It is difficult to explain what attracts us so much to abandoned cities. Maybe it's this strange silence, where you can hear the whispering of the past? Or maybe in the feeling that you are looking into someone's forgotten life... In any case, such places are like a portal to another dimension. Here are five ghost towns that will definitely make you think.
Pripyat, Ukraine: The Place Where Time Stood Still in 1986
We've all heard of Chernobyl, but it's one thing to know, it's another to be there. The city, where life was once in full swing, became a dead zone in a few hours.
What will amaze you: schools with textbooks left behind, attractions that never worked, things of the first liquidators soaked in radiation... This city is not just abandoned - it seems to be frozen in its last day.
How to get there: only with a guide! You will be equipped with a dosimeter, and you will not be able to just walk wherever you want, but this is for the best.
Craco, Italy: A Medieval City on the Brink of an Abyss
Krako is like a frame from a post-apocalyptic movie: stone houses leaning into a cliff, dilapidated churches and completely empty streets. People once lived here, but natural disasters forced everyone to leave.
What inspires you: the city is so picturesque that it has long been chosen by directors, and the ruins themselves, standing against the backdrop of endless hills, look as if you are in another time.
How to get there: the easiest way to get there is from Matera by car. Don't forget to take a guide – walking through the ruins can be dangerous!
Oradour-sur-Glane, France: a terrible reminder of the war
This place is unlike any other. Oradour-sur-Glane was destroyed by the Nazis in 1944, and the village has remained in this state ever since. This is not just ruins, this is the memory of what happened.
What causes shivers: abandoned bicycles, toys, houses in which everything has stopped. Here you see not just a dry story, but real human pain and horror.
How to visit: the village is located near Limoges, access is open here. But be prepared for the fact that this is not an excursion, but rather an emotional test.
Sang Zhi, Taiwan: Futurism That Has Become a Nightmare
These strange, flying saucer-like houses were intended to be a high-end resort, but something went wrong, and now Sun Ji is the ruins of a future that never came.
What is surprising: the capsule houses look like they are from a space travel movie. But instead of life, there is emptiness and myths about why the project failed. The place seems to have been specially created for ghost hunting!
How to get there: the easiest way is by taxi from the nearest city. Just be careful: the buildings are in disrepair, and there are no official excursions here.
Varosha, Cyprus: A Forgotten Paradise Resort
Varosha was once the pearl of Cyprus: hotels, beaches, tourists... And now? Overgrown roads, abandoned houses, windows that no one has looked through for a long time. The conflict of 1974 left Varosha in a buffer zone, and time here simply stopped.
What is impressive: this place reminds how easy it is to lose what was created by human hands - where there used to be crowds of tourists, now only the wind shakes the grass.
How to get there: now access to Varosha is only partially open. If you're lucky, you might be able to see part of the city, but most of it is still closed.
Why are we attracted to this?
Abandoned cities are not just about ruins, they are about a sense of time that can be touched. It's a reminder of how quickly things can change. And it's always a little scary, a little sad, but insanely exciting.
