Dark Tourism Archives - Hoblets On The Go

New Zealand: Christchurch – Earthquake sites

Christchurch’s earthquake sites offer a thoughtful journey through destruction, remembrance and recovery, linking Quake City’s powerful exhibitions with the damaged cathedral, its innovative cardboard successor, and the moving memorials that honour those affected by the Canterbury earthquakes.

The infamous railway tracks leading through the gates of thwe Birkenau death camp - near Krakow, Poland

Poland: Krakow – Auschwitz and Birkenau

Visiting Auschwitz, with its haunting remnants of barbed wire fences, crumbling barracks, and rooms filled with the personal belongings of victims, is an emotionally overwhelming yet profoundly important experience that forces one to confront the horrifying depths of human cruelty, reflect on the immense suffering endured by millions during the Holocaust, and recognise the enduring necessity of remembrance and education to prevent such atrocities from ever happening again.

Poland: Kraków – Schindler’s Factory

Schindler's Factory in Kraków, now a museum, offers a poignant insight into the harrowing experiences of Jews during the Nazi occupation and highlights Oskar Schindler's efforts to save over a thousand lives.

Mexico: Guanajuato – The Mummy Museum

The Mummy Museum in Guanajuato is a fascinating yet spine-chilling place where visitors can walk through dimly lit corridors lined with glass cases containing naturally preserved bodies—each with their own haunting story—offering a powerful, unforgettable glimpse into the city’s unique history, the strange process of mummification caused by local conditions, and the eerie beauty of lives frozen in time.

Bolivia: The Witches Street of El Alto

The Witches Street in El Alto, Bolivia offers a fascinating glimpse into traditional Andean spirituality, where colourful stalls brim with herbs, amulets, dried animals and ritual supplies, and the air is thick with the scent of incense and mysticism, creating an atmosphere that feels both otherworldly and deeply rooted in indigenous culture.

Bolivia: La Paz’s colourful General Cemetery

Visiting the General Cemetery in La Paz offers a moving and unexpectedly beautiful experience, where grand mausoleums stand beside humble graves, the air is filled with fresh flowers and candle smoke, and the lively presence of families honouring their loved ones gives the place a sense of both solemnity and warmth rather than gloom.

Poland: Pomorskie – Museum of the Second World War

The Museum of the Second World War in Gdańsk offers a deeply moving and thoughtfully curated experience, blending striking architecture with comprehensive exhibits that confront both the immense tragedy and the complex historical realities of the conflict.

Chapel of bones - Evora, Portugal

Portugal: Évora – Chapel of Bones (Capela dos Ossos)

The Chapel of Bones, is a hauntingly beautiful monument adorned with human skulls and bones, inviting visitors to reflect on the fleeting nature of life.

Turkey: Galipoli – The War Graves

The war graves on the Gallipoli Peninsula stand as solemn reminders of the immense sacrifice made by soldiers during the First World War, with headstones marking the resting places of men from across the Commonwealth.

Norway: Oslo – The Norwegian Center for Holocaust

The Norwegian Center for Holocaust and Minority Studies is a research, education and documentation center in Oslo focusing on the Holocaust, other genocides, extremism, antisemitism, hate speech, and the situation of minorities in contemporary societies.

Ghana: Accra – Fantasy coffin makers

Fantasy coffin makers in Accra, Ghana, craft vibrant, custom-designed coffins shaped like fish, cars, animals, and other symbolic figures, reflecting the deceased's life, profession, or aspirations in a unique artistic tradition.

Ghana: Assin Manso Slave River Site

Assin Manso, located in Ghana, was a significant site in the transatlantic slave trade, serving as a final resting point where enslaved Africans were bathed and prepared for auction before being shipped across the Atlantic.

Benin: Ouidah – Slave Route

The Ouidah Slave Route, a historic path in Benin, West Africa, symbolizes the harrowing journey of countless enslaved Africans who were forcibly taken to the Americas, serving as a poignant reminder of the transatlantic slave trade's enduring legacy.

Togo: Lome – Akodessawa Fetish Market

The Akodessawa Fetish Market in Lomé, Togo, is renowned for its extraordinary array of traditional voodoo artefacts and charms, drawing visitors from around the world who seek insight into West African spiritual practices.

Sweden: Stockholm – Skogskyrkogården

Skogskyrkogården is a cemetery in Stockholm which is a UNESCO World Heritage Site. It was created between 1917 and 1920 by two young architects, Asplund and Lewerentz, on the site of former gravel pits overgrown with pine trees.

Indonesia: Sulawesi – Death rituals and tongkonan houses

Tana Toraja is a region on the Indonesian island of Sulawesi. It is unusual in that this community is predominantly Christian in a country where 90 per cent of the population is Muslim. As well as practicing Christianity the people here still have a lot of animist practices embedded within their culture.

The colours of the tombstones are symbolic - The public cemetery in Chichicastenango, Guatemala

Guatemala: Solala – Chichicastenango Cemetery

On the fringes of a densely crowded marketplace in the Guatemalan highlands, a reverent silence looms over the ivory gate of the Cementerio General. Beyond its deceptively sterile exterior, hundreds of vibrant tombstones pepper the hillside.

