The Best Places Around the World to Visit if You Enjoy the Legend of the Werewolves

Werewolves, also known as Lycanthropes, have become one of the most famous cryptozoological legends that exist today. Throughout history, there are records of werewolf trials that span across the world. These are useful in helping us to guess the origin of the werewolf legend. In fact, there are several countries associated with this creature. As such, you can visit these places around the world if you enjoy the legends of the werewolves.

Greece

In Greece, the origin of the werewolf has many versions. The earliest records can be found in Ovid’s poem entitled Metamorphoses.

According to his poem, Zeus, masquerading as an ordinary man, visited the palace of King Lycaon. After Zeus revealed his true identity, the king planned to test if he was a god. The king murdered a hostage, cooked the victim’s flesh, and served it to Zeus. The god was enraged, so he burned the palace and killed the king’s sons with lightning bolts. Afterward, he cursed the ruthless king and sent him into the forest, where he turned into a wolf. According to David Gallagher, King Lycaon was turned into a wolf because his savagery resembles the wolf.

Naturally, the Greek almost always have a fun origin story for our favorite creatures, so visiting Greece is a great way to become submerged into that mythological history.

Iceland and Norway

Some of the best places around the world to visit if you enjoy the legends of werewolves are Iceland and Norway. Remember, these two countries may be miles apart, but they share the same mythology.

According to Norse mythology, the origin of the werewolf started with a father and son, namely Sigmund and Sinfjotli. While wandering the forest, they found magical wolf pelts that could turn them into a wolf with magnificent powers once worn. However, the pelts could only be removed after ten days of being put on.

Before the father and son wore the pelts, they had an agreement that if one of them encountered seven men, they would howl at each other. However, Sinfjotli had broken the agreement and killed 11 men. As a result, Sigmund was angered and injured his son. Fortunately, Odin’s messenger came to the rescue and put a healing leaf over Sinfjotli’s wounds. When the son was healed, both the father and son removed the pelts. Afterward, they burned them to free themselves from the lycanthropy curse.

Mexico

One of the best places to visit if you enjoy werewolves is Mexico. The reason is that this country has fascinating tales about this supernatural creature.

In Mexico, a werewolf is called Nahual, and its origin varies depending on the region. Some Mesoamerican Indians think that this creature is a guardian spirit that is residing in an animal. On the other hand, other regions believe that strong men can turn themselves into a werewolf to harm others.

The latter belief has a relationship with the word “nahual,” which means “disguise,” and it pertains to the magicians who use sorcery to transform themselves into an animal.

All in all, no matter where you travel around the world, you are likely to find some variation of the werewolf story.