Halloween is the scariest time of year, so it’s the perfect chance to test your bravery at fright nights up and down the country.

We’ve picked six top-rated and truly terrifying scare events in and around Kent for you to visit this Halloween - if you dare. And, don’t forget, we’ve also got lots of family-friendly Halloween activities if you’re not quite up to the challenge.

Canterbury Ghost Tours

These ghoulish ghost tours have been introducing visitors to Canterbury’s grisly past for 30 years and, with a solid rating of 4.5 out of 5 on Tripadvisor, they share the top spot on our list. The tour lasts for 90 minutes and takes ghost hunters on a journey through the city’s dark side, with local historian John Hippisley sharing scary stories of the tragedies that have taken place on these streets since medieval times.

While these tours probably aren’t the scariest thing on the list, they have given plenty of people the heebie-jeebies over the years, and the nighttime tours are particularly spooky.

When: Daily at 8pm from Alberrys on St Margaret’s Street, Canterbury. Book online here.

Tickets: From £12.50 per person.

Halloween Horror Nights at Fort Amherst

One of the UK’s oldest scare nights is returning for its 39th year, and it certainly isn’t for the faint of heart. Halloween Horrors, inside Chatham’s 300 year old Fort Amherst is rated 4.5 on Tripadvisor and is a truly terrifying attraction which includes horror scenes, special effects, live actors, scare mazes, intense escape rooms, thrilling rides and haunted houses. The three Halloween experiences this year will see visitors venture into the Gates of Hell maze, run away with the circus in Circo Mortis and struggle to escape from the Dead End - if you dare to enter.

When: Select dates from Friday, October 21 to Sunday, October 30 at Fort Amherst, Chatham. Book online here.

Tickets: From £30 per person.

Shocktoberfest at Tulleys Farm

Our final of the top three, again rated 4.5 on Tripadvisor by more than 4,000 visitors, and our first event outside of the county, is Shocktoberfest. This popular fright night, just a short drive from Gatwick airport, has been taking place for more than 25 years and will be welcoming guests to its nine incredible attractions and haunts once again this October. The scare mazes include themes such as witches, clowns and zombies and are filled with live actors who will be doing their best to make you jump. It’s one of the biggest of this kind in Europe, so it’s worth leaving the county for this Halloween.

When: Select dates until Saturday, November 5 at Tulleys Farm, Crawley. Book online here.

Tickets: From £14 per person, with add-ons available.

London Dungeon at the South Bank

Next on our list, with a decent 4 out of 5 rating, is the London Dungeon. This classic London attraction, just a train ride away from most Kent towns, moved to the South Bank several years ago and has been terrifying visitors all year round ever since. However, there’s an extra special scare at this time of year as the attraction amps up its scream-o-metre. This year, there is a limited-run show, 50 Berkeley Square, which invites visitors to step into the attic of England’s most haunted house and rub shoulders - quite literally - with the ghosts that roam the house. You will also come face-to-face with Jack the Ripper and Sweeney Todd, and brave the indoor boat and drop rides.

When: Open daily, with the Halloween show running until Monday, October 31, at the London Dungeon on the South Bank, London. Book online here.

Tickets: From £28 per person when booked online in advance.

Fright Nights at Thorpe Park

If high-speed roller coasters aren’t scary enough for you, throw some horror mazes, creepy characters and nighttime rides into the mix with the Thorpe Park Fright Nights. These special Halloween events, rated 3.5 out of 5 on Tripadvisor, will see the theme park open until late so you can hop on rides, including Saw: The Ride, the world’s first horror film-themed roller coaster, the Walking Dead: The Ride, Derren Brown’s Ghost Train and the Black Mirror Labyrinth, in the dark. There are also a number of exclusive scare mazes and zones, free-roaming horror actors and spectacularly spooky shows to guarantee a truly terrifying experience.

When: Daily until Monday, October 31 at Thorpe Park in Chertsey, Surrey. Book online here.

Tickets: From £39 per person when booked online in advance.

Halloween Fright Nights at Future Survival

Our list ends with an honourable mention. The Gravesend leisure venue, which is home to laser tag, airsoft, retro gaming and fitness classes, isn’t currently rated on Tripadvisor, but has a 5-star Google Review rating, so we decided its Halloween event is still worth a mention. This October, step foot inside a hospital where the patients have been infected and a zombie outbreak has taken over. It’s your job to survive in the given time, find a cure and test it out on the infected patients - what could go wrong?

When: Thursday, October 27 to Sunday, October 30 at Future Survival, Gravesend. Book online here.

Tickets: From £25.95 per person.