Besides appearances in local family homes, along with St. Nicholas, Krampus and his cohorts put on a show in the streets of many Austrian and Bavarian towns.

Krampus- alpine folklore: a dark tall figure that has two curled horns and goat legs and tail. He would come to each house every year to kidnap all the naughty children in a big bag that he threw over his shoulder.

Krampus, in central European popular legend, is a half-goat, half-demon monster that punishes misbehaving children at Christmastime. He is the devilish companion to St. Nicholas. Popular festivities involving Krampus include the Krampus run, in which costumed participates parade through the streets.

Merry Krampus! In medieval European folklore, Krampus emerged as a fearsome counterpart to Saint Nicholas, a horned and hooved figure who punished wayward children, his dark visage serving as a stark reminder of the season's balance between reward and retribution. Entwined with winter solstice traditions, Krampus personified the harshness of winter and the moral discipline of medieval society, a creature as much a part of the festive period as the promise of spring's return. A card…

A Krampus cautionary tale!