It is worth being good...

Admittedly, I am almost always well-behaved, but do you know that feeling too? The uneasy feeling in the stomach area as Krampus Day approaches. In the distance, you can already hear the muffled bells of the Krampuses. Just the sound of it and the thought of soon facing the hairy, shaggy creatures face to face makes me shudder. And it definitely becomes even scarier the closer these shaggy figures come to me. Some creep up, hunched and threatening, while others run wild and drive my pulse up. Hidden in the hand of my friend, I quickly turn back into a little 5-year-old girl.

The Krampus resembles the devil in appearance as well as mystical animal figures that can be found as "Schirchperchten" in alpine folklore. Unlike these figures, which appear during the Rauhnächte, the Krampuses are exclusively part of Advent traditions.

The figure of the Krampus originally comes – like many other demonic figures from the Alpine region – from pre-Christian times. The name Krampus is derived from Middle High German. Krampen ‘claw’ there means something lifeless, dried up, wilted, or withered. In the Tyrolean region, people more often refer to Krampeler, Tuifln, or Tuifltratzen, derived from the term Teufel (devil).

Although hardly any adult would admit it: they are feared not only by the smallest members of society.
But to be honest: by the time you have gathered the "outfit" of the Krampus, you're already spending several hundreds of euros, and you end up with something that lasts a lifetime.

So what does a proper Krampus need?

The mask, also called a "larva," is important. Traditionally, it is made from Swiss stone pine or lime wood and you can have your dream mask made by a sculptor. The head is crowned with two horns, usually real goat, ibex or ram horns. The neck and throat are covered with fur. You look through two narrow slits beneath the nose. A glasses wearer has a hard time under the mask due to space constraints, as most of the time they must forgo their glasses and resort to contact lenses, or just try to "walk in the dark." The coat or suit of the devil is made of sheep or goat fur, and smells correspondingly strong. However, besides the smell, the person wearing the suit has to carry a considerable weight: depending on the fur, the costume can weigh up to 30 kilograms. Getting dressed without help? Forget it.

A belt or a strap on the back is used to attach cowbells or large bells. Sometimes a chain is also used for rattling. These sounds create, as I mentioned before, the first shiver running down your spine.

The tail of the Krampus usually consists of a horse's tail. With its tail or a birch switch, the Krampus instills fear and terror in the spectators. And perhaps also some burning knees. Those attending a Krampus run for the first time should rather watch the spectacle from the back rows.

Since about the 17th century, the Krampus figures have been part of the custom of the Christmas season. Accompanied by frightening figures, Saint Nicholas checks and rewards the well-behaved children, while the naughty ones are punished by the Krampus.

Anyone wanting to experience tradition up close will find the Krampus run in Seefeld to be just the right place: a unique spectacle that should not be missed. With their hand-carved, fearsome masks and impressive choreographies, the Krampus groups from all over Tyrol reinterpret age-old traditions.