For many, the perfect holiday involves sitting on a tropical beach or exploring a lively, sun-drenched city. However, others are drawn to the darker side of sightseeing.
‘Dark tourism’ is a phenomenon that involves visiting places where disturbing, often violent, events have unfolded – from natural disasters to human atrocities. It provides an informative and moving way to learn about tragedies firsthand.
With this in mind, we’ve pulled together eight dark tourism destinations in Europe.
Note: Dark tourism can be a heavy and upsetting subject and we appreciate that it won’t be for everyone. If you aren’t comfortable reading about historic attractions that centre around death and tragedy, this probably isn’t the article for you.
1. Sedlec Ossuary, Czech Republic
An hour’s train ride from Prague, you’ll find the charming medieval city of Kutná Hora. Here, impressive buildings like St. Barbara’s Church – with its grand flying buttresses and twisting spires – and the magnificent Jesuit College will almost certainly draw your eye. But the most interesting attraction for dark tourists lies in a rather unexpected place.
In the city’s northwestern suburbs, there’s a typical-looking Gothic church. Strolling by on a quiet day, you probably wouldn’t guess what lies beneath: an underground chapel decorated with over 40,000 human skeletons.
According to legend, in the 13th century, a local monk spread soil from Jerusalem over the church’s cemetery plot, making it a popular burial spot. It’s thought that the plague and the Crusades alone brought 40,000 corpses here.
However, when construction on the church began in the 1400s, lots of the remains were dug up and stacked in the ossuary (a room or container for bones) below. Here, they stayed until the 19th century when a local artisan, František Rint, was commissioned to do something with them.
After bleaching and carving the bones, Rint arranged them into fascinating patterns. Chains of skulls hang from the ceilings like bunting, and femurs are stacked along the walls like firewood. The crest of the Schwarzenberg family, who funded the project, is even depicted. But the main attraction is the chandelier, which apparently features every bone in the human body.
2. Pompeii, Italy
Just after midday on August 24th, 79 CE, everyday life in the Roman city of Pompeii was brought to a standstill when the nearby Mt Vesuvius erupted. Thousands were killed as the city was covered in a thick layer of volcanic debris. For centuries it lay buried and mostly forgotten until it was rediscovered in the 1700s.
When archaeologists began excavating the area, they found Pompeii astonishingly well-preserved under the protective blanket of ash. They unearthed a variety of Roman architecture – such as a forum (public meeting place) and sweeping amphitheatre – as well as an array of ancient art, which you can see today.
However, that wasn’t all the archaeologists uncovered. Even after the fallen residents of Pompeii had decomposed, they left behind perfectly shaped cavities, which excavators filled with plaster to create body casts.
Nowadays, you can see the casts of Roman citizens frozen in time. Some appear rather peaceful, while others are disturbingly twisted or flinching as if in terror or pain. There’s even a pig and a dog with a collar.
You might also want to visit the nearby site of Herculaneum, Pompeii’s richer but smaller neighbour, which is even better preserved due to its proximity to the volcano. However, you won’t find casts of people and animals there.
3. Kilmainham Gaol, Ireland
Kilmainham (sometimes called ‘The Bastille of Ireland’) served as the county gaol for Dublin from 1796 to 1924 and is now one of the Irish capital’s most popular tourist destinations.
Lots of the jail’s residents were common criminals, many of whom were awaiting transport to Australia. However, it also housed figures from some of the most influential events in Irish history, including the 1798 rebellion, the Anglo-Irish War, the 1916 Easter Rising, and the Irish Civil War.
Among those imprisoned were rebels Robert Emmet, Constance Markievicz (who was also the first female MP), and the leaders of the Easter Rising, many of whom were executed on-site in Stonebreaker’s yard.
Now open to the public, visitors can wander through the cells to get a sense of what everyday life was like for prisoners. They can also learn about some of Ireland’s most turbulent periods from a fascinating exhibition, featuring letters and personal belongings from prisoners.
4. Belchite, Spain
Often described as the prelude to the Second World War, the Spanish Civil War was a harrowing conflict. It took the lives of hundreds of thousands of people and established Francisco Franco as the country’s dictator for almost 40 years afterwards.
While there are plenty of places to learn about the Spanish Civil War, one of the most affecting and immersive is certainly Belchite. These small town ruins stand as a ghostly monument to one of the most disturbing chapters in the country’s history.
In 1937, Republican forces attacked the town as part of their campaign to capture the city of Zaragoza (which is 45 minutes north by car) from Franco’s Nationalist troops. The Battle of Belchite lasted two weeks and, according to Reuters, as many as 6,000 people died defending it before the Republicans succeeded.
After the war, Franco ordered that the ruins be preserved to honour the Nationalist soldiers who defended them. However, today, they serve as a poignant reminder of the atrocities experienced and committed by both sides.
To explore Belchite and learn about its tragic history, you can take a guided tour through the bombed-out buildings, including the striking churches and eerie clocktower.
5. Moosham Castle, Austria
Nestled amongst the spruces in the mountainous countryside of Salzburg, Schloss Moosham is a fairytale-looking medieval castle with a bloody past. It’s an ideal destination for dark tourists seeking a site infused with the supernatural, as many consider it one of the most haunted places in Europe.
