Dark tourism is a term gaining popularity recently among travelers. But many people are still unaware or curious about it. There are lots of questions like, what is this Dark tourism? Why is it getting so much attention recently? Which are the destinations of Dark tourism? Many such questions will be answered in this article.
What is Dark Tourism?
Dark tourism is a type or form of tourism. It has many alternative names like black tourism, thanatourism, or grief tourism. It is a type of tourism that is associated with death or tragedy.
Traveling has always been considered as exploring beautiful places, places filled with joy. But Dark tourism is all about the curiosity of finding answers or feeling the tragedy or pain associated with the place. The ‘dark’ word in this is used metaphorically, as in “a dark chapter of history”.
Why is Dark Tourism getting so popular?
Why would people visit places of death and tragedy, sorrow and pain? Probably the first thought that comes to mind after understanding Dark Tourism.
For many Dark Tourists, it is a way of connecting to the events that took place at the point back in time. For some tourists, it is sort of an adventure tour. But for some tourists, it is more like an educational tour, like the ‘Hope Tourism Guided Tour’ held in Fukushima in 2018.
Also, there is a series on Netflix called The Dark Tourist. In the series, David focuses on dark tourism and tourist behavior towards popular dark tourism sites that are historically associated with death and/or tragedy. In each episode, David Farrier travels to a different dark tourism destination.
Which are the top 10 dark Tourism sites in the world?
Due to this pandemic tourism industry is facing the worst time ever. But as things are getting normal we hope soon tourism will get back on track. Now as things get back to normal and you wish to go for Dark tourism you must know where to go. So, let us go through the list of the top 10 dark Tourism sites in the world.
1. Ground Zero, New York
9/11 is considered the scariest terrorist attack taking place in the 21st century.
2. KGB Headquarters, Lithuania
KGB Headquarters and prison where most of the prisoners were Jewish insurgents and were tortured to death.
3. Chernobyl, Ukraine
One of the most horrific radioactive explosions took place at the Chernobyl nuclear power plant on 26th April 1986.
4. Tuol Sleng Genocide Museum, Cambodia
Tuol Sleng Genocide Museum is located in Phnom Penh, the capital of Cambodia. Often known as the ‘museum of death’, it was once a secondary school.
5. Auschwitz Concentration Camps, Poland
Opened in the year 1940, Auschwitz is known as the largest death camp in the history of the planet. Around 1.5 million people lost their lives in the Auschwitz concentration camps.
6. Murambi Genocide Memorial, Rwanda
Here more than 50,000 people lost their lives within 100 days (April and June 1994).
7. Hiroshima, Japan
On 6th August 1945, the bomb was dropped on the city and around 80,000 people died immediately. More than thousands suffered radiation poisoning and injury.
8. Volcano creeks in Pompeii, Italy
In 79 AD the volcano Vesuvius erupted and the whole ancient city of Pompeii was destroyed leaving behind fossilized bodies.
9. Sedlec Ossuary, Chechia
The Sedlec Ossuary’ is a small Roman Catholic chapel. Sedlec Ossuary’s architecture is creepy and fascinating with around 50,000 skeletons used for its interior decoration.
10. Island of the Dolls, Mexico
Don Julian Santana’s spirit was haunted by the dead girl. He started getting dolls for her until he died at the very same place with the girl. Before his death, he filled the whole island with hanging dolls. A lot more creepy than it sounds.
If you are interested in visiting and experiencing the ‘dark side’ of human history, the above-mentioned places must be on your wish list. Stay tuned for more travel blogs, and do visit our hospitality e-learning platform.
Nice Post. very well written and very impressive