There will always be something interesting to find when it comes to abandoned places. This is why a lot of people are drawn to them. There is just something hauntingly beautiful about ruins and abandoned places that get to you.
Source: Pixabay
Most people would find abandoned places creepy but they are like mysteries waiting to be solved or like you are walking around a place of history. Here is a list of the most beautiful abandoned places from all over the world that you should consider checking out.
Jiancing historical trail (Taiwan)
You can find this hauntingly beautiful abandoned railway near the Taipingshan Villa in Taiwan. The Jiancing historical trail used to be a logging railway that was 5.5 kilometers long.
Source: History Detail
In 2004, the abandoned railway became a 2.3-kilometer-long hiking trail. Then, in 2013, a typhoon hit the area hard and destroyed the trail. Today, the last half of the trail is considered to be unstable so the hiking trail stops at only 900 meters.
Pripyat City amusement park (Ukraine)
This is one of the most popular abandoned theme parks in the world. The Pripyat City Amusement Park started operating on May 1, 1986, but then something terrible happened the following month.
Source: History Daily
On April 26, 1986, the Chernobyl disaster happened. The people in the area had to evacuate and this theme park is one of the many structures that stood frozen in time, abandoned. This famous Ferris wheel is a famous monument to the terrible incident.
Hotel del Salto (Colombia)
This was once a majestic hotel that seats on the edge of a cliff with beautiful views of a gorgeous waterfall and the mountains of Colombia. Ever since it was abandoned, it has been rumored to be one of the most haunted spots in the country.
Source: History Daily
Hotel del Salto’s glory days came to an end starting with the Great Depression – they’ve had financial problems ever since. The Bogota River nearby also became contaminated with industrial wastes, which stopped the constant flow of visitors and customers to the hotel.
Kerry Way cottage (Ireland)
The Kerry Way is a famous long-distance hiking trail located in County Kerry, Ireland. The circular trail is 133 miles long and usually takes nine days to complete. So, you better get in good shape if you want to attempt to finish this hike.
Source: History Daily
While on the Kerry Way walking trail, you will spot this abandoned cottage. It is hard to miss since the way nature has completely taken over it is very eye-catching. It will make you wonder how those trees were able to grow inside the structure.
Helensburgh railway tunnel (Australia)
This old and abandoned railway tunnel is considered to be one of the most beautiful abandoned spots in the world. It was built back in the 1880s and abandoned in 1920 when a new double lane was created for the steam locomotives in a different location.
Source: History Daily
Before, visitors were still allowed to enter and tour the tunnel. It has been quite famous because glow worms took residence and lit up the dark parts of the tunnel. Now, the tunnel has been vandalized so visitors are discouraged to drop by.
Swallow’s nest (Ukraine)
This is a decorative Neo-gothic castle constructed on top of Aurora Cliff. The castle overlooks the Cape of Ai-Todor and is one of the most popular tourist attractions in the Crimean Peninsula. In fact, it is the symbol of Crimea’s southern coastline.
Source: History Daily
In 1927, a huge earthquake rocked the area. Although the castle was not damaged, the cliff it stands on developed a huge crack. They had to close it during the 1930s as a safety precaution in case the cliff falls apart due to the crack.
La Villa Zanelli (Italy)
This unique and odd-looking villa can be found on a beach just outside of Savona, Italy. It was built in 1907 for a sea captain named Nicolo Zanelli and he and his family stayed there until 1933.
Source: History Daily
The villa was sold to the municipality of Milan. During WWII, it was turned into a field hospital. It later became a heart center. In 1998, the ceiling collapsed. It has been abandoned and exposed to vandals ever since then.
Last island house (USA)
In 1910, Holland Island was considered to be the most populated island in the Chesapeake Bay. The island had homes, shops, a school, and a church. But then, Holland island started to have an erosion problem that ate away the land.
Source: History Daily
Attempts like sinking ships and building stone walls were made but nothing worked. When a tropical storm hit and made a lot of damage, most of the residents tore down their homes and moved inland. This is the last and only remaining house on what is left of the island.
