Legend has it, if you live in Austria and have been a naughty child then your Christmas will not be so merry. 

While the jingling of bells and the sound of the sleigh announces the advent of St. Nicholas bearing presents for all the good children, the ill-behaved ones experience something starkly different.

On the 5th of December, just a day before Saint Nicholas Day, the wicked children tremble in their sleep fearing the arrival of the Bad Santa. Also known as Krampus, the Bad Santa is believed to be the evil twin of St. Nicholas. With his ghastly hairy black figure, menacing horns, pointy claws and sharp fangs, Krampus is said to be roaming around the streets at night with his army of evil elves, looking for mischievous children to punish. 

Krampus which translates to ‘claw' in German, is a popular Eastern European folklore legend, which is said to have its origin in Germany, which then spread widely across the Alpine region. Stemmed from the pagan winter solstice mythology, Krampus is the son of Hel, the Norse god of the underworld, and he carries off the naughty children back with him to hell to punish them. However, the less mischievous ones are left off with a birch rod in their shoes as a warning to behave better in the upcoming year. While Nicholas, being a saint, only visits the well-behaved children to reward them with gifts, he sends his demon-like twin Krampus to teach the naughty ones a lesson. 

Being both scary and amusing, the Bad Santa tradition has gained massive popularity in Austria since the end of the last century. Krampuslauf or Krampus Run is a nocturnal Christmas tradition celebrated all across Austria with great zeal. Krampus parades take place in the streets of Austria where young men try to resemble Krampus by putting on demonic masks and fur suits and carrying birch sticks to run around the streets terrorising the spectators. Crowds of hundreds gather around the streets with their friends and family to enjoy the lively celebration. The procession of Krampus-like terrifying figures come out at the onset of evening and march their way around the town. With birch sticks and sometimes even chains, the participants whip it towards the onlookers or sometimes even chase them until they surrender. Therefore, if you do not want to get accidentally hurt, your best bet is to avoid the front row.

These parades are accompanied with loud music and a smoke and fire show, further fuelling the festive spirit. Generally advised to be observers, if tourists want to take part in the procession, then they will need to rent a hairy Krampus costume along with a pair of grotesque horns, long fangs, a sinister mask and the willingness to scare the audience. Near the parade you can find stalls serving mulled wine and local delicacies like stollen (Christmas spice cake) and vanillekipferl (nut-flour cookies) to munch on. After the event, you can get into a nearby pub where you will see the post-parade celebrations happening.

Krampuslauf is the central event of the state of Tyrol, located in the western Austrian Alps. It takes place on either 5th December or sometimes on 6th December, and if you are lucky enough, you might be able to catch the parade on both the days in different towns. Besides Tyrol, Bavaria in southern Germany, Croatia, Slovenia, and Hungary also host some of the most spectacular Krampus Runs. The Krampuslauf celebrations taking place at Bad Goisern and Spittal an der Drau are currently the grandest ones and are a remarkable experience to witness. 

You can head to the Krampus Museum in Kitzbühel if the vibrancy and peculiarity of Krampuslauf makes you all the more curious to delve deep into this unusual tradition. This museum is home to almost 400 original Krampus masks exhibiting their evolution over generations. Here, you will spot vintage masks from 1903 and chances are you will also find the artisans making them in real time. Get a chance to learn about the art of making hyper realistic Krampus masks from them and if luck favours, sometimes they even let you try sculpting the masks yourself.

Note: The Museum opens every Sunday from 3 pm to 6 pm