10 Eerie Abandoned Places Around the World You Can Visit
There’s something hauntingly beautiful about places left behind—where nature creeps in, silence reigns, and history lingers in the shadows. From decaying amusement parks to ghost towns frozen in time, abandoned sites offer an eerie yet fascinating glimpse into the past. Whether you’re drawn to forgotten architecture, dark tourism, or the thrill of urban exploration, these destinations promise unforgettable, slightly spine-tingling experiences.
Here are 15 of the most eerie abandoned places around the world you can still visit—if you dare.
1. Pripyat, Ukraine – Ghost Town of Chernobyl
Once home to workers at the Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant, Pripyat was evacuated overnight after the 1986 disaster. Today, it remains a chilling time capsule of Soviet life—complete with empty schools, a rusting Ferris wheel, and apartments overtaken by the elements.
Guided tours from Kyiv are now available and required for access, offering a sobering and fascinating look at one of history’s most infamous accidents. Radiation levels are considered safe for short visits, but the atmosphere is unforgettable.
2. Hashima Island, Japan – Battleship Island
Just off the coast of Nagasaki lies Hashima Island, once a bustling coal-mining facility and now a concrete ghost ship slowly decaying into the sea. Nicknamed “Battleship Island” for its silhouette, it was abandoned in the 1970s when the mine shut down.
Now, travelers can tour selected areas of the island by boat with a guide. The wind-swept ruins of apartment blocks, schools, and factories create an unsettling, post-apocalyptic landscape.
3. Kolmanskop, Namibia – A Desert-Swallowed Town
Kolmanskop was once a thriving diamond mining settlement in the Namib Desert—but when the gems dried up, the people left, and the desert began to reclaim it.
Today, sand pours through the doorways and windows of German colonial homes, burying staircases and rooms in golden dunes. Visitors can join daily guided tours from the nearby town of Lüderitz to explore this surreal and photogenic ghost town.
4. Centralia, Pennsylvania, USA – A Town Still Burning
Beneath this nearly empty town, a coal mine fire has been burning since 1962—and it could continue for centuries. Once home to over 1,000 residents, Centralia was largely evacuated due to dangerous gas and sinkholes, leaving behind empty streets and eerie ruins.
While most buildings are gone, visitors can still walk along “Graffiti Highway” and see smoke rising from the ground. Though officially closed to the public, the area remains a pilgrimage site for urban explorers and curiosity seekers.
5. Varosha, Cyprus – Resort Town Turned No-Man’s Land
Once a glamorous beach resort in Famagusta, Varosha was abandoned overnight during the 1974 Turkish invasion of Cyprus. For decades, the area was sealed off by military forces and left to decay behind barbed wire fences.
In recent years, parts of Varosha have been reopened to the public. Walking through sun-bleached hotels and crumbling cafes along empty beaches feels like stepping into a ghost story set on the Mediterranean.
6. Beelitz-Heilstätten, Germany – Abandoned Hospital Complex
Located near Berlin, this sprawling sanatorium was once a military hospital used during both World Wars—Adolf Hitler was even treated here. After closing in the 1990s, it was left to nature, its ornate red-brick buildings slowly overtaken by vines and graffiti.
Visitors can now explore the grounds through guided “lost place” tours or stroll along the treetop walkway overlooking the haunting ruins. It’s a favorite destination for photographers and thrill-seekers alike.
7. Craco, Italy – Hilltop Ghost Village
Perched on a cliff in southern Italy, Craco was once a thriving medieval village. Landslides and earthquakes forced residents to flee in the 20th century, leaving behind empty homes, a church, and stone towers that seem frozen in time.
Now a popular filming location (including for The Passion of the Christ), Craco is open for guided visits. The silence and the panoramic views make for a haunting yet strangely peaceful experience.
8. Oradour-sur-Glane, France – Preserved in Tragedy
This French village was destroyed by Nazi troops in 1944, its entire population massacred. Rather than rebuild, France left Oradour-sur-Glane untouched as a permanent memorial.
Visitors can walk through the preserved ruins—rusting cars, burned-out houses, and the remains of a church—exactly as they were left. It’s a powerful and moving reminder of the horrors of war, and one of Europe’s most solemn abandoned places.
9. Gunkanjima (Battleship Island), Japan – Concrete Decay
Gunkanjima appears again on this list because of its haunting industrial design and visual intensity. The compact island, once home to 5,000 coal miners and their families, now resembles a decaying fortress lost at sea.
Though much of the island remains off-limits due to safety concerns, guided boat tours allow visitors to land and view a small portion up close. The crumbling skyscrapers and desolate atmosphere give it a cinematic, dystopian feel.
10. North Brother Island, New York, USA – Forbidden in the East River
Hidden in plain sight between Manhattan and the Bronx, North Brother Island once housed a quarantine hospital and later a drug rehabilitation center. It’s most notorious for being the home of “Typhoid Mary,” one of the first asymptomatic carriers of typhoid fever.
Now overgrown and closed to the public to protect nesting birds, it’s still visible by kayak or from the shoreline. Some guided boat tours offer views and historical context of this secretive, forgotten piece of New York history.
