A short keyhole-shaped passage off Whitby's Khyber Pass, known locally as the Screaming Tunnel or Dracula's Tunnel
The Screaming Tunnel is a footpath tunnel through the bank of the Khyber Pass, the steep road that climbs from Whitby harbour up to the West Cliff. George Hudson, the “Railway King”, had the Khyber Pass cut in the 1850s to reach the new hotels and terraces he was building on the clifftop. The tunnel is only a few strides long, lined in stone, with a narrow arched opening shaped like a keyhole. Its nicknames come from the echo, which carries a shout a long way, and from Whitby’s Dracula connection: Bram Stoker set part of the novel in Whitby, and local stories make the tunnel Dracula’s hideout.
You will find it about halfway up the Khyber Pass on the left as you climb from the harbour. From inside, the far opening frames a view across the harbour towards Whitby Abbey and St Mary’s Church at the top of the 199 Steps. It is one of the most photographed spots in Whitby, so expect to wait your turn on a busy day.