In the late 1600s, Moosham Castle played a central role in the Salzburg Witch Trials. It was here that many accused witches were executed, imprisoned, and tortured. What made the Salzburg Witch Trials unusual was that most of the victims were male – and lots of them children.
Plus, according to stories, in the 19th century, slaughtered animals like deer and cows were found around the property. As a result, a handful of locals were apparently rounded up and killed on suspicion of being werewolves.
If that wasn’t dark enough, these days, people report a whole gamut of ghastly encounters while visiting, including feeling like someone is breathing on them. Although it’s privately owned, you can visit Moosham Castle to experience the chilling atmosphere for yourself.
Inside, you’ll find the dungeons, where the accused witches were kept and tortured, along with curious paintings, antiques, and other objects.
6. Spinalonga Island, Greece
When it comes to Greek islands, you might think of sapphire seas, ivory-white sand, and grandiose tales of myth and legend – from the trials of Heracles to Jason’s quest for the Golden Fleece. But look closer and you’ll find some much more disturbing (and all too real) stories set against this Eden-esque background – particularly on Spinalonga.
A tiny islet off Crete’s coast, Spinalonga has a rich and unique history. Throughout the centuries, it was used as a fortress by the ancient Greeks, Venetians, and Ottomans, who left behind all sorts of fascinating architecture. But Spinagola’s darkest chapter didn’t come until 1903 when it became a colony for people with leprosy.
Leprosy is a contagious disease with symptoms including skin lesions and muscle weakness, which can lead to severe deformity and disability if left untreated. Before the 1940s, when a cure was discovered, those infected were often ostracised from their communities and forced to live in isolated colonies.
In the early days of the Spinalonga colony, inhabitants lived in horrible conditions and received no medical care. However, this changed when law student Epaminondas Remoundakis arrived and fought for better treatment and living conditions. Hundreds of people resided on the island before it was closed in 1957.
Today, you can visit the island by ferry from Crete. After wandering through Dante’s Gate, the tunnel through which the lepers arrived, you can explore the eerie, deserted streets. As well as learning about the lives of past inhabitants, you can also marvel at the grand walls of the fortress, and the unique mix of Venetian and Ottoman architecture.
7. The Cemetery of the Nameless, Austria
Vienna is home to one of the largest and most impressive cemeteries in the world: the Zentralfriedhof. Aside from wandering the impressive grounds, you can visit the graves of composers like Franz Schubert, Johannes Brahms, and Ludwig van Beethoven, and discover the unique flora and fauna (including rare wild European hamsters).
However, for a more macabre experience, why not head off the beaten track to the Cemetery of the Nameless? Tucked between industrial estates and grain elevators southwest of the city, you’ll find this dark tourism destination near a junction of the Danube River and the Danube Canal.
In the mid-19th century, people began to find corpses here, which the current had washed ashore. Some of these were in such terrible condition that they couldn’t be identified, and others had committed suicide and, therefore, were refused a proper Christian burial. So, a graveyard was built to house these unfortunate souls in 1840.
Though the first graveyard was destroyed by flooding from the nearby river, a second was built in 1900, in which people continued to be buried until 1940. Nowadays, the current of the river has changed, and the victims of the Danube no longer wash ashore here, but it’s still looked after by the founder’s grandson and is open to the public.
While macabre, the Cemetery of the Nameless looks rather idyllic. Looming trees cast dappled sunlight over the graves, and rows of black crosses stand gilded with silver.
8. The Catacombs, France
In the 18th century, the city of Paris faced several issues. Firstly, the limestone quarries under the streets began caving in, creating sinkholes. In 1774, a massive collapse swallowed 300 metres of the street, taking houses, horses, and people with it.
Around the same time, the local cemeteries became increasingly overcrowded, which caused all sorts of public health concerns. For example, the remains released foul gases and poisoned the water supply.
With this in mind, Charles Axel Guillaumot, an inspector at the Department of General Quarry Inspection, decided to kill two birds with one stone. As well as bolstering the quarries to prevent them from collapsing, he would fill them with the bones of dead Parisians from the overflowing cemeteries.
In the years to come, the bones of an estimated six million people were moved from the cemeteries into the quarries. At first, they were dumped haphazardly, but eventually, the bones were organised to create a mesmerising labyrinth.
Today, over a mile of the catacombs is open for the public to explore.
Final thoughts…
According to J, John Lennon, a professor at Glasgow Caledonian University, dark tourism isn’t a new phenomenon. It has roots at least as far back as Roman times when people travelled to watch the gruesome displays at the Colosseum.
But nowadays, respectful travellers don’t visit sites of suffering for the spectacle of it. Instead, dark tourism offers us a chance to reflect on some of the most harrowing chapters in human history, remind ourselves of the evil people are capable of, and imagine a more harmonious future.
With that said, it’s important to be considerate when visiting places like these. The Matador Network offers some advice on remaining respectful. And for more ideas for macabre sites, check out our article; 10 dark tourism destinations to visit in the UK.
Have you visited any of the sites on this list? Or do you have any other suggestions for dark tourism destinations in Europe? If so, we’d love to hear from you in the comments below.