When the fourth reactor at the Chernobyl nuclear power plant exploded in 1986, almost 50,000 people were forced to abandon the nearby city of Pripyat to avoid a deadly radiation leak. In the years that followed, it has arguably become the world’s most famous ghost town, sitting at the rusting heart of the exclusion zone where only occasional tourists, urban explorers and animals tread.
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Villa Sans Souci, Marsaxlokk, MaltaMilaCroft/Shutterstock src=https://s.yimg.com/ny/api/res/1.2/7asx9f_PxO_w85OkaK2Muw–/YXBwaWQ9aGlnaGxhbmRlcjt3PTk2MDtoPTYxOQ–/https://media.zenfs.com/en/loveexploring_uk_835/4c3bb7b08e9bcc6d1f70d44eeea8937a>
Visit the former farming village of Oradour-sur-Glane in France’s Nouvelle-Aquitaine region and you’ll find it still echoes with tragedy. During the Second World War, the settlement was under German occupation. On 10 June 1944, an SS detachment rounded up all 652 villagers, locked the men in barns and the women and children in the church, and set the whole place alight. Just 10 people survived and Oradour-sur-Glane has been left abandoned ever since, its ruined state a memorial to those who were massacred.
Heidelberg Castle, Heidelberg, GermanyDorosh/Shutterstock src=https://s.yimg.com/ny/api/res/1.2/S_ZC9ZqMFE0SXmcq2iPakQ–/YXBwaWQ9aGlnaGxhbmRlcjt3PTk2MDtoPTYxOQ–/https://media.zenfs.com/en/loveexploring_uk_835/e9e72525d3554e83c39373b7a644fd6c>
Under the creative direction of 19th-century polymath Ferdinando Panciatichi Ximenes d’Aragona, Castello di Sammezzano became a love letter to the Orientalism trend on the outskirts of Florence, replete with ornate plasterwork, mosaics and muqarnas (honeycomb-like architecture typical of Islamic design). But after a run-in with the Nazis during the Second World War and a short-lived stint as a hotel and restaurant in the 1970s, the castle’s 365 rooms were vacated and left to rot. A committee is petitioning for the site’s urgent restoration, but it’s unknown whether these efforts are paying off.
Villers Abbey, Villers-la-Ville, Belgiumkasakphoto/Shutterstock src=https://s.yimg.com/ny/api/res/1.2/gLs.SuRuDmTZyUEBjL.8bw–/YXBwaWQ9aGlnaGxhbmRlcjt3PTk2MDtoPTYxOQ–/https://media.zenfs.com/en/loveexploring_uk_835/e26937e2f88d2a7fb3dfe4345bf887ce>
If you didn’t know, you might think this deserted village was a traditional Viking settlement, remarkably preserved by biting Icelandic winters. But in reality, it’s an abandoned film set from a movie that was never made. Located just outside the fishing town of Hofn, the replica Viking village is surrounded by jagged black peaks and is filled with true-to-history timber huts with turfed roofs. Built in 2010 for a production that was later scrapped due to funding issues, the site can now be visited by paying a small fee to the farmer who owns the land.
Edegem Fortress, Antwerp, BelgiumDitlevsen/Shutterstock src=https://s.yimg.com/ny/api/res/1.2/hcR39OZeV6o8fQpjygnI3g–/YXBwaWQ9aGlnaGxhbmRlcjt3PTk2MDtoPTYxOQ–/https://media.zenfs.com/en/loveexploring_uk_835/5636862234813ae1ac822a8da8e3d4d3>
Though a coating of white paint has given this abandoned church a modern Scandi facelift, it was actually built way back in the 14th century. But by the late 18th century rapidly rising sands were swallowing the church’s foundations and pouring inside through every tiny crack in the masonry. No force – divine or otherwise – could save the chapel from its inevitable fate, and it was finally sacrificed to nature in 1795. Once the largest church in the region, most of it was demolished upon closure, and now just a lonely tower remains among the dunes.
Belchite, SpainAstrobobo/Shutterstock src=https://s.yimg.com/ny/api/res/1.2/FaCZ6QfrKpsAA6e784qj5g–/YXBwaWQ9aGlnaGxhbmRlcjt3PTk2MDtoPTYxOQ–/https://media.zenfs.com/en/loveexploring_uk_835/8be9e1721579784b0b91cb8bc96748a2>
The abandoned gulag of Goli Otok – ‘barren island’ – was first used by Austria-Hungary to incarcerate Russian prisoners of war, but it was in communist former Yugoslavia that the prison island became truly notorious. Political dissidents and critics of Josip Broz Tito’s breakaway regime were sent here for hard labour. By 1956, more than 15,000 people had endured such sentences, leaving at least 600 dead (some reportedly from torture). As the Iron Curtain was dismantled across Eastern Europe, the island was abandoned. Tourists can visit on boat trips to see what remains.
