WINCHESTER BID is organising a free Halloween-themed trail around the city.

The Spooky Winch Word Hunt will run from Saturday, October 14 to Tuesday, October 31. Participants will be able to enjoy the trail and enter into a draw to win a Halloween-inspired hamper.

Before heading out across the city, participants can collect a copy of the Spooky Winch trail sheet from the Visitor Information Centre, The Arc on Jewry Street or Winchester City Museum in The Square. Trail sheets are also available on the BID website to download and print at home.

The city centre will be split into nine areas, with each area featuring its own coloured pumpkin sign.

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Using the map on the trail sheet, explore the mysterious and eerie cobbled streets of Winchester and seek out all nine Halloween-themed words, hidden in pumpkin signs displayed in the windows of local businesses.

Once all nine words have been found, participants can return their completed trail sheet to any of the three locations to collect a Halloween-themed treat and be entered into the prize draw to win a Halloween-inspired hamper, filled with gifts, donated by local businesses.

Suzy Dierckx, marketing and social media manager at Winchester BID, said: “We are delighted to be hosting Spooky Winch again, with many more local businesses getting involved in this Halloween-themed seasonal activity. This is a great opportunity for us to work with local businesses and other local partner organisations to help promote everything that Winchester has to offer this October.

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“My family love to take part and enjoy exploring the different areas of the city. It is a fun activity, which fills the lungs with lots of fresh air, gets your step count up and is centred around the heart of our beautiful heritage city. Every year we find something new to explore on the route too.”

The Spooky Winch Word Hunt is open to all ages, and Winchester BID is inviting participants to make a day of it and enjoy some of Winchester’s shops, cafes, restaurants and other local businesses.

Participants can also get involved by dressing up in fancy-dress and tagging Winchester BID in photos on social media.