Ferris wheel (Japan)
This Ferris wheel is part of Kejonuma Leisure Land, an abandoned theme park in Ōsaki, Japan. It is a famous abandoned place favorite among urban explorers, thanks to this eerily beautiful rusting Ferris wheel.
Source: History Daily
This theme park was first built in 1979. It had to close in 2000 due to the lack of customers. This was caused by the opening of Disneyland Tokyo and Universal Studios Japan. The owner is still using the property for its hot water.
Church (Indonesia)
Mount Sinabung volcano of Karo, Indonesia, is an active volcano that has had many eruptions over the past few years. Here is a picture of an abandoned church in the area during one of those eruptions. You can see the sky is filled with ash and smoke.
Source: History Daily
The frequent eruptions of Mount Sinabung caused thousands of people to evacuate their homes and businesses in the area. Living on the slopes of an active volcano has proven to be hazardous over the years.
Chatillon car graveyard (Belgium)
In the small village of Chatillon, Southern Belgium, numerous cars were left by their owners on top of a hill. This later became known as the Chatillon car graveyard. The cars once belonged to US soldiers.
Source: History Daily
The soldiers bought these cars while they were in Belgium during WWII. When the war was over, they found it was too expensive to ship their cars to the US. They decided to leave them behind and park the cars on top of the hill.
Forest cottage (Ireland)
In a beautiful yellow forest near Stradbally, Ireland, there stands a small cottage that was built back in the 1900s or 1900s. Time has passed and its stunning blue roof is still an eyecatcher for hikers.
Source: History Daily
As you can see here, the cottage is made out of stone so it is still in pretty good shape. Nobody knows what happened or why the owners abandoned it. It’s just one of those intriguing mysteries in the area.
Nara Dreamland (Japan)
This theme park was made to copy Disneyland and they used the less popular Disney characters due to money issues. Eventually, the theme park had to close down because it never recovered from its financial problems.
Source: History Daily
This is just one of the roller coasters in the abandoned theme park and its name is Screw Coaster. Nara Dreamland was supposed to be demolished but it still stands today and most of the rides have turned into rusty structures.
British warship wreckage (Canada)
This wreckage is what is left of the H.M.S. Ontario, a British warship that sank and had gone missing in 1780. Jim Kennard teamed up with Dan Scoville to look for sunken vessels and they were able to find this warship.
Source: History Daily
The H.M.S. Ontario is considered to be the oldest British warship found in the Great Lakes of Ontario. When it was discovered in 2008, the warship was mostly intact. It was believed that the warship sank during a great storm and took the lives of 130 men with it.
Gentzrode mansion (Germany)
This Moorish-style mansion can be found in Brandenburg, Germany and it is rumored to be cursed due to its history of failures. The castle-like mansion was built in 1877 but it turned out to be expensive and caused the original owner’s family to go bankrupt.
Source: History Daily
Since then, the mansion had gone through several owners – most of which only owned it for a year or less before they put up the mansion for sale again. After the Gentzrode was captured by the Nazis, it eventually was abandoned and fell into ruins.
Grocery store (Japan)
Abandoned for years, this grocery store has turned into a home for numerous spiders. You can still see products all over the place. This happens to be just one of the many businesses and homes that were abandoned in the town of Fukushima.
Source: History Daily
In March 2011, an earthquake and tsunami hit Fukushima. The earthquake damaged the nuclear power plant and caused a radiation leak forcing the entire evacuation of Fukushima. Today, Fukushima is a total ghost town.
Six Flags (USA)
In New Orleans, there is an abandoned Six Flags theme park that stands as a reminder of the fateful day Hurricane Katrina hit the area. As we all know, Hurricane Katrina was one of the worst storms that hit the USA.
Source: History Daily
There has been discussion on whether or not to restore the theme park or whether they should do something else with the property. There are still a lot of areas in New Orleans that have remained empty and abandoned ever since then.
Mir diamond mine (Russia)
In Mirny, Russia, you can find one of the largest man-made holes in the world. The mine is considered to be important due to the number of diamonds that have been found there since 1957.
Source: History Daily
The mine closed temporarily in 2004. When it was reopened in 2009, it was expected to operate for the next 50 years. However, in 2017, the Mir diamond mine had a flooding incident that trapped over 140 miners. It has been closed and abandoned since then.