Castle of Montearagon, Quicena, Spaintokar/Shutterstock src=https://s.yimg.com/ny/api/res/1.2/imQUu4yvKr_vzzftHFzZtQ–/YXBwaWQ9aGlnaGxhbmRlcjt3PTk2MDtoPTYxOQ–/https://media.zenfs.com/en/loveexploring_uk_835/8280e40fa70087854648c236db7c020c>
Today, Montearagon Castle is a forlorn sight. Founded in 1086 by King Sancho Ramirez, its earliest purpose was to antagonise the nearby city of Huesca, which was under Islamic rule at the time. In 1097, the king handed custody of Montearagon to an order of Augustinian monks. After functioning as a monastery for more than seven centuries, the fortress was used as a gunpowder store in the 19th century, which ended in the compound’s demise. An explosion turned it into a dour ruin, and the castle was never rebuilt.
Aldwych Tube Station, London, England, UKFotokon/Shutterstock src=https://s.yimg.com/ny/api/res/1.2/7i.Xeay9OHkkJgkC_OXB.A–/YXBwaWQ9aGlnaGxhbmRlcjt3PTk2MDtoPTYxOQ–/https://media.zenfs.com/en/loveexploring_uk_835/cb168bfd676b1f06d83fd577e689f39c>
In 1984, Sarajevo hosted the Winter Olympics and an entire purpose-built facility was created. But after the medals had been won and the athletes had gone home, it was only a matter of time before the region was gripped by war. Starting in 1991, the Yugoslav Wars ultimately saw the Olympic Village repurposed for battle: the old competitors’ hotel was turned into army headquarters; the podium was a platform for executions; and the curves of the bobsleigh track (pictured) doubled as effective defensive positions. Currently the site is largely abandoned, with talk of restoration work ongoing.
Camelot, Chorley, England, UKBGStock72/Shutterstock src=https://s.yimg.com/ny/api/res/1.2/0zcoGyMq_SBQ6U8l0C1j5g–/YXBwaWQ9aGlnaGxhbmRlcjt3PTk2MDtoPTYxOQ–/https://media.zenfs.com/en/loveexploring_uk_835/873b2428c4d767b432f91e3405737e99>
Once a state-of-the-art Soviet spa town, Tskaltubo – made up of more than 20 defunct hotels and sanatoriums – was built because Stalin himself believed in the holistic properties of hot springs. He even had his own private bathhouse here. When the Iron Curtain collapsed in 1991, the spas closed and sank into disrepair. But, more recently, the faded resort has provided shelter for refugees of the Georgian-Abkhazian conflict. In 2020, the Georgian government announced plans to invest millions of dollars into restoring the tourism infrastructure of Tskaltubo.
Bluie East Two, Ikateq, GreenlandJohncw41/Shutterstock src=https://s.yimg.com/ny/api/res/1.2/batYWX2fweBadLaFgsRgsw–/YXBwaWQ9aGlnaGxhbmRlcjt3PTk2MDtoPTYxOQ–/https://media.zenfs.com/en/loveexploring_uk_835/cabc5fa03816e3b38826b25b79fb8f3b>
Lying entombed beneath the Guernsey countryside, this old German military hospital and ammunition store was built with the blood, sweat and tears of enforced labourers during the Second World War. Over three gruelling years, the workers – many of whom died in the process – fashioned the subterranean tunnels with explosives, rudimentary tools and their bare hands. But for all their efforts, the hospital was only operational for three months (damp tunnels aren’t the best place to recuperate), while the storage facility was used for around nine months. The site is open to the public today.
Palazzo d’Avalos, Procida, Italyeztravelphotography/Shutterstock src=https://s.yimg.com/ny/api/res/1.2/2PYYqICbDkPe9IaIiPysKA–/YXBwaWQ9aGlnaGxhbmRlcjt3PTk2MDtoPTYxOQ–/https://media.zenfs.com/en/loveexploring_uk_835/c7a4800014be53e5cad92236307e1f5f>
eztravelphotography/Shutterstock
Sitting precariously on Croatia’s northern coast, the wind whistles through this stripped carcass, which looks just a powerful gust away from being taken by the sea. But its current state of decay belies its historic legacy. The city of Rijeka was the birthplace of the torpedo – a launch station for these self-propelled underwater missiles was first established here in the 1860s, with today’s incarnation dating back to the 1930s. The station oversaw the production and launch of the world’s first successful torpedo and manufactured more than 30 different models before closing in 1966. It has been slowly rotting ever since.
