Fancy a day trip to Chernobyl? What about a visit to Auschwitz? Or how about following in the footsteps of Dracula in Transylvannia.
Welcome to the emerging phenomenon of Dark Tourism. There?s no shortage of tourists looking for sun and beach breaks or shopping and sight seeing. But a new generation of travellers is looking for a completely new experience dabbling with the dark side.
Unsurprisingly, there?s no shortage of marketers looking to cater for this new market offering a whole new range of spooky experiences. One of the clear leaders in the UK market is Haunting Breaks.
The company was formed four years ago on the back of the popular Living TV show ?Most Haunted?. The programme has been been one of the channel?s most successful and sees Yvette Fielding (one time of Blue Peter) and psychic Derek Accorah carrying out a series of paranormal experiments.
?We saw there was great interest in the show and thought, we could do this, ? explains Peter Bowen who founded the company with his wife Carol.
The first organised event proved such a success that today the company organises haunting breaks up and down the country. Participants can enjoy dinner, bed and breakfast in haunted country house hotels, castles, manor houses and are give a chance to discover for themselves self who has lived there before.
A typical event will see around 20 thrillseekers gathering at a venue selected for its history and reports of spectral sightings. They attract people right across across all professional and age demographics, the sceptics and believers.
The participants are given an introduction into paranormal investigation and presented with evidence gathered from previous meetings.... just like I was when I attended a gathering in Oxfordshire recently.
Milton Hill House is a Georgian Mansion House that dates back to the 18th Century. Now a hotel strange happenings have previously been reported by both staff and guests alike - unexplained noises, doors opening and closing of their own accord, the occasional smell of lavender perfume, lights flickering on and off!
The gathering on Saturday 27, October was all the more special being so close to one of the most psychically active nights of the year ? Halloween. Expectations were high for something out of the ordinary happening that night.
After dinner, we tried our hand at dowsing ? an indication of paranormal forces in the room, we are told. We also have a go at suspending crystals that appear to spin in circles under their own accord and then stop immediately when commanded to.
We?re split up into smaller groups and then investigate activity in different rooms around the hotel. Some claim to see a soldier in one room - during World War One the house was transformed into a military hospital where solders received treatment and convalesced. Others claim to see a nurse and a young boy.
Through glass divination we appear to be contacted by the boy, who tells us he is five years old, and an unconnected governess. There even appear to be personal messages for members of the group from friends and relatives who have ?crossed over into spirit.?
The night session climaxes with some apparent ?Table Tipping?, where a table seems to rock violently before our very eyes.
After four hours of activity we have a debrief and discussion of the night?s activity. Some claimed to have seen spirits, others claim to have captured their presence as orbs of light in digital photos.
Whether sceptics go away converted, or believers have their faith confirmed ? I?m saying where I side - for Haunting Breaks it?s a very lucrative business with events being held all year round.
?The crux of the business is through our website, hauntingbreaks.co.uk and so digital marketing and SEO with Google Adwords is a key concern,? Peter said.
The site provides a wealth of information on forthcoming events, videos of past events and downloadable e-brochures
Peter added, ?We?re also heavily involved in working with local and national tourist boards to bring their product to the attention of both domestic and international travellers interested in the paranormal.?
Tapping into the corporate market has also proved profitable as employees get a chance to bond over an out of office experience.
The success of the company means that plans for extension are already in the pipeline. But without wanting to spook you, you just have to watch this space.
For more information on Haunting Breaks visit www.HauntingBreaks.co.uk
http://www.utalkmarketing.com/Blogs/Dis ... ark%20side
|
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
