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Making History is exploring the booming industry that is dark tourism. Whether it’s the site of a natural disaster, genocide or incarceration, places of pain, shame and “heritage that hurts”...
Here are the world's most popular dark tourism destinations that'll surely creep you out. More and more, tourists are opting for melancholy and macabre over carefree and relaxing. Dark tourism is when people go places where horrific things in human history have happened.
- Alcatraz Prison – San Francisco, USA
- Gravensteen Castle – Ghent, Belgium
- Silver Mines – Potosi, Bolivia
- Port Arthur Penal Colony – Tasmania, Australia
- Museum of The Occupation of Latvia – Riga, Latvia
- Jallianwala Bagh Memorial Park – India
- Gori, Georgia
- Tham Piew Cave – Laos
- Chernobyl Exclusion Zone, Ukraine
- Catacombs – Paris, France
Possibly one of the most eerie and fascinatingdark tourism sites you will ever visit is Alcatraz. A prison so notorious that it still receives millions of visitors a year. Located on an island in San Francisco‘s bay area, you now get to experience seeing it from the inside like a prisoner. So close to land but so far away. The only way to reach Alc...
Contributed by Cecilie from Worldwide Walkers Gravensteen Castle in Ghentis a classic example of dark tourism sites in Europe. The castle was built back in 1180 and housed the Count of Flanders for many centuries until it became a court, a prison, and even a cotton factory. It’s the dark horror stories of torture that really attract visitors to Gra...
Contributed by Deb from The Visa Project While there are many landmarks to see in Potosi, a unique attraction is to visit one of these working mines. A guided tourlet’s you witness the working conditions of the miners. If you live in Bolivia, you would come across many extreme tourist offerings but this one would probably be one of the darkest. The...
Contributed by Mark from Wyld Family Travel Port Arthur lies at the bottom of the world in southern Tasmania Australia. Port Arthur was a British penal colony set up in Australia, designed to break prisoners both mentally and physically. To be sent here from England was being sent as far away from your home as possible. The youngest prisoner was 11...
As a former Soviet occupied country, Latvia still has many historic sites linked to the KGB. One of the most interesting activities you can do in Rigais visit the Corner House. This was the old headquarters of the Soviet KGB in Latvia. True KGB style, if you didn’t know this museum existed you might not be able to find it. A inconspicuous doorway l...
Contributed by Neha from Travelmelodies Etched in the history of India as a dark moment, is the incident of Jallianwala Bagh. Located in the holy city of Amritsar in Punjab, it remains one of the most popular places to visit in Amritsar. Jallianwala Bagh is a memorial park in the honor the people that were wounded and lost lives on the fateful day ...
Contributed by Emily from Wander-Lush The small city of Gori,Georgiahas a rather dark claim to fame. It’s the birthplace of Ioseb Jughashvili, better known as former Soviet dictator Joseph Stalin. An easy day trip from Tbilisi, Gori has become one of the most-visited places in Georgia because of its Stalin connection. The main attraction is the Sta...
Contributed by Marie from A Life Without Borders Laos holds the unfortunate title of the most heavily bombed country on Earth. It bore the brunt of clandestine bombing campaigns waged by the USA on Laos during the 1960s and 1970s. Phonsavanin the province of Xieng Khouang, was particularly decimated. In fact, unexploded ordnance still affects local...
Contributed by Kami from My Wanderlust The Chernobyl Exclusion Zone is a well-known place all over the world. On April 26th, 1986 the biggest nuclear disaster in the world took place here, changing people’s lives forever. As a result of the catastrophe, the whole area around the power plant became a closed zone. Inhabitants of numerous towns and vi...
Contributed by Debbie from World Adventurists Even the City of Light and Love has a dark history. One of the most fascinating places to visit is the Catacombs of Paris. The Catacombs have a sad history, full of bones of the unknown. In the 17th century, Paris cemeteries were overflowing so badly that there was no longer space to properly bury their...
- Wuhan, China. When it comes to new dark tourism destinations, Wuhan is set to top the list. If you haven’t heard of this somewhat uninspiring Chinese city, then you must have spent 2020 living under a rock!
- Chernobyl, Ukraine. Personally, I find this one a little scary still, but evidently not everyone shares my apprehension. The Chernobyl disaster site welcomes thousands of tourists each year, despite ongoing radiation concerns.
- Fukushima, Japan. The only other nuclear disaster to be labelled as a level 7 on the International Nuclear Event Scale was the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear disaster.
- Auschwitz Concentration Camps, Poland. Poland, and Krakow in particular, has shot up the rankings in terms of popular tourist destinations. And many people visit Krakow because it is a gateway to Auschwitz, the most famous World War II concentration camp – and probably the most visited of the world’s dark tourism destinations.
May 20, 2024 · Dark tourism is a controversial form of tourism that raises ethical concerns. Dark tourism has been around for centuries, but the term “dark tourism” was only coined in the 1990s. Some of the most popular dark tourism destinations include Auschwitz, Ground Zero, and the Killing Fields in Cambodia.
Jan 31, 2024 · HBO's new miniseries adaptation of Gillian Flynn's Dark Places is highly anticipated by fans and long overdue. Gillian Flynn's involvement in the series as a writer and co-creator increases the likelihood of a successful adaptation.
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2 days ago · Dark tourism is the act of going to places that are connected to the macabre, or historical sites where death and suffering took place. Places such as Chernobyl; Auschwitz; Salem, Massachusetts ...
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