Fishing hut (Germany)
In Berchtesgaden National Park, an abandoned fishing hut can be found in the waters of Obersee Lake. The hut sits in the water in the middle of a mountainous area, making it a beautiful sight.
Source: History Daily
No information can be found on who were the original owners. When it was discovered in the area, it was completely empty. It is most likely that the fishing hut was once used as a getaway for fishermen to enjoy some solitude.
Pencho Semov mansion (Bulgaria)
Known as the “Bulgarian Rockefeller,” Pencho Semov is known to be the first billionaire of Bulgaria. He went from a poor boy to a billionaire through trading, banking, and business. And has owned a lot of real estate – including this mansion.
Source: History Daily
Before his death, he wanted his mansion to become a retirement home. Unfortunately, his last wishes were not carried out. The mansion was used as a ward for infectious tuberculosis cases. It was abandoned after that.
Dome houses (USA)
In 1980, Bob Lee, a retired oil producer built a line of dome houses on the coast of Southwest Florida. They used to be beautiful and were self-sustaining and solar-powered. In 2005, the dome houses were sold to John Tosto.
Source: Historic Daily
Unfortunately, Hurricane Wilma happened and caused great damage to the dome houses as the hurricane also washed away part of the coastline. Today, the structure is totally abandoned and the sea has taken over. It can only be reached by boat.
Pavilionul de Bai (Romania)
This former treatment house or sanitarium was built during the 1900s. The building was built in a unique E-shaped fashion. It has been known for the wide variety of therapy it can do for its patients.
Source: History Daily
When communism hit Romania, tourism eventually stopped and this had a major impact on the area. Today, the town seems to be growing again and the locals are hoping that this once magnificent building can still be restored.
Spy ship wreck (Red Sea)
The Red Sea is home to several shipwrecks but this one stands out because of what was discovered inside it. This Russian wreck was believed to be a fishing trawler named “Khanka” and was discovered in 1988.
Source: History Daily
When the shipwreck was discovered, there were a lot of electronic devices, communication equipment, and batteries on board. It came to the conclusion that the Khanka was a Russian spy ship used for surveillance and communication.
Castle (Italy)
Italy has an abundance of abandoned castles. In fact, they are sold at a very cheap price with the condition that you are required to restore them. You can also buy castles that have already been restored.
Source: History Daily
Every castle has something unique in them such as artwork on the ceilings and walls, layouts, rooms, dungeons, winding staircases, and secret passageways. Here is a peek into the interior of one of the abandoned castles looking for a new owner.
IM cooling tower (Belgium)
The IM cooling tower used to be the largest coal-burning power station in Belgium. Built-in 1921, it later rose to be the main source of energy for Charleroi and it was able to cool down 480,000 gallons of water per minute.
Source: History Daily
Then, it was determined that the plant was responsible for 10% of the total carbon dioxide emissions in the country. Greenpeace started a protest and the people joined in. The plant eventually closed in 2007.
Norwich State hospital theatre (USA)
If you are looking for something more on the creepy side even during the day, the abandoned Norwich State hospital in Connecticut is the best one to explore. This hospital that opened in 1904 was known to treat mentally unstable and criminally insane patients.
Source: History Daily
This hospital actually had a bad and scary reputation for the unethical treatment and behavior of the staff. There were also reports of murders and suicides occurring inside its walls. The hospital had to be shut down in 1996 and was abandoned ever since.
Christ of the Abyss (Italy)
In the depths of the sea in Italy, you can find the Christ of the Abyss. This original bronze statue is a representation of Jesus Christ offering a benediction of peace while looking up towards the heavens.
Source: History Daily
Technically, this statue was abandoned in the depths of the sea on purpose. It was first placed in the sea in 1954. It was removed in 2003 to be restored and was returned to place the following year.
Michigan Central Station (USA)
This rail station was built in 1913. At the beginning of WWI, more than 200 trains were leaving this station daily. By WWII, the station was used by military troops. In 1988, it closed down completely as people preferred to use cars for travel.
Source: History Daily
After the station closed, it became the victim of elements and vandals. The building was stripped, windows were smashed, squatters stayed in the place, and the basement was flooded.