The old cell block at Horsens Prision - Faengslet, Denmark

Denmark: Midtjylland – FÆNGSLET – Horsens Prison

Horsens State Prison in central Denmark closed its doors in 2006 and was the home of some of the Nordic nation’s most high-profile criminals. FÆNGLSET, the state-of-the-art museum with a staggering collection of items tells the story of Denmark’s most famous prison.

Laos: Vientiane – Cooperative Orthotic and Prosthetic Enterprise

Since its creation in 1996, COPE has worked in close partnership with Lao government rehabilitation centres to provide nation-wide physical rehabilitation services. Through COPE thousands of people with mobility-related disabilities, including UXO survivors, have received prosthetic and orthotic services free of charge

Cambodia: Siem Reap – APOPO Visitor Center

A chance to meet the hero rats that are helping to clear landmines in Cambodia. Apopo has trained the highly sensitive, almost-blind Gambian pouched rat to sniff explosives, which dramatically speeds up the detection of mines in the countryside.

South Africa: Gauteng – Exploring Johannesburg

Johannesburg is South Africa's largest and fastest-growing city and is built on a history of racial division that achieved its most dramatic form in the twentieth century policy of strict separation known as apartheid.

South Africa: Cape Town – Robben Island

Robben Island was used at various times between the 17th and 20th centuries as a prison, a hospital for socially unacceptable groups and a military base. Its buildings, particularly those of the late 20th century such as the maximum security prison for political prisoners.

UK: London – Tower of London

Tower of London, byname the Tower, royal fortress and London landmark. Its buildings and grounds served historically as a royal palace, a political prison, a place of execution, an arsenal, a royal mint, a menagerie, and a public records office. It is located on the north bank of the River Thames.

France: Paris – Père Lachaise cemetery

The Père Lachaise cemetery takes its name from King Louis XIVs confessor, Father François d'Aix de La Chaise. It is the most prestigious and most visited necropolis in Paris.

The South Pool, sitting on the site of the South Tower of the World Trade Center - 9/11 Memorial, New York City

New York: New York City – 9/11 Memorial & Museum

The 9/11 Memorial & Museum lay in the footprint of the twin towers of the World Trade Center that was attacked by terrorists deliberately flying aircraft into these buildings on September 11, 2001. Two additional aircraft were hijacked, one crashing into the Pentagon and the second brought down in a field by the brave efforts of the passengers on board. In total, nearly 3000 people lost their lives. The memorial and museum provide a place to contemplate and document what happened on that tragic day in 2001.

The amazing crypts and tombs at St Louis #1 cemetery in New Orleans

Louisiana: New Orleans – St Louis Cemetary #1

Saint Louis Cemeteryis the name of three Catholic cemeteries in New Orleans, Louisiana. Most of the graves are above-ground vaults constructed in the 18th and 19th centuries.Cemeteries No. 1 and No. 2 are included on the National Register of Historic Places.

A skeleton on a wheel - Spansih Inquisition Museum, Granada

Spain: Granada – Spanish Inquisition Museum

The Museum of the Spanish Inquisition is a fascinating insight into the cruel and grisly punishments inflicted during a turbulent time in Europe. Granada is also a great place to watch some passionate and energetic flamenco dancing.

Gettysburg National Military Park, Park

Pennsylvania: Gettysburg National Military Park

Gettysburg located in rural Pennsylvania probably would have remained a sleepy little town but for the American Civil War and the battle that took place there on July 1 to 3 1863. Here the Confederate and Union forces fought a fierce battle that resulted in the highest losses of any conflict in the Civil War. For those like myself, who can’t imagine a bloody melee such as took place at Gettysburg there is an amazing visitor center complete with videos, memorabilia and a fantastic cyclorama.

National Parks & Monuments

Pennsylvania: Valley Forge National Historical Monument

On our road trip through Pennsylvania we discovered a National Park that we were totally unfamiliar with. Valley Forge, located 18 miles northwest of Philadelphia, had a very important role in the War of Independence, but unlike many monuments this was not the site of a battle

South Dakota: Pine Ridge Reservation – Wounded Knee

Since coming to live in the United States I have enjoyed discovering more about the history and culture of the Country. As with any country the United States has had bright and dark moments. During our road trip through South Dakota I decided to explore one of the darker episodes, with a visit the site of Wounded Knee, which is found in the Oglala Sioux reservation, and is the site of the last battle between the US military and the Sioux.

National Parks & Monuments

Montana: Little Bighorn

The Little Bighorn Battlefield National Monument consists of museum exhibits, an interpretive centre, and ranger-led programs that commemorates the site of the Indian victory over Custer's 7th Cavalry which was one of the last armed efforts of the Northern Plains Indians to preserve their ancestral way of life.

South Dakota: Minuteman Historic Site

Minuteman Missile National Historic Site protects two facilities that were once part of a Minuteman Missile field that covered the far western portion of South Dakota from 1963 through the early 1990s.

USA: California – Alcatraz National Park

A day trip to the infamous prison island of Alcatraz in San Francisco and watching the sea lions on Pier 39.