The five most dangerous tourist destinations on the planet
Dark tourism is the trend that refuses to die, getting more and more popular each year, showing that there’s a constant desire for newer, more exciting, more dangerous locations.
When it comes to danger, we’re talking about individual places, not countries, that’ll see your travel insurance company quaking, so we’re ruling out countries in civil war, war zones or places where you’ll get banged up under suspicion of being a spy.
It goes without saying that these aren’t typical tourist destinations, so don’t expect any potential city break locations, for these are dangerous places that only the most hardened tourists visit, nearly always against both local laws and common sense.
Hence, here we’re ranking five of the most dangerous places on the planet, so without further ado, let’s go through these threats masquerading as tourist destinations.
Five most dangerous tourist destinations in the world:
Chernobyl, Ukraine
The Chernobyl Exclusion Zone is probably the most visited of these five destinations, but it is the world’s most famous dangerous tourist site and one of the most celebrated dark tourist spots.
The exclusion zone is huge, around 30km, and has been sealed off since the nuclear meltdown in reactor four back in 1986. The story of Chernobyl is well known now, a mixture of Soviet arrogance, mismanagement and fear that birthed a crisis truly horrific, and given the nature of a nuclear accident, it’s obvious that radiation in Pripyat is a serious issue and a threat to visitors. Large parts of the site are safe for short periods of time, although there are hot spots that are extremely hazardous to human life, wherein most aren’t even accessible, and for good reason.
It isn’t just the nuclear fallout that makes the area dangerous, but the crumbling infrastructure of Pripyat is a risk, with buildings degrading, floors collapsing, and asbestos rife; yet, it hasn’t stopped a booming tourism industry to the site, that has since been on ice since the invasion of Ukraine, which adds another dimension of danger, with the Russian attackers littering the area with landmines that have caused many deaths already. It’s no longer open to the public and likely won’t be for some time, but there are still ‘stalkers’ visiting against all recommendations and good sense.
Fukushima Exclusion Zone, Japan
Another nuclear disaster on a different continent, the reactor meltdowns following the 2011 earthquake and tsunami caused the Fukushima Daiichi disaster, which saw tens of thousands of residents leave their homes, never to return, and while some parts of the exclusion zone have reopened in recent years, the majority haven’t, with the area heavily policed due to the high levels of contamination and clean-up work that’s still ongoing.
Much like Chernobyl, this is an area that’s being reclaimed by nature, making buildings unsafe and hazardous, but that hasn’t stopped explorers from entering the area and avoiding patrols and surveillance to document the town.
With empty streets, desolate houses still looking exactly like they were left over a decade ago, it’s easy to understand the appeal, with a school being one of the most iconic urbex locations still standing as a vital attraction.
Wittenoom, Australia
The world is littered with ghost towns, and in the Australian Outback, there’s one like no other, wherein this former mining community was once a thriving hub, with thousands living in close proximity, which was developed to extract blue asbestos.
As the dangers of asbestos are evident, it obviously impacted this town, which involved a public health crisis with hundreds of deaths related to mesothelioma and other cancers; however, with the asbestos fibres polluting everywhere, they were embedded in playgrounds, homes and in roads, avoiding them became impossible.
The town was closed, scrubbed from maps and had all utilities removed, making it impossible to live there, and you’re not allowed to visit it, but that doesn’t stop foolish, curious travellers, who put themselves at huge risk, where even brief exposure to asbestos hugely increases the risk of developing cancer; it’s an invisible killer and one which will threaten anyone stupid enough to visit Wittenoom.
Mount Sinabung, Indonesia
In North Sumatra lies one of the world’s most dangerous volcanoes, which erupted for the first time in centuries in 2011 and has since erupted multiple times, killing those nearby.
It’s hard to predict when it will erupt, which means that tourists, who ignore the exclusion zone, can get caught off guard when they get too close.
Rapid clouds of superhot gas, ash and rock known as pyroclastic flows can travel miles within minutes, making escape near impossible if you’re there at the wrong time, as unlucky villagers and tourists have discovered over the years, but that doesn’t stop it from being a prospective dark destination.
Darien Gap, Colombia/Panama
The Darien Gap isn’t a traditional tourist destination, but travel YouTubers have insisted on visiting this area in recent years, documenting their adventures. While some of these videos have millions of views, the danger is real and extreme and not something to be courted.
The Darien Gap is a stretch of rainforest and swamp that is situated between Panama and Colombia, running for 100km, separating North and South America and doesn’t have a single road, making for an area that’s not policed and is lawless; thus, for those who decide to visit, there are a number of threats to consider.
It’s a remote area, and the hostile terrain of thick forest, steep mountains and powerful rivers renders it dangerous to navigate, especially with heavy rain often resulting in floods, and if you can still survive the geography, then you have to battle the wildlife, with venomous snakes everywhere and hospitals nowhere to be seen. There’s the risk of dehydration from the extreme heat, diseases like malaria, and then the cartels who run drugs, weapons and even humans, through the undergrowth, offering a range of rather terrifying outcomes to be faced.
