian can be seen roaming the halls and sorting shelves, but who exactly the librarian is remains unknown. Eerie footsteps and bell-clanging have been heard without an obvious source, as well as ghostly whispers occasionally being uttered in the silence of the library.