Constanta Casino, Constana, RomaniaELEPHOTOS/Shutterstock src=https://s.yimg.com/ny/api/res/1.2/QrPYtuUmD8ocAz49jj7EGA–/YXBwaWQ9aGlnaGxhbmRlcjt3PTk2MDtoPTYxOQ–/https://media.zenfs.com/en/loveexploring_uk_835/b6dbff00cf717c3f22c144e64c41d461>
From a distance, the opulence of this wedding cake-like structure holds up. It’s only at closer quarters you realise the Constanta Casino is a far cry from the pristine Art Nouveau masterpiece it used to be. Built at the start of the 20th century, it emerged as a favoured gambling spot among well-heeled tourists, its Black Sea location reflected in its shell-shaped windows. But it was the advent of war on the continent that signalled the building’s swansong. Left to evanesce after the fall of communism, reports of recent renovation works suggest there could be life in this waning beauty yet.
Grmec Monument to the Revolution, Unsko-sanski kanton, Bosnia-Herzegovinamarketa1982/Shutterstock src=https://s.yimg.com/ny/api/res/1.2/CdvFc3vk2kR9ZTlIx38.Fg–/YXBwaWQ9aGlnaGxhbmRlcjt3PTk2MDtoPTYxOQ–/https://media.zenfs.com/en/loveexploring_uk_835/1ba599bb56c0c2e20b8bc7c591dd6e27>
The Grmec Monument to the Revolution is one of numerous ‘spomeniks’ that appeared among the forests and mountains of former Yugoslavia throughout the 1960s and 70s. These futuristic concrete sculptures were designed to mark significant events in the republic’s history, from individual uprisings to partisan battles. This one, resigned to a lonely fate of gathering moss on the Grmec mountain, is said to commemorate a hospital founded by communist-led resistance fighters during the Second World War.
Prinkipo Orphanage, Buyukada, TurkeyOVKNHR/Shutterstock src=https://s.yimg.com/ny/api/res/1.2/i3IWcVlXW.p9jch438BXWw–/YXBwaWQ9aGlnaGxhbmRlcjt3PTk2MDtoPTYxOQ–/https://media.zenfs.com/en/loveexploring_uk_835/f135dc47ed619f87211e927c21f7fca2>
Considered one of Europe’s largest timber buildings, the Prinkipo Orphanage was initially intended to be a high-end hotel and casino. But when bureaucratic red tape prevented the casino from opening, it was sold on and repurposed as an orphanage. After housing almost 6,000 Greek children in its lifetime, Prinkipo was shut down in the wake of rising tensions between Greece and Turkey in 1964. In 2018, cultural heritage federation Europa Nostra placed the abandoned orphanage on a list of the continent’s most endangered heritage sites.
Rubjerg Knude Lighthouse, Lokken, Denmarkannalisakiesel/Shutterstock src=https://s.yimg.com/ny/api/res/1.2/g2YvwXbh.q2n_WmTBIs2qA–/YXBwaWQ9aGlnaGxhbmRlcjt3PTk2MDtoPTYxOQ–/https://media.zenfs.com/en/loveexploring_uk_835/5935512890591c34de9eec364a023dd9>
annalisakiesel/Shutterstock
These intimidating juggernauts were used to defend against aerial attacks during the Second World War, equipped with anti-aircraft guns that had a range of over seven miles (14km) and a 360-degree field of fire. Erected on Hitler’s orders, the stone fortresses – three in Berlin, two in Hamburg and six in Vienna – were each capable of firing 8,000 rounds a minute. But as artillery and military aviation became more sophisticated with time, the flak towers fell into disuse. Most of the towers in Vienna remain vacant (pigeons excepted) apart from Flak Tower 2-L, which has been converted into the Haus des Meeres aquarium.
Spis Castle, Zehra, Slovakiafotowada/Alamy src=https://s.yimg.com/ny/api/res/1.2/SHtoR3diW4akPRS.WQX.Bg–/YXBwaWQ9aGlnaGxhbmRlcjt3PTk2MDtoPTYxOQ–/https://media.zenfs.com/en/loveexploring_uk_835/2e8f02b84491c48ee22a4721718705ad>
Deep in Germany’s Black Forest, the empty corridors of Schlosshotel Waldlust echo with ghosts. The 140-room luxury hotel opened for business in 1902, counting kings, celebrities and artists among its clientele in its most successful years. But the countdown to its downfall began ticking in 1949, when the owner at the time was found murdered in one of the rooms. After her death, the ailing guesthouse was repurposed as a military hospital, but was closed and abandoned in 2005. These days, the now-protected cultural monument occasionally opens for tours and concerts.
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Publish date : 2024-10-11 00:00